Reading Time: 2 minutes “We like to be done by the end of May but beans emerge faster from warmer ground and they can really make up time with daytime temperatures around 30 and warm nights.” OWEN CLELAND VITERRA BEAN DIVISION Special-crop producers in southern Alberta are among those rushing to catch up on seeding after snow and rain […] Read more
Special-Crop Growers Looking For “Normal” Summer
Adage Still Holds — “We’ve Never Lost A Crop In May”
Reading Time: 3 minutes The area from Leduc, Camrose and Wetaskawin to Ponoka, Lacombe and Red Deer could definitely use more moisture. It was really dry there last year and the late-April storms have only given them about an inch of rain.” GILBERT GOUDREAU AFSC Maybe the old-timers are right. Many areas had fog in February and around 90 […] Read more
Lamb and wool outlooks may be a double blessing
Reading Time: 2 minutes …the price increase (is) “some improvement” compared to a few years ago, when things were “pretty grim.” ERIC BJERGSO GENERAL MANAGER -CDN CO-OP WOOL GROWERS Wool prices have been in the doldrums for so long that sheep producers tend to ignore it as they prepare their budgets. If anything, shearing is a cost rather than […] Read more
Grain-Marketing courses now open to all
Reading Time: 3 minutes “Farmers get a chance to see exactly why qualities like protein level or falling number are so important. And they get to ask the experts questions.” HEATHER JOHNSON CIGI For many years there have been courses in Winnipeg to learn more about the organizations in the grain industry, but it used to be that you […] Read more
Agriculture Careers: Launching At Lethbridge
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s better that students learn from people who are experts, who can show them more than we could. Nobody can be an expert in everything, and we’re busy teaching.” EDITH OLSON LETHBRIDGE CHAIR OF AGRICULTURE PROGRAMS If you want a solid education in irrigation and crops, Lethbridge College is an obvious choice, but it’s also […] Read more
Livestock Option With A Difference
Reading Time: 3 minutes DAN WATSON “Lots of people can learn aquaculture production, but marketing the fish is often the toughest part of fish farming ALBERTA AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT If Dan Watson has his way, Alberta won’t only be known from the farm products it produces on terra firma. With ocean stocks declining, and consumers demanding environmentally friendly […] Read more
Olds College — Preparing Students For More Than One Career
Reading Time: 3 minutes “It’s a much more regulated business and farmers will have to meet more requirements and adapt to tighter market specifications. It will take a sharp pencil and the ability to adapt and see things differently to be successful.” neil french program co-ordinator af CONTRIBUTOR “Ten years from now, most of our students will have different […] Read more
N-Based Manure-Spreading Regulations Create P Overload
Reading Time: 3 minutes “Those levels were in the top 15 cm (six inches) of soil… But, when we looked more closely, we saw that the highest P levels were in the top few cm of soil. barry olsen alberta agriculture research scientist af contributor It’s a problem that’s already caused grief for Manitoba hog farmers. Much of their […] Read more
Hi-Tech Pivots Make Life Easier For Irrigation Farmers
Reading Time: 2 minutes “There’s a lot more to irrigating than most people realize.” Delon crapo oliver irrigation service manager rodents chewing on it, corrosion or something else, it can be difficult to locate the fault in the underground wire. GPS guidance for corner arms is much more dependable. GPS positioning makes the information in the control panel much […] Read more
History Shows This Season Will Be Dry. Or Wet. Maybe
Reading Time: 3 minutes “It is quite striking though, that we’ve had a lot more very dry years in the last 10 years than in the past.” AF contributor lethbridge Some people note the date of a fog on the calendar and confidently predict rain 90 days later. Others prefer to put their faith in the Old Farmer’s Almanac […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
