Rail movement picks up as harvest operations starts to wind down

Sep 26, 2023

David Przednowek, assistant vice-president of grain for CN Rail, says now that we're looking towards the end of September and early October, that's always going to be full run rate.

"It's certainly coming a little bit faster than we would have been projecting based on our customer demand forecast. Now saying that, our volumes have ramped up quite a bit here in grain shipment, week six and seven, which are the first two weeks of September. We averaged 600,000 tonnes of shipments of grain and processed grain products, that compares to maybe 425,000 tonnes in the previous two weeks."

He notes if you go back to grain shipping week four and five, which would be the middle of August, that was only around 325,000 metric tonnes.

Przednowek says with the volume of grain they pick up, in order to be prepared they rely on the customer demand forecast as they start pulling cars and locomotives out of storage to meet that need.

Another key need of course is staff and over the last few months CN has been furiously hiring more people.

He says a key push to hire more staff centers around the Federal Government's regulatory changes relating to work-rest rules for freight railway companies which came into effect in May of 2023.

"As we took a look at what the potential impacts of that would be, besides the fact that you're still in this job market, which is the tightest in 60 years and you've got a lot of baby boomers exiting the workforce. On top of that, you've got changes in work rest rules that you know modeling it out before you see the rules come into effect in May of 2023. You're expecting that hundreds of more people will be required to do the same amount of work, as would have been done prior to those changes in the work-rest rules taking place."

He notes while they've been planning and working towards that, what actually happens out in the field can look quite different than what you anticipate.

To hear Glenda-Lee's interview with David Przednowek click on the link below.

Source : Pembinavalley online

Video: Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Understanding how a plant responds to stress is one thing.

Using that knowledge to make better management decisions is another.

Systemic acquired resistance, or SAR, is the plant's more direct defense response. When stress or infection occurs, the plant begins signaling throughout its system and preparing defensive compounds.

But if we know that response exists, can we help prepare the plant before the stress arrives?

The answer starts with understanding what triggers the response and what the plant needs to carry it out.

The Trigger and the Fuel

Salicylic acid plays an important role in triggering the SAR pathway.

Think of it as turning the truck on.

The engine may be running, but it still needs fuel to do the work.

In this case, manganese plays an important role in supporting the enzyme systems involved in the plant's defensive response.

This makes manganese status an important part of the conversation. Whether a producer is using tissue testing, sap analysis, or simply scouting for visible deficiency symptoms, the goal is to make sure the plant has adequate manganese available.

Manganese is required in relatively small amounts, but that does not make its role small.

If the plant receives a signal to defend itself but lacks the nutrition needed to support that response, it may struggle to carry out the process efficiently.

The trigger matters.

The fuel matters too.

Prepare Before the Stress Arrives

The best time to think about stress management is before the plant is overwhelmed.

Once a crop is already struggling, management can quickly turn into a game of catch-up.

This is similar to nitrogen management. Once a plant becomes severely deficient, correcting the problem does not necessarily erase the time and yield potential already lost.

Plant defense can work the same way.

Low-rate, targeted approaches designed to support the SAR pathway may fit best ahead of an expected stress event rather than after significant damage has already occurred.

That requires producers to think about predictable stress.

We may not know exactly what the weather will do tomorrow, but we generally know summer heat is coming. We know certain field conditions increase disease pressure. We know a herbicide application can temporarily stress a crop as the plant processes the chemistry.

Even a properly timed and labeled herbicide application can create a temporary response in the plant.

That does not mean the herbicide is bad.

Weeds can create significantly more yield loss than the temporary stress caused by controlling them.

The question is not whether we should eliminate every stressor.

The question is whether we can better prepare the plant to manage necessary and predictable stress.

Not All Stress Is Bad

Stress is a normal part of plant growth.

A perfectly stress-free environment does not exist in the field.

In fact, some stress is necessary for normal plant development. A plant responds to wind, temperature, moisture, sunlight, and countless other environmental signals throughout the season.

The environment is stress.

The plant's job is to manage it.

Problems begin when the stress load becomes greater than the plant's ability to respond.

Extreme heat, drought, high salt concentrations, disease pressure, and even certain management practices can add to that load.

This is where understanding SAR becomes useful.

Instead of waiting until the plant is visibly struggling, producers can begin identifying periods when stress is likely and make management decisions around those windows.

ISR Starts With the Soil

While SAR is a more direct defense response, induced systemic resistance, or ISR, brings the conversation back to soil health.

The longevity of a farm is closely connected to the health of its soil.

Carbon plays a major role because it supports biological life within the soil. Bacteria, fungi, and other organisms interact with plant roots and influence how the plant grows, accesses nutrients, and prepares for stress.

This is why soil health cannot be reduced to one product or one application.

It is a system.

Keeping living plants in the field longer can support biological activity. Cover crops may fit some operations. Better water management can improve soil conditions.