Seed quality in Manitoba for the upcoming growing season is a mixed bag depending on the crop, according to Holly Gelech, manager of business development for BioVision Seed Labs in Winnipeg. The average germination of wheat seed tested from the 2016 crop is 86.3 per cent, down six per cent from the five-year high of
Seed quality highly variable
A tough growing year has translated into seed that can have lower germ levels
Boots on the ground must support scouting technology
The existing technology can detect variation in a field, but not why that variation exists
There’s no shortage of technology available to help researchers, agronomists, and farmers scout their fields. From satellite imagery and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) to smartphone apps, there are plenty of tools out there. Just don’t expect them to replace boots on the ground any time soon. The limitation of current remote-sensing technology, such
Variable-rate seeding next step in precision farming
Seeding & Tillage Focus: Southwest corn grower reports higher yield and lower seed costs
Boissevain-area farmer Arthur Bell recently stepped up his variable-rate game. After accumulating seven years of experience with VR fertilization, three years ago he decided VR seeding would probably work much the same way and give him similar results. The basic strategy is the same — identify the most and least productive spots in each field
Keeping volunteer canola out of soybeans
Inter-row tillage looks like a promising management tool
The average of six per cent canola seed loss during harvest sounds bad enough, but even worse when converted into the number of seeds left to germinate as volunteers the following year. “We’re losing an average of 4,000 to 5,000 seeds per square metre so it doesn’t take a lot of persistence for volunteer canola
Soybeans — the ‘kitchen sink’ strategy works, but…
Ontario trials suggest early seeding is the best and cheapest management practice
Intensive management can improve soybean yields, but growers should evaluate whether each strategy pencils out, says a soybean specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Speaking at the Manitoba Agronomists Conference (MAC) in Winnipeg in December, Horst Bohner described more than a decade of research to evaluate various management strategies to
Determining the best seeding rate for hard red spring wheat
An NDSU researcher finds that different varieties also have different tillering capacities
The old rule of thumb about seeding 1.5 bushels of wheat per acre just doesn’t apply anymore, says a researcher with North Dakota State University. Variety, seeding date and even latitude make a difference, Grant Mehring told the Manitoba Agronomists Conference in Winnipeg last December. He described his extensive, three-year research trials on seeding rates
Assessing tillering capacity of hard red spring wheat
Tillering is one of three components that ultimately determines yield but it’s a complex process involving many different factors. It isn’t easy to predict, which is why producers can’t simply look up tillering capacity in their provincial seed guide. “There is no actual genetic predictor of tillering capacity that we know of,” Grant Mehring of
Heading off Group 2-resistant weeds
It’s complicated, but picking the right rotation of crops and chemicals is key to avoiding multiple resistance
Many common crop rotations in Manitoba are selecting for Group 2 herbicide resistance, as well as pushing resistance to other herbicide groups, says a U.S. weed specialist. Jeff Stachler of Ohio State University’s Auglaize County Extension Office told the recent Manitoba Agronomists Conference that a good rotation, not just of crops, but also of herbicides
Soybean white mould control options limited
In contrast to canola, there are only four products registered
While many Manitoba growers are familiar with the extensive number of fungicides available for dealing with white mould (sclerotinia) in canola, they may not realize that there are a lot fewer options to treat this disease in soybeans. Only four foliar fungicides are registered for control or suppression of white mould on soybeans: Acapela (DuPont),
Engaging natural enemies to fight soybean aphids
The economic threshold for spraying is much higher if there is a good population of natural enemies
Don’t only count the bad bugs before deciding to spray — count the good ones as well, says Jordan Bannerman of the department of entomology at the University of Manitoba. Bannerman is developing a new decision-making tool that will provide growers a way to predict whether there are enough natural insect enemies present in the
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