mca2022dev, Author at Manitoba Crop Alliance

Tips and Tricks for Sunflower Harvest

mca2022dev on October 6, 2022

MOISTURE TESTING SUNFLOWER SEED >15% MOISTURE

The following procedure is suggested for testing the moisture content of high moisture sunflower with the microwave oven.

Harvest seed samples from different parts of the field and mix all samples together. Separate this total sample into at least four 50 gram samples for the tests. Make sure the samples are clean and hand pick out foreign material if necessary.
Weigh a paper towel using a gram scale and record the weight. With the towel on the scale, pour a sample of seeds onto the scale and record that weight.
Place the towel and seeds into the microwave oven; spread the seeds on the towel to a thickness of no more than about two seeds.
Microwave for four-minute intervals; take out the sample and weigh it after each period. When the difference in weights become small, start weighing at two-minute intervals until there is no weight change. Lack of weight change indicates that the moisture has been removed.
If running repeated samples for a long time, check to see if the glass tray in the oven is getting hot. If so, let the tray cool before running another test. If a sample starts to smoke or appears charred after a test, discard this sample and start another test after the oven and tray cool.
Calculate the original seed moisture content of the sample by using the following equation. Be sure to subtract the weight of the paper towel from the initial and final sample weights before you begin the calculations.

Moisture content = (Initial weight – Final weight) / (Initial weight) x 100.

Be sure to run a minimum of four tests and average the results.
Do not leave the microwave oven unattended during the tests.

Confection sunflower should be under 10% moisture (between 9% and 10% is best) for proper storage. Oil sunflower moisture content should be 10% or less for winter storage and 8% or less for storage during warmer months.

Getting there can be a balancing act at harvest: Wait too long for natural dry down, and sunflower standing in the field can become too dry and vulnerable to quality deterioration and shelling out. Cut too early and there’s greater chance for deterioration during storage if seed moisture is too high. Many experts advise combining ‘flowers at 12-15% moisture and using natural air drying to get stored see moisture under 10%.

HARVESTING HIGH MOISTURE SUNFLOWERS

Sunflowers can be combined when the seed moisture is below 20 percent. Harvesting when seed moisture is greater than 20 percent can result in scuffing during harvesting and shrinkage during drying. It would be preferable to combine seeds at 10 to 13 percent moisture.

Scuffing is caused when sunflowers are harvested at a high moisture content. The combine causes mechanical damage by peeling away part or all of the top layer of the shell, giving the seed the appearance of sclerotinia damage or white seeds. Processors are known to discount for scuffing, even though it leaves no impact on the product itself.

HINTS & REMINDERS FOR HARVESTING SUNFLOWERS (Special Bulletin – Harvest)

Combine headers: Platform (wheat), row-crop, and corn headers have all been used successfully with sunflower. Row-crop heads are perhaps the best choice because they can be used without modification. Corn heads need to be modified with a stationary cutting knife before use with sunflower. Combines used for threshing small grains can be adapted to harvest sunflower with a variety of header attachments available with many operating on a head stripper principle.

Have the header platform raised high enough to take in the heads, minimizing stalks as much as possible. The overall goal of the threshing process should be passing the head nearly intact through the combine, or in a few large pieces, with all developed seed removed from the head. If the head is being ground up into small pieces, there will be excessive trash in the grain. Platform heads can be used without modification, but often have a higher amount of seed and head loss than a row head. Adding pans to the front of the platform, and/or modifying the reel can improve efficiency. Twelve-inch pans are best for 30-inch row spacings; 9-inch better for other row sizes and solid seeding.

Common threshing mistake: Waiting to harvest and seeds become too dry and shell out. Better: combine at 14-15% moisture and use air/dry down to under 10% moisture. Waiting too long to harvest can result in excessive field losses.

Threshing goal: Have the header platform raised high enough to take in the heads, minimizing stalks as much as possible. The overall goal of the threshing process should be passing the head nearly intact through the combine, or in a few large pieces, with all developed seed removed from the head. If the head is being ground up into small pieces, there will be excessive trash in the grain.

