Tracey Baute August 30, 2021 757 Comments Off on Fall Armyworm Alert – Forages, Corn, Cereals and Others at RiskSeveral reports of fields with fall armyworm (FAW) larvae have been coming in over the last few days. Growers or scouts drive by a field and pull over, shocked to see only stems left of plants with larvae happily feeding. So far most of the damage has been found in oats, rye cover crop, mixed forages and newly seeded cereals….
Holly Ivany August 13, 2021 381 Comments Off on Fall Cover Crop Termination vs. Planting Green on a Clay Soil in Haldimand CountyIf you are interested in learning more about planting green into a strip-till corn system, the video below outlines the experience that Matt Beischlag, a farmer based in Haldimand county, Ontario, had in the 2021 season. Matt and his family have a mixed farm of broiler chickens, corn, soybean and wheat cash crops, and red clover seed production. This past…
Holly Ivany August 10, 2021 333 Comments Off on Planting green into cover crops on clay soils in NiagaraIf you are interested or considering planting green into cover crops, the video below outlines key challenges and successes that Larry Dyck, a Niagara farmer based in Campden, Ontario has experienced. Larry farms with his son Ben and shares some of his experiences planting green into a cover crop mixture on heavy clay soils. This video starts in May 2021…
Tracey Baute August 4, 2021 254 Comments Off on Western Bean Cutworm Trap Catch Results as of Aug 3rdBased on WBC trap counts, peak flight likely took place over the last 7 days. Though we never know for sure until a week later when moth catches really dropped. That said, comparing this year to previous years, it lands in the same week we have experienced peak flight since 2018 (Figure 1). Peak flight means that during that period,…
The Making Cover Crops Pay series (available on YouTube and linked below) includes three practical webinars that have discussions and presentations by technical specialists and experienced farmers. This series is presented by Soils at Guelph, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) Soil Team, Grain Farmers of Ontario, and the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA)….
Tracey Baute May 27, 2021 982 Comments Off on Introducing the New Adult Corn Rootworm Trap Network – Trap Participants NeededSeveral US states and Canadian provinces are joining forces to monitor for adult corn rootworm (CRW) beetles this year. Though some US states have been monitoring adult rootworm beetles using sticky traps for several years now, trapping for CRW is relatively new for Ontario. Weekly trap data for all trap sites involved will be collected and mapped in real-time by…
Purpose: As strip till gains in popularity as a reduced-tillage option offering conventional tillage benefits for corn production, some of the most common questions revolve around phosphorous (P) and potassium (K) fertility management. This project was initiated to answer some of the more common questions around strip till and fertility placement and timing, particularly: How does yield of broadcast and…
The Canadian Bt Corn Trait Tables have been updated for April 2021. English: Canadian Bt Corn Trait Table for April 2021 French: Maïs Bt disponibles au Canada (Avril 2021) For information on which hybrids or products have obtained EU approval, visit the Canadian Seed Trade Association’s corn hybrid database at: https://seedinnovation.ca/hybrid/ Pour plus d’informations sur les hybrides ou produits ayant obtenus l’approbation…
Ben Rosser April 16, 2021 434 Comments Off on Agronomy Guide For Field Crops – Corn – Fertility – NitrogenNitrogen (N) Corn responds well to nitrogen, so adequate availability of nitrogen is critical to profitable corn production. Excess nitrogen adds unnecessary expenses and increases the risk of nitrate movement to ground water, poorer quality of surface water and production of greenhouse gases through nitrous oxide emissions. Insufficient nitrogen leads to nitrogen deficiency. Nitrogen deficiency first appears on the lower…
Ben Rosser April 13, 2021 552 Comments Off on Agronomy Guide For Field Crops – Corn – Emergence and Spacing Uniformity, Replant DecisionsUniformity of Emergence Uniform seeding depth is a critical factor in achieving uniform emergence. Uneven emergence affects crop performance, because competition from larger, early-emerging plants reduces the yield potential of smaller, later-emerging plants. Yields can be reduced by 5% when half the stand suffers from a 7-day delay in emergence and by 12% when half the population experiences a 2-week…
Ben Rosser March 29, 2021 648 Comments Off on Agronomy Guide For Field Crops – Corn Development – Staging Corn PlantsCorn Development The vegetative and reproductive growth stages in corn are described in Table 1–12, Vegetative growth stages in corn and Table 1–13, Reproductive growth stages in corn. Corn Leaf Stages Counting the leaves on a corn plant sounds like an easy task, but there are a few complications that can cause mistakes. It is important to know which…
Planting Seeding Date The best yields in Ontario are usually obtained from corn planted in late April and the first half of May, as the crop is able to use the full growing season. Early planting also results in earlier maturity in the fall, reducing the risk of damage from an early fall frost or adverse weather at harvest. The…
Ben Rosser March 22, 2021 817 Comments Off on Agronomy Guide For Field Crops – Corn – Hybrid SelectionHybrid Selection Maturity Ratings Corn development is driven primarily by temperature, especially during the planting-to-silking period. Unlike soybeans, day length has little effect on the rate at which corn develops. The Ontario crop heat unit system has been developed to calculate the impact of temperature on corn development. Ontario crop heat units (CHUs) are calculated based on daily maximum and…
Rootworm Biology and Impact Corn rootworm (CRW) is a serious pest of continuous corn in Ontario. CRW larvae are the main concern, as they clip roots and inhibit root growth, resulting in poor nutrient and water uptake in the plant. Significant yield loss occurs before these symptoms are even noticed. For every node of roots clipped, there is a…
Ben Rosser March 16, 2021 480 Comments Off on Agronomy Guide For Field Crops – Corn – No Till and Other ConsiderationsNo-Till Systems In no-till systems, tillage is not used to prepare a seedbed. Minimal soil loosening in a narrow band immediately ahead of the seed opener is performed by planter-mounted coulters and/or residue clearing devices. Successful no-till corn production is partially dependent on effective use of field management strategies which may include alternative production practices that compensate for what tillage…
