18 It’s Farming. And It’s Better. Better Farming | January 2025 NEW CROP OPPORTUNITIES While corn, soybeans, and wheat remain the key crops on Ontario farms, many farmers are interested in expanding their rotations. Producers have added new crops for increased profit, rotation timing, and rising input costs. We spoke with farmers about some unique crops they are growing, and the challenges and lessons from their experiences. White and black beans Some producers have diversified from their typical soybean crop by adding dry edible beans to their rotation. Matt Underwood and his family initially grew black and white beans near Wingham in the 1980s and ’90s but stopped due to the management at the time. “We stopped for probably around 10 years. At that time a lot of edible beans were still pulled rather than directly harvested and we have stonier ground that didn’t work well with a pull-type harvester.” The family resumed growing edible beans over the past 15 years, and started processing white, black, and adzuki beans at their commercial grain elevator five years ago. Underwood says they wanted to diversify their rotation and manage the workload at harvest. “They are typically ready one to two weeks before soybeans, so we are able to get through some of our acres before the soybeans are ready,” explains Underwood. “This also allows us to get wheat in sooner. We have seen a positive response in wheat yields when planting it sooner, especially since our edible beans come off earlier.” Underwood says that black and ‘IT’S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR FARMERS TO SUPPLEMENT THEIR REGULAR CROP INCOME.’ NEW CROP OPPORTUNITIES: ROUNDING OUT THE ROTATION BY EMILY MCKINLAY Matt Underwood photo White beans.
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