Fan speed: Air speed should be lower, due to the lighter weight of sunflowers (oils weigh about 28 to 32 lbs/bu, confection 22 to 26 lbs/bu). Excessive wind may blow seed over the chaffer and sieve, and seed forced over the sieve and into the tailings auger will be returned to the cylinder and may be dehulled. Set the fan so only enough air flow is created to keep trash floating across the screen/sieve. The concave should generally be run wide open (on a rotary combine, a rotor-to-concave setting of 3/4 to 1 inch is appropriate). A bottom screen or lower sieve of 3/8 inch, and a top screen/upper sieve of 1/2 to 5/8 inch is typical.

Forward speed: Combine forward speed should usually average between 3 and 5 miles per hour. Forward speed should be decreased as moisture content of the seed decreases to reduce shatter loss as heads feed into the combine. Faster forward speeds are possible with seed moisture between 12 and 15%.

Cylinder/rotor speed: Slow cylinder/rotor speed to 250 to 400 rpm. Normal cylinder speed should be almost 300 rpm (for a combine with a 22” diameter cylinder to give a cylinder bar travel speed of 1,725 feet per minute). Speed will vary depending upon crop conditions and combine used. Combines with smaller cylinders will require a faster speed and combines with a larger cylinder diameter will require a slower speed. A rotary combine with a 30”cylinder will need to be operated at 220 rpm, and a combine with a 17” cylinder will need to be operated at 390 to have a cylinder bar speed of 1,725 feet per minute. If a combine cylinder operates at speeds of 400 to 500 rpm, giving a cylinder bar speed of over 2,500 feet per minute, very little seed should be cracked or broken if the moisture content of the seed is above 11%. Cylinder bar speeds of over 3,000 feet per minute should not be used because they will cause excessive broken seed and increased dockage.

Concave clearance: When crop moisture is at 10% or less, conventional machines should be set open to give a cylinder to concave spacing of about 1″ at the front of the cylinder and about 0.75″ at the rear. A smaller concave clearance should be used only if some seed is left in the heads after passing through the cylinder. If seed moisture exceeds 15 to 20%, a higher cylinder speed and a closer concave setting may be necessary, even though foreign material in the seed may increase. Seed breakage and dehulling may be a problem with close concave settings. Make initial adjustments as recommended in the operator’s manual. Final adjustments should be made based on crop conditions.

Harvest Loss Rule of Thumb: Ten seeds per square foot (don’t forget heads that have seed left in them) represent a loss of 100 pounds per acre, assuming seed loss is uniform over the entire field. Harvest without some seed loss is almost impossible. Usually, a permissible loss is about 3%. Loss as high as 15 to 20% has occurred with a well-adjusted combine if the ground speed is too fast, resulting in machine overload.

Are your bins ready? Bins with perforated floors work better for drying sunflower than those with ducts. Aeration is essential, especially in larger bins. Aeration may be accomplished with floor-mounted ducts or portable aerators. Aeration fans should deliver 1/10 to 1 cfm per cwt of sunflower. If aeration is not available, sunflower should be rotated between bins to avoid hot spots developing in the stored grain.

Cleaning before storage: When excessive trash is present in the harvested grain, cleaning before storage can greatly reduce incidence of storage problems. Ambient air can be used to cool and dry sunflower. If heated air is used, generally a 10 degree F increase in temperature over ambient is sufficient to increase rate of drying. Be aware that sunflower dries more rapidly than corn or soybeans, and should be monitored to avoid over-drying.

Watch for Moisture Rebound: When tracking moisture readings on sunflower seeds that are being dried in a bun, keep in mind that the hull dries faster than the kernel. Thus, a moisture reading taken on sunflower being dried may be artificially low; for example, a moisture meter may give a reading of 10%, and then climb back up to 12% the next day. To get a more accurate reading, place some seed in a covered jar overnight and take moisture readings the next day, after the hull and kernel moisture have equalized.

Prepare for Fire Hazards: Always keep in mind that sunflower is an oil-based crop and fine fibers from sunflower seeds pose a constant fire hazard, especially when conditions are dry. Keep your combine and grain dryer free of chaff and dust (consider having a portable leaf blower on hand for this). Keep a small pressure sprayer or container filled with water on hand in the combine in case of fire. Should the threat of extreme dry conditions and combine fires persists; try nighttime harvesting when humidity levels are higher.

