Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Weed Management Specialist Kristen Obeid is part of a team entering the fourth year of an initiative — funded through Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada — to genetically test weed samples from vegetable fields exhibiting herbicide resistance. Obeid is part of a team that has developed a process […] Read more
Tag Archives weeds
Tracking down resistant weeds
Multiple herbicide-resistant weeds found in vegetable fields
Bayer announces new herbicide mode of action
The broadleaf herbicide will be the first new mode of action in 30 years
A new herbicide molecule, a different approach to short stature corn and XtendFlex soybeans are three projects in the Bayer CropScience development pipeline that could have an impact on farms. Why it matters: There is increasing resistance to current herbicides so a new mode of action will be welcome. Bayer announced the new herbicide and […] Read more
Constellation tightens grip on Canopy with CEO appointment
Reuters — Constellation Brands finance head David Klein will take over in January as CEO of pot producer Canopy Growth Corp., hardening up the Corona beer maker’s control of a company into which it has sunk US$4 billion. Klein was appointed Canopy chairman in October after Constellation booked a $430 million net loss related to […] Read more
Pot producer Canopy Growth to stop expanding in Canada
Reuters — Canopy Growth Corp. on Thursday reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss on soaring expenses and said it would not make any large investments to expand in Canada amid surplus supply and tepid demand for weed and weed products. The decision to hold expansion plans follows a wave of enthusiastic spending by marijuana companies to […] Read more
Study shows multiple routes to herbicide resistance
A team including evolutionary biologists from the University of Toronto have identified the ways in which herbicide-resistant strains of invasive common waterhemp have emerged in fields of soy and corn in southwestern Ontario. They found that the resistance, which was first detected in Ontario in 2010, has spread thanks to two mechanisms: Pollen and seeds […] Read more
Leaf tissue testing helps to identify herbicide resistance
Two- to 10-day turn around for test results is much quicker than in the past
Resistant weeds continue to create problems across Ontario as horticulture growers have far fewer post-emergent herbicide products compared to cash crop growers. Why it matters: If growers have access to a quick, reliable test for herbicide resistance, they can develop control strategies sooner, and reduce the potential for the weeds to spread. Kristen Obeid, weed […] Read more
Smart sprayer shoots weeds with a targeted herbicide blast
The technology will mean driving slower, but using much less product
Glacier FarmMedia – A Smart Sprayer, equipped with boom-mount cameras coupled to Xarvio image recognition technology, can identify 20 species of weeds and trigger a surgically precise herbicide blast to one specific weed. Why it matters: Conventional field spraying coverage dumps millions of litres of unneeded herbicide on millions of Canadian acres, which represents a […] Read more
Waterhemp difficult to distinguish from pigweed
Using herbicide programs effective on pigweed, should cover waterhemp too, so far
Waterhemp and pigweed species are difficult to differentiate, until they become larger – often past the ideal stage to control the waterhemp species. Mike Cowbrough, weed specialist with OMAFRA, says the herbicide programs identified by the University of Guelph Ridgetown campus, which are effective on waterhemp are equally effective on pigweed and other species. “There […] Read more
A double-barreled approach to fleabane control
Combined herbicide-cover crop approach can provide effective control
As herbicide-resistant Canada fleabane and other problem weeds continue to frustrate farmers, more creative control solutions are being sought. Planting cover crops, specifically cereal rye is a good tactic, say researchers from the University of Guelph and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs. Why it matters: Herbicide-resistant weeds are creating more challenges […] Read more
Plant stress makes early-season weed control critical
Research shows corn and soybeans can sense the presence of weeds even before emergence
Do you get anxious about weeds in the field? Your crops sure do, and according to new research, yield reductions from early-season weed pressure can happen extremely quickly. Research in the late 1980s established the significant yield impacts caused by weeds if they are not properly controlled early in the growing season, says Clarence Swanton, […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
