Corn Planting Begins, Oats 70% Completed

Apr 26, 2021

For the week ending April 18, 2021, there were 4.6 days suitable for fieldwork, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 4% very short, 15% short, 77% adequate and 4% surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 5% very short, 28% short, 65% adequate and 2% surplus.

Field Crops Report: Corn planted was 2%, equal to last year, and near 4% for the five-year average.

Winter wheat condition rated 5% very poor, 12% poor, 40% fair, 40% good, and 3% excellent.

Oats planted was 70%, ahead of 51% last year and 52% average. Emerged was 26%, ahead of 14% last year and 16% average.

Source : unl.edu

Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?