When Is it Time to Start Irrigating?

Jul 02, 2015

Many soybean plants will soon be at the critical reproductive stage, when a crop can use a quarter-inch of water per day.

According to Mississippi State University Irrigation Specialist Jason Krutz, irrigation should begin at a pre-determined soil-moisture threshold, regardless of growth stage. By monitoring soil-moisture sensors to determine when your fields have reached the threshold, you’re helping ensure you don’t lose yield to drought stress during the critical R3 through R6 growth stages.

If you use furrow-irrigation, you can increase irrigation efficiency through the use of the PHAUCET/PipePlanner computer program. These programs help determine the best hole sizes to punch along the length of a polypipe irrigation set. The tool calculates these hole sizes based on pressure changes along the tubing, pipe diameter, the different row lengths along the polypipe set, and the elevation changes along the field where the polypipe tubing is located.

For all your irrigation-initiation questions, check out this summary of significant management practices. The highlighted practices are proven to contribute to higher yields in both research environments and farmers’ fields.

Source: USB

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?