Morgan Cott, Author at Manitoba Crop Alliance

Seeding Flax to Provide the Best Start

Morgan Cott on January 12, 2024

Typically, flax is seeded from May 1^st to June 20^th. It may be seeded the last out of all the crops as the bolls and seeds can stand and ripen in the fall without shelling while other crops like canola are being harvested. Prolonged exposure to fall weather, though, will reduce the quality of the harvested seed and make it ineligible for a food grade market. MASC data has shown that flax has good yield potential in the last week of May (Table 1), but yields decline in some areas as the calendar turns to June. MASC seeding deadline is June 20^th for all of Manitoba.

Table 2: Relative Stubble Yield Response (2011 – 2020). Source: Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation.

Yield response data from MASC, recorded from 2011 – 2020 (10 year results), shows that flax responds best when seeded following a pea crop, with the next best response after corn (Table 2). It generally has the poorest yield response when seeded following any oilseed crop, for obvious reasons. Research has shown that flax performs poorly specifically after canola and/or mustard, and not only because of disease issues. The poorer performance of flax on canola stubble is attributed to mycorrhizae fungi which do not associate strongly with canola and decrease in presence during the canola crop’s growing season. When flax is grown on canola stubble, the mycorrhizae populations are lower, which leads to poorer early season nutrient update, especially phosphorus, a relatively immobile nutrient in the soil that is crucial to early flax development.

Flax does well after cereals or corn. It also performs well after legume crops and alfalfa, but Rhizoctonia disease may be a problem. Flax does not do well after potatoes due to the loose seedbed and potentially Rhizoctonia in this rotation as well. According to MASC, the most common crop stubble that flax is seeded into is spring wheat in Manitoba and very few acres are seeded into pea stubble, so that flax-on-pea yield data in Table 2 could be seen as skewed. Crop rotation is extremely important when making all cropping decisions, but flax is a particularly sensitive plant to many outside factors and rotation should be paid considerably close attention to. It is recommended to have at least three years between flax crops on a field to control various soil-borne or stubble-borne diseases of flax, such as pasmo.

Table 2: Relative Stubble Yield Response (2011 – 2020). Source: Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation.

For a successful flax crop, the greatest strategy is to enable the crop to emerge in a uniform and dense plant stand. This helps the crop with weed control throughout the season and allows for consistent physiological maturity down the road.

Tips for a productive flax plant stand:

Target 1 to 1.5 inch seeding depth to allow crop to emerge quickly
Do not overfertilize. Flax does not respond positively to increased rates of fertilizer. Excess nitrogen will cause prolonged maturity and potential lodging issues.
Target a higher seeding rate. Flax depends very heavily on adequate stand establishment and plant populations of 30 – 40 plants/ft². Typical emergence for flax is 50% – 60% of seeding rate. Seeding rates on the high end of the recommended range should be used for ground prone to crusting when seeding late or under heavy weed pressure.
Do not seed flax on poorly drained soils or sandy soils because of poor water retention. Medium to heavy-textured soils are preferable. These soils may also crust in the spring, which can inhibit flax emergence.

For more information on growing flax on the Prairies, see Flax Production Resources on our website.

Preventing and Monitoring for Insects in Stored Grain

Morgan Cott on August 25, 2023

By John Gavloski, Extension Entomologist at Manitoba Agriculture

Grain beetles can be an issue in high infestation years, so it is important to review management strategies. The first step is knowing what species of beetle is present and whether it is a species that feeds on the grain itself, or more on fungus growing on the grain or in the bin. Without magnification, it can be difficult to determine the difference between rusty grain beetles, one of the more common beetles feeding directly on many stored grains, and foreign grain beetle, which is primarily a fungus feeder.

Note the club-shaped antennae on the foreign grain beetle in the photo. If placed in a glass jar, foreign grain beetles will climb up the sides, while rusty grain beetles cannot.

Preventing insects being introduced into or establishing in grain bins.

A few steps to reduce stored grain insects establishing in grain bins include:

Clean in and around storage facilities.
Inspect grain storage facilities for signs of deterioration, leaks or holes.
Clean equipment used to move grain. Combines, grain wagons, truck beds,
augers and other equipment used to move grain should be cleaned of grain
residue before being used.
Dry and cool grain (ideally below 15°C) as quickly as possible after harvest.

Controlling insects found in stored grain.

Knowing the species you are dealing with is important when determining the most effective and economical means of control. If it is a fungus feeder such as foreign grain beetle, practices that result in grain drying may be all that is needed.

For insects that feed directly on the grain, if the grain is being kept over the winter, lowering the grain temperature through aeration or moving the grain can kill stored gain insects.

Grain vacs, if used at a slow enough speed (such as 200 bushels per hour), can kill stored grain insects. Removing too large a volume of grain at a time results in the grain protecting the insects and reduces kill. Insect killing efficiency is greatly increased when a 90° angle is made in the grain vac pipe. The grain should be dry for this method to work well.

Depending on the crop being stored and insect pest, chemical control options can include fumigants (such as phostoxin or fumitoxin), diatomaceous earth (Protect-It, Insecto), or malathion. There are things that should be considered before using any of these chemical control options, however.

Fumigants such as phostoxin and fumitoxin are restricted to applicators with a valid stored agricultural products license. These products can not be used when the grain temperature is below 5°C, as the tablets release the gas too slowly.

Diatomaceous earth damages the cuticle of the insect, reducing the insect’s ability to retain moisture. The insect eventually dies from dehydration. It can take weeks for diatomaceous earth to control insects in grain bins, assuming the grain is dry.

Important note: Some commodities, such as canola, flax and sunflowers, should not be stored in facilities recently treated with malathion.

For more information:

Prevention and Management of Insects and Mites in Farm-Stored Grain, Manitoba Agriculture