(Dave Bedard photo)

Germany swings EU vote in favour of glyphosate

Brussels | Reuters — Germany defeated its key EU ally France in a very tight vote on Monday to clear the use of glyphosate herbicide for the next five years after a heated debate over whether it causes cancer. After months of indecisive votes among the 28 member states in Brussels, Germany, whose Chancellor Angela […] Read more

Photo: Reuters

U.S. farm study finds no firm cancer link to glyphosate

London | Reuters – A large long-term study on the use of the big-selling weedkiller glyphosate by agricultural workers in the United States has found no firm link between exposure to the pesticide and cancer, scientists said on Thursday. Published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (JNCI), the study found there was no […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

EU delays decision on glyphosate

Brussels | Reuters — EU countries failed on Wednesday to vote on a licence extension for glyphosate, delaying again a decision on the widely used herbicide that critics say could cause cancer. The European Commission said in a statement the relevant committee did not hold a vote at a meeting and that it would announce […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

EU set to delay vote on glyphosate

Brussels | Reuters — Health experts from European Union countries are expected to discuss whether or not to extend the licence for herbicide glyphosate at a meeting starting on Thursday, but will only vote on the issue later this year. The EU has been debating for two years whether to allow the herbicide, used in […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

France open to phasing out glyphosate

Paris | Reuters — France is open to phasing out common weedkiller glyphosate, the government said on Monday, following complaints from farmers worried about a potential imminent ban. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe reiterated Paris would vote against the European Commission’s proposal to extend for 10 years the licence for glyphosate, which is used in Monsanto’s […] Read more

Waterhemp is a concern not only because it’s a new weed for Manitoba, but because in places in Ontario and the U.S., it’s often resistant to glyphosate, Group 2 herbicides or both. (Tone Ag Consulting photo)

Second incidence of waterhemp found in Manitoba

A second case of waterhemp — a noxious weed which, in many places in Ontario and the U.S., is resistant to glyphosate, Group 2 herbicides or both — has been found in Manitoba. Waterhemp (amaranthus tuberculatus), which resembles redroot pigweed and is in the same family, was first found in a soybean field southeast of […] Read more


Speaking July 5 at the Crop Diagnostic School in Carman, Manitoba Agriculture’s Terry Buss shows a Roundup Ready 2 soybean plot dying due to dicamba drifting over from the Xtend soybean plot at left. (Allan Dawson photo)

Xtend soybeans expand options, but be dicamba-drift aware

New dicamba- and glyphosate-tolerant soybeans offer more weed control options and are another tool to address herbicide-tolerant weeds, but farmers need to take steps to avoid dicamba drift and spray tank residue, Manitoba officials say. What’s been happening in Arkansas underscores the risk dicamba drift presents. The U.S. state of Arkansas on Friday announced a […] Read more

Wild oats is currently resistant to the most number of herbicide groups of any weed.

‘Wake-up call’ needed for resistance

Provincial crop expert says it’s time to stop pretending it’s not ‘a huge issue’

Reading Time: 3 minutes Weed resistance has been an issue in crop production for many years, but is coming to the forefront as increasing numbers of weeds are no longer responding to herbicides. “Most producers are aware of the issue, but unless it affects them directly, don’t see it as a huge issue,” said provincial crop specialist Harry Brook. […] Read more


(Video screengrab from Enlist.com)

Dow’s Enlist corn cleared for Canada

Corn growers in Canada can begin ordering Dow AgroSciences’ genetically modified Enlist corn later this summer, now that China will allow imports of grain grown from corn with the Enlist trait. Dow Agro announced Wednesday the glyphosate- and 2,4-D-tolerant corn will be commercially available in Canada and the U.S. for use in the 2018 growing […] Read more

Assessing the threat from a weed starts with identifying it. For example, whitlow grass (left) isn’t a big threat, but scentless chamomile (right) is, says provincial crop specialist Harry Brook. photos: wiki commons

Know your enemy and its destructive potential, says provincial crop specialist

There’s a critical window for controlling weeds, but it depends on both the crop 
and the threat posed by individual species

Reading Time: 2 minutes All crops have a critical weed control period when they are most susceptible to significant yield loss from weed competition. The critical weed control period for canola is around 17 to 38 days after emergence. Peas can be as early as two weeks after emergence. “Other, more competitive crops, like the cereals, have a less […] Read more