Estimating Yield in Grain Corn

mca2022dev on October 5, 2022

Estimating grain corn yield in any given field is exactly that – an estimate. The more samples and counts that are taken, the better variations in the field will be captured and accounted for. However, on that same note, no matter how many counts are done in a field, a variance of 20 bushels of yield (plus or minus) is a reasonable expectation.

A STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS FOR GRAIN CORN YIELD ESTIMATION:

1. Prior to sampling, determine how many samples or counts will be taken in each field. A minimum of 5 is recommended, 5 – 10 being appropriate. Of course, the more counts that are taken, the better representation of the field, overall.

Tools needed: measuring tape, pen and paper. A calculator can be used in the field, or once all samples are completed, but will be required.

2. Enter the field and walk in several paces beyond the headlands. Pick a representative location to take the first count.

3. Measure a single row to the appropriate length of 1/1,000^th of an acre. For the most common 30” row spacing, 17’5” is the appropriate length.

Figure 1: Row length required to measure 1/1,000^th acre in various row widths

4. In the chosen 1/1,000^th acre, count and record the number of harvestable ears on the plants. Do not count ears that have either dropped or may be on lodged plants and will not be picked up by the combine header.

5. Choose every 5^th – 6^th ear in the row and record the number of kernel rows and average kernels per row, and multiply the two factors for each chosen ear.

Be sure to be selecting representative ears.
Kernel rows are typically 12 – 18, but can be fewer or greater than that.
Kernels per row – do not count aborted kernels; do not count the extreme base or tip kernels.

6. Add all counts together for the first site, then divide by number of sampled ears. For example, if 5 ears were sampled with kernel counts of 336, 384, 512, 496 and 600, the average number of kernels per ear: (350 + 380 + 510 + 500 + 625)/5 = 473

7. Yield for each sample site in one field is determined by multiplying ear number (Step 4) by the average number of kernels per ear (Step 6) and then dividing that total by 90. 90 represents the average number of kernels in a bushel of corn at 15.5% moisture (90,000). In a scenario where grain fill has exceptionally good, decrease that value to 80, and conversely, increase that number to 100 if grain fill has been particularly stressful and grain is lightweight.

Figure 2: Grain corn yield estimate formula – Iowa State University (https://crops.extension.iastate.edu/cropnews/2017/08/estimating-corn-yields-using-yield-components)

Formula example for sample site #1:

Let’s say 31 harvestable ears were counted at the first sample site.

(31 harvestable ears * 473 kernels per ear)/90 = 163 bushels per acre for average/normal grain fill.
(31 harvestable ears * 473 kernels per ear)/80 = 183 bushels per acre for exceptional grain fill.
(31 harvestable ears * 473 kernels per ear)/100 = 147 bushels per acre for a below average grain fill.

Repeat this procedure 5 – 10 times throughout the field to get a good representative estimate and average the number of sites to yield calculations. Let’s say 7 sample sites were calculated:

(163 bu. + 182 bu. + 155 bu. + 159 bu. + 171 bu. + 176 bu. + 164 bu.)/ 7 sample sites = 167 bu/acre yield estimate for this grain corn field sampled.

REFERENCES:

Estimating Corn Grain Yield Prior to Harvest

Estimating Grain Corn Yield

Estimating Corn Yields Using Yield Components

Xiben Wang, research scientist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

mca2022dev on October 4, 2022

Xiben Wang was raised in China and completed his bachelor’s degree in plant pathology at Nanjing Agricultural University in Nanjing, China. After he finished his undergraduate degree, he moved to Canada to complete his master’s in plant science at McGill University in Montreal, QC. He moved on to earn his PhD at the University of Manitoba (U of M) in the in Department of Plant Science and is now a research scientist at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Morden Research Development Centre (RDC). Xiben lives in Winkler, MB, with his wife and son.

Where did you work before the Morden RDC?

After I earned my PhD, I worked at the Cereal Research Centre in Winnipeg in the area of cereal pathology before coming to work at the Morden RDC.

What got you interested in this area of work?

Both my parents worked in agriculture. I can still remember spending most of my summers in my dad’s lab looking at samples he collected from growers’ fields under the microscope. When I was working on my master’s and PhD, I also had very good mentors who were really hard workers. They encouraged me to study problems that were appearing and to work to fix those. This is what really got me interested in working in agriculture.

Tell us a bit about what you’re working on at the Morden RDC.

