Agronomist Notes

We had a mini-heat wave last week which was welcome for some of the later seeded crops to help push maturity along. At this point, the season is looking very similar to 2008. The rainfall total to this point in 2008 was 7.4 inches with 717 growing degree days. In 2010, rainfall to date is 9.6 inches with 636 growing degree days. I won’t give yield potentials for the area yet, but I will say we’re set up for a banner year. A banner year means hail and more hail. I’ll be bumping up my coverage el pronto!

This week will be busy with spraying fungicide on a few canola fields and wrapping up cereal fungicide programs. On the insect front, the growing degree days have climbed above 600 which signal the beginning of wheat midge emergence. I’ll be checking fields along with clients to see what kind of midge pressure we have this season. I’ve scouted 10,000 acres of canola and haven’t found one field above threshold for lygus bugs or cabbage seedpod weevils. A fabulous start to insect season!

In this week’s newsletter, I’ll be discussing a seed singulation trial in canola and the testing the ability of row crop planters to space seed evenly within the row. Next, some quick tips on spraying for sclerotinia and maximizing fungicide efficacy. I’ve discovered a fantastic integrated weed control strategy that could help us reduce the spread of weed seeds and herbicide costs. We’re now into wheat midge season so I’ve given you the facts on what you need to know about monitoring and controlling wheat midge. Last, I’ll give you an update on our controlled traffic farming venture. We’ll finish with fundamental and technical grain market news.

Crop Staging (Calgary to Drumheller to Three Hills)

Seeded	April 23-31	May 1-7	May 8-15
Wheat	heads emerging	late boot	flag emerged
Canola	50% bloom	40% bloom	20% bloom
Barley	heads emerged	heads emerged	late boot
Peas	flowering	flowering	flowering

Steve’s tips for the week

• Continue monitoring cabbage seedpod weevils up until the 30% bloom stage.
• We’ve hit 636 growing degree days so wheat midge emergence should be roughly 10%. Begin checking wheat from head emergence to flowering. One adult midge per four or five wheat heads is the threshold.
• Evaluate head emergence and flowering. Emergence delays, wheel tracks or compaction problems can be seen the best at this stage.
• Continue scouting for leaf diseases in cereal crops.
• Weather forecast is prime for sclerotinia development. If you’re in an area with a history of sclerotinia with a medium to high density crop canopy, your risk is high.
• Stick to fungicide products like Tilt, Bumper, Pivot and Folicur on wheat crops seeded later than May 20th. The stay green effect from Strobi fungicides like Headline and Quilt may delay maturity and run the risk of frost later on. 

Seed singulation and planting canola on 30-inch rows

I’ve always been intrigued with the concept of seed singulation and the ability to space seed evenly within each row, especially when it comes to canola. I find it annoying when I find eight plants crammed up to one another followed by an 18-inch gap. I don’t know how many times I’ve been asked why there are gaps in the row. Is it the metering system, the air velocity, residue, disease, insects, seeding depth, seed size, soil moisture? Is it all of the above? I don’t know. What I do know is that packing so many plants together in a row does not provide the most efficient use of sunlight, water and nutrients.

Corey Jespersen who farms in the Edmonton area attempted to seed canola on 30-inch rows this year with a row crop planter. He used a 46 hole sugar beet disk and seeded one side on 30-inch rows and the other on 15-inch rows. The picture above is the 30-inch row trial and the picture below that has canopied over already is the 15-inch rows.

There were a few issues that prevented Corey from achieving full seed singulation. First, inconsistent canola seed sizes made it difficult for the disk to pick up seeds properly. There were too many small, flat canola seeds getting wedged in the seed disk holes. As an example, he would get 52 seeds piled up in the 46 hole disk. In order to perform seed singularity in the future, canola seed will have to be sized to a consistent diameter. Could that be one of the reasons we see gaps in the seed rows because varying seed sizes will meter out differently on the roller and flow down the seed tubes at different speeds? The smaller seeds will flow faster than a large seed at the same wind velocity. It’s something we need to test anyhow. What if canola seed lots could be sold according to size instead of thousand kernel weights?

