Wet enough for you?

Wet enough for you?

Bringing weather data into your crop planning decisions can be a powerful tool

If you want to know if you should top dress fertilizer in season, a great place to start is with just how much soil moisture is available. Knowing the answer to that question will tell you if there’s any opportunity still out there to be captured, says Ryan Hutchison, of South Country Equipment. South Country’s

 Guy Ash, of Pessl Instruments, 
demonstrates how a soil probe can 
augment weather station data.

Probe deep into your soil to solve farm’s moisture mystery

Soil probe expert says you can use soil probes and their data to your farm’s financial advantage

Looking around at the wet conditions, at first glance you could think our moisture levels are more than adequately stocked going into the 2020 crop year. Unfortunately looks can be deceiving, and the same goes when looking at your soil profile. When it comes time to plan your planting timing and strategy, knowing the actual


Sam Thorpe of Spade and Plow stands in front of a field of harvested artichoke plants at his family’s farm in San Martin, California, June 3, 2019.

In the heart of the U.S. high tech sector, farmers fight for land

In wealthy Silicon Valley, a $500-million plan to save threatened farmland

Thomson Reuters Foundation – With a swipe of his harvesting knife, Sam Thorpe frees a handful of spinach from its roots in the soil. “In the winter it’s so sweet it’s like candy,” he says, examining the small yield in his palm. For the past four years, Thorpe and his family have built a reputation

People climb a dike formed by wind soil erosion during a field tour at the Global Forum on Soil Stewardship.

Soil degradation a costly global issue

About a third of the world’s soil is degraded, which has economic and food security implications

When Prairie-dwellers think of soil erosion, they may think of iconic photos from the Dirty ’30s: towering clouds of black soil blowing across desolate land, teacups turned upside down against drifting grit. But as Francis Zvomuya told the classroom of farmers and agronomists at the Global Forum on Soil Stewardship, soil degradation is far from


Editor’s Take: Fair’s fair

An old friend lives in Winnipeg along a major thoroughfare that’s slated for expansion at some yet-to-be-determined future date. He and his wife have lived there for nearly 20 years, and the word of the planned roadwork came down shortly after they bought the house. They’ve been told, in no uncertain terms, that once the

Comment: Bring back the PFRA

Soil conservation in Canada has been losing ground despite a general feeling erosion is a problem of the past

Some say it saved Western Canada. But the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration, perhaps the most respected government agency in Canada’s history, was dissolved in 2003. It’s time to bring it back. Scientific principles are one thing. Encouraging farmers to use them are another — that requires expertise in ‘extension,’ a word which has unfortunately fallen


Comment: Can we bring back our soil?

Comment: Can we bring back our soil?

The Soil Conservation Council of Canada is calling for a united effort from the farming community, government and agriculture industry to make soil health a priority

If soil health isn’t top of mind for you, it should be. Canada has some of the world’s most viable and productive farmland. This farmland is where you make your living. It sustains our rural communities. It grows our food. While Canada is a world leader in improving our soils, further steps are necessary to

The 160-acre plot northeast of Virden has never been broken and for the most part, kept completely intact.

Rare native prairie to continue in perpetuity

Galawan land donation ensures that habitat will be protected for some species at risk

The New Oxford Dictionary defines ‘gem’ as a person or thing considered to be outstandingly good or special in some respect. By this definition, the quarter section of native prairie grassland formerly owned by mixed grain and cattle producer Peter Galawan of Lenore can undoubtedly be described as a gem. The 160-acre plot northeast of


Drainage licensing in Manitoba: Policy or politics?

Drainage licensing in Manitoba: Policy or politics?

Landowners say some municipalities are bending the rules when it comes to water management and the provincial government is turning a blind eye. Concerns are boiling over into the courts as the province considers off-loading the responsibility for drainage licensing onto municipalities

Flood forecasts are as predictable as spring in Manitoba and the latest ones have Elm Creek-area landowner Pat Houde bracing for yet another showdown over water. He’s been fighting with the RM of Grey for years over drainage around his home and land he owns between Elm Creek and St. Claude. The blunt-talking Houde doesn’t

Livestock and forage producers are once again beneficiaries of provincial funding priorities.

Ag Action Manitoba adds to fundable farm projects

Farmers have until Feb. 22 to apply for 2019-20 beneficial management practice funding

Livestock producers and forage growers will feature heavily in the next round of farm funding under Ag Action Manitoba. The province has added five beneficial management practices (BMPs) for assurance funding in 2019-20, most of which relate to perennial crops or livestock, on top of 10 management practices already on the books. Why it matters: