

Maritime beef farmer starts with the forage
Linking profitability and agronomy through forage production in New Brunswick potato region
It’s early July 2024 and Cedric MacLeod is already preparing for winter. He’s knee-deep in harvesting hay and silage that will be bale feed for his herd in cold weather. Calving has just finished. Yesterday, the last calf of the season walked up to him in the field. He’s so fresh he doesn’t know who […] Read more

Annual forages can extend the grazing season
University of Guelph researcher explores grazing options
Glacier FarmMedia – Can extended grazing be gained by integrating annual forages into a perennial pasture rotational grazing system? Kim Schneider, an assistant professor in the plant science department at the University of Guelph hopes to answer that question through a two-year study that incorporates annual forages into 48 acres of a perennial rotational grazing […] Read more

Forage markets hit by volatility
Exports have been down with less demand from Asia
Hay and forage export markets have been hit hard in the past few years. In 2023 the decline was caused by numerous challenges in global trade. Shipping disruptions lingering from the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, commodity inflation, droughts in the U.S., Canada and Europe in 2022, and the U.S. dollar strengthening all contributed. This […] Read more

Manitoba crop report: Most of the harvest off the field
Combining in Manitoba advanced 12 points at 85 per cent complete for the week ended Oct. 7. While some crops made great amounts of progress, others did not. The largest gains were made in the province's soybean and flax harvests as they are up 41 points apiece at 70 and 61 per cent finished respectively.

When the cows come home: Fall and winter feeding considerations
Whatever strategy you choose to implement, each has advantages and drawbacks
As summer ends and fall begins, beef cattle producers will soon start weaning their calves. During this period, cows will return from summer pastures and undergo pregnancy testing. This is an excellent time to evaluate the body condition of your cows. Weaker cows with low body condition should be grouped together and provided with extra […] Read more

Creep feeding when fall calving
For producers who are fall calving, creep feeding might be a viable option to supplement the diet of nursing calves
For cattle producers who are fall calving, supplementing the calves’ diets is often important, given the state of forages at that time. This is where creep feeding comes into play. For some cattle producers, while their grain-producing neighbours are in the fields taking the crops off, they are walking on foot through their pastures, searching […] Read more

Alberta weekly crop report: Harvest yields are coming in lighter than expected
Combining of major crops in Alberta progressed 23 points during the week ended Sept. 10, reaching 54 per cent, according to the province's latest weekly crop report. While dry weather helped to advance the harvest, crop yields were not meeting expectations.

Manitoba harvest advances with co-operative weather
Harvesting in Manitoba reached 40 per cent complete according to the latest crop report from the provincial agriculture department on Sept. 10. The central region was furthest along a 51 per cent finished, followed by the eastern region at 47 per cent done, the southwest at 38 per cent, the Interlake at 34 per cent and the northwest at 25 per cent.

Hail, strong winds damage Prairie crops
A series of storms left a path of destruction in all three Prairie provinces from Aug. 19 to 25. More than one million acres were either damaged or destroyed by the storms bringing hail and strong winds, leading to more than 2,800 claims of crop damage, according to the Canadian Crop Hail Association (CCHA). “This […] Read more

Olds College researchers trial new technologies to support grazing and soil health
Satellite technology, soil biologicals and rising plate metres are all on the research docket at Olds College
Laio Silva Sobrinho’s passion is soil. He initially got his undergrad in forestry in Brazil, but when he came to Canada to do his master’s, he knew it would be in soil science. “Even during my undergrad, I worked with soil remediation in relation to heavy metals. So, it wasn’t too much of a change […] Read more