Dry soils offer risks and rewards for fall nitrogen applications

Dry soil conditions this fall offer both opportunities and challenges for fall nitrogen application. The risk and success of such operations depend on soil characteristics, weather conditions and machinery operations. Opportunities Usually growers are advised to delay application as long as possible in the fall so soils are cool, in order to prevent or delay

No till doesn’t mean “never till,” says adviser

It may seem like heresy, but shallow plowing once every seven years 
could help rather than hurt soil quality

It’s still possible to catch a glimpse of a moldboard plow now and then on the Prairies. Usually, they can be seen rusting away peacefully in the bushes near an abandoned farm yard, or taking one last ride on the back of a scrap metal truck. That’s where the older plows belong, said Pat Lynch,


Farmers need permission to burn off fields

Producers who choose to burn crop residue are reminded that authorization is required to burn crop residue between Aug. 1 and Nov. 15. Authorizations are issued daily by 11 a.m. based on weather, moisture and favourable smoke dispersion conditions, Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives says in a release. Night burning is banned year round.

Is soil fumigation worth it in Manitoba potato crops?

Should Manitoba potato growers be following the example of their counterparts south of the border and begin incorporating soil fumigation with Vapam into their management practices? Mario Tenuta, a soil scientist with the University of Manitoba, has been looking into the question, but says drawing conclusions would be premature. “We’re really just starting to get


Can you weatherproof your farm?

Plants draw different amounts of moisture from different depths in the soil, 
and growers can make those differences work for them

Grain farmers are always hoping for a Goldilocks year — not too wet, not too dry, but just right. But since fairy tales rarely come true, researchers with Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives are looking for alternative approaches. “It’s led us to wonder how we might weatherproof our crop rotations a bit,” oilseed specialist

Young farmer champions the soil

It’s the kind of story that the farming industry takes great pride in today. A young producer, recently graduated with an agriculture degree, recently married, joining his family farm, and building a farming future on high principles of conservation and sustainable management. Ryan Boyd, who farms with wife Sarah and parents Jim and Joanne Boyd,


Conservation congress comes to Winnipeg

staff / The Sixth World Congress on Conservation Agriculture will be held in Winnipeg in June 2014. “That conference will showcase Canadian farm developments such as no-till farming systems to the world,” says Don McCabe, president of Soils Conservation Council of Canada. “The Beneficial Management Practices employed in conservation agriculture are the backbone of sustainability.

It’s early, but a good time to fertilize

Field work was underway in some parts of Manitoba late last week as farmers began applying fertilizer applications during one of the earliest springs people can remember. But while extension officials urged farmers to take full advantage of the province’s exemption to rules limiting fertilizer applications until after April 10, they cautioned against putting seed


The cross with ancient species is considered a first

Reuters / Scientists in Australia have crossed a popular, commercial variety of wheat with an ancient species, producing a hardy, high-yielding plant that is tolerant of salty soil. The researchers, who published their work March 12 in the journal Nature Biotechnology, hope the new strain will help address food shortages in arid and semi-arid places

U.S. Corn Belt not ready to seed just yet

Reuters / Shirt-sleeve weather across America’s central Grain Belt is tempting, but expensive seeds and worries about insurance covering any sudden cold snap have kept crop planters out of fields. “We’ve got a lot invested in this crop. We want to be careful,” said central Illinois farmer Tim Seifert, who doesn’t want to take the