Ontario Grain Farmer Magazine is the flagship publication of Grain Farmers of Ontario and a source of information for our province’s grain farmers.

Grain Farmers of Ontario

Author: Treena Hein

The problem solvers: Riley McConachie

DISRUPTING FUSARIUM GENETIC ANALYSIS

June 2024 - UP TO THIS POINT, PHENOTYPING (RATING DISEASE INFECTION SEVERITY) OF FUSARIUM HEAD BLIGHT (FHB) IN WHEAT HAS BEEN VERY INEFFECTIVE. There’s quite a bit of inaccuracy, making breeding efforts based on the ratings not as…
The problem solvers: Kelsey Boucher

BATTLING SUDDEN DEATH SYNDROME

June 2024 - AWARD-WINNING, MOTIVATED, OUTSTANDING — THIS IS HOW YOUNG SOYBEAN SCIENTIST KELSEY BOUCHER IS DESCRIBED by people who know her, including her graduate advisor, Dr. Istvan Rajcan, professor and graduate program coordinator for soybean breeding and…
The problem solvers: Dr. Inderjot Chahal

LEADING SOIL HEALTH RESEARCH IN CANADA AND AROUND THE WORLD

June 2024 - NITROGEN IS ONE OF THE MOST LIMITING NUTRIENTS FOR CROP PRODUCTION, YET IT’S THE MOST PRONE TO LOSSES FROM THE SOIL TO THE ENVIRONMENT. This is a problem that Dr. Inderjot Chahal, a post- doctoral…
The problem solvers: Yajun Peng

IMPROVING AGRICULTURE SUSTAINABILITY IN THE FUTURE

June 2024 - YOU MIGHT SAY PROBLEM-SOLVING COMES NATURALLY TO YAJUN PENG, who is pursuing her doctorate at the University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus under the supervision of Dr. Laura Van Eerd. “Ms. Peng is an exceptionally talented…
The problem solvers: Joanna Follings

A PASSION FOR BUILDING GROWER CONFIDENCE

June 2024 - JOANNA FOLLINGS, CEREALS SPECIALIST AT THE ONTARIO MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS, IS LIVING HER DREAM. Growing up on a dairy and grain crop farm and working with field crops and farmers during…
4R in the field

REAPING THE BENEFITS

April 2024 - 4R NUTRIENT STEWARDSHIP (RIGHT SOURCE, RIGHT RATE, RIGHT TIME AND RIGHT PLACE) is a well-known, well-respected and growing initiative in Ontario and across Canada. Of course, many of its recommended practices, from split nitrogen application…
Strip tillage research

MAXIMIZING THE USE OF NUTRIENTS AND REDUCING SOIL LOSS

February 2024 - AS STRIP TILLAGE HAS BEEN investigated and promoted in Ontario during the last 20 years, its use has grown slowly but steadily because it can achieve a variety of aims. For example, it can lead…
Building soil health over time

LONG-TERM STUDY OF TILLAGE, FERTILITY, AND MORE

February 2024 - CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH INTO SOIL HEALTH continues in Ontario, led by a University of Guelph team. “Healthy, resilient soil is key to maintaining crop productivity,” notes Dr. Laura Van Eerd, professor of sustainable soil management at…
Stormy skies ahead?

WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2024

December 2023 - THERE ARE MANY challenges on a grain farm, and one that farmers increasingly have to worry about is erratic weather. David Phillips, a senior climatologist at Environment and Climate Change Canada, notes in one of…
Keeping your data safe

CYBERSECURITY FOR YOUR FARM BUSINESS

November 2023 - A SOUTHWESTERN ONTARIO farm recently made news after a ‘ransomware’ cyberattack. While in this case, the hackers demanded a public admission of alleged pig mistreatment, cyberattacks are usually about money. Ransomware attacks, where infiltrators gain…