My program covers multiple aspects of diseases on small green cereals (wheat, barley and oats). We use different techniques to identify disease pathogens to try to get a better understanding of the species present in farmers’ fields. We work to determine what is the most important pathogen of concern and what damage it may cause.

Another part of my program is working with breeders to try to develop varieties that have increased resistance against Fusarium head blight (FHB) and other major leaf spot diseases found on barley and oats. I operate a disease nursery at Morden RDC for FHB and different barley leaf spot pathogens.

I’m interested to see the impact different management practices can have on soil microbial communities through metagenomics analysis. In the Crop rotation affects disease suppressive soil microbiomes project funded by Manitoba Crop Alliance along with Western Grains Research Foundation and CAP Ag Action, we are looking into whether different crop rotations may promote some groups of bacteria and suppress others.

For example, in a cereal-over-cereal rotation, we see an increase in abundance of the Fusarium pathogen we know will infect the cereals. But in other crop rotations, such trend is not observed. We want to see whether we can identify a certain rotation type that can promote beneficial microbial populations (plant growth promoting bacteria). By doing so, we hope to be able to determine the bacteria most likely present on your farm and what impact it might have (beneficial or negative). If that impact is negative, we’d then look at the recommendations to minimize that.

The long-term goal is to incorporate several sites in different provinces to generate multi-year data sets, so in the long term, we can identify the general trend of what we expect under different crop rotation practices. Hopefully, we can minimize our reliance on commonly used fungicides to control different diseases that are common to barley nodes or wheat.

This project is almost in the second year and we are nearly finished analyzing the data we gathered from the first year. We are expecting to have some preliminary results next year.

What can you say about the value of farmers providing funding and support to your organization?

Our work is directly related to farmers. We try to identify what the most important threat is and look at the possible solutions, as well as what we can do to increase the varieties they grow and minimize the costs they may have to try to combat diseases.

I want to express that the funding from farmers is very important for us to be able to continue the work that we do.

How does that farmer funding and support directly benefit farmers?

There is a direct value to farmers. Take the surveillance work we do, for example. It is very important to gain a better understanding of what major diseases are in fields causing damage, and how it might result in yield loss. When we know what the risks are we can study the best way to control them to minimize yield losses. We study these pathogens so we can develop a strategy to mitigate the losses and try to develop varieties with better resistance, so that farmers will have less risk of loss due to these pathogens. The surveillance work also allows us to monitor the emerging diseases in farmers’ fields and be proactive on potential issues.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I love to spend time with family and go to sports. Soccer is my favourite sport – I play and I love to watch as well. Go Brazil!

What gets you most excited about your work?

There is always something new for me to study and new techniques to learn. I think that is what gets me most excited. I love to visit farmers’ fields to do surveys. When we find something that we don’t know, I get really excited about the challenge to try to figure out what it is.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve received?

Always look for something new. Don’t jump to conclusions too quickly – study first, verify second and then you’ll get your conclusions.

Top winter wheat varieties in Manitoba – 2022

mca2022dev on September 26, 2022

Each year, Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation (MASC) publishes a Variety Market Share Report based on information provided by Manitoba Farmers. Not only is this information valuable to track trends and patterns, it can also be useful to farmers for marketing and cropping decisions.

In the 2022 edition, Manitoba farmers reported seeding 51,972 acres of winter wheat in the fall of 2021, up by about 15,000 acres from the previous year. Emerson was the most popular variety, seeded on 36 per cent of acres, followed by AAC Wildfire (28 per cent) and AAC Gateway (16 per cent) (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Most popular winter wheat varieties in Manitoba, based on the MASC 2022 Variety Market Share Report.

How have winter wheat varieties changed over time?

It is no surprise that winter wheat breeders are continually working to improve the varieties available to farmers, but how do past varieties stack up against new genetics?

With a short height and high yield, CDC Falcon was the long-standing favourite variety in Manitoba. In 2014, it was moved out of the Canada Western Red Winter class and into the Canada Western Special Purpose class.

Registered in 2012, Emerson has been a top variety in Manitoba in recent years, in part due to its Fusarium head blight (FHB) resistance. AAC Wildfire (registered 2015), AAC Gateway (registered 2012) and AAC Goldrush (registered 2016) are also popular varieties. See how they compare to one another in Table 1!

