Soil moisture conditions across much of western Canada remain good to excellent for crop development. Recent rainfall has alleviated dry conditions in parts of northern Saskatchewan and the Peace region. Crop stress due to excess moisture has been reported in parts of east-central Manitoba. Heavy rains have caused flooding and soil erosion in parts of east central Alberta near Marwayne–Lloydminster. Dry conditions remain in pockets of the north Peace near High Level and LaCrete in central and southern Alberta near Beiseker-Drumheller and Pincher Creek, northwest of North Battleford in northwestern Saskatchewan, and in Manitoba’s Interlake and pockets near Souris and Swan River.
For
current PFRA maps of moisture
conditions, check the
following links:
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/drprec4_e.htm
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/drprecw_e.htm
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/prgrowing_e.htm
Additional
moisture information for
Alberta is available from
Alberta Environment at:
http://www3.gov.ab.ca/env/water/WS/data/precipmaps/weekly.pdf
The latest crop report from Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food & Rural Revitalization is available at: http://www.agr.gov.sk.ca/docs/reports/crop_report/crprpt030623.pdf
Crop development has been steady over most areas this past week with some fields approaching 30-50% bloom in east-central Manitoba. Early seeded crops are bolting in most other areas. Crop development throughout much of Alberta slowed over the weekend due to rains and single digit temperatures. Heat is needed in these areas to speed crop development and reduce the risk from early fall frosts. An area of northwestern Saskatchewan near Meota has been severely affected by drought with flowering observed on plants only 8” tall.
Weed spraying has progressed well over most regions this past week. Spraying is nearing completion in many areas. However, rain and wind delays have slowed spraying to about 50% completion in many parts of central Alberta and northeastern Saskatchewan. Suspected herbicide damage to all herbicide-tolerant (HT) systems has been reported again this week. Some of the reported cases involve common seed, where the level of herbicide tolerance has not been verified. Also, remember that these HT varieties are tolerant, not resistant, to the particular herbicides. Crop setback can occur especially when the crop is under stress (such as drought, cool temperatures, deep seeding or flooding) or under ideal spraying conditions (good moisture, high humidity, warm temperatures) when herbicide uptake by the plants is enhanced. Allow several days to determine whether the plants will recover from the herbicide applications.
Grasshopper
numbers continue to increase
in western Manitoba, northern
Saskatchewan and eastern
and east-central Alberta.
Damage is also occurring
in areas outside the high
risk areas outlined in
earlier grasshopper forecast
maps for 2003.
http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/prm6052
Growers
must continue to be vigilant
in their scouting for
grasshoppers, especially
in areas of moderate and
high risk. Additional
information on scouting
and identifying pest species
of grasshopper and thresholds
was discussed in two previous
crop reports:
http://www.canola-council.org/seed/canola-watch/watch-jun4.shtml
http://www.canola-council.org/seed/canola-watch/watch-may28.shtml
Cutworms
continue to be a problem
in the northern areas
of Saskatchewan near Meadow
Lake and Prince Albert
as well as many parts
of northern Alberta. Check
the May 22 crop report
for a discussion on cutworms:
http://www.canola-council.org/seed/canola-watch/watch-may22.shtml
More
information on cutworms
is available on the following
MAF page:
http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/crops/insects/fad06s00.html
Beet webworm moths have been observed again this past week in many areas of Alberta and western and northern Saskatchewan. Egg laying has been noticed on lamb’s-quarters in central and southern Alberta.
For
more information and images
of the moth and larvae,
visit these Web pages:
http://vc55moths.topcities.com/imagearchive/pyralid/loxostegesticticalis.htm
http://www.canola-council.org/images_insects.html
Diamondback moths continue to be caught in moth traps throughout western Canada. Currently, no areas are considered to be at great risk from this pest, but the numbers have been increasing in some areas. This situation is subject to change, if trap counts spike higher in the future. Economic damage from diamondback moths occurs primarily in podded canola. For more information on diamondback moth including scouting and thresholds, check the following MAF and CCC Web pages
http://web2.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/insect/insectcount.php?action=display_
locations&insect_id=1124&insect_name=Diamondback%20moth
http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/crops/insects/fad07s00.html
Cabbage
seedpod weevils have
been found in parts of
southern Alberta.
