GLUTENFREE CRAZE
COLD SPRING HURTING GREENHOUSE SALES » Pg 18
New opportunity for farmers? » Pg 8
MAY 22, 2014
SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | VOL. 72, NO. 21
Farms quarantined due to delays in TB testing Cattle movements are restricted indefinitely
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MANITOBACOOPERATOR.CA
$1.75
Good yields still possible with crops seeded soon MAFRD’s tips to mitigate the impact of delayed seeding
By Daniel Winters CO-OPERATOR STAFF
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dozen farms in the Riding Mountain Eradication Area (RMEA) have been put under open-ended quarantine by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency due to delays in testing for bovine tuberculosis. “Essentially, anybody who was scheduled to test and has not yet tested is now under quarantine,” said federally appointed TB co-ordinator Allan Preston. Preston said possible reasons for the delays could be related to the long, cold winter, reluctance on the part of some ranchers to run heavily pregnant cows through squeeze chutes, or excessively muddy conditions due to a wet spring and late thaw. So far, about 75 per cent of all livestock testing is completed. “The CFIA is adamant that all those herds that were identified are tested,” said Preston. “Hopefully the grass will start growing one of these days and they can kick some cattle out to pasture, but until they get the testing completed, the cattle are literally confined to the holding yards and can’t go anywhere.” See TB TESTING on page 7 »
While seeding is well underway in some areas, much of southwest Manitoba remained very wet last week, including this field photographed May 13 in Sioux Valley near the Assiniboine River. PHOTO: LIONEL KASKIW, MAFRD
By Allan Dawson CO-OPERATOR STAFF
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eeding has been late from the gate across the province, but there is still time for yields to finish with the front-runners, provincial extension agronomists said last week. Crops planted the third week of May can still achieve close to their full yield potential, although that potential will decline from now on, say crop experts with Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (MAFRD). “I don’t think it’s too late to expect good yields,” MAFRD soil fertility specialist John Heard said during a webinar May 14. “I would maybe give up on the exceptional yields we had last year, but I’m not saying we’re into low yields yet.” Heard said farmers should think carefully before cutting back on crop nutrients, despite seeding a bit later than they
would prefer (see sidebar). And he said they shouldn’t cut their seeding rate. And if corn was in the seeding plan, it’s still not too late, MAFRD cereal specialist Pam de Rocquigny said May 15 during another webinar. “The yield potential is still there for corn seeded into that third week of May,” she said. “Once we get into the last week of May we see yields drop off a little bit more. But once again based on your risk area there could still be some good yields out there.” During the five years ending in 2012, 89 per cent of Manitoba’s corn crop was planted by the third week of May and 98 per cent by the fourth week, crop insurance records show. When seeding any crop late into cool, wet soils, it’s important to make the best of it, de Rocquigny said. A good seedbed is critical. Don’t “mud” the seed in or plant in cloddy soil, she said. Cut seeding speed to avoid seeding corn too deeply.
Ideally soil should be 10 C at planting depth. That should allow plants to emerge six to 10 days after planting. Colder soils will slow emergence, leaving seedlings less vigorous and more vulnerable to disease. Seed treatments can help protect the seed and seedlings, de Rocquigny said. Fields heavy in crop residue will remain colder longer. And light-textured soils will cool more during cold weather than heavier soils. Seeding rates need to be adjusted so farmers achieve the plant population they are aiming for, she said. Germination rates and expected plant mor tality are part of the calculation. Seeding rates should be bumped up if crops are expected to be under stress. Research has shown an uneven crop can hurt yield more than a low plant See GOOD YIELDS on page 6 »
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