The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural affairs has tapped Colin Elgie as the province’s new soil fertility specialist. Elgie fills a gap created in the OMAFRA soil management team in 2019 with the retirement of long-time OMAFRA soil management specialist Adam Hayes. Jake Munroe, who formerly handled the soil fertility duties, moved into… Read More
Syngenta Canada has announced it will sell Envita in Canada for the 2023 growing season. Envita is a nitrogen-fixing bacteria product for non-legume crops, including corn, canola, cereals, soybeans and potatoes. The liquid product, developed by Azotic Technologies, is applied in-furrow or as a foliar treatment, and performs similarly to n-fixing bacteria with legume and pulse crops, through a… Read More
Welcome to another episode of The Agronomists! For this episode, host Lyndsey Smith is joined by Warren Ward with the Canola Council of Canada, and RealAgriculture resident agronomist, Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson. The topic of discussion today is starter fertilizer — of course with some other colourful tidbits thrown in there as well. The story… Read More
The principles around fertility and nutrient uptake in soybeans are the same, whether you’re farming in Ontario, the U.S., or Western Canada, but there are some unique or special factors to be considered by soybean growers in western and northern growing areas. Following up on this Soybean School episode from last month with Horst Bohner… Read More
Greenhouse gas emissions from nitrogen fertilizer were reduced by approximately 20 per cent in the Canadian government’s official 2022 greenhouse gas inventory report thanks to an update to how nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from fertilizer are estimated. The reduction, however, will not count toward the federal government’s mandate to reduce emissions from fertilizer by 30… Read More
When it comes to determining the right rate of nitrogen for your farm there’s nothing better than on-farm data. After a winter of talking with growers about escalating nutrient prices and the most economic rate of nitrogen (MERN), Ben Rosser, corn lead with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) is encouraging… Read More
Ontario farmers continue to tread water as they look to the government to provide some sort of relief or assistance in regards to the fertilizer shortage that has ensued due to the sanctions put on Russian imports following the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Brendan Byrne, chair of Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO), says time is… Read More
As warmer weather arrives and fields start to dry up, many growers are tempted to begin field work in preparation for planting. Working soil that’s not fit, however, can prove problematic later in the spring and throughout the growing season. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, we catch up with PRIDE Seeds agronomist Matt… Read More
A Toronto-based company that owns proprietary technology for producing “green” ammonia is planning to demonstrate its containerized anhydrous ammonia production system on a farm southwest of Winnipeg, Manitoba. FuelPositive Corporation has signed a letter of intent with Curtis and Tracy Hiebert, who operate an 11 thousand acre grain farm near Sperling. “We are excited to… Read More
When looking at maximizing the yield on soybean crops, there are plenty of variables to consider including timing, number of passes and which ones to use exclusively, or combine a couple to elicit the desired outcome. To gain insight on these variables, we turn to another 2021 Ontario Diagnostic Days video report, where we talk with Horst… Read More
In the face of prolonged uncertainty, many farmers aren’t sure if the fertilizer required for the 2022 planting and seeding season will arrive in time. There’s an added layer of uncertainty in regards to what the final price tag will be when the fertilizer does arrive, as well. In late March, the RealAgristudies Insights Panel… Read More
If the weather cooperates in the next week or so, plenty of equipment will be rolling in Ontario. The ultra early seeding is already (or has already) happened in Western Canada, and some farmers are pretty excited to see if dormant seeding is the right call. And as we gear up for #plant22, farmers have… Read More
Potassium powers soybean yield. Nitrogen and phosphorus make key contributions and then there are the micros like sulphur and boron that pitch in and help. How much of these nutrients should growers apply in 2022 to optimize their soybean acres? How do you navigate the challenge of skyrocketing fertilizer prices and availability versus lucrative market… Read More
The right source, right rate, right time, and right place —together, these make up the 4Rs of nutrient management. In recent years, there has increased focus on 4R nutrient management as a tool of environmental stewardship, but in a year where input costs are through the roof, the 4R focus makes economic sense, too. Bethany… Read More
In late March, the RealAgristudies Insights Panel asked six questions regarding fertilizer supply, supply on-farm, and sentiment regarding fertilizer sanctions. Over 450 participants answered those questions during the week the survey was posted, and here to analyze the results are Shaun Haney, founder of RealAgriculture, and Justin Funk, managing partner of Agri Studies. Haney and… Read More
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