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Crop development advancing quickly with the warmer weather

Manitoba Agriculture's weekly crop report shows 97 per cent of the provincial crop has been seeded, that's slightly ahead of the five-year average of 96 per cent.

Provincial Pulse Specialist Dennis Lange is reporting good emergence on spring cereals and field peas, spring cereals are at that one to four-leaf stage with some herbicide spraying underway.

"When we look at some of the oilseeds right now, the sunflower growth stage is in that V1 to V2 growth stage. Canola early on in the one to two-leaf stage. Some producers have made some comments about canola sitting in some dry soil so in some regions, they could use some additional rainfall. When you look at the soybean planting it's about 99 per cent complete around the province and some of the beans are in the ground anywhere from that unifoliate to the early first trifoliate stage.  Dry bean planting is pretty much complete as well. There's been some reasonably good emergence, but some growers did have to plant a little bit deeper in that inch and quarter to two-inch range. So, producers just need to be a little patient there."

Field peas are at that 4th to 6th node stage, corn is in good to excellent condition at the one to the five-leaf stage for some of the earliest seeded fields, while most flax crops are in stage 4 to very early stage 5.

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"You realize you've got a pretty finite number of years to do this. If you ever want to try something new, you better do it."

That mindset helped Will Groeneveld take a bold turn on his Alberta grain farm. A lifelong farmer, Will had never heard of regenerative agriculture until 2018, when he attended a seminar by Kevin Elmy that shifted his worldview. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a deep exploration of how biology—not just chemistry—shapes the health of our soils, crops and ecosystems.

In this video, Will candidly reflects on his family’s farming history, how the operation evolved from a traditional mixed farm to grain-only, and how the desire to improve the land pushed him to invite livestock back into the rotation—without owning a single cow.

Today, through creative partnerships and a commitment to the five principles of regenerative agriculture, Will is reintroducing diversity, building soil health and extending living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible. Whether it’s through intercropping, zero tillage (which he’s practiced since the 1980s) or managing forage for visiting cattle, Will’s approach is a testament to continuous learning and a willingness to challenge old norms.

Will is a participant in the Regenerative Agriculture Lab (RAL), a social innovation process bringing together producers, researchers, retailers and others to co-create a resilient regenerative agriculture system in Alberta. His story highlights both the potential and humility required to farm with nature, not against it.