Table 1: CDC Falcon Canada Western Special Purpose winter wheat compared to popular Canada Western Red Winter wheat varieties in Manitoba. Variety descriptions are based on the Seed Manitoba 2022 Variety Selection Guide.

For more information, the entire market share report can be found here. The Manitoba Management Plus Program (MMPP) also has a number of Regional Analysis Tools, including the Variety Yield Data Browser, which allows past variety yield data for many crops to be filtered based on municipality or MASC risk area.

Crop nutrient management research roundup

mca2022dev on September 19, 2022

Manitoba Crop Alliance strives to provide tools and resources to you, our farmer members, so you can make informed decisions to optimize production and minimize nutrient loss on your farm. To do so, we have funded a range of research projects that support farmers in making decisions. Check out the list below for a roundup of our research and extension efforts on the topic of nutrient management!

Optimizing Nitrogen Management Under Conditions of Extreme Moisture

Background: Manitoba farmers are no strangers to conditions of extreme moisture. The objective of this project was to develop data-based decision-support tools to help farmers assess and manage risks associated with fall nitrogen fertilizer management under extreme moisture conditions. The information developed helps indicate when extra measures to protect nitrogen are warranted, based on the risk of nitrogen losses.

Project Details | Report and Nitrogen Risk Tables

Optimum Nitrogen Fertilizer Management Strategies for High-Yielding Spring Wheat in Manitoba

Background: Manitoba farmers are growing new varieties of spring wheat and using crop management tools that improve yield potential above the spring wheat production systems in which traditional nitrogen recommendations were developed. This research evaluated the most effective rates, timing, placement and sources for nitrogen fertilizer in spring wheat.

Project Details | Factsheet

Agronomic Practices to Minimize Lodging Risk While Maintaining Yield Potential in Spring Wheat

Background: New wheat varieties come with a new set of management challenges. This project aimed to understand how new high-yielding spring wheat varieties respond to nitrogen management, PGR application and seeding rate, as well as how these factors interact to influence lodging, yield and protein.

Project Details | Factsheet 1 | Factsheet 2

On-Farm Nitrogen Management for High Yield Wheat

Background: This Research on the Farm project evaluated three different nitrogen management strategies for increasing yield and protein in new high-yield spring wheat varieties.

Summary Report

Optimum Nitrogen Fertilizer Management Strategies for Modern Corn Hybrids in Manitoba

Background: Manitoba farmers are planting corn hybrids with higher yield potential than when the last corn nitrogen recommendations were developed. This study evaluated the most appropriate rates, timing, placement and sources for nitrogen fertilizer in corn.

Project Details | Summary Report | Summary Poster

Assessing the Effects of Split Nitrogen Application in Corn

Background: This Research on the Farm project evaluated the agronomic and economic impact of split nitrogen application in corn.

2017-18 Results

Additional resources

Spring Nitrogen Application Options Factsheet

Winter Wheat Fertility Checklist for Spring

Winter Wheat Fertility Checklist for Fall

Sunflower Fertility Factsheet

Manitoba Agriculture – Profitable Nitrogen Rates for Corn

Ever considered becoming an MCA delegate?

mca2022dev on September 15, 2022

Have you considered becoming a delegate on one of Manitoba Crop Alliance’s (MCA) crop committees or a member of the board of directors, but don’t know much about these roles or where the process begins?

If so, check out this article excerpted from our Spring/Summer 2022 edition of The Fence Post, where several of MCA’s current directors and delegates share their experience and valuable insights to help educate fellow farmer members who are interested in getting involved.

Read: Ever considered becoming a crop committee delegate?

Common Preharvest Questions in Flax

mca2022dev on September 9, 2022

What is the staging for a preharvest or desiccation in flax?

Flax is considered physiologically mature when 75% of the bolls (in the field or on a plant) are brown and the boll segments have begun to separate. This is a visual rating that corresponds to a grain moisture content of around 30% and is known as the 75% boll turn or 75% brown boll stage.

Figure 1: Flax Maturity Ratings. Credit: SaskFlax

What is the difference between a preharvest aid and a desiccant?

Two types of chemicals are available to assist with flax harvest management: pre-harvest herbicides (sometimes called harvest-aids) and desiccants.

