by Joel Bagg, Forage Specialist, & Greg Stewart, Corn Specialist, OMAFRA “What’s corn silage going to be worth this year?” Corn development is delayed for a significant portion of the crop and could be at risk of frost. Farmers may be looking at salvaging frost damaged corn that hasn’t matured adequately for optimum yield, moisture […]
With recent rains, forage growth has been excellent. Making dry hay has been quite challenging in August, with lots of baleage being made. Forage inventories and quality are generally good in most parts of the province. Considerable wheat acres are being followed by seeding oats, Italian ryegrass, and alfalfa mixtures. (Forage Options Following Wheat https://fieldcropnews.com/?p=9028) We are […]
By Brian Hall, OMAF/MRA, Stratford Many 2014 canola crops had a markedly varied emergence. Variable soil moisture conditions, lack of rain, uneven seeding depth and/or deep seeding were all were major factors in when canola emerged this year. For growers this could mean maturity variations and challenges at harvest. When managing these fields, harvest management […]
By Brian Hall, OMAF/MRA, Stratford Green stalks, weeds and uneven ripening can all be a problem at harvest. Late season rains following a extended dry period can often result in canola stalks staying green or result in canola regrowth further delaying harvest. Desiccants or pre-harvest glyphosate products can help with timely defoliation and reduce yield […]
Analyzing organic amendments, such as manure, compost, digestate and biosolids, has always been recommended for macro-nutrients, but there is more to manure than just N-P-K. Significant micro-nutrients, organic matter and other elements are also present, and can reveal additional cost savings or management precautions. An analysis does not give a lot of detail about the […]
28% has become the preferred nitrogen source on winter wheat in Ontario. Application is perfectly uniform, something that seems difficult to achieve with most urea applications. However, leaf burn is one of the main problems with 28% applications, particularly at later stages of growth. With more emphasis on split nitrogen applications, and renewed interest in […]
The first suspect cases this season of anthracnose have been reported in white beans. This is the time of year when we typically first begin to see symptoms and is a good reminder for the need to scout your fields through to leaf drop. Anthracnose is a potentially devastating seed-borne disease that can affect all […]
Either our own resident WBC populations did fine over the winter or the recent storm fronts brought in the bunch of moths from the US or a combination of the two. But reports are coming in that fields between Thamesville and Bothwell and near Rodney have reached threshold, well, sort of. What is messing up […]
Root rot is becoming visually evident in many edible bean fields now that beans are entering a more rapid vegetative growth phase and will have a high demand for water and nutrients. Pounding rains, compaction, tillage pans, poor internal drainage and soil structure are common culprits for inducing root rot. Common visual symptoms include stunting […]
What is the best cover crop species to use following wheat and other crops harvested in late summer? Cover crops can help improve soil structure, protect the soil from erosion, feed soil life, suppress weeds, cycle nutrients, provide feed for livestock and much more. Cover crops are not a magic solution for your soil problems, but when […]
Here are some resources that will be helpful in the identification of crop injury caused by herbicides. Classes of herbicide injury according to their location on the plant (begins on page 280) Below is an archive of diagnostic day scenarios. 2015 Herbicide Injury Scenarios 2014 Herbicide Injury Scenarios 2013 Herbicide Injury Scenarios 2012 Herbicide Injury […]
Forage yields have been quite variable across the province. Some areas have excess hay, while others are still rebuilding inventories. Quality is generally good. The weatherman got it wrong the weekend of July 19th and considerable acres of hay were cut and rain-damaged. Summer Seeding Alfalfa Summer seeding alfalfa-grass mixtures can be a good way […]
Authors: Jocelyn Smith and Andrea Hitchon, University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus The time to start scouting corn for corn rootworm has arrived! There are a few important objectives for scouting for rootworm injury including: scouting can help protect yield, plan control measures for next year, and detect potential cases of resistance to Bt traits. The […]
We are starting our 2014 field survey for the new invasive insect pest, brown marmorated stink bug. In particular, we are looking for corn and soybean fields that meet the criteria below. We will scout for the pest within the first 30 rows of field (where we expect to first find the insect), as well […]
by Joel Bagg, Forage Specialist, & Bonnie Ball, Soil Fertility Specialist, OMAFRA Sulphur (S) received from atmospheric sulphur dioxide emissions (acid rain) in Ontario has steadily declined by over 50% during the last 25 years. We are beginning to see yield responses in more situations when applying S to alfalfa. Sometimes the response is dramatic, […]