As seeding begins to wind down across the Prairies, producers are setting their sights on the next stages of crop production and keeping their collective eye out for factors that can cause stress to vulnerable emerging plants. 

Stress brought on by weather, soil conditions, moisture (excess or insufficient), insects, diseases and herbicide application can ultimately result in poor growth and development, stalling and yield loss. To help crops better tolerate these stressful conditions, OMEX offers a family of products with an effective weapon against stress – Stress Reliever Technology™.

Stress Reliever Technology™ has been developed to help plants better deal with stress by offsetting energy re-allocation during periods of environmental stress. Three of the products in the Stress Reliever family – C3, P3 and Nutri-Boost – are formulated with this beneficial technology, along with vital macro- and micro-nutrients to help crops thrive under adverse conditions and bounce back from damage. Continue reading to find out more and see which one is right for your crop.

Whether it is the result of water quality or the lack of rotation of pesticides on the farm, weeds and diseases are becoming more and more resistant to the active ingredients in pesticides. 

Previously, we have examined the effect of water hardness on the efficacy of burn down and desiccation, but water quality can also cause herbicides to be less effective on certain hard-to-kill species of weeds, ultimately leading to resistance. Continue reading to find out how to improve your herbicide efficacy with a simple “pHix.”

We will also be exploring the effect of elicitors – compounds which activate chemical defense in plants – to help enhance the effectiveness of certain fungicides, such as mono-site strobilurins.

Root rot and clubroot are two serious diseases which can, at best, cause yield losses and, at worst, cause premature plant death. While clubroot is a disease solely affecting brassica crops, such as canola, root rot can take hold in cereals, pulses, canola and other field crops when conditions are right and pathogens present.

Managing these diseases can be challenging and require a multi-pronged approach that includes planting disease-resistant seed, longer crop rotations, fungicide application and vigilant scouting. OMEX has a wide range of products that can be used concurrently with your root rot and clubroot management tactics to promote robust, healthy roots, mitigate plant stress and correct nutrient deficiencies throughout the growing season.

The image on the right shows the difference in early-season growth and development between a root rot-infect plant (left) and a healthy plant (right).

Let’s get to the root of the problem, shall we?

Boron (B) plays a key role in a wide range of physiological processes that allow plants to germinate, grow, reproduce and remain healthy. No wonder it’s the first nutrient that plants seek! 

Boron is critical to the growth of pollen tubes, germination of pollen grains and fertilization, and helps to ensure good grain fill. A deficiency can cause reduced pollen tube growth and flowering, reduced seed set and in canola, which has higher boron requirements than cereal crops, aborted flowers and pod blanks or missing seeds in the pod.

The first step in proactively managing boron is to understand some of the key aspects that lead to boron deficiency, and how to identify and prevent a deficiency to mitigate stress and preserve yield. Read on to learn more about boron and why growers should be paying attention to this important nutrient throughout the growing season. 

Soil pH is a key factor in farmland as it controls availability of nutrients, microbial activity and crop productivity. Before delving into what causes soils to become acid and the steps to take to treat and correct acidic soil, we must first establish what is considered an optimal pH for crop production.

For most prairie crops, a soil pH range of 6.0 to 8.0 is suitable for optimal growth and development. Soils with pH ranging from 5.6 to 6.0 are considered moderately acid, while strongly acid and very strongly acidic soils have pH ranging from 5.1-5.5 to <5.0, respectively. Crops have difficulty establishing and show a decline in productivity and yield in soils with a pH below 6.0.