Pre-harvest herbicides are non-selective systemic herbicides that provide late season perennial weed control and may improve the harvestability of the crop by reducing the amount of green material in the field.
Desiccants are non-selective herbicides that rapidly dry down the crop and weeds to allow for an earlier harvest.

Figure 2: Comparison between preharvest herbicide and desiccant characteristics. Credit: SaskFlax

Can we use glyphosate as a preharvest aid?

Since it does terminate the crop, preharvest glyphosate may assist with stem dry-down and harvestability, however it is expected that the effects of glyphosate applied alone on flax dry-down can be slow and potentially inconsistent depending on environmental conditions. This all being said, at this time, it is not a recommendation of Manitoba Crop Alliance to apply glyphosate as a preharvest aid due to inconsistent results with maximum residue limit (MRL) testing. If a producer must use glyphosate, it is strongly recommended to speak with their grain buyer to determine if a glyphosate application to their flax will be a marketing concern.

What are the current registered preharvest aids and desiccants for flax in Manitoba?

Figure 3: Preharvest chemicals registered for use on flax. Credit: SaskFlax

References:

SaskFlax: Preparing for Harvest, July 2018. https://www.saskflax.com/quadrant/media/Pdfs/Flax%20on%20the%20Farm/180724_July_Flax_on_the_Farm_Final.pdf

Indian Head Agricultural Research Foundation: Pre-harvest Weed Control and Desiccation Options for Flax, 2019. https://iharf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Pre-harvest-weed-control-and-desiccation-options-for-flax.pdf

SaskFlax: Flax Markets and Maximum Residue Limits, April 2022. https://www.saskflax.com/quadrant/media/Pdfs/Flax%20on%20the%20Farm/2022/220425%20MRL%20Information-April.pdf

Article written by Morgan Cott, Agronomy Extension Specialist – Special Crops with Manitoba Crop Alliance

Head Rot Identification in Sunflowers & Harvest Management

mca2022dev on September 8, 2022

Rhizopus Head Rot

Rhizopus rarely occurs in Manitoba and is more of a southerly disease, however it is possible to see it here after severe storms and hail, followed by very high heat. Identifying factors that separate Rhizopus from other head rots are gray mycelia with very small black structures.

Rhizopus begins as a typical “water-soaked” dark spot on the back of a sunflower head that grows into a larger watery, soft rot and then dries and turns darker brown. Eventually, heads dry down, though this occurs prematurely in comparison to healthy plants, and infected tissue shreds, exposing gray threadlike strands of mycelial growth.

Key points:

Enters head via wound caused by hail, most commonly
Water-soaked lesion on backs of sunflower head
Gray mycelial growth inside the diseased head, which can later present itself on the face of the sunflower head
Tiny black spots, about the size of a pinhead
100% yield loss potential due to dropped heads

Figure 1: Dry and skeletonized head (Bob Harveson, University of Nebraska)

Figure 2: Coarse, dirty white to gray, threadlike fungal growth of Rhizopus spp. in sunflower head (Bob Harveson, University of Nebraska)

Sclerotinia Head Rot

Sclerotinia is very common in Manitoba and in several grain crops, which makes crop rotation the best management practice for this prevalent disease. A recommendation for sunflowers is to only include it in rotation when other sclerotinia host crops have not been grown on that field for 4-7 years. Chemical control is used frequently, however due to the small window for application, coverage is difficult to rely on.

Sclerotinia presence can first be found in the field by identifying cup-shaped apothecia growing on the soil surface, which produce ascospores. Symptoms in the field include the typical tan-coloured lesions on the back of sunflower heads that may be soft to the touch. As the infection spreads, the head becomes pliable and easily torn open to reveal black sclerotia bodies amongst white mycelia. Fronts of sunflower heads may have white mycelial growth, or mould, visible between the seeds. Eventually, heads will likely shred and disintegrate leaving frayed vascular elements that appear broom-like.

Key points:

Cup-shaped apothecia on the soil
Water-soaked lesions on backs of sunflower head
Black sclerotia bodies inside sunflower head following disease progression
White mycelial growth between and on seeds
Shredding sunflower head, resembling a straw broom

Figure 3: Sclerotinia Head Rot on Sunflower

Figure 4: Sclerotinia Head Rot Symptoms in Sunflower

Figure 5: Sclerotinia Disease Cycle, American Phytopathological Society

HARVEST MANAGEMENT IN DISEASED SUNFLOWERS

Yield loss from sclerotinia head rot in sunflowers is a result of empty seeds, rather than poor quality. In fact, it is not uncommon to find large sclerotia bodies being harvested along with seed and degrading quality in that manner.

