There were approximately 44,750 acres of canola insured by Agricorp in 2023, which is over 20% more acres than last year. Insured acres include both winter and spring canola. Winter canola accounts for about half of the increase. Spring canola acres expanded in Temiskaming District and counties east of Toronto, compared to last year. Spring […]
Results from the 2023 Ontario corn rootworm (CRW) trap sites monitored through the Adult Corn Rootworm (CRW) Trap Monitoring Network have been summarized in the infographic below. Thank you to all the trap participants for monitoring their traps this year. These sites are helping us to identify fields and counties with potential resistant corn rootworm […]
Winter 2022/2023 Conditions Fall 2022 was open and mostly dry. Growth on annual forages and regrowth on hay fields was faster than usual. Snow cover over the winter was less than normal, with frequent thaws and rain events. Ice sheeting was flagged as a potential problem in eastern Ontario. April had more precipitation than average […]
OMAFRA field crop specialists in collaboration with Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) and members of the Ontario Agri-Business Association (OABA) have completed the 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 to […]
There are producers in Ontario who grow dry edible beans every year. Others may only grow dry beans when prices are strong and they fit into the crop rotation. It makes sense to be selective about where and when to grow dry beans, because they can be higher risk than soybeans. What is the profit […]
Three tips for weed management this fall. Reflecting on some of the weed control issues that came up this past spring, below are three key items where management activities this fall can significantly improve control and/or financial return next season. 1. Fall management provides better dandelion control. In the fall, resource allocation of perennial weeds […]
Bacterial infections in dry beans Growing conditions this season have been ideal for certain bacterial diseases. Adzuki beans in a few different regions are exhibiting symptoms of bacterial brown spot (BBS), and in some cases the injury is severe. Symptoms on leaves appear as small necrotic lesions with a yellow margin (Figure 1). As symptoms […]
By: Joanna Follings and Emma Dieleman Ontario’s winter wheat planting recommendations were established in the 1990s using research trials conducted across the province. This research led to the development of the Ontario winter wheat planting date map (Figure 1). This research found that by every day planting is delayed beyond the optimum planting date for […]
For forage producers, the production year starts in the fall. What farmers do from mid-August to the end of the growing season impacts this winter’s feed inventory and next year’s forage yield potential. Feed the crop that feeds the livestock! Forage crops have the highest crop nutrient removal values of any field crop grown in […]
What Are Potential Impacts to Field Crops from Wildfire Smoke in 2023? Smoke from northern Ontario and Quebec wildfires was prevalent across Ontario for several weeks in June and early July. While a smoky haze was often visible during these weeks (Fig. 1), the heaviest days carried a campfire-like smell and reportedly even reduced visibility […]
Deb Campbell (Agronomy Advantage) notified me of high levels of bean leaf beetle (BLB) and pod feeding in IP and seed soybeans in Wellington, Grey and Simcoe counties. Fields in other counties could also be at risk, given how behind the crop is. BLB can feed on the surface of the pod which exposes the […]
In case you missed it, we announced earlier this year that ECB populations were found in Nova Scotia in the fall of 2022 that are resistant to Cry1Ab Bt protein used to control ECB in Bt corn. Given the level of injury found, the resistance was developing over a number of years and went unnoticed. […]
It was only a matter of time before Palmer amaranth was found on a farm in Ontario. Although technically it was found back in 2007 along a rail line outside of Niagara Falls, surveillance of that area in the years following have never detected any plants since the initial finding. In late summer, an individual […]
What to do with those stubble fields now? Consider BioStrip Till! Winter wheat combining has almost wrapped up across the province after a challenging harvest due to persistent rainfall. There is a lot of enthusiasm for wheat across Ontario as yields were good to excellent and quality was good. Now, what to do with the […]
Knowing What’s in Your Toolbox It’s the middle of August and we’re in that awkward lull where cereals are off, the last passes of fungicides on soybeans are done and it is almost time to start attending all those in-field plot days. Those days are meant to get producers talking, asking questions and get the […]