Army worm poop deceives corn plants Monday, December 7, 2015 Chemical ecologists at Pennsylvania State University have determined that "frass," the defecations of herbivorous caterpillars that collects in the whorls of corn leaves, tricks plants into thinking they are being attacked by a fungus infection. The plants mount a defence against such, thereby reducing their defences against the actual creatures that are attacking them. They can't defend against both fungus and insects at the same time, says Dawn Luthe, professor of plant stress biology in a Penn State newsletter published in September.The newsletter notes that fall army worms "are voracious feeders on leaves in the confined whorls of corn plants."The study was published in the Journal of Chemical Ecology and may lead to the isolation of specific components of the frass that can be incorporated into a compound that can be spread on crops to increase resistance to fungal attacks. That would be an "ecologically sustainable" pesticide. An alternative is a genetic modification to incorporate proteins from the frass to boost a crop's "native resistance" to pathogens.Scientists are still trying to find a solution to dealing with those hungry army caterpillars. The faking frass is an ecological strategy "that has been perfected over thousands of years of evolution," says lead researcher Swayamjit Ray, a doctoral student at Penn State. The U.S. Department of Agriculture financed the research. BF Noise over GMO labelling in the United States Cotton underwear helps measure soil activity
Precision Harvesting with HeadSight and TrueSight Tuesday, October 21, 2025 Modern harvesting relies heavily on precision and smart technology, and new systems for head height control and steering are making sure you are not leaving bushels in the field. These innovations ensure efficient crop collection, protect equipment, and reduce operator fatigue during... Read this article online
Remembering Ralph Winfield: Beloved Better Farming Columnist Tuesday, October 21, 2025 Ontario's farming community is mourning the loss of longtime agricultural writerRalph Gordon Winfieldof Glanworth, who passed away peacefully at St. Thomas-Elgin General Hospital on Oct. 17, 2025, at the age of 85. Ralph’s name has been closely tied to Better Farming since 1999. His... Read this article online
Case IH FieldOps Brings Smart Connectivity to Modern Farming Friday, October 17, 2025 that FieldOps operates on desktops through a web interface and on mobile devices through an app compatible with iPhone, Android, or iPad. This flexibility allows farmers to access critical machine and field information anytime, anywhere. One of the most significant upgrades to... Read this article online
New Holland Marks 50 Years of Twin Rotor Innovation Friday, October 17, 2025 New Holland is celebrating 50 years of leadership in twin rotor harvesting technology, a milestone that began with the introduction of the TR70 combine in 1975. This machine transformed agriculture by bringing the world the concept of twin rotor threshing and... Read this article online
22 young leaders graduate from Rural Ontario Institute’s Change Makers Program Thursday, October 16, 2025 The Rural Ontario Institute (ROI) has marked a milestone in rural leadership development with the graduation of 22 participants from its Rural Change Makers (RCM) program. The private ceremony, held this October, celebrated a year of learning, collaboration, and community impact. “We... Read this article online