Lygus
bugs have also been
found in northeastern
Saskatchewan and southern
and central Alberta, especially
close near first cut alfalfa.
Recent work conducted
by Jim Jones, formerly
with Alberta Agriculture,
indicates that control
of lygus at early crop
stages is generally unwarranted
and that early lygus feeding
increases crop robustness.
For more information on
that work, click on the
following ACPC Website:
http://www.canola.ab.ca/acpc/lygus.shtml
Conduct sweep net checks from the bud stage through to pod ripening to monitor for pests such as lygus bugs and cabbage seedpod weevil. Use a net with a 15” diameter and sample when the foliage is dry. Tilt the net so the lower edge is slightly ahead of the upper rim and swing the net in a full 180-degree arc until the upper edge is even with the top of the plants. Then take a step, reverse the net and take a sweep in the opposite direction. Continue until 10 sweeps are collected and then count the insects collected in the net. Repeat this procedure in 10 to 15 locations throughout the field.
The economic threshold for lygus bugs ranges from 10 to 21 lygus per 10 sweeps for canola at the end of flowering. It increases to 15 to 29 per 10 sweeps at pod ripening, depending on insecticide cost and crop value. For cabbage seedpod weevil, an insecticide application is warranted if an average of three to four of the small (3 to 4 mm long) ash-gray adult weevils are collected per 10 sweeps.
Visit
this sweep page to view
a sweep net identification
card and information on
how to do sweeps:
http://www.canola-council.org/PDF/sweepcard_04.pdf
Growers in central and eastern Manitoba are spraying for Sclerotinia. Apothecia have been noted in last year’s canola fields. In many of these areas, the risk of yield loss from sclerotinia infections is traditionally quite high. Therefore, many growers in these areas routinely apply fungicides as a prophylactic measure against sclerotinia. The higher soil moisture levels experienced in many other areas, such as central Alberta, may put growers at a higher risk of yield losses from sclerotinia compare to previous years.
Direct overall questions regarding this report to John Mayko, Agronomic Research & Extension Manager with the Canola Council of Canada at maykoj@canola-council.org ph/fax:780-764-2593.
For specific questions regarding regional issues associated with this report, please consult one of the following Canola Council of Canada regional agronomists or provincial oilseed specialists;
Derwyn Hammond, Agronomist,
Manitoba, hammondd@canola-council.org,
204-729-9011
Rob Park, Manitoba Agriculture
& Food, rpark@gov.mb.ca,
204-745-5665
David Vanthuyne, Agronomist,
Eastern Saskatchewan, vanthuyd@canola-council.org,
306-782-7799
David Blais, Agronomist,
Western Saskatchewan, blaisd@canola-council.org,
306-895-2122
Jim Bessel, Senior Agronomist,
Northeastern Saskatchewan,
besselj@canola-council.org,
306-373-6771
Bill Greuel, Saskatchewan
Agriculture, Food &
Rural Revitalization, wgreuel@agr.gov.sk.ca,
306-787-2756
Doug Moisey, Agronomist,
Central & Southern Alberta,
moiseyd@canola-council.org,
403-553-2829
Christine Mardell, Agronomist,
Peace River Region, mardellc@canola-council.org,
780-518-1513
Murray Hartman, Alberta
Agriculture, Food &
Rural Development, murray.hartman@gov.ab.ca,
403-782-8024
Kerry Clark, BC Ministry
of Agriculture, Food &
Fisheries, Kerry.Clark@gems9.gov.bc.ca,
250-787-3213
The Canola Crop Watch Report provides just-in-time information on canola production to growers and industry. Contributors to the Canola Agronomy Network are:
Manitoba Agriculture & Food, Manitoba Canola Growers Association, Agricore United, Cargill, James Richardson International, Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, United Farmers of Alberta, Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food & Rural Revitalization, Saskatchewan Canola Growers Association, Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission, Alberta Agriculture, Food & Rural Development, Alberta Canola Producers Commission, BC Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Fisheries, and the Canola Council of Canada.