True armyworm (TAW) larvae have been spotted in some winter wheat fields in Chatham Kent and Lambton County. This is in addition to cereal leaf beetle (CLB) larvae reaching threshold in some cereal fields, in some cases causing significant damage. So far reports of CLB reaching threshold have been from fields in the Sombra, Petrolia, […]
Cereal leaf beetle (CLB) adults have been active and laying eggs over the last month in winter cereals. Though the adult feeding does not cause much injury, expect to start seeing larvae and their leaf feeding start over the next few weeks. My crew just found a few first instar CLB larvae today in one […]
Frequent rains and wet soils across the province have slowed or prevented field work. Soil compaction is likely to be an issue this year, especially for farmers trying to get manure spread ahead of spring planting. Fertilizer has been moving out to farms with storage. Retailers are full and ready to apply product once soil […]
The Ontario Corn Committee (OCC), the Ontario Cereal Crops Committee (OCCC), the Ontario Pulse Crop Committee (OPCC), and the Ontario Soybean and Canola Committee (OSACC) launched their new website: GoCrops.ca. The new website brings together the four previous crop committee websites under one cohesive banner. Ontario growers rely on third-party variety performance trial information to […]
True armyworm (TAW) has been spotted at near threshold levels in a winter wheat field near Niagara and has also caused significant damage in late planted seedling corn in Chatham Kent. Though most of our YEN wheat sites being scouted weekly have picked up only low levels of TAW in a few of the sites, […]
Updated: May 18, 2023 With temperatures dipping below zero in much of the province last night, many are wondering what effect this will have on cereal crops. What temperatures will cause injury? Figure 1 shows the various wheat growth stages and when injury is likely to occur to the crop after experiencing cold temperatures for […]
As the wheels have started turning and the spring cereals are going in the ground the question that continues to come up is how much nitrogen (N) should I apply? With spring cereals we know there is a balance between having enough nitrogen to maximize yield potential while avoiding lodging issues. However, OMAFRA’s current nitrogen […]
English Version revised April 15, 2021. With new plant growth regulators (PGRs) entering the Ontario market, many are asking, when and where should a PGR be used? First, it is important to know what the purpose of a PGRs is. PGRs can be applied to winter wheat to reduce plant height and increase stem thickness. […]
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 […]
Over-night temperatures on May 22 to 23 dipped to -2 to -3 oC in many parts of Ontario. Cereal crops are hardy to light frosts. Leaf tissue on plants that have not hardened off will withstand temperatures of -4 oC or lower before the cells will freeze and damage occurs, making late spring frosts of […]
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 […]
Synopsis: Using the provincial performance trials to pick the top variety for your farm. By now you should have looked at the wheat variety trials (www.gocereals.ca). What an AMAZING amount of information. With new information, and combined charts, which table should you actually use? Managed or normal? For the first time ever (2013), there are variety comparisons […]
Does ESN pay in spring wheat? Results from two on-farm sites in eastern Ontario showed no advantage in grain yield or protein content with the use of ESN in 2011 (see Table 1). There was also no significant difference in residue soil nitrogen levels. As expected there was also no impact in the percentage of […]