Thursday, July 13th – Elora Research Station, University of Guelph, 6182 2nd Line, Ariss, ON
At FarmSmart Expo all participants are split into small groups, which rotate around the various stations. Conversation and questions are encouraged. If you want to know something, ask!
Program Topics: PDF format
- Soil Health Interpretive Centre Initiatives and New Research Platforms (SW 0.5) – Claudia Wagner-Riddle (UG)
Diverse cropping systems result in healthy, more productive soils and can provide improved environmental benefits. Learn why this is the case and how these benefits are being assessed at a new soil lysimeter research platform dedicated to the study of soil health.
Claudia Wagner-Riddle is a Professor in Agrometeorology in the School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Canada. She is an expert in application of micrometeorological flux techniques to measure greenhouse gas emissions (GHG; methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide) from agriculture. Her research aims at better understanding the processes that lead to GHG emissions and identifying management practices that can reduce GHG emissions, and hence, decrease the environmental impact of agricultural activities. She currently leads several projects focused on evaluating how soil health impacts soil ecosystem services, including a new infrastructure using large scale soil weighing lysimeter. Prof. Wagner-Riddle is an editor of the international journal Agricultural and Forest Meteorology since 2012 and associate editor of the Journal of Environmental Quality since 2011. She is a member of the Scientific Advisory Group to the 4R Quantification Module Strategy for The Fertilizer Institute and International Plant Nutrition Institute, United States; the Technical Committee GHG Inventory: Livestock, Environment and Climate Change Canada. Prof. Wagner-Riddle has published >100 papers, has had 2988 citations and has an h-index of 29 (Google Scholar).
- A Close Look At Tillage Erosion (SW 0.5) – Anne Verhallen and Ben Rosser (OMAFRA)
A close look at Tillage erosion will look at various tillage implements and the implications for tillage erosion through a demonstration of tillage action and soil movement.
- Understanding Soils and the Tools that Enhance that Understanding (SW 0.5) – Asim Biswas (UG), Daniel Saurette (OMAFRA)
Daniel is a one of the lead people in the Ontario Soils Strategy and will discuss the how, why, where and when of the paths that the soil strategy should take us and why this is important to us individually and communally. Asim is the newest professor in the Soils group in the School of Environmental Science at Guelph. He brings a strong soils and precision agriculture background to Ontario and will work with Daniel to show us how remote sensing opportunities will help us manage production and environment better in the future.
- Western Bean Cutworm Identification, Scouting and Management (PM 0.5) – Art Schaafsma UG
Hone your scouting skills and learn about new trapping technology and important management strategies.
- Exploring Organic Amendment Options for Row Crop Farming (NM 0.5) – Chris Brown and Brian Dickson (OMAFRA)
No one disputes the benefits of organic amendments but without livestock on most grain crop farms, people feel they must rely solely on commercial fertilizer. However, beyond your own or your neighbours livestock, options for organic amendments exist that we should be taking advantage of. This session will discuss what those various options are, how to access them and what they can add to your production system short and long term. Chris and Brian will share experiences with manure vs digestate and various forms of other biosolid type options.
- Glyphosate resistant fleabane, cover crops and yield loss. (PM 0.5) – Clarence Swanton and Francois Tardif (UG)
In this presentation we will present our most recent findings on the impact of fall tillage, and fall and spring applied herbicides for control of glyphosate resistant Canada Fleabane. In addition, the first year of results from this study have suggested that Canada Fleabane can be effectively controlled with fall planted rye as a cover crop. The management of cover crops and the potential for a cover crop to act as a weed and reduce crop yields will be discussed.
- P & K Management Options for Optimizing Crop Production and Environmental Protection (NM 0.5) – Jake Munroe and Horst Bohner (OMAFRA)P is a key nutrient in optimizing crop production. The recommendations for P have not been adjusted in many years. There are two opposing philosophies on now to manage P, the sufficiency method that feeds each crop for the amount it needs for a single season, vs a build and maintain option where the soil P levels are targeted for a minimum level to ensure that crop production is not impacted by lower than needed P. There are various attributes to both methods and these will be discussed. The issue in choosing how to manage P is the balance between optimizing production potential and preventing environmental loss of P from the field system that contributes to reductions in water quality and other effects. Engage in the discussion at the FarmSmart Expo and make the right decisions for you and the environment.
Jake Munroe is the Soil Fertility Specialist for the Field Crops Unit of OMAFRA. Jake holds a Bachelor of Science from Acadia University and a Master’s degree in Physical Geography from the University of Toronto. He has expertise in soil fertility and soil microbiology. Through field days, plot demonstrations and presentations Jake has shared information with Ontario producers on soil fertility, soil health, and best management practices for nutrients.
Horst Bohner has been the provincial Soybean Specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs since 2001. He works closely with producers and researchers to address soybean production issues. His responsibilities include field research validation, improving production techniques, and providing soybean information to Ontario growers. Horst is past chair of the Ontario Oil and Protein Seed Crop Committee and the OMAFRA representative for the Heartland Regional Soil and Crop Improvement Association. He is a Certified Crop Advisor. Previous to working for OMAFRA he conducted field research trials with various crops including corn, soybeans, wheat, canola, tomatoes, apples, and grapes. He was raised and worked on a cash crop farm near Woodstock Ontario so he’s familiar with the opportunities and challenges faced by Ontario producers.
- Understanding the Implications of Sprayer Tank Cleanout Shortcomings and their Impacts (PM 0.5) – Jason Deveau and Mike Cowbrough OMAFRA
With dicamba, sprayer cleanout is more important than ever. We compare the effectiveness of triple rinsing and continuous rinsing, with and without ammonia-based cleaner.
Mike Cowbrough is the weed specialist in field crops with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, a position he has been in for 13 years. In 2009 Mike received the Canadian Weed Science Society’s Award for excellence in weed extension and in 2012 The T.R. Hilliard Award for agricultural extension in Ontario. He resides on a corn, soybean and wheat farm outside of Guelph with his family.
Jason is the Application Technology Specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. He holds a B.Sc. (hon) in Biology & Psychology from Mount Allison University, a M.Sc. in plant cell physiology from York University and a Ph.D. in plant cell electrophysiology from the University of Guelph. Working out of the Simcoe Resource Centre in Ontario, his current focus is to explore methods to reduce pesticide wastage and off-target contamination, to develop methods to spray crops more consistently and to create educational materials for sprayer operators. He is the co-developer ofwww.sprayers101.com and the author of “Airblast101 – A Handbook of Best Practices in Airblast Spraying”.
Cost (includes lunch)
OSCIA members – $80
Non-members – $115 (includes 1 year membership)
Students – $40
WALK IN RATE – $115 (no membership benefit)
Discounted Rate deadline: Monday, July 10th, 2017.
.FarmSmart Expo Registration (on-line payment required)
or call 1-877-424-1300