Due to the overall degradation of disease plants, not just from sclerotinia, it is a good practice to harvest infected fields first. The diseased areas should dry down more rapidly than healthy plants and standability isn’t reliable, whether that is a result of a stalk rot or head rot. The physical breaking of stalks or dropping of heads leads directly to yield loss due to the inability to pick up the grain with a header.

Article written by Morgan Cott, Agronomy Extension Specialist – Special Crops with Manitoba Crop Alliance

Manitoba Crop Alliance launches call for special crops research letters of intent

mca2022dev on September 6, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 (Carman, MB) – Manitoba Crop Alliance (MCA) is now accepting letters of intent (LOIs) for new sunflower, flax and corn research projects.

“The special crops we represent – sunflower, flax and corn – have unique problems that require unique solutions, which is why this research is so important,” says Katherine Stanley, research program manager for special crops at MCA.

“At the end of the day, our goal for this research is to generate valuable information our farmer members can use to make productive and sustainable decisions on their farms.”

The priorities for MCA special crops research projects are:

Applied agronomy research to increase productivity and competitiveness of farmer members
Nutrient management
Disease management
Harvest and residue management

LOIs will be accepted until Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, for projects to begin in 2023. MCA will consider proposals of up to five years in length. Projects must feature sunflower, flax or corn, but inclusion of other crop types (e.g., wheat, canola, soybean, pulses) is encouraged.

To learn more about MCA’s special crops research or to review the LOI eligibility criteria, please visit: https://mbcropalliance.ca/news/special-crops-research-call-for-letters-of-intent.

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For more information, please contact:

Katherine Stanley

Research Program Manager, Special Crops

204.898.4122

katherine@mbcropalliance.ca

^{About Manitoba Crop Alliance:
Manitoba Crop Alliance is a non-profit organization established Aug. 1, 2020, representing over 7,800 farmer-members. Manitoba Crop Alliance puts their farmer-members first and strives to continuously improve the competitiveness and profitability of all crops represented by the organization by focusing on four main areas: research, agronomy, market access and development, and communications. It is through investment in these key areas that Manitoba Crop Alliance can ensure wheat, barley, corn, sunflower and flax are sustainable production choices for Manitoba farmers. For more information, visit mbcropalliance.ca.}

Manitoba Crop Alliance opens nominations to farmer members for crop committees

mca2022dev on September 1, 2022

Sept. 1, 2022 (Carman, MB) – Manitoba Crop Alliance (MCA) is now accepting nominations from farmer members to serve as delegates on its four crop committees.

“We continue to put our members first and strive to improve the competitiveness of all the crops we represent,” says MCA CEO Pam de Rocquigny.

“As part of our mandate, MCA aims to strengthen the member value of Manitoba’s commodity organizations. By joining a committee, farmer members get a say in how their check-off dollars are best invested.”

MCA delegates will work towards strengthening the mandate of research, agronomy, market development and access, and communication and advocacy initiatives within each of the four crop committees: corn, flax, sunflower, and wheat and barley.

“Our goal is to improve all aspects of crop production and market development,” says de Rocquigny. “As a farmer-driven operation, we are committed to building new connections that offer valuable knowledge and perspectives. It’s an exciting time to get involved, and we look forward to adding some new faces to our committees.”

MCA delegates will develop crop-specific recommendations for research, market development and communications initiatives. They will also have the opportunity for involvement in MCA’s innovative Whole Farm Research Program, a cross-commodity approach to research that addresses the needs of diverse cropping systems across Manitoba.

In addition, serving as a delegate provides a valuable chance to learn more about the Manitoba agriculture industry and the important role farmers play in guiding the industry’s direction.

The nomination period will close at 4:30 p.m. CDT on Oct. 30, 2022. For more information on the nomination or election process – including eligibility requirements, responsibilities of a delegate, time requirements and how to submit a nomination form – visit our website or contact us by email at hello@mbcropalliance.ca or phone at 204-745-6661.

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For more information, please contact:

Pam de Rocquigny
Chief Executive Officer
204-745-6661
pam@mbcropalliance.ca