File photo of a cow grazing near Leader, Sask., about 85 km south of Kindersley. (James_Gabbert/iStock/Getty Images)

Saskatchewan holds Crown grazing rents at last year’s levels

Also, leaseholders on drought-downgraded land eligible for rate cut

Cattle producers leasing Crown land for grazing in Saskatchewan won’t see a rate hike this year and may be eligible for a significant rate cut. The provincial government announced Wednesday it has frozen the rates charged to producers who lease Crown grazing land in 2023 at their 2022 level. The freeze will apply to all […] Read more

Today most fescue grasslands are gone — the Nature Conservancy of Canada calls them the most endangered ecosystem in the world. But there are still healthy pockets in Alberta.

PHOTOS: The rough fescue grasses of Alberta

Reading Time: < 1 minute Rough fescue is a densely tufted bunchgrass. Three varieties grow in Canada: Plains rough fescue, foothills rough fescue and northern rough fescue. What makes these grasses unique, owner of Mount Sentinel Ranch Sarah Green says, is that unlike other grasses, they cure on long stems above ground, keeping palatable high-quality nutrients available even in deep […] Read more


Hay yields up, prices still high

Hay yields up, prices still high

Reading Time: < 1 minute Hay quality is high and yields are back to normal, says provincial market analyst Ryan Furtas. Yields for first cut dryland hay (which accounts for 90 per cent of production) were estimated at 1.6 tons an acre, which is above the five-year average of 1.4 tons an acre. Nearly 75 per cent was rated as […] Read more

At a field day last month, Mike Groot explains how he set up the livestock water and fencing for his 24-acre series of test plots at his family’s farm for the Living Labs soil health research initiative.

Test plot measures the benefits of grazing in crop rotation

Researchers studying impact of including pasture in a cash crop rotation at Ontario farm

Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – They’ve been dubbed “crazy strips,” but there’s a method to Mike Groot’s patchwork of perennial pasture stands within a larger plot trial. The Ontario farmer is a participant in a project being conducted under the Living Labs initiative, a federal program that tests innovative practices and technologies on farms. Groot is hoping the […] Read more


(File photo)

Manitoba to cut Crown forage lease rates

Previous years' forage conditions a factor, province says

The rents paid by Manitoba producers using Crown lands to produce perennial forages will be cut in half next year and by smaller amounts the following two years. Provincial Ag Minister Derek Johnson on Wednesday announced the forage lease rent on agricultural Crown land will be reduced by 50 per cent in 2023, 33 per […] Read more

Beef industry honours forage breeder

Beef industry honours forage breeder

Reading Time: < 1 minute A federal forage breeder from Nova Scotia is this year’s winner of the Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation. Yousef Papadopoulos, a research scientist at Ag Canada’s centre in Truro, N.S., “is known across North America for his contributions to forage development and ruminant livestock sustainability,” said the Beef Cattle Research Council, […] Read more


“Treat it like you would your grain crop.” – Ken Wall, Federated Co-operatives.

Grain farmers should think about forage

Adding perennial forages to annual crop rotations can pay big dividends in more than just the bank account

Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Grain farmers can harvest a heap of benefits by cycling perennial forages through rotations, says an agronomist with Federated Co-operatives Ltd. Ken Wall said the economics of growing forage as a cash crop have changed significantly in recent years due to market conditions and a sharp increase in the price of fuel. […] Read more

Signage outside McCain’s Farms of The Future site at Florenceville-Bristol, about 110 km northwest of Fredericton. (Photos courtesy McCain)

Learning from McCain’s regenerative farming practices

Potato processing giant aims to 'de-risk' practices for growers

In 2021 McCain said it was going to launch three regenerative potato farming operations by 2025 and would label them “Farms of the Future.” The first, just outside of Florenceville-Bristol, N.B., now offers data to reflect on the effectiveness of the practices at the potato farm after its first fully operational season. “If we don’t […] Read more


Close-up file photo of an alfalfa plant in a Canadian field. (Jennifer Seeman/iStock/Getty Images)

P.E.I. seed potato producers backed for ‘soil-building’

Province puts up $3 million for BMP program

In an attempt to support its potato farmers following trade suspensions with the U.S. over potato wart, the government of Prince Edward Island plans to put up $3 million in new funding for a program that will help farmers shift to “soil-building crops.” “In our meetings with industry and the P.E.I. Potato Board, the need […] Read more

Adding legumes to tired pastures “really ups the game and the productivity of land,” says forage expert Grant Lastiwka, seen here examining AC Yellowhead alfalfa.

There are low-cost ways to bring a tired pasture back to life

Caring for ‘baby plants’ and managing land with your cows are two pillars of pasture rejuvenation

Reading Time: 4 minutes Fertilizer and fuel prices got you down? If you have unproductive pasture, the high cost of a total redo may have you unsure of what to do. But there are low-cost possibilities, says a longtime forage extension specialist. “Everything is an option when it comes to pasture rejuvenation,” said Grant Lastiwka. One of the first […] Read more