The second glitch in the system was the wide seed tube. The large diameter seed tube caused a lot of lateral seed movement away from the seed trench so the separation between seeds within the row was inconsistent. You would need a narrower seed tube to avoid lateral separation within each row if you were to use a row crop planter. 

In the end, at least two things need to be addressed before we can achieve seed singularity with a row crop planter. First, canola seed must be sized to a specific diameter so it can be metered properly. Perhaps we need to approach the seed companies and see if this is possible from their end. If we can get our seeding rates down to 2.5 lbs/ac or less, they can charge us a little more for the cost of sizing the seed and we’d still be money ahead. Corey saved almost $20.00 acre in seed costs by using the row crop planter. Second, a narrower seed deliver tube is necessary to avoid the lateral bounce that causes uneven seed distribution in the furrow. At least we know what’s possible with a row crop planter and the alterations we need to make for seed singularity to work. Thanks to Corey for sharing his experiment; we’ll be following his progress. SL

Sclerotinia Stem Rot Management

Timing of fungicide application is critical. Scout for conditions conducive for disease during the early flowering stage and apply a foliar fungicide between 20-50% bloom, with optimum timing at 30% bloom. Once sclerotinia symptoms are present in a crop, foliar fungicides will not be effective. Some fungicides are registered for split applications, providing longer protection during periods of extended bloom under cool wet conditions.

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture & Food

The link below is a PDF version of the “Canola Disease Identification and Sclerotinia Risk Assessment Card” and can assist growers and crop scouts with spraying decisions.

Link: http://www.canola-councildemo.org/pdf/canola_plant_disease_risk.pdf

Quick tips on what to ask before spraying a fungicide in canola:

• How heavy is the crop canopy?
• Has there been excessive moisture prior to flowering?
• Do they predict rain in the near future?
• Have your canola rotations been less than 4 years apart?
• Was there disease incidence in the past?
• Are there apothecia in neighboring fields where canola was grown last year?
• Also consider, target yield, fertility program and expected value of canola.

Registered Fungicides for control of Sclerotinia

Lance: Rate: 142g per acre
Proline: Rate: 128ml to 170ml per acre
Quadris: Rate: 200ml to 400ml per acre
Ronilan EG: Rate: 300g to 400g per acre
Rovral Flo: Rate: 850ml to 1,250ml per acre
Astound: Rate: 310g to 390g per acre

Maximizing Fungicide Efficacy

• Spray when the maximum numbers of flowers are open, but prior to significant pod formation and petal drop. Decaying petals provide the initial food source for spores, and carry those spores down into the crop canopy.
• Use higher water volumes with medium to fine spray droplets for optimum coverage. This is especially important in crops with very dense canopies.
• Don’t overestimate bloom stage in stands with uneven maturity, as a significant number of plants hidden in the canopy may not have completed bolting.
• If conditions have been drier and less conducive to infection, it may be all right to delay a single fungicide application to target an average of 30% bloom. However, if conditions have been wet and odds of significant infection are high, it will be those early infections from the initial petal drop that are likely to do the most damage. Spraying a little early is probably wise.
• Consider split applications, especially in fields with uneven maturity, which will lengthen out the bloom period substantially. For most products registered for split application it is recommended to make the initial application at about 20% bloom, followed by the second application at around 50% bloom if conditions are still conducive to sclerotinia infection.

Source: Canola Council of Canada

Wheat Midge Identification, Damage & Control

These small bugs are about half the size of a mosquito and bright orange. They lay eggs in the wheat head and the larvae will then feed on the wheat kernels.

Damage Potential

One midge per 4-5 wheat heads can decrease yield around 15%. They can also reduce the grade of your wheat. If there is more than one midge per 8-10 wheat heads there is a risk of a reduced grade. The Canadian Grain Commission limits midge damage in No. 1 CWRS wheat to 2% and 8% in No.2. In durum the tolerances are similar.

Scouting

Adults appear in late June and early July. Wheat fields should be scouted regularly between heading and flowering. Scout in the evenings, from about 8-10 pm, when the temperature is around 15 degrees Celsius and there is no or very light winds. Also, scout four or five places in the field for a more accurate count.

Threshold

One adult midge per four or five wheat heads is usually enough to warrant control measures.

