
Tag Archives Forages

Less stress and more hay in a day
Launch of the IntelliCruise feed-rate control system in 2016 marks the latest advancement in forage harvesting technology from New Holland after introducing its CropRFV last year and CropID in 2013. IntelliCruise does exactly what the name implies. It’s a variable cruise control for the tractor that adjusts ground speed according to a set rate for […] Read more

Silage — the forage of choice for cattle feeders
Nutrition with John McKinnon, beef cattle nutritionist
This past winter has again demonstrated the value of cereal silage as a forage source for cattle feeders. Many of you will recall that hay supplies were tight last fall, particularly in Western Canada and as a result, for many feedlots hay was priced out of the ration. How did these lots make it through […] Read more

Points to remember when seeding forages
There are a few common mistakes made that limit the success of new forage establishments” says Joel Bagg, a former forage specialist with Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and now with Quality Seeds. “One of the biggest problems is not seeding new forage stands often enough. Many alfalfa-based stands are simply too […] Read more

What perennial forage should I seed this year?
Cattle grazers all across Canada have a wide choice of perennial forage species that they can seed this year. But how do producers pick a species and variety to grow in their respective areas? The question of seeding in mixtures has always been a puzzle. In the 1960s and early 1970s, seed mixtures contained 17 […] Read more

Learning to grow more grass in Saskatchewan
Art McElroy has been farming in southern Saskatchewan, about 50 miles east of Alberta, since 1996. He started seeding some of the place back to grass in 1998. In 1999 he and his oldest son took the Ranching for Profit class as a home study course and started doing some rotational grazing. In 2005 he […] Read more

Eight tips to run your own crop trials
Do your own research instead of adapting other people's research to your farm
Every acre can be a research acre, said Nicole Philp to farmers at this years CropSphere in Saskatoon. Farmers interested in testing new products and practices can create powerful data sets with a little co-ordination, said Philp, a Canola Council of Canada agronomist. But how can you make sure you get good data out of[...]
Read more
Read more

Seeing the ranch as a classroom
Learning is a way of life at the Bar K
[UPDATED: Feb. 10, 2025] The Bar K Ranch has changed hands since this article was written in 2016. The current owners have a different management approach, and no longer use horses for the regular ranch work. From 400 auction market cows in the early 1980s, Bar K Ranch has evolved into a modern beef operation[...]
Read more
Read more

Forage breeding faces funding challenges
Government has cut back, private companies are not keen on crops that don’t need to be reseeded every year, and you can’t check off sales to farmers’ own livestock
Forages are Canada’s biggest crop but you wouldn’t know it because of the few resources that go into breeding them. You’d think that, given its size, forage would be a giant in the world of plant breeding. Unfortunately, it’s more of a midget. Canada has only four major publicly funded programs for breeding tame forages,[...]
Read more
Read more

Stocking rates key to climate change adjustment
Low defoliation rates and leaving lots of litter are best for coping with weather variations from year to year
Fast and hard? Slow and easy? And how many animals per acre? Stocking and defoliation rates are a complex and even controversial issue, and depend a lot on the weather. Climate change could make them even more complex. To get a better idea on how producers should respond, Edward Bork and a team from the[...]
Read more
Read more

Big on forage brassicas
Versatility and volume outweigh any risks involved
Seeing is believing for Graeme Finn, who says New Zealanders are on to a good thing with forage brassicas for winter grazing in their grass-based systems that yield massive tons of high-quality beef, lamb and milk from the country’s tiny land base. A trip there four years ago convinced him that if forage brassicas are[...]
Read more
Read more