Corn Many areas of the province saw rain over the weekend putting a stop to field activities for a day or two. Corn planting is wrapping up and progressing well with corn emerging as quickly as four days after planting. The earlier planted corn is at the V3-V6 stage and the corn planted later on the heavier ground is from…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team June 7, 2018 1356 Comments Off on East Central Agribusiness Breakfast Meeting – June 6th, 2018Photo of first cut hay down in Peterborough County. Thank you to Katja Rochacewich (Bayer) for sponsoring breakfast. Overall, crops in the region are looking good. Rainfall has been scattered and total amount variable (0-3”). Windy conditions across central Ontario have complicated spraying for the past few days. Despite the slow, cool spring, attendees agreed that planting and crop maturity…
Planting of all crops is much further along than last week, although the general comments about slow progress on fine textured soils are still applicable. Regions with clay soils are dry on top but gummy below, so delays continue. There is rain in the forecast this week for much of southern Ontario so further delays are a possibility. Corn While…
Planting conditions have been good in many parts of the province; however, there are some areas that have been too wet, resulting in delayed planting. Areas affected include the heavy clay soils in Essex, Chatham-Kent, Lambton, Elgin, Haldimand and Niagara. Corn, soybean and canola planting have also been delayed in many parts of northern Ontario due to late spring and…
April exits without a single day over 20°C and wet conditions that mostly prevented wheels from turning in the fields. We enter May with good temperatures and lots of pent up energy to get on the land. April 30th marks the day the “Starters Pistol Cracked” and the Mad Dash has begun to get all the 2018 spring cropping operations…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team April 20, 2018 2287 Comments Off on Ontario Field Crop Report – Week of April 16th, 2018The 2018 season is obviously off to a slow start following a significant storm system that brought freezing rain, ice pellets and snow to much of the province on the April 14th weekend. As of April 18th, it’s easy to find fields that are still snow covered (Figure 1). The weather and soil conditions will eventually turn more favourable and…
2017 Corn Seasonal Summary Planting The March 2017 planting intentions report by Statistics Canada estimated that Ontario farmers intended to plant 2.2 million acres of grain corn. This compares to a 5-year (2012-2016) average of 2.1 million acres of grain corn planted in the province (OMAFRA Crop Statistics). While April was warmer than normal, some large rainfall events in the…
According to the 2016 Census of Agriculture, total cropland area increased by 1% since the previous census, despite the amount of land included on census farms decreasing by 3%. In 2016 there were 2,022,199 acres of forage crops in Ontario. Since 2011, corn silage acres were up nearly 9% across the province. Acres for forage seed production fell by 29%….
OMAFRA Field Crop Team October 5, 2017 3031 Comments Off on OMAFRA Field Crop Report – October 5, 2017Fall Weed Management Tips Many farmers have witnessed the value in applying herbicides in the fall to perennial weeds, especially perennial sow-thistle and dandelion (Figure 1.). Often they will see a reduction in their population the next year as well as a delay in their shoot emergence. This allows the planted crop to have a competitive advantage over those perennial…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team September 28, 2017 2913 Comments Off on OMAFRA Field Crop Report – September 28, 2017New Online Version for Inspection of Soil Pest Assessment Reports (PAR): Those requiring access to Class 12 Pesticides Neonicotinoid (NNI) treated corn and soybean seeds) are required to submit an Inspection of Soil Pest Assessment Report to their seed vendor prior to the purchase of the seed. There is now an online version of the form that can be filled…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team August 31, 2017 3429 Comments Off on Ontario Field Crop Report – August 31, 2017Managing Phosphorus to Reduce Losses Phosphorus (P) is an essential plant nutrient. Sufficient phosphorus fertility means improved root growth and winter hardiness, accelerated maturity, and improved yields. However, when phosphorus makes its way off of fields through runoff or tile drains, it can negatively impact the health of rivers and lakes. Lake Erie is the strongest example of this locally….
OMAFRA Field Crop Team August 24, 2017 2338 Comments Off on Ontario Field Crop Report – August 24, 2017With the delay in growing degree day accumulation and crop maturity, many fields are still in the ideal growth stages that put them at risk of some of our later season pests and diseases. Western bean cutworm (WBC) Peak moth flight for western bean cutworm has finally passed for all regions of the province. Central and eastern counties were the…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team August 17, 2017 2108 Comments Off on Ontario Field Crop Report – August 17, 2017Parts of southwestern Ontario remain dry, while eastern Ontario continues to have frequent rainfall and saturated soils in many areas. While yields have been good, making dry hay continues to be a struggle for many growers under the later conditions. Winter wheat harvest has continued this past week in eastern Ontario. Most fields in the area have yielded between 70…
OMAFRA Field Crop Team August 10, 2017 2255 Comments Off on ONTARIO FIELD CROP REPORT – August 10, 2017Western Bean Cutworm Update Western Bean Cutworm continues to be a concern for pollinating corn in areas with high trap counts. Peak moth flight has occurred in some of the counties in the southwest but counties east and north of Middlesex and those in Central and Eastern Ontario have not reached peak yet. Moths will now be looking for late…
Cereals: Current weather conditions are ideal for fusarium head blight development in winter wheat. Many wheat fields in Southwestern Ontario have applied a T3 fungicide to reduce their risk particularly if they are growing a FHB susceptible variety. T3 fungicide applications further east will begin this week and continuing into next week for Eastern Ontario. A number of fields saw…
