46 Follow us on Twitter @BetterFarmingON Better Farming | April 2024 true, it probably is too good to be true. This year, when you are approached to try some new product or additive with exceptional claims, think ‘disposable underwear.’ That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try something new. Just keep it to a small acreage and have a good check system to measure results. If it really is a great product, it will still be around next year. On the topic of plots, spend significant time planning them. One of the biggest mistakes is making plots too big and encompassing too many products. The other mistake is trying to test multiple products on the same plots, like nitrogen rates on hybrid plots. It can be done, but very few are able to pull off these multiple comparisons on-farm. Lastly, as you prepare for the 2024 planting season, here are some tips I have gained over the years: Have 911 numbers for all your farm locations. Do not presume that the custom operator you had last year will remember exactly where the Laverty farm is. Give these numbers to all who will be going to these farms. Have a set ready in case there is a medical emergency. And have them for anyone who comes for equipment repairs. Have a copy of all your crop plans so anyone can access them. It’s much easier to change a plan than to start one during the spring planting season. These plans must have the variety/ hybrid by field, along with seeding rate, and include all herbicides that will be used along with rates. Decide now which crops will have fungicides. You don’t have to have fungicide product names and rates for spraying, but you must know which fields will be sprayed. Learn how to use your cell phone to take photos. If you are trying to read the part number, take a picture and then use the zoom function to read the number. Then send this part number to your dealer. Use your cell phone to take photographs of weeds to identify areas of fields where there are problems. Be confident in using a video camera to show someone problems in your field. And learn how to add a third person to a telephone conversation. Read the labels of products you will be using. I know it may sound trite, but there’s a lot of good information on those labels. Keep a positive attitude during planting. Stay away from negative people – the types that always find something wrong with politicians, prices, etc. And do not listen to the news during planting. It’s generally full of bad things happening in the world that you cannot change. If something dramatic happens, someone will tell you. Listen to market reports often, as there are small windows of marketing opportunities during planting season. Be safe. Take needed breaks. Talk to lots of people. And if you think doing something a certain way is not safe, you’re probably right. BF crops: the lynch fileS PATRICK LYNCH Patrick writes a weekly crop production newsletter and is a popular speaker at farm meetings. Opinionated, controversial; formerly with OMAFRA and Cargill. CCA-ON. MANGANESE DEFICIENCY In my February column, this photo had an incorrect nutrient mentioned in the cutline. The photo shows a Manganese deficiency between tile runs.
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