Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

My corn is planted and on its way up!  It was none too warm on the weekend while I sat on my open air tractor planting two fields of corn.  The cold rain on Monday gave me a bit to worry about, daytime highs of 13C are not particularly desirable, but the heat has shown up and the corn seed has noticed.  Only5 days in the ground and I have an up shoot. The forecast has some reasonable temperatures called for, so I hope to see it out of the ground by the end of next week.

I have been told, if it doesn't rain after you plant, that seed will look shallower every time you check, get a rain and you won't believe how deep it is.  After planting, I got a good 6 tenths.  I looks a good inch deeper than the day I put it in the ground.  I just about quit digging down when I found that little seed with a good inch of root and a small nub of an up shoot.  The ground is cracking nicely so I don't expect any issue with a crust stopping emersion, but there is a lot more rain in the forecast before that happens.

Planting didn't go particularly smooth.  I am pretty sure I didn't miss planting any rows, although I had to replant one when one of four row ran out of seed early.   Had a chain jump off the drive for the fertilizer, resulting in a second repeat run, but other than that I did my part well.  The fertilizer however, was in a hurry to get in the ground.  It was running a good 60% faster than the chart.  I believe I have one round with close to 400 lbs on it.  But I was thinking clear enough to mark my adjustments with a flag, so i should be able to get some good trial data from the extra 2 tonnes I had to buy.  

I am going to try a bit of non-roundup ready corn, to see how it yields and how weed control compares to the roundup ready variety.  The seed supplier was very concerned about selling me non-RR corn, concerned I would spray it the same way.  Never been a problem using different herbicides between corn and Soybeans, don't see why this was such a concern, other than someone has clearly forgot about the different varieties in the past.  My two fields are separated by a road, so I am not too concerned...until I completely loose my mind.

Next step is the herbicide, I haven't finalized what to use, but likely will take advantage of the next calm dry day to make something happen.  I have a week after all why rush the decision.  Not in any rush to plant the soybeans yet, but I am sure I will get the itch soon enough.

Views: 205

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Comment by Roadrunner on May 17, 2012 at 1:22am

Good work Gus.

I hope your crops do well.

RR

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Crop research a better long-term solution than BRM programs: USask Professor

Agricultural research requires investment, but it takes many years to develop a higher yielding crop variety or one with improved disease resistance. Recently announced funding and job cuts by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are expected to impact the quantity and possibly the quality of new research in both the crop and livestock sectors. Richard Gray is a professor and grains policy chair at the University of Saskatchewan and was a key note speaker Thursday at the Top Crop Summit in Saskatoon. "I think the lack of a plan to how they were actually going to do some of the activities that were happening on those farms, that's a problem, and second, I don't think there was enough thought given to whether the sites that they were closing down were important for overall productivity of the researchers that remain." Gray said of the pending closures of research sites across Canada. The Indian Head research site represented about 35 per cent of the crop area in the province and was loca

Malta bee exporter blasts criticism from Canadian beekeepers

A European honeybee provider said they’re collateral damage to a dust-up in the Canadian honey sector over replacement bees. Ermanno De Chino, CEO of Melita Bees, a firm based on the Mediterranean island of Malta, said Italian and Maltese bee biosecurity and quality are the subject of unwarranted “smears” coming from a Canadian beekeeping contingent. He said they’re “pushing for the opening of the border with the United States,” a country he said is extremely vulnerable to the tropilaelaps (tropi) mite threat. “There’s little science and a lot of politics in all of this,” he wrote in a Feb. 10 email. In a separate email, De Chino described the risk of tropilaelaps entering the U.S. as “very high” due to the “enormous” number of cargo ships from Asia arriving at the ports of California, Texas, and Florida: three states with tropi mite-friendly weather conditions. “Swarms of Asian bees arriving in containers would have an easy time establishing themselves in these areas. The enormous

LDC commissions pea protein isolate production facility in Yorkton

Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) has announced the start of commissioning for its new pea protein isolate (PPI) production facility in Yorkton. Alongside pea protein, LDC will also commercialize pea fiber and a proprietary pea starch produced at the new Yorkton facility, for the pet food, building materials and paper industries. Strategically located in one of the world’s largest pea-producing regions, at the site of LDC’s existing oilseeds processing complex, the new pea protein isolate plant is expected to employ some 60 people by the end of 2026, states a news release issued by LDC. The facility is currently in its commissioning phase, covering both wet and dry processing, which will be completed over the next couple of months, with commercial volumes expected to be available by mid-June, says LDC. The site will be among the largest pea processing facilities in North America, serving key segments of the plant-based market, including high-protein beverages and powder mixes, dairy alter

Groups call for mandatory labeling of genetically engineered pork products

No laws in Canada mandate specific labels for genetically engineered foods

Reinforcing Market Support at IAOM Latin America Conference

Engaging, learning, and networking were top of mind for attendees at the International Association of Operative Millers’ (IAOM) 49th Latin American Region Annual Conference and Expo, held in February in Guadalajara, Mexico. Lisa Nemeth, Cereals Canada director of market support and training, was among the presenters at the event, which attracted over 280 milling professionals from twenty-five countries. Nemeth presented on the quality of Canadian cereals, the Canadian quality assurance system, and the market support that Cereals Canada delivers to its customers. Nemeth shared that customers were happy to see Canadian cereals represented at the conference. On average, Canada exports 5.9 million tonnes of non-durum wheat to Latin America per year. Over the last five years, the largest markets in the region for Canadian cereals were Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico. “Latin America loves Canadian cereals,” said Nemeth. “Mexico is an important market for Canada Western Red Spring (CWR

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service