Arnprior Breakfast Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Weather
- Some fields are starting to show signs of denitrification, specifically in low-lying areas, fields that are not tiled, and/or have been experiencing frequent, heavy rainfalls.
- Areas of soil compaction are also visible in these fields.
Winter Wheat
- Some sprouting in unharvested fields is just starting. There are still many acres yet to harvest. Frequent storms and rain have made harvest challenging, with short windows to harvest or bale straw.
- If you are having quality concerns as you harvest or at harvest completion, please contact Agricorp to appraise them of the situation.
- Fields that were underseeded into clover and were harvested 1-3 weeks ago have clover coming up through the straw windrows, making straw baling challenging.
- Overall, grain yields are average, while straw yields are average or above.
- Straw that is being chopped right behind the combine has been able to be put up dry, but other fields are struggling to get the straw dry.
Spring Cereals
- Most fields are ready for harvest, and have been for a few days.
- Pre-harvest burndown has started in many areas. More acres are expected to be done as soon as the fields are fit to carry equipment.
Corn
- There is still some fungicide being applied locally. Reasons for application include silage acres, concerns over disease pressures, or inclusion in annual fertilizer programs.
- There are some fungicide trials occurring on farm, but most are small scale comparisons.
- There are some western bean cutworm populations close to or at threshold, but weather prevent any insecticide applications at the appropriate timing.
Soybeans
- Some soybeans lodged after heavy rains, but are expected to recover.
- Reports of lots of phytophthora, some white mould, and some septoria. Overall, disease pressures and root rots are expected to remain high with upcoming forecasted rains.
- There are some spider mites locally. Information on what to do if you find mites in field can be found here. Field Crop News. Make sure mites are actually present on plants and leaf samples when preparing to ship them.
- There are a few fields south of Ottawa with aphids over threshold. Appropriate insecticides were applied.
Canola
- Winter canola is ready and has been for a few weeks.
- Spring canola is approaching harvest timing quickly, except for some replant acres that were damaged by frost in the spring. Those fields are expected to be a couple weeks later.
Cover Crops
- Most acres of cover crop planned are oats, but weather has been challenging to allow for seeding.
- Red clover that was underseeded into winter cereals is looking good.
- Some questions around using hairy vetch as a cover crop:
- Growers should have a termination plan, and a back up (it can be challenging to kill in future crops)
- Often produces lots of nitrogen
- Prefers having something to climb – it is best paired with a crop that allows it to climb (rye, triticale, etc.)
- When implementing cover crops, it’s important to consider your return on investment for that crop. Seed cost, planting cost and termination plans/expenses should all be considered, as well as any benefits, such as nitrogen fixation, less erosion risk, etc. Sometimes adding an additional species can increase returns exponentially, while others can be extra cost with little return.
Quinoa
- There are a couple local farmers growing quinoa this year. Weed pressures are high, and a pre-harvest burndown is planned for all acres.
- Average yields are 0.8 tonnes per acre, with 2025 reporting an average of 0.5 tonnes per acre.
- Quinoa prefers lighter, sandy soils, and is intended to be harvested late August.
Post-harvest Field Management
- It’s recommended to sample amendments before they go/get to the field. Many amendments offer a guaranteed minimum analysis, but nutrient values are often higher than that minimum. Not sampling can lead to over application, skewing of soil nutrients and potential crop concerns in future crops.
- When deciding between fall and spring applications of manure and amendments, considering the carbon to nitrogen ration (C:N) will determine availability of nutrients and loss potential. Ratios of 10:1 or lower are amendments that are often very quickly available after application and may not be suited to fall applications.
- It’s also important to consider strategic tillage and avoid “recreational tillage” – what are you trying to accomplish with the tillage pass(es)?
- “Stacking” management practices can be advantageous beyond implementing individual practices. Described as 1+1=3 when introducing cover crops, incorporating manure, or diversifying crop rotations (these are not the only best management practices).
