Insights

Giants Fight – Farmers Pay

Pat Lynch

If you read much of the farm press you will notice a certain amount of animosity between a couple of the major corn seed companies. This is unfortunate. It is costing growers.

There is the cost of the ads that could be put to better use. More crucial is the cost of lost professional time and effort. Instead of these usually great companies giving you good information about their products they have resorted to acting like two fat kids in the sandbox. This fat kid syndrome is spilling over to the field. Some dealers have picked up this useless fight.

Posted on: 
January 11, 2010

Whose responsibility is refuge hybrid planting?

Pat Lynch

Currently there is a recommendation as to how much non-Bt corn should be planted along with Bt corn to prevent resistance from happening. There is a watchdog group in the United States complaining to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that the compliance rate of U.S. growers is too low. It has dropped to about 75 per cent compliance. They say this is too low. They say that unless the compliance rate increases that the EPA should not reregister Bt products in 2010.

Posted on: 
December 14, 2009

Keep your farm’s priorities in mind when using new corn headers

Pat Lynch

Corn headers are changing the way Ontario grower’s farm. Specifically, the newer headers are chopping corn stalks more. In some cases there are stalk choppers attached to the headers. The result is a mat of corn stover that keeps the soil wet and cold in the spring. This has resulted in no-till soybeans yielding less especially in a cooler year like 2009.

Posted on: 
November 26, 2009

Dad won't let go

Richard Cressman

Over the past five to six years I have taken on full responsibility for making sure all the work gets completed, but my father always must be in control. He has to be involved in all of the decisions

Posted on: 
November 16, 2009

Time to rethink crop insurance

Pat Lynch

Crop insurance must change the type of coverage offered to farmers.

For years we have dealt with crop diseases that are weather induced. Often these diseases result in crops that should not be harvested. Growers cannot buy crop insurance that will protect them from a crop that is refused at the elevator or should be refused because of quality issues.

The worst of these diseases centre on toxin producing fungi such as Fusarium. This year it appears as if we have just dodged another disease bullet in corn. Luckily the disease affecting corn this year does not produce toxins.

Posted on: 
November 16, 2009

Consider fall broadcast

Pat Lynch

Lower fertilizer prices this fall suggests that you should be doing some fall broadcast.

Summer and fall 2008 fertilizer prices went to new highs for a number of reasons. This resulted in a major reduction in fertilizer use, especially phosphorous. This reduction in use resulted in phosphorous prices crashing for this summer and fall.

Posted on: 
November 10, 2009

When to split the business?

Richard Cressman

If we split the business it is going to impact profitability, but we are wondering if it may help the family relationship stuff. How do we move forward?

Posted on: 
July 6, 2009

Keep an eye on spray drift

Pat Lynch

Watch what you are spraying. Especially watch spray drift. There are some folks in Ontario that would love to put a ban on spraying glyphosate in Ontario after a certain date in certain areas. This is because of the drift onto horticulture crops. These high value crops are very sensitive to glyphosate drift. Many of us have been involved in glyphosate drift onto trees. The damage to trees can last for years.
 

Posted on: 
June 10, 2009