Control

Cygon™, Lagon™, Lorsban 4E™, Nufos™ and Pyrinex™ are all registered for use on wheat midge in wheat. Check the label for any other restrictions regarding the chemicals. For example Cygon™ and Lagon™ do not control the eggs, just the adults. Also, watch the stage of the crop, as certain chemicals have to be applied at specific times for good control. Check the label for application timing.

Cost: Lorsban: $8.40 acre + $7.50 ac/aerial application = $15.90 acre

Considerations for Control

Late evening or early morning are the best times to control the adults, as the females are most active in cool nighttime temperatures (but above 15 degrees Celsius or 59 degrees Fahrenheit) and when the wind is less than 10 km/hr (6 mph). Also, good coverage is critical for control if your chemical controls eggs as well, so make sure your water volume is adequate. Optimal control happens when 70% of the crop is in the heading to flower stage. If 30-60% of the crop is flowering then it needs to be sprayed immediately to have good control on the wheat midge. If 80% of the crop is flowering then control is not recommended as the window has passed and the midge damage has already started. Spraying therefore should be done early to protect the main stem and first tiller, as this is where most of the yield potential of the crop is.

Wheat Midge Forecast Maps

Midge emergence can be modeled using accumulated temperature calculations called Growing Degree Day (GDD). Data provided by Agriculture & AgriFood Canada (AAFC), Saskatoon suggest using a base temperature of 5°C for predicting midge emergence patterns using accumulated GDDs. Thresholds for combined emergence of male and female midge are:
10% emergence     693 (±39) GDD
50% emergence     784 (±38) GDD
90% emergence     874 (±41) GDD

As of July 12th in the Calgary corridor we are at 636 GDD.

Wheat Midge Information: http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex2507?opendocument

Alberta Midge Forecast map: http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/prm12976/$FILE/wheat-midge-2010-lrg.gif

Prairie Midge Emergence maps: http://www.cwb.ca/public/en/farmers/weather/midge/

Controlled traffic provides new weed control strategy

One of the biggest problem weeds in Australia is annual ryegrass, a prolific, highly adaptable grassy weed that seems to grow everywhere. The weed seeds are harvested by the straight cut headers and blown across the width of the cut by the chaff spreader. This weed can spread across a field within a year or two and cause severe reductions in yield. I believe this technology has a really good fit for producers battling Downy Brome or Japanese Brome, both highly prolific and easily spread by the combine at harvest. If you have severe weed pressure of any kind, this technology under a controlled traffic system may be the answer to your weed control problems.

One of the tools that controlled traffic farming offers is weed control by stopping the spread of weed seeds across the field by the chaff spreader. The first picture is the back end of a JD 9670 with a chaff cyclone mounted on the right side, directly over the tramline. The chaff is blown into the cyclone to reduce the wind speed, allowing the chaff to drop nicely into the tram line. The weed seeds are then contained to one area where they can be sprayed out or left to grow in an area that won’t affect yield. Also, the annual ryegrass has a harder time germinating in the tough, compacted layer inside the tramline, which also reduces weed pressure. 

The second picture shows unseeded stubble from last harvest where the chaff cyclone dropped the chaff directly onto the tramline. The end result can be seen in the third picture. The ryegrass has germinated in the tramlines but no longer grows throughout the field. The nasty weeds are fully contained and manageable within this system.

The end results of this system are cleaner fields and reduced herbicide costs. You have the option of using a shroud sprayer to spray out the tramlines during the growing season and be able to use a non-selective herbicide like glyphosate. Also, you’ll be containing the weed seeds to an area like a compacted tramline that reduces germination and stunts growth of the seeds that do germinate. This is a great integrated weed management tool but will only fit in a controlled traffic farming system. I like it! SL

Market News

Technical Analysis

Canola: November futures. The short and long term trend is up.
HRS Wheat: December futures. The short and the long term trend is down.
Corn: December futures. The short and long term trends are down.
Soybeans: November futures. The short term trend is down and long term trend is up.
Canadian Dollar: August futures. The short term trend is up and the long trend is down.
US Dollar Index: August futures. The short term trend is down and the long term trend is up.