- Consider including a budget for your cover crop as part of your annual (or multi-year) crop planning. Allotting certain planned dollar amounts can make implementing practices simpler.
- Often, post-harvest field management practices are long-term moves. Comparable to crop insurance, fields may not show immediate responses to new practices, but long-term should demonstrate field resilience, increased water infiltration, and responses to stressful growing seasons.
- When considering introducing an amendment to your rotation, future concerns or problems that may be a direct result of a decision made previously.
- It’s also important to study nutrient values and the potential for imbalances to be created by adding a product very heavy in one nutrient.
- With cover crops seeding rates, often less is more – fall seeding rates are typically recommended to be lower than spring seeding rates for the same species.
- Tools such as AgriSuite can be used to analyze nutrients balances, crop removals, and costs.
Winchester Breakfast Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, August 12, 2026
Winter Cereals
- Most winter wheat being harvested now is going as grade 4, while earlier harvested grains made grade 2.
- Grain yields are average in most areas.
- Straw yields are average to above average, however harvesting the straw has proven to be challenging.
- Its estimated there’s anywhere from 25% to 75% of acres left to harvest, depending on where rainfall has occurred.
Spring Cereals
- Spring wheat is quickly approaching harvest. Several fields have received pre-harvest burndown.
- Corners or sprayer misses are showing high disease pressures (fusarium head blight) and yields are expected to be impacted.
Corn
- Some observations of flea beetles on corn silks. Populations are high but are not consistently in every field.
- There is some goose-necking in corn that is corn on corn and these fields are suspected to have Bt-resistant corn rootworm.
- Corn rootworm adults can feed on other crops such as volunteer corn, squash, and a variety of other crops. Larvae can only survive on corn roots, so controlling volunteer corn is critical. If volunteer corn is present in a rotated crop, it can negate the effect of rotation by allowing the corn rootworm to survive another generation.
- Damage can include goose-necking, window paning, silk clipping and root damage.
- If you suspect you have Bt-resistant rootworm, contact OMAFA, and your seed dealer. Samples should be collected and site information recorded to properly monitor development.
- The only certain way to avoid resistant rootworm is to maintain a crop rotation. For some growers, this can be challenging. Manure applications or feed demands can dictate a crop rotation. For growers with excess manure (or those looking to change their crop rotation so it isn’t dictated by manure), selling manure to neighbours or other producers can be an effective way to change crop rotation and reduce the risk of resistant rootworm populations developing. Cost analysis on valuing manure can be done through the AgriSuite tool.
- More information on Corn Rootworm can be found here:
Soybeans
- White mould is developing in fields with high plant populations
- There are a few fields over threshold for aphid populations
- Many soybeans have nodes very far apart, making for tall beans.
- Some fusarium wilt and other root rots are appearing more with each rainfall.
Other
- It’s important to consider all factors when making decisions for new crops or amendments.
- Consider what other nutrients or metals are present in a product – products with high aluminum levels can have severely negative effects on soils with lower pH.
- The PLATO tool can help identify erosion potential, nutrient losses through tile drainage.
- Phosphorus loss and runoff potential can change greatly in soils with a phosphorus value above 30-35ppm.
- Recommendations in dairy rations have been lowered for phosphorus, so there is potential to see less phosphorus in dairy manure going forward. Regular manure sampling can allow producers and agronomists to monitor changes in manure values.
- Sand bedding can change soil composition if left to settle in manure pits and then must be spread all at once. Sand separators or frequent agitation can keep manure distributed equally and reduce sand presence in manure applications. Sand separators are effective at removing up to 98% of sand from manure storages.
Next Meeting Dates
Arnprior (PJ’s Restaurant & Dining Lounge, Arnprior)
- September 22, 2026
- October 20, 2026
- November 24, 2026
Winchester (Country Kitchen, Winchester)
- September 9, 2026
- October 14, 2026
- November 25, 2026