Drought conditions are persisting across many parts of Ontario, despite recent rain events. From uneven emergence to the potential for increased pest pressure, continuation of dry, hot weather will not be friendly to much of the province’s staple grain crops.
In the Dundalk area, winter wheat has been grievously affected by dry weather. Deb Campbell, agronomist and owner of Agronomy Advantage, says wheat growing in sandy soil and high spots is a complete write-off, with as much as 100 per cent of the crop lost.
Why it matters: Ongoing drought conditions across much of Ontario have generated inconsistent stands, inconsistent winter wheat success and a number of different scenarios for mid-season pest pressures.
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“Even in the remaining portions of the field, the canopy is thinner than it was. We’ve had some tiller mortality in some of those thick stands purely from stress,” Campbell said, speaking to Farmtario in late June.
“For beans we had a lot of replants that were unsuccessful trying to get into moisture. We have lots of bean fields which are partially emerged at this time.”
Although there were some emergence problems as a result of cold, wet planting conditions, Campbell said the area’s corn crop fared better. She said the amount of rain had been highly variable across the region. Where it fell in some quantity, crops looked pretty good.
“We had between 0.5 and 1.25 inches. North Simcoe had three inches, so they’re living the good life right now,” she said. “In places that got half an inch, the fields were dry the next day. Moisture certainly had some benefit — you could see it in the crop. The reprieve on mild temperatures and little bit of moisture certainly improved some emergence challenges… But in areas that didn’t have much, they’re certainly in significant moisture stress.”
Jennifer Doelman, a certified crop advisor and farmer from Renfrew County, reported similarly sporadic rainfall across her part of Eastern Ontario. Where rain did fall, though, it was just as winter wheat was beginning to head.
“Winter wheat is probably going to be one of our better crops. The rain came at the right time and disease pressure is low. It literally rained as it headed. But any of the spring-seeded cereals, they’re all very inconsistent,” Doelman said, adding significant replanting occurred in areas with heavier soils.
“I’ve never seen in my career more seeds entombed in concrete… even when you didn’t have crusting it seemed to run out of vigour.”
The path ahead
Weed control was one of the main challenges for Campbell, as dry conditions supported continual emergence. Perennial weeds are particularly challenging thanks to large root systems.
“Some fields, we’re into a third cleanup. They don’t run out of water, it seems, but even the small-seeded annuals seem to have enough moisture to keep germinating,” Campbell said.
Insects are another potential problem. Currently pressure is light in Campbell’s area, including in canola fields. If drought continues, though, spider mites could “add stress on stress,” creating a serious problem. Control in this case may prove very challenging given the prevalence of the pest’s resistance to two flagship insecticide products, Lagon and Cygon.
“Leafhoppers could be an issue in edible beans and forages. It’s a hot-weather pest and we’re coming into that season where it starts to get rolling.”
Pest pressure also appeared light in the east — initially, at least. Flea beetle was an issue for spring canola, Doelman said, but proactive management should limit damage for most. Alfalfa beetle was also not a current issue, which is counterintuitive to what might be expected with prolonged periods of dry weather.
Smoke and sunlight
Wildfires were a prominent June feature as well, as the smoke limits sunlight.
Thus far, said Campbell, the worst smoke cover coincided and was largely limited to early-stage crops, likely posing minimal risk. This could change should severe wildfires persist and worsen as summer progresses. Consistently overcast skies around tasselling, for example, could be a problem.
Doelman expressed a similar sentiment.
“It was really bad two weeks ago. We lost about a week, but it’s 28 degrees Celsius outside today, and was 28 degrees the week before that… it’s going to depend how many weeks are like that. If we have a whole summer with [heavy smoke] it’s more of a nuclear winter.”
