January 2011
Research Roundup
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MONITORING AND SCOUTING nips pests in the budAlycia MooreKey soybean pests including soybean aphids, bean leaf beetles and spider mites continue to wreak havoc on Ontario fields, resulting in costly yield losses to producers. Since 2008, researchers have been monitoring pest and plant virus activities in fields across Ontario to keep tabs on key pests, and to monitor the emergence of any new invasive species. “For three consecutive years, weekly monitoring of established fields
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January 2011
Cropside: Calibrate those spreaders
By: Peter Johnson, Cereal Specialist, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
AS OF THIS fall, urea is the cheapest source of nitrogen (N). Many farmers will take advantage of this economic opportunity and apply urea this spring. But, while you’re spreading, it’s important that your machine is doing the best job possible.spread pattern uniformityBoth spinner and airflow urea spreaders can do a great or a terrible job. Poor spread patterns have been shown to significantly reduce yields; one study in the province found a 22 bushel per acre loss from non-uniform spread
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January 2011
In the news
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IS IP SOY PRODUCTION a fit for your farm?The Canadian Soybean Council is excited about their upcoming producer information session which is geared to answer important questions about IP soybean production for farmers. The event, which is being held in collaboration with the Canadian International Grains Institute, is being held at three locations throughout Ontario at the end of January. Woodstock – Monday January 24, 2011 Quality Hotel & Suites, 580 Bruin
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January 2011
Future of Grain
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MISSING CORN GENESRECENT research has revealed that some inbred corn lines have more variations in genes that humans have. Six elite inbred corn lines were re-sequenced and compared. The research found more than 100 genes that are present in some corn lines are missing in others. The information gathered from this research could indicate which genes are responsible for which traits, ultimately providing a shortcut for breeders to produce hybrids with specific traits. Further research is
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January 2011
The Big Picture: Spotlight on Agriculture
By: Claire Cowan, Grain Farmers of Ontario
IT’S COMMON IN the agricultural industry to hear discussions and strategy planning centered on finding ways to share information about our industry with non-farmers. Although people are increasingly interested in where and how their food is grown, it’s often a struggle for farmers and farm organizations to gain profile in the non-farming media.However, it seems times may be changing. At the end of November last year (just before this issue went to print) the Globe and Mail dedicated an
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January 2011
The uneven recovery
By: Seamus Hoban, Grain Farmers of Ontario
THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL crisis was not discriminative, all markets were hit. However the economic recovery has been much more uneven. Luckily for producers, it was the commodity markets which were the first to recover. Indeed most commodities, including grains and oilseeds, are now trading above their pre-crash levels. Meanwhile stocks, real estate and most critically, employment levels continue to lag, prompting many to dub this a “jobless recovery.” The Federal Government is right
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January 2011
Follow the dollars
By: Edith Munro
WITH THE NOVEMBER election results US agriculture is facing dramatic changes in the congressional committees that oversee farm policy and an even bigger change in the policy environment. In the US Senate, agriculture chair Blanche Lincoln was the only committee leader defeated in the election. In the US House of Representatives, 16 out of 28 Democrats on the ag committee lost their races – the worst blood-bath of any committee in the House.Since the House Republicans also
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January 2011
Winning yield is 74 bushels per acre
By: Claire Cowan, Grain Farmers of Ontario
WHAT SOME ARE deeming “the perfect growing season” has yielded an impressive crop of Soybean Yield Challenge winners. The nine winners were announced and prizes awarded recently at the Soybean Yield Challenge banquet.“This is the biggest year yet,” says Crosby Devitt, Manager of Research and Market Development with Grain Farmers of Ontario. “We had 60 entrants that completed the competition,” he continues. These numbers are an increase from last year where 34 entrants completed the
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January 2011
IP soybean outlook
By: Jeanine Moyer
AS WE RING ing in the New Year most farmers aren’t thinking about making resolutions, but they are likely making plans for the coming crop year. The winter months are a time to order seed, fertilizer, plan crop rotations and think about all the ‘what ifs’ that come with farming.No one can predict the weather, market and growing conditions, or the economy but Ontario Grain Farmer sat down with three representatives from exporting companies and asked them to make predictions for the 2011 IP
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January 2011
Fertilizer outlook - Spring 2011
By: Casper Kaastra, Agromart Terminals Inc.
GRAIN MARKET FUNDAMENTALS will continue to be the main driver for fertilizer price activity between now and the spring, but government food policy shifts in developing economies are expected to have the largest influence on prices over the longer term.As a result of forecasted low grain ending stocks later this year, it is expected that the US farmer could plant more than 90 million acres of corn a few months from now. The last time this happened was in 2007 when an estimated 93.6
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