Don’t reseed fertilized winter cropland to soy

Manitoba agriculture officials have two pieces of advice if you’re considering tearing up and seeding something else into that sad-looking winter wheat field this spring. First, have it assessed by Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp. (MASC) if you plan to collect crop insurance. Secondly, strike soybeans off your list of reseeding options if you’ve already fertilized […] Read more

Pelissier durum program runs to Dec. 19

Farmers have until Dec. 19 to sign up for the Canadian Wheat Board’s special one-time delivery program for Pelissier, a Canadian Western Amber Durum (CWAD) wheat de-registered Aug. 1, 2007. The program is designed to encourage farmers to clean out all stocks of the variety. Upon delivery farmers will be paid based on a grade […] Read more


Time to assess sclerotinia risk in canola

Now is the right time for canola growers to assess their crops for susceptibility to sclerotinia. Fields considered at high risk should ideally be sprayed with a fungicide at 30 per cent bloom. Where germination was uneven due to the cool, dry spring, flowering will be uneven too. Under those conditions farmers should consider a […] Read more

Flea beetles are now out there: CCC

Now’s the time to scout canola fields for flea beetles, says Derwyn Hammond, the Canola Council of Canada’s Manitoba agronomy specialist. Fields thinned by frost May 27, or struggling because of the cool, dry spring, are especially vulnerable. “In stands that have been thinned out that’s going to focus that flea beetle population on a […] Read more

“Pop-up” effect may help stretch P budgets

Facing rising phosphate prices, Prairie farmers who have routinely applied 30 to 40 pounds of phosphorus an acre each year may be able to cut back to 20 pounds this spring, or even altogether, one Manitoba soil scientist suggests. With prices not expected to get much cheaper until new mines come on line, farmers are […] Read more


Still too early in Manitoba for soybeans

As eager as farmers may be to do so, it’s still too cold to plant soybeans in Manitoba. “Mother Nature is telling me it’s not time to plant (soybeans),” Bruce Brolley, Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives’ pulse crop specialist, said in an interview Friday. “In addition to the cold soil temperature, the grass isn’t […] Read more

Firing may show new CWB stance on barley: MCO

Observers of the Canadian Wheat Board say a vote by the CWB’s directors on the firing of one of its vice-presidents may show an important shift in their willingness to defend single-desk marketing of Prairie barley, the Manitoba Co-operator reports in its Feb. 7 issue. The decision last week to axe Deanna Allen, the CWB’s […] Read more