The Rural Voice, 2019-08, Page 69 Lastly, someone found a wheat
stem detached from the ground. Was
it insect damage or root rot? Nope. It
was rodent damage.
“If the wheat had bleached heads,
I would think differently. Also, the
stalk would still be attached. When
the stem is cut off, its often mice.
Sometimes you’ll find a stem nipped
off in four-inch section for the
makings of a nest,” said Peter.
Despite the potential harvest
issues and insect pressure, this cover
crop gone wild looked healthy with
stems reaching neck high on some
farmers.
Before leaving, Peter looked over
the crop and smiled. “I’ts interesting
what happens in the field,” he said.
With that, everyone piled into the
bus for field #2, a canola field in
Arran-Elderslie farmed by Mike
Christie.
Planted on May 16 in wet
conditions, the canola was short but
flowering. Ideally, it should have
been planted May 1. Dressed with
300 pounds of urea, 50 pounds of
Aspire (potash, boron and potassium)
and 100 pounds of ammonium-
sulphate to the acre, the seeding rate
ranged from 4.8 pounds in the middle
of the field to 3.5 pounds in poorer
areas.
“Right now, I can’t see any
difference. It looks like all the strips
are yielding well,” said Mike.
Despite the late planting, the cool
and wet conditions since have been
ideal for the canola field said
Meghan Moran, OMAFRA’s Canola
and Edible Bean Specialist. Hot
weather above 28 degrees Celsius
causes flowers and pods to abort.
Another big issue with canola
crops is Swede Midge. The adult
doesn’t damage the plants but the
hungry larvae can affect growth and
prevent the plant from creating a pod.
Last year, Mike added an
insecticide to the summer spray of
fungicide to combat the swede midge
pest. He feels he should do the same
this year even though he “really
hates” applying insecticide because it
also kills beneficial insects. Also, his
neighbour keeps beehives near the
field for honey production. Last year,
he sprayed in the evening when the
bees were inactive. Since it is a
contact insecticide, the bees were not
affected the next day. The beekeeper
kept the bees locked up for a day and
reported no bee losses following the
spray.
What farmers really need to avoid
is a breakout of clubroot which can
form huge galls on the canola plant
roots.
“Clubroot can last in the soil for
over 20 years. I sampled 130 fields in
2016 and found it in 25 fields,” said
Meghan. These fields were mostly
located in the Bruce Peninsula and
near the Grey-Dufferin border.
The galls will release hardy spores
which overwinter in the soil. In the
spring, the spores germinate and
transform into zoospores which can
swim. They have flagella to carry
them through wet soils so they travel
in the water and seek out root hairs to
infect. That’s why clubroot can often
be found in wet areas.
Meghan advised Mike to pull a
few plants every year to check for
clubroot. “I’ve seen small balls on
smaller roots but I’ve also seen what
looks like an onion pulled out of the
ground,” she added. Clubroot is often
found near the entrance of a field
where infected soil is dropped off
boots or equipment entering the field.
Mike joked that every plant pulled
reduces yield but stressed he is very
serious about his crop rotation to
Crops
66 The Rural Voice
Peter Johnson says when
walking in wheat fields, he
usually has brown spots on his
pants from the cereal leaf
beetle. This year he’s had
“alligator larvae”, his term for
Ladybird larvae. Following the
wheat and rye field stop, the
Mystery Car Tour travelled to a
canola field owned by Mike
Christie (right) and family to
discuss planting rates and
harvest expectations from the
late-planted crop.