When you see Something New

Canola Council of Canada agronomy specialists get calls each year from growers or other agronomists who see symptoms and don’t know the cause. One example from the past week was mottling or yellowing of leaf edges in combination with cupping. This was observed in many areas of the Prairies.

 

Cupping is a symptom of sulphur deficiency, herbicide damage and cold stress. Another possibility is manganese toxicity, which can occur in low pH soils with high levels of manganese.

 

Before spending money on a treatment, growers will need to identify the cause. The Canola Diagnostic Tool can help you work through the possibilities. A few localized tests can also help with the diagnosis.

 

For example:

 

1. To test for sulphur deficiency, apply ammonium sulphate to a small area. Mark off the area, perhaps using a hula hoop. If using dry 21-0-0-24, a rate of 10.9 g/m2 approximates a rate of 20 lb./ac. of actual S. If the hoop is 0.25m2, you would only need 2.7 g. Soak it in with about 10 litres of water per square metre, which mimics a 1cm rainfall. Check again in a week to 10 days to compare plants inside and outside the hoop. Look at the whole plant, including root development, to see if symptoms are increasing or getting better. If the treatment shows a clear benefit, there is still time to apply an S top up across the whole field. (This same test can be used for other nutrients. In fact, you may want to try a few of these square-metre tests with different nutrients applied to each.)

 

2. Tissue tests can identify nutrient levels inside the plant, including manganese toxicity. A number of labs offer tissue tests. 

 

3. Run a quick soil pH test in affected and unaffected areas. These tests are available from garden stores for a few dollars each. Very low pH in combination with high manganese levels could support possibility for manganese toxicity.

 

These localized tests provide an opportunity to check on a few potential causes with minimal investment in inputs, while also giving time to see how the crop recovers on its own. Excess moisture, for example, can impede normal nutrient uptake. Soil nutrient levels may be adequate but roots cannot work properly in saturated soil. Once the soil dries down, normal root function returns and new growth shows no symptoms.

 

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.