September 11, 2013
Lots of sclerotinia stem rot. As harvest progresses, we’re hearing reports of higher levels of sclerotinia stem rot in some regions. Some fields that did not get a fungicide spray are at 40-50% infection. That works out to an estimated 20-25% yield loss, or 10-13 bu./ac. on a canola crop with 50 bu./ac. yield potential. Fungicide applications for sclerotinia stem…
September 5, 2013
Sclerotinia stem rot infection is being found lower down the plant in many fields this year. Some fields are lodging because of sclerotinia infection. In some cases, sclerotinia infection is right near ground level, which is where blackleg is also found…
August 28, 2013
Sclerotinia stem rot (above) and blackleg can both cause what looks like pre-mature ripening. Both diseases, when severe, can cut off nutrient flow up the stem, resulting in a whitened dead plant. Both can cause increased lodging. However, long-term management requires an accurate identification of which disease is the cause. Disease identification will make sure you make the correct seed…
August 21, 2013
Many canola fields are within 5 to 10 days of swathing, which limits the choices for insecticides — based on pre-harvest intervals. Here are the pre-harvest intervals for insecticides registered for insect control in canola. Try the interactive PHI tool at www.spraytoswath.ca…
August 21, 2013
Check those patches of pre-mature ripened canola before or during swathing. Try to identify what cause this pre-mature ripening. Use the Canola Diagnostic Tool at www.canoladiagnostictool.ca to help with the assessment. It could be blackleg, clubroot, sclerotinia, root rot or something else entirely. Growers can use this scouting information to plan rotations, choose varieties, and update fungicide decision-making for next…
August 21, 2013
Plant pathologists from across the Prairies are surveying canola for disease levels. For each field surveyed, they select 20 random plants at 5 random locations for a total of 100 plants. For blackleg, they pull up each plant and clip the stem just below ground level. Each stem is then rated for what percentage of the stem cross section is…
August 14, 2013
Pre-harvest interval (PHI) refers to the amount of time that must lapse (in days) after a pesticide application before the crop is cut (ie. swathed or straight cut). Failing to comply with a product’s pre-harvest interval is a contravention of the Pest Control Products Act (PCP). The PCP Act was put in place to protect human health and safety and…
August 8, 2013
A 5-year project to investigate changes in blackleg needs 20-25 growers per Prairie province to volunteer fields for the survey. This would be a great way for growers to learn more about blackleg management…
August 8, 2013
Some fields are already showing a lot of gall growth, probably because the wet spring promoted early infection. These galls are most likely clubroot, especially if the fields are in known clubroot hot zones. However, not ALL root galls are clubroot. Galls could also be hybridization nodules (shown above) or phenoxy damage…
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