Dig Deep Archive

Handling Pesticides: Don’t Forget About Safety.

‘Read the label. That’s everything you need to know about the product.’

By Emily Croft

As the 2024 growing season approaches, many producers are thinking about what is needed to make this year’s crop the most successful yet. This includes planning to manage weeds, insects, and fungus in the fields. Ontario farmers should also remember to focus on safety when handling and spraying pesticides.

“Safety when handling pesticides is always important,” says James Dyck, engineering specialist of Crop Systems and Environment at OMAFRA.

Control What You Can!

Use a multi-system approach to weed control against resistant species.

By Paul Hermans

Ask any farmer about weeds and they want them gone.

Clean fields are on the top of many growers’ minds heading into the spring planting season. Yet challenges persist in row cropping from a weed control standpoint.

Much of this is due to the continual use of glyphosate technology since the introduction of Roundup Ready soybeans in the late 1990s. With cheap, effective herbicide options, growers believed that easy weed control days were possible for many years to come.

Business Management: Still Room to Improve

Or is farming more of a lifestyle for you?

By Richard Kamchen

Despite a growing need for a more business-oriented approach to farming, not all Ontario producers are adopting the tools they’ll need to ride out challenging times.

Being your own boss, working outside in nature and alongside family, and producing food for the world have all come under the umbrella of “farm lifestyle,” a lifestyle that’s lured many to farming and kept them going for generations. But lifestyle alone isn’t enough to sustain a business.

Retirement 101: Keeping Active

Explore your passions & hobbies in retirement

By Ron Settler

Are you one of those people who don’t want to retire? Perhaps you enjoy what you do and don’t want to quit. Maybe you don’t know what you would do if you retired so you just keep working. Sometimes people don’t retire because they don’t think they can afford it.

Does kernel Size Matter?

Recording these finer details will allow you to manage for larger yield increases.

By Paul Hermans

The 2023 corn growing season across most of Eastern Canada will go down in the history books as being one of the highest yields on record.

Looking back at the 2023 growing season may leave a few agronomists scratching their heads as to why the yields were so high.

Annual Weeds: A Game-Plan for 2024

Prepare to control these seven yield-limiting adversaries

Compiled by the Better Farming Editorial Team

Looking ahead to next growing season, you can be sure these uninvited guests will return, to compete with crops, steal essential nutrients, water and sunlight, and hinder profitability. This article looks at seven notorious annual weeds, diving into their characteristics, the threats they pose, and the best strategies to combat them for 2024.

The Farmerettes: Renewed Awareness

Growing recognition for the historical efforts of these Ontario farm workers

By Emily Croft

The Farmerettes, also known as the Farm Service Force, were created in 1941 to fill the demand for farm labour created by the Second World War. These women worked in the fields and processing factories, producing the food that fueled the war effort.

Bonnie Sitter of South Huron has been speaking with past Farmerettes and sharing their stories since 2018. And her work is now creating renewed awareness of their vital, historical role.

Do Your Crops Get three Square Meals?

An adequate, well-balanced fertility program will ensure your crops are healthy.

By Paul Hermans

Looking at historical yield gains for both corn and soybeans across North America is exciting.

Over the past 25 years, corn yields have increased by about 50 bushels per acre, and soybeans have increased by approximately 15 bushels.

But are we feeding this crop adequately to maintain these high yields?

Why are yields on the rise?

Farmers advised of important tax reporting changes

Be proactive with your accountants throughout the year; don’t wait until year-end to engage.

By Richard Kamchen

Farmers may want to consult their tax advisors for a heads-up about the potential for additional mandatory filings.

For 2023, Underused Housing Tax (UHT) and bare trust reporting promise to have massive impacts that tax experts are still working through while trying to educate their clients about how they may be affected, says Cara Noble, tax manager at Yates Whitaker LLP.

Choosing A Guidance System

‘It can be introduced at any point in time in an operation & has benefits.’

By Emily Croft

Guidance systems have become commonplace on Ontario farms as precision agriculture technologies grow in popularity. Various available features and accuracy levels mean farmers can choose a guidance system that best suits their operation’s needs.

“Guidance systems can be useful for everything from fertilizer application straight through to planting, tillage, and hay,” says Jordan Wallace, sales and advanced solutions technician at GPS Ontario.