2024 Corn Seasonal Summary

Black tar spot stromata on corn leaves in an Oxford County field in September 2024.

Planting In March 2024, Statistics Canada estimated Ontario farmers intended to plant 2.3 million acres of grain corn, 5% higher than the 5-year (2019-2023) average seeded acres of 2.2 million acres (OMAFA Crop Statistics).  Unsettled weather and highly variable planting progress dominated the spring of 2024. Frequent rains through April limited early corn planting. Frequent […]

Read More…

Canola & Coffee Speaker Series: Direct Harvesting

Four Ontario producers share their knowledge and experience direct harvesting canola. Terry Phillips grows spring canola in Temiskaming District. Michael Doelman farms in Renfrew County, and typically grows spring canola but has one crop of winter canola under his belt. Jerry Drudge has switched from spring to winter canola on his farm in Huron County. […]

Read More…

2024 Soybean Seasonal Summary

Leaves with white stippling damage from spider mite feeding. Source: Horst Bohner

A wet spring pushed Ontario soybean acres to a record high of 3.1 million acres seeded in 2024. This was up 7% from 2023. To date, with approximately half of yields reported the provincial yield is above average at 108%. This number will be updated in January when all acres have been reported. The Agricorp […]

Read More…

Dry Bean Seasonal Summary

Bean field with excess moisture causing stand loss and nitrogen deficiency.

Meghan Moran In 2023, Ontario dry bean acres had dropped below 100,000 acres which was the lowest in a decade. In 2024, acres returned to a more typical level for the province, at around 116,000 acres insured by Agricorp. White beans accounted for about 40% of the dry bean acres, and black beans reached their […]

Read More…

Forage Summary 2024

Christine O’Reilly presenting on Forages at Pasture Walk, August 10, 2024 in Simcoe County.

Winter Conditions 2023/2024 Much of the province had below-average precipitation over the winter, including the Ottawa Valley, the northern and western shores of Lake Huron, and Rainy River District. Temperatures across Ontario were milder than normal, which resulted in reduced snow cover in many areas. Hay and Haylage Above-average levels of alfalfa winterkill occurred in […]

Read More…

Fall 2024 Winter Wheat Update

Growers across Ontario have been able to seed winter wheat this fall into almost perfect conditions, and there may be a record acreage seeded. A significant portion of winter wheat acres were seeded in September but with persistent summer like conditions, growers continued seeding well into late October. Early planted fields are well tillered with […]

Read More…

The Impact of Forage Processing on Beef Cow Performance and Efficiency

By: Dr. Katie Wood, Associate Professor, Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph and Madeline McLennan,  M.Sc. Student, Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph This article was originally published in the October 2024 edition of Virtual Beef. Although forage choppers and bale processors are not new technologies, there is a surprizing lack of data in how they can […]

Read More…

2024 Ontario Grain Corn Ear Mould and Deoxynivalenol (DON) Mycotoxin Survey

OMAFA field crop specialists in collaboration with Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) and members of the Ontario Agri-Business Association (OABA) have completed the 2024 annual Ontario corn ear mould and DON mycotoxin survey. Corn ear moulds such as Gibberella and their corresponding mycotoxins occur every year in Ontario. These mycotoxins, particularly deoxynivalenol (DON, also referred […]

Read More…

Clubroot is Becoming Commonplace

Clubroot is no longer hiding. Canola producers in Northeastern Ontario have reported symptoms over the past 5 to 8 years and there were certainly fields with yield loss in the past few years that generated concern. But in 2024 above-ground symptoms were more obvious in Temiskaming District. Patches in fields matured early or died prior […]

Read More…