Inputs - by Top Crop Manager

Winter cereals see all four seasons in Ontario, which means a wide variety of environmental conditions can affect their growth and yield. What can growers expect after a cooler fall for planting in parts of the province and an unusually warm winter? Do typical considerations like nitrogen and sulphur application timings and pest management strategies changed in a year like this one

In March, during the first installment of our two-part series on managing drought, we chatted about what growers need to be doing right now to ensure their soil and crops have the best opportunity to thrive this coming summer.In this episode of Inputs, we expand on this topic, tapping into some of the measures farmers need to take over the course of the growing season to maintain h

After a winter with below-average snowfall levels, farmers in Alberta and across the Prairies need to plan now for what could be a dry growing season. In this episode of Inputs, we are joined by agronomist extension specialist Ruoxi Xia, who works with Alberta Grains. Xia shares her insights and some tips on how growers can prepare for potential drought conditions, including what m

With more and more digital agricultural tools on the farm – whether guiding or driving the tractor, tracking finances or prices, or optimizing conditions in a barn – cybersecurity management should be on your radar, no matter the size of your operation. Just like you would manage any new pest, you should add cybersecurity to your toolbox.Janos Botschner, lead investigator of cy

The start of the 2024 growing season is coming fast – do you have a plan for spring nutrient management?In this episode of Inputs, Chris Brown, field crop sustainability specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), discusses considerations for successful spring manure application, as well as best management practices and an alternate nutri

Peter Sikkema has been researching the importance of weed management on soybean crops for more than three decades now. A professor of weed management for field crops at the University of Guelph, much of Sikkema’s work has been conducted in Ontario, but there are key takeaways from his research for soybean growers in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.During this episode of Inputs, Sikkema

Agriculture can be a contentious topic when speaking with the general public, as there is a lot of misinformation or confusion about the industry out there. But educating the public, whether on social media, at the coffee shop, or on a broader scale can be difficult when the industry is so diverse and resources aren't always easily accessible. Enter The Real Dirt on Farming, a maga

Dec. 5 marks the annual World Soil Day, which for 2023 will celebrate the theme of “soil and water: a source of life.” To recognize the importance of soil health to the farming community and the environment as a whole, Dr. Benjamin Ellert, research scientist and biogeochemistry and the agroecosystem science team lead with AAFC – Lethbridge, will join Inputs podcast host Dylan

Drones are a hot topic in the agriculture world right now, with spraying, mapping and seeding all at the top of a long list of tasks that would be incredibly beneficial to farmers. As the technology continues to improve, people like Bob Hoffos, a GPS/GIS instructor for the land and water resources program at Werklund School of Agriculture and Technology at Olds College of Agricultu

With all of the technology implemented in modern agriculture, automation and robotics is likely the next logical leap – but it can feel like an exceptionally large one for many. Between the economic, technological, and reliability considerations, there's the added difficulty of knowing which machine might work best for your operation, and whether it can do what it's supposed to.