Canola Watch
2006 Canola Watch Reports
Canola Watch Report No. 19
Western Canada – August 30, 2006
In this issue:
(click the bookmark links below to move to specific sections of this report)
Canola harvest well ahead of normal
Cabbageworm butterflies less damaging than berthas
Pay attention to fall flea beetles
Aster yellows found in Saskatchewan
Swath at proper stage, including Polish
Keep malathion far away from stored canola seed!
Post-swathing scouting essential
Tips to reduce green seed
Don’t pick up green stubble and plant regrowth
Store canola at proper moisture level
Slow down combine speeds to reduce cracking
Post harvest weed control important
Report high blackleg levels
Final Canola Watch report for 2006 season
The Alberta Canola Producers Commission (ACPC) has developed an Alberta focused version of this report. Visit the ACPC website at: http://www.canola.ab.ca
Crop development and harvest continues to be ahead of normal in all regions due to hot and dry weather this season. Swathing is wrapping up or complete in most regions with only later seeded fields remaining. Combining of canola ranges from just getting started in the Red Deer region of Alberta to virtually complete in eastern and Interlake regions of Manitoba, southeastern Alberta, and the southwestern Peace region. Overall rainfall amounts were low again this past week in most areas, but some regions, especially in western Manitoba, received showers and thundershowers with heavy rainfall amounts along with isolated hail.
For current maps of moisture conditions from PFRA for western Canada, check the following links for precipitation from September 1, 2005 to August 28, 2006 and April 1 to August 28, 2006 respectively:
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/prpay06_e.htm
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/prpgs06_e.htm
http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/drought/pa_e.htm
The latest crop report from Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives is available at: http://web2.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/mwcr/
The latest crop report from Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food & Rural Revitalization is available at:
http://www.agr.gov.sk.ca/docs/reports/crop_report/crprpt060827.pdf
Additional moisture information for Alberta is available from Alberta Environment at:
http://www3.gov.ab.ca/env/water/WS/data/precipmaps/weekly.pdf
Reports continue from most areas regarding large numbers of imported cabbageworm butterflies. Any larvae emerging from these butterflies are unlikely to cause any yield loss as they are primarily leaf feeders and rarely move up in the canopy to feed on pods, so are much less damaging to yield than bertha armyworms. For more information regarding bertha armyworm identification, please refer to the Canola Scouting and Sweep Net Insect ID Card and the following links:
http://www.canola-council.org/berthaidentification.aspx
http://www.canola-council.org/pdf/sweepcard_pgs_04.pdf#page=1
High flea beetle numbers continue to be noted particularly in parts of southwest and central Manitoba, and eastern Saskatchewan near Yorkton. Growers should pay attention to flea beetle numbers in the fall as this gives an indication as to the potential flea beetle pressure the following spring.
Aster yellows has been reported in many parts of Saskatchewan including Medstead, Rabbit Lake and Meadow Lake. Unfortunately, there is little that can be done to control this disease. For more information on aster yellows, refer to the following links:
http://www.canola-council.org/asteryellows.aspx
http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/prm7710?OpenDocument#aster
For those growers who still have crop left to swath (including Polish or B. rapa types), remember the optimum stage to swath for both yield and quality is up to 60% seed colour change. Refer to the previous Canola Watch report for further information on the proper timing of swathing:
http://www.canola-council.org/seed/canola-watch/Canola-Watch-Report-17.shtml
At this time of the year, growers continue preparing their bins for storage of the upcoming harvest. Malathion and other similar insecticides should not be used to treat grain bins for insects prior to storing canola. Although this practice is common for cereal crops, oilseed crops like canola can absorb the malathion from the bin surfaces and the resulting residues have been found in crop delivered to elevators. Therefore, DO NOT use malathion to treat bins destined to store canola from the upcoming harvest. Refer to the following link for further information:
http://www.canola-council.org/pesticide_link2.shtml
Post-swathing is an ideal time to be watching for abnormal areas that have wilted, or for prematurely ripening plants within canola stands that are otherwise healthy. These areas may be indicators of diseases such as fusarium wilt, sclerotinia, blackleg and clubroot that restrict water and nutrient uptake by plants. It is important to accurately identify what is causing the damage and properly document the information for future reference and decision making. The Canola Disease Identification and Sclerotinia Risk Assessment Card contains a section on late season scouting with pictures of all of these diseases. Check the following link if you have not received a card yet:
http://www.canola-council.org/pdf/canola_plant_disease_risk.pdf#page=1.
