OMAFRA releases latest Field Crop Report

Aug 25, 2016

Report released on August 24

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

OMAFRA’s Field Crop Team released its latest Field Crop Report to give an update on field conditions and weather throughout Ontario.

“Rainfall across much of the province last week has brought renewed vigor to many of the crops,” the report says.

Despite dry weather resulting in some potential yield loss, the recent moisture could allow some crops to rebound.

“Hay and pasture fields have greened up considerably, suggesting a chance for a decent 2^nd/3^rd cut and getting livestock back on pasture,” the report said. “Corn and bean crops have responded to the rainfall as well.”

Farmer in corn field
Getty

Spring cereal harvest is wrapping up around the province. Some cereals are performing better than others.

“While winter wheat yields were generally above average for all classes, spring cereal yields are lower than average, particularly in central Ontario,” OMAFRA’s Field Crop team said in its report.

Producers beginning to harvest their dry edible beans may want to consider applying a pre-harvest herbicide to even up dry-down.

“For soybeans and edible beans, controlling escaped weeds will make harvest more efficient, can improve harvest quality and can provide better weed control in the following crop.”

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.