Terry Stevenson’s Agricultural Weblog

There are many signals that this could be a “Cinderella” year for farmers in southwest Ontario. Prices for corn, wheat and soybeans are at or close to historical record high prices. The news is also finally starting to get out that unfortunately for farmers they have had to endure double digit increased fertilizer prices and of course the sky-rocketing cost of fuel. Even with these increased production costs, if the anticipated yields materialize, farmers could finally make a modest profit for the first time in many years.

 There is always a catch when things seem almost too good to be true and for farmers, it is no different. Some areas have experienced heavy rains which have hurt plant growth and in some cases even resulted in a second crop being re-planted where practical. Adding to farmers’ costs is the army worm infestation that swept across most of our area causing damage to corn, soybean and wheat crops. Farmers that were able to identify the army worm problem early were able to spray to try and control the insect problem, but either way it has cut into their realized profit at harvest time. Fusarium which is a fungus that can attack crops during wet and humid weather is next on their radar. It can affect crop yield and of course the added expense of spraying a fungicide to try and control the problem.

 Early detection through crop scouting for insect infestation or plant disease is one of the key factors in limiting damage. Knowing where and what to look for in a field, including even the time of day are important considerations. Our crop specialists’ at AGRIS and Wanstead Farmers Co-operative are trained on what to look for, so please call them if you have any concerns about your crop’s condition.   

 So while there is room for cautious optimism that farmers will have a successful harvest with higher than average prices and yields, there are still many roadblocks ahead that need to be successfully maneuvered around.