Prepping for planting

Apr 09, 2019

Ontario producers are gearing up for the 2019 planting season

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Ontario growers are making the necessary preparations in advance of the 2019 growing season.

While it’s still to early to plant any crops, it’s never too soon to get the machinery in order, said Todd Arthur, a cash cropper in Middlesex County.

“We probably won’t plant anything until closer to the end of the month, so right now we’re just getting our equipment ready,” he told Farms.com. “It’s better to do it now and get it done than have to worry about it when you’re ready to plant.”

Arthur is also deciding what crops to plant.

“We’ll definitely plant corn and soybeans,” he said. “We might also do some edible beans.

“We’re not 100 per cent sure on that, so we’ll have to discuss that before we get into the fields.”

Like Arthur, Nick Lenos, a cash crop farmer in Norfolk County, is busy getting his machinery ready for the first day of planting while also keeping an eye on the weather forecast.

“Right now it’s mostly planter maintenance,” he told Farms.com.

“We’ve got to wait for this rain to pass through and hopefully the conditions stay good enough for planting.”

Norfolk County could receive rain Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, Environment Canada says.

But Lenos is also keeping an eye on his winter wheat crop.

He applied nitrogen on March 25 and is pleased with the results thus far.

“The crop has definitely started to green up which is a good sign,” he said.

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