Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canola Council of Canada has launched an online database, called the Canola Research Hub, to provide growers with the latest research findings to increase both productivity and profitability. “This is a first-of-its-kind technology transfer tool,” said Curtis Rempel, the council’s vice-president of crop production and innovation. “It will allow growers to access canola research […] Read more
Canola council launches new online database
The Canola Council of Canada says the database offers ‘top science for your bottom line’
Wild pollinators earn their keep on the farm
Wild pollinators may boost yields and help crops mature more uniformly, and also are a natural source of pest protection
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s crop-planning season and that means it’s a good time for making plans to create a wild pollinator habitat near your crops. Having a strong pollinator population can offer a benefit to crops, said Mark Wonneck, an ecologist at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Calgary. Bees are an important part of both alfalfa production and […] Read more
New forage research papers available online
Three new papers look at tall fescue, barley after perennial forages, and slender wheat grass
Reading Time: < 1 minute The website ForageBeef.ca has added some new research papers to its collection. Yield and nutritive value of irrigated tall fescue compared with orchardgrass: In monocultures or mixed with alfalfa. This work is by Donald Thompson of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge Research Centre and can be read here. Barley yield and nutrient uptake in rotation after […] Read more
Distillers grains are good for livestock gut health
The yeast in distillers grains feeds bacteria called prebiotics, and they may promote health and improve feed efficiency
Reading Time: 2 minutes Bingeing on baked goods and beer may actually be a boon for your belly, suggests a study recently completed by a team of international researchers. “Yeast, which has become a component of the human diet, is degraded by bacteria that live in the intestines of humans,” said Wade Abbott, a research scientist with Agriculture and […] Read more
Myth busted: Properly processed feed wheat won’t cause digestive upset
Researchers in Lethbridge swapped wheat for barley in a cattle ration without any negative effects — but the wheat must be properly processed
Reading Time: 3 minutes Shrinking barley acres have cattle producers on the hunt for a low-cost feed option. And feed wheat could be the answer — as long as the wheat is processed properly. “There was a feeling out there that you probably couldn’t feed more than 50 per cent wheat in the diet because wheat is quite rapidly […] Read more
Prairie crop acres forecast to rise across the board
CNS Canada –– Just about every major crop grown in the Canadian Prairies is forecast to come out a winner in the annual fight for acres this year, with unseeded area the only place where reductions are forecast, according to early estimates. “Most crops are likely to increase this year, just because we’ll get the […] Read more
Tight rotations may not harm canola yields — but soil health suffers
A long-term study on diversity in rotations produced some surprises, but the benefits were also clear
Reading Time: 3 minutes Brian Beres wasn’t surprised to find more diverse rotations increase cereal grain yields, improve soil health, and increase microbial biomass. What surprised him was how canola fared under tight rotations. Quite well, as a matter of fact. “It was surprising to see that canola didn’t respond to diversity if you looked at crop response variables […] Read more
Advocating for forage crops is critical work and needs to continue
The Canadian Forage and Grassland Association works on a tight budget, but is in it for the long haul
Reading Time: 3 minutes Recent reports on the financial situation of the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association suggest its future is grim. But while we’ll be on a tight budget in the coming year, the association is on firm financial footing and we intend on being around for a long time. In fact, the need for an organization like […] Read more
Study says healthy cattle can manage taxing transport
Researchers find well-conditioned cattle bear up well during transport
Reading Time: 4 minutes A prominent animal welfare group calls it “transport torture,” but a new study has found conditions inside livestock trailers don’t normally have a significant impact on animal health. The Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada study looked at trailer microclimates during cattle transport. “We thought they might have an impact on the health and morbidity rates once […] Read more
Study examines lameness in feedlot cattle and treatment options
Diagnosing the cause of lameness is not easy and so it’s difficult to know how to treat the animal or if culling is the best option
Reading Time: 3 minutes Although feedlot pen riders do a good job of identifying lame cattle needing treatment, there has been very little work done to fully understand lameness in that sector. Knowing the types and prevalence of lameness could help to build better ways to treat and prevent it, says Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researcher Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein. “We […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
