Quick Hitters

Rainfall accumulation in May was more than 200% of normal in many parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. This will be no surprise to many of you. This AAFC map shows May moisture as a percent of normal. Blue is >200%. For more maps, visit AAFC’s weather page.

Mud raises the risk of clubroot spread. Wet weather brings a combination of mud AND time panic to get crops seeded and sprayed. This is a bad combination for clubroot containment. Growers and custom applicators operating in or near known clubroot zones will need to be extra vigilant in cleaning equipment between fields. Click here for tips on cleaning.

In the haste to finish seeding, growers must remember to scout their already-emerged canola fields. Some growers have sprayed for flea beetles, and feeding will pick up again with warmer weather. Cutworms generally do not like wet conditions, but watch for cuttings and bald patches on high land and south-facing hillsides.

Spray weeds early. We had some growers ask this week about waiting for more weeds to emerge before applying their first in-crop herbicide. Don’t wait. If there is an opportunity to spray early, go for it. The way rains keep coming this year, growers who wait may end up waiting a lot longer than hoped. Plus early weed control pays off with higher canola yields.

AAFC research scientist Tom Wolf, speaking in an audio interview on the Alberta Canola Producers Commission website, explains how glyphosate vs. glufosinate (Liberty) “couldn’t be more different.” The key difference: Glyphosate works best at water volumes of 3 to 5 gallons per acre but glufosinate needs at least 10 gallons per acre.

Scout to ID wireworms vs. cutworms. If canola plants are dying due to cutworms, growers can spray to control them. But if canola plants are dying due to wireworm damage, which is rare but can happen, growers should save their money as foliar sprays to control wireworms will be ineffective. No in-crop insecticide is registered for wireworms in any crop. “Wireworms are a problem dealt with using seed treatments in a crop with registered options the following year,” says Scott Hartley, insect management specialist with Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. Click here to read an Alberta Agriculture wireworm factsheet.

Coming event: The Seager Wheeler Farm near Rosthern, Sask., will hold its seeding trends field day this Friday, June 4. For more information, click here or call 306-232-5959.

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