University of Guelph and USDA researchers uncover a new defense mechanism in plants
In the battle between weeds and crops, weeds are winning. A new theory developed by a University of Guelph researcher suggests why. For the first time, plant scientists have shown that weeds can alter crop growth from a distance by affecting light signals used by the crop plants to communicate. Clarence Swanton, a weed scientist […] Read moreTag Archives crops — page 2
Light signals from neighbouring weeds alter crop plant growth, yield
Record winter crop production expected for Australia
Summer crop production seen down on year
MarketsFarm — Australia will see its highest-ever winter crop production thanks to record wheat and canola harvests, according to the latest crop report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) released Monday. Winter crop production in Australia is estimated at 67.6 million tonnes, up 8.4 per cent from ABARES’ crop […] Read more
Germany considering withdrawal from crop-based biofuels by 2030
Lawmakers seek to boost biofuel made from wastes
Hamburg | Reuters — Germany’s government is considering proposals to phase out the use of biofuels produced from food or animal feed crops by 2030, the German biofuels industry association (VDB) said on Tuesday, adding the measure could increase carbon emissions. German environment minister Steffi Lemke said Jan. 17 she will soon send proposals to […] Read more
Low Mississippi River threatens grain exports
Industry says Canadian fertilizer supplies aren’t threatened, but falling water levels significantly hamper crop shipments
Low water levels on the Mississippi River in the United States could have an impact on corn and other grain prices, but are unlikely to affect fertilizer deliveries into Canada, officials say. The Mississippi River is considered low if the stage falls below five feet in Memphis, Tennessee. On Oct. 20 it hit a record […] Read more
Large gap between StatCan, USDA canola estimates
USDA sticks closer to StatCan expectations on wheat
MarketsFarm — There’s a significant difference in the amount of canola grown in Canada during 2022-23, in the estimate from Statistics Canada (StatCan) compared to that from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Earlier in December, StatCan’s survey-based production of principal field crops report pegged this year’s canola harvest at 18.17 million tonnes. That’s a […] Read more
Farm cash receipts on the rise, StatCan shows
MarketsFarm — Farm cash receipts improved 13.7 per cent during the first three quarters of 2022, Statistics Canada reported Monday. From January to September, those receipts reached $66.7 billion. That increase of more than $8 billion was due to higher receipts for crops, livestock and program payments. The report noted crop receipts rose 7.3 per […] Read more
At least 12 killed in Nigeria attack over farmland
Gunmen appear in village in north
Abuja | Reuters — Gunmen have killed at least 12 people in an attack on a village in the northern Nigerian state of Plateau, residents and the state governor said on Wednesday, the latest deadly incident fuelled by growing pressure on land resources in the country. Violence between farmers and pastoralists has become increasingly common […] Read more
Alberta issues final crop report for year
Harvest over 98 per cent done by region and crop type
MarketsFarm –– For the second year in a row the Alberta harvest wrapped up well ahead of the five-year average. With a gain of three points for the week ended Tuesday, Alberta Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development (AFRED) pegged the combining of major crops at 99.2 per cent complete. That’s 22 and a half […] Read more
Trudeau tours storm-hit Atlantic Canada as power outages persist
Flooding may hit P.E.I. potato crops
Port aux Basques, N.L. | Reuters — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday started a tour of Atlantic Canada, where thousands were still without power after record-setting storm Fiona ravaged the country’s east coast, tossing homes into the sea and killing at least three people. Fiona recorded the lowest barometric pressure ever for a storm […] Read more
Wild horses face unruly storms as Fiona nears East Coast
Damages feared to buildings, utilities, crops
Ottawa | Reuters — Shaggy, long-maned wild horses grazing freely on the sandy grasslands of the crescent-shaped Sable Island in the North Atlantic are expected to come under the swipe of a powerful storm forecast to hit Eastern Canada this weekend. Hurricane Fiona, tracking northward after carving a destructive path through the Dominican Republic and […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