Whether or not you have had a chance to use the card, we are also looking for some information on how you have managed diseases in canola in the past. We would appreciate it if you would click the following link and fill out a brief survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=238782485049
If you have had a chance to use the disease ID card this summer, we would also like your feedback on whether or not you found it useful. The following link will give you the chance to share your opinion on the value of this publication:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=183952490846
There have been some reports of green seed in canola (3-8 % at 7-14 days after swathing) this past week, with moisture levels of the canola seed often at 8% or lower. Given that we are still very early into the harvest season, growers should leave their canola in the swath for a longer period of time to allow for more curing, and give rainfall or heavy dews a chance to reactivate the de-greening enzymes within the seed.
The hot and dry weather of this past season has resulted in stubble remaining green and in some cases, re-growing after swathing. In these situations, watch for the presence of any green material that may be coming into the grain while combining. This green material is likely to cause pockets of localized high moisture within the grain mass in storage, so it is important that the grain is adequately conditioned.
For those faced with green material growing through the stubble and into the swaths, combine as soon as possible, after the seed has adequately cured. Although this may not eliminate problems with green and wet plant material mixed with the grain, it can reduce the amount of contamination. Do not consider using unregistered herbicides to kill this green material as this will possibly leave residues on the grain, which may endanger some of our markets.
For those growers combining canola during warm temperatures, canola storage can also be a concern even at seed moisture levels of 8% or lower. This can be compounded by the presence of insects such as grasshoppers and ladybugs in the grain. Be aware that canola binned at high temperatures may be susceptible to heating and spoilage even though it may test dry, particularly if it contains green material such as weed seeds, chaff or insects. Use aeration to bring down the temperature of the binned canola. For more information on safe storage and conditioning canola, check the following link:
http://www.canola-council.org/media_aug2306.shtml
With the dry weather conditions and dry to very dry grain moisture levels, seed cracking and splitting can be a problem. Remember to slow down cylinder or rotor speeds and/or increase cylinder to concave clearances to reduce cracking.
Post harvest weed control may be an option this year due to the early harvest. Post harvest weed control will help maximize canola returns next year by controlling hard to kill weeds such as dandelions. Managing weeds after harvest will help limit weed seed populations in the following years. A few tips for maximizing post harvest weed control are:
- cut stubble high to leave as much plant material as possible,
- spread straw and chaff adequately to leave plants exposed and
- spray when new plant growth is evident or when leaves are present.
For more information on post-harvest weed control, check out the following media release at http://www.canola-council.org/media_aug3006.html.
New strains of blackleg have been found in Manitoba and eastern Saskatchewan in recent years. Efforts are being made to determine the occurrence and prevalence of these new strains. Growers who notice elevated blackleg levels in MR and R rated varieties and who would like to participate in the survey should collect samples and have them tested to determine what strain is present. Interested growers should e-mail Dr. Dilantha Fernando at d_fernando@umanitoba.ca for sampling and shipping instructions.
This is the final Canola Watch report for the 2006 season.We hope you have found these weekly reports informative, interesting and useful. We will email you a survey soon so you can tell us exactly what you think of Canola Watch. We want to do even better next year! The 2006 series is posted on the Canola Council website at http://www.canola-council.org/seed/canola-watch/watch-2006.shtml.
Direct questions regarding this report to John Mayko, Agronomic Research & Extension Manager, maykoj@canola-council.org, 780-764-2593
Direct specific questions regarding regional issues to one of the following Canola Council of Canada agronomists or provincial oilseed specialists:
Derwyn Hammond, Agronomist, Manitoba,
hammondd@canola-council.org, 204-729-9011
Arvel Lawson, Manitoba Agriculture, Food & Rural Initiatives,
alawson@gov.mb.ca, 204-745-0340
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
Penny Pearse/Scott Hartley, Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food & Rural Revitalization,
ppearse@agr.gov.sk.ca / shartley@agr.gov.sk.ca , 306-787-4671 / 306-787-4669
Doug Moisey, Agronomist, Central Alberta,
moiseyd@canola-council.org, 780-645-3624
Jackie Heck, Agronomist, Peace River Region,
heckj@canola-council.org, 780-835-5261
Matthew Stanford, Agronomist, Southern Alberta,
stanfordm@canola-council.org, 403-758-6660
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@gov.bc.ca, 250-784-2559
The Canola 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; 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.
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