July 31, 2013

Issues of the week

Blackleg lesion on stem, found on a canola plant in late July.

Swathing will likely start within a week or 2 for earliest canola fields. Keep in mind that the ideal time to swath is around 60% seed colour change (SCC). Some fields will have to be cut earlier for growers with a lot of canola to get down, but try to avoid cutting before 30% SCC.

See this week’s top 10 list for diseases, including blackleg lesions (shown above), to look for ahead of swathing. The days leading up to swathing are an excellent time to identify diseases present. Once diseases are identified, growers can augment management practices to reduce specific diseases in subsequent years.

Insect monitoring continues this week, with diamondback moth larvae, bertha armyworms and grasshoppers the most important.

Tweet of the week:

Tweet of week July 31

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