Cereals: Cool weather over the last two weeks has kept disease levels low. Lush spring growth and forecasted temperatures are expected to increase disease development. Difference in planting date have resulted in varied growth stages and level of canopy closure, so scouting to appropriately time pest management activities is critical (Figure 1.) Weeds are now the […]
Conditions: Soil drying up, but below average temperatures are limiting field activity to manure/fertilizer application and forage/spring cereal seeding. Forages: Alfalfa winter survival is good, generally in the 80% plus range. Winterkill is mostly limited to low/poorly drained pockets. The combination of heavy and moisture saturated soils has led to some heaving. Alfalfa fields not […]
Winter Wheat: The majority of winter wheat has received nitrogen (N) applications. Farmers are including sulphur with the N application, because of lower atmospheric deposition of sulphur across the province in recent years. Much of the winter wheat across the province is at high risk for lodging because of high tiller densities. At this stage, lodging […]
Exeter Agribusiness Minutes April 26, 2016 Malibu Restaurant, Exeter Chair for this meeting was Eric Richter Thank you to Syngenta for sponsoring breakfast. The next meeting will be on May 10th starting at 7:00 am for breakfast (meeting starts at 7:30). Meetings finish no later than 9:00 am. Synopsis: Corn planting started at the end […]
Now is a great time to scout for wireworms and grubs. With the recent warm weather, soil temperatures have reached 10oC, which means that wireworm baits will be most effective right now and grubs will also be feeding close the soil surface. How much time there is to scout for these pests depends on how […]
by: Dr. Darren Robinson (University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus) and Mike Cowbrough (OMAFRA) There is interest in inter-seeding annual ryegrass and clover into corn (Figure 1). Research studies have been done in the United States and Canada to determine the tolerance of cover crops to various soil applied corn herbicides. This article provides an overview […]
Before this brief cold wet weather some planting got started over the last week in some areas. The warmer weather had brought spring on into full bloom including dandelions, coltsfoot and some trees including maples, willows, popular and even fruit trees. With the flowers come the bees to forage, setting up the potential for the […]
Online and In-Class course offered for FREE until August 31, 2016. Starting on August 31, 2016, successful completion of the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Course for Corn and Soybeans will be required in order to purchase or plant neonicotinoid-treated corn and soybean seed. Following successful completion of the course, farmers will receive a certificate […]
Earlier this year, Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) and the Ontario Agri Business Association (OABA) were involved in broad industry discussions regarding the implications of using ManipulatorTM, a plant growth regulator, in the 2016 wheat crop. ManipulatorTM is not registered for use in the United States so the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has zero tolerance […]
Spring Planting Update: No tillage activity on the fine-textured clay soils Some tillage, manure application and fertilizer application to sandy and loamy fields Very little planting to date – a few acres of corn planted around Embro, Thamesford, Drumbo, Tillsonburg and sandy soils in Brant. Mainly just getting a few acres in and ensuring […]
Winter Wheat: The winter wheat crop looks excellent. There is lots of growth with excellent yield potential. There is a fear that putting on too much nitrogen at once will cause stem elongation and lodging. Some farmers have opted to split apply nitrogen to reduce the risk of lodging. A foliar leaf fungicide application (T1 timing) will […]
This week’s update investigates the causes of purple wheat leaves, how we should manage herbicide applications during periods of cold air temperatures and an update on corn planting progress in the province with a refresher on planting depth. Tell a friend about the OMAFRA field crop update and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or Soundcloud. [iframe]<iframe width=”100%” […]
Breakfast Sponsor: Thanks from the group to “Roger Bourassa – Dupont Canada“ Synopsis: The quote of the week comes from Alan McCallum, a distant relative – “Don’t’ farm last year’s weather!” This is National Soil Conservation Week. Keep those soils covered! Don’t bury all that crop residue with tillage. The warmer weather has really […]
Synopsis: The consultant’s in attendance felt that 2016 wheat acreage is up from the previous year and that while intended corn acreage will be up from the 2015 season, soybean acres will be a bit down compared to 2015. Spring cereal acreage is also thought to be down from last year but on par with […]
Forages: There was a general discussion of what condition hays fields are in given the milder winter. A general observation of hay fields in the area is that most fields had quite a bit of stubble (estimated at 2 feet for some fields). Some discussion of what should be done with the stubble (harvest or […]