Tag: soil quality

When the gravity pulling your crop down to the ground is stronger than the counter forces keeping it standing, lodging will occur. Crop lodging causes serious losses of yield and quality in many crops grown in Western Canada, especially cereals. Assessing the root cause of lodging and taking measures to help prevent it are key […]

Have you ever had a field full of leggy seedlings that looked tall and skinny with bent stems and wondered what the cause was? Wonder no more! In this blog post we are examining the causes of leggy seedlings and solutions for preventing this in the field. Environmental causes of leggy, skinny seedlings. If newly […]

Calcium is an essential nutrient that allows plants to grow, develop, remain healthy and reproduce optimally to form seeds or fruits. Although it’s considered a secondary nutrient, a plant’s need for calcium can be as high as its needs for primary nutrients such as nitrogen and potassium. Calcium is one of the main components of […]

Lodging occurs when the crop falls over and does not return to a standing position. Crop lodging can be very costly to producers and can pose many challenges during harvest. For instance, it is common to see secondary growth on the flattened crop extending maturity and diminishing grain quality. For the past couple of years, harvest in some parts […]

For the past few years, we have talked about the concept of “antibiotics + vitamins,” referring to what the combination of fungicides and adequate nutrition can achieve for your crops. The right combination is critical for promoting health and fending off diseases and pests, and it all starts with a fungal screening of the seed. […]

Winter 2017–18 was cold, with little snow fall, and spring has begun as a very dry season with many predicting another drought year. Call it climate change, global warming, or any other term you prefer, but our growing conditions across the prairies are becoming hotter and drier. The change in weather patterns, especially rainfall, is […]

So far, the only thing predictable about the weather is its unpredictability. From a winter that brought us an unusually low snow cover in most parts of the Prairies, to a very snowy March and a cool/cold April, it’s anyone’s guess how May will play out. Even though it is not without its challenges, producers […]

We are inching closer to the first days of seeding, and anxiety is building as producers across Western Canada continue to wrestle with the decisions that could make or break the growing season. As I write this, the Jets are in the playoffs and, in some areas, yet another foot of snow has arrived along with […]

At seeding time, there are several factors that can limit nutrient availability in the soil, such as soil temperature, moisture level and soil quality. One thing you can do to get your crop off to a strong start is to use a Primer. Primed seeds are not dependent on nutrient density in the seed or […]

The growing season is already upon us and some folks are still harvesting last year’s crop or dealing with wet and soggy ground. Soils are also still cold. As I write this, the thermometer is indicating temperature below the ideal 5 degrees Celsius, and the forecast is calling for wind from the north to north […]