Production of the 2020-21 kharif (fall harvest) soybean crop in India should be lower, according to a United States Department of Agriculture attaché report. The fall is the only time India harvests soybeans. The attachés, Amit Aradhey and Mariano Beillard, proposed several changes to the official USDA numbers from October including a 10.7 per cent […] Read more
India soybean production said to be lower
Soybean cyst nematode infected area continues to expand
Soybean’s biggest yield robber gaining resistance as trait effectiveness declines in some areas
Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) continues to migrate across Ontario and is adapting to resistant varieties. Albert Tenuta, field crop pathologist with OMAFRA, says SCN is showing up outside the traditional southwestern Ontario infection areas and into Huron, Bruce and Simcoe counties. Resistant varieties are beginning to show symptoms on the roots. Why it matters: Soybean […] Read more
Jersey sale moves online
Jersey Ontario held a first sale on its new online platform to help dairy farmers to meet December incentive days and a quota increase. The Dec. 12 sale had 30 animals offered. The sale grossed more than $60,700 and averaged $2,024. The Jersey Ontario’s SNF Buster Sale was hosted for the first time on Jersey […] Read more
John Deere connects with sprayer control company
Smart-Apply precisely places spray based on high-value crop canopy
John Deere is moving further into precision spaying of specialty crops with an alliance with an innovator of intelligent control systems. The company has entered into an allied distribution agreement with Smart Guided Systems to sell and support its Smart-Apply Intelligent Control System through the John Deere dealer channel in the U.S., Canada, and Australia. […] Read more
Drones and AI detect soybean maturity with high accuracy
Science notes: The technology could greatly reduce the need for boots on the ground
Walking rows of soybeans in the midsummer heat is an exhausting but essential chore in breeding new cultivars. Researchers brave the heat daily during crucial parts of the growing season to look for plants showing desirable traits such as early pod maturity. But without a way to automate detection of these traits, breeders can’t test […] Read more
Lessons learned from U.S. struggle against corn rootworm resistance
Producers growing corn-on-corn encouraged to find new sources of feed
Specialists from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs recently urged the province’s corn-growing livestock producers to take the issue of corn rootworm resistance to Bt traits seriously. They said efforts in the United States to slow the growth of resistance in corn rootworm to Bt-based control traits have not been effective. Why […] Read more
Silage options to rotate away from corn
Ryegrass, triticale, sorghum species all have potential to help avoid corn-on-corn rotations
In Europe, it’s ryegrass. On the Prairies, it’s barley. In areas where either climate or pesticide resistance makes it impractical to grow corn, livestock producers nonetheless achieve good gains or high milk production. And, during a recent session hosted by OMAFRA, crop and livestock specialists encouraged Ontario’s livestock producers to consider rotating away from corn […] Read more
Beef Farmers of Ontario adopts anti-discrimination value statement
The commodity organization announces efforts to ally with those promoting diversity
Beef Farmers of Ontario (BFO) has incorporated a values statement calling for “diversity, equity, and inclusion” into its education and advocacy strategy. Why it matters: Diversity policies to better accommodate and understand social groups are becoming increasingly common in both the public and private sphere, although are less common in primary agriculture. According to BFO, […] Read more
Bluewater Pipe-Soleno deal brings together family businesses
Bluewater Pipe to continue to operate as it has previously
Two of the original families of farm tile in Canada have come together in a deal that keeps the companies in independent ownership. Soleno, owned by the Poirier family and based in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., has purchased majority ownership in Bluewater Pipe, based in Huron Park, Ont. Bluewater Pipe was founded by Tony Kime, and he […] Read more
Sweet potato research yields new Canadian option
Radiance variety provides short growing season with top yield production
The future is looking sweet for a Canadian variety of succulent orange-fleshed potato that’s a winter dinner table staple. Valerio Primomo, a Vineland Research Station scientist and vegetable breeder spoke about the development of Radiance, a variety of sweet potato with a short growing season during the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario’s 2020 virtual conference. […] Read more
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