Grain on the Brain

Resources Use Driftwatch and Beewatch to map your fields and bee colonies to prevent unwanted pesticides and keep the bees safe! https://driftwatch.org/ Guest bio for Ian Steppler Ian Steppler is a third-generation farmer from just outside of Miami, Manitoba. After finding an interest in bees through a class he took in university, Ian now manages over 1800 bee colonies. Serving as chairperson of t...

Resources You can learn more about all of the organic science cluster projects here: https://www.organic-science-canada.ca/about-us/ And specifically learn about the project discussed today here: https://www.organic-science-canada.ca/field-crops/optimizing-the-environmental-and-agronomic-co-benefits-of-recycled-phosphorus-inputs-for-organic-field-crops/ Guest bios Dr. Thiessen Martens' research fo...

Resources DriftWatch is now active across all three Prairie provinces! Whether you’re a farmer, applicator, or beekeeper, this platform is here for you.  Visit Drift watch and map your farm here: https://mb.driftwatch.org/ Find more information and a walkthrough on how to map your farm here: https://www.manitobaorganics.com/driftwatch Sponsors This episode was sponsored by Manitoba Habitat Heritag...

Resources links There are many online resources to help with getting started in organic certification that are continually updated. Canadian Organic Growers has a detailed overview of the steps to transition.  https://cog.ca/transitioning-to-organic/ Sponsor Our podcast is supported by generous donations, grants and sponsorships. This episode was funded in part by Manitoba Habitat Heritage through...

Resources links Learn more about struvite from the Manitoba Cooperator: https://www.manitobacooperator.ca/news-opinion/news/struvite-fertilizer-from-winnipeg-sewers/ Organic Federation Canada published a detailed article on Phosphorus cycling in organic systems that can be found here: https://mailchi.mp/organicfederation/phosphorousstruvite Sponsor Our podcast is supported by generous donations, g...

Creating a nutrient budget will help you evaluate the effect of nutrient management on your fields’ sustainability and help you assess efficiency and improve resource allocation. The Nutrient Budgeting Web App was developed to help with multi-year nutrient management planning, especially for producers that rely on biological nitrogen fixation and/or occasional inputs of manure or other soil fertil...

Resources links Canada Grazing Exchange A free online platform connecting livestock owners with landowners across Canada who have available grazing land or cover crops. A great tool to help improve soil health and make the most of forage opportunities.  www.canadagrazingexchange.com Gateway Research Organization (GRO) Based in Westlock, Alberta, GRO is a local Applied Research Association offering...

Today Scott talks with John Cote who runs John Boy Farms near St. Agathe Manitoba. John shares about his experience growing vegetables for the local market and how and why he chose to focus on garlic. They also cover a few other topics such as soil health, cover crops and inputs.

In this episode, Scott interviews Cody Straza and Ian Cushon in a live panel format, recorded at the Organic Connections show in Saskatoon. Both are experienced organic farmers and they cover a wide variety of topics including species diversity, green manures, soil fertility, livestock and more.

Resources links Rodale Institute has some excellent information around composting as well https://rodaleinstitute.org/why-organic/organic-farming-practices/composting/

Resources links One fantastic way to build soil health and improve the water infiltration capacity of your soil is to integrate livestock onto your land.  For grain farmers who don’t own livestock, MOA and MFGA have built a website to help facilitate partnerships between grain and livestock farmers. It’s a great way to terminate and reincorporate your green manure and build your soil biology. FInd...

Resources links You can contact Neal Wagar, Manitoba Technical Sales Rep via email neal@overtonee.ca or  phone (204-218-2221) for any questions about Ecotea. Recent study results have been uploaded to our website as well in the Resources section: https://manitobaorganicalliance.com/podcasts/season-3-episode-6-biologicals/ http://www.eco-tea.ca / https://youtu.be/sIsfmR7NK1Y https://youtu.be/KZzACq...

Resources links Curtis mentioned Manitoba Agriculture’s Soil Management Guide as a great resource in learning more about soils in general and how to manage them: https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/environment/soil-management/soil-management-guide/ Sponsor Our podcast is supported by generous donations, grants and sponsorships. This episode was funded in part by the Canadian government through the C...

Resources links Check out the Rodale Institute resources, webinars and courses https://rodaleinstitute.org/why-organic/organic-basics/ Education Course https://rodaleinstitute.org/education/ https://courses.rodaleinstitute.org/p/rodale-institute-transition-to-organic Contact Nic for more information about accessing consultant services and takin the  Education courses: nic.podoll@rodaleinstitute.or...

Resources links The WADO annual report with its 2020 results can be found here: https://mbdiversificationcentres.ca/westman-agricultural-diversification-organization/ You can also use their search tool to find the results from all the trials they’ve conducted over the past decade. Southeast research farm in Redvers SK also does lots of intercropping research: https://southeastresearchfarm.org/ Spo...

The Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security supports a national Participatory Plant Breeding Program - PPB - with the University of Manitoba that puts farmers in the driver's seat to select varieties that are adaptive to their organic growing conditions, and their climates. To find out more about this innovative work, please visit www.seedsecurity.ca You can also learn more about the PPB...

Resources links Check out Dr. Kris Nichols’ website to learn more about her work and soil health resources: https://kris-systems.com/ She has a method in her Resources section for COLLECTING SOIL AGGREGATES AND MEASURING AGGREGATE STABILITY https://www.cog.ca/every-day-should-be-world-soil-day/ For more about the Canadian Organic Growers “Canadian Access Project”: https://www.cog.ca/the-canadian-a...

Resources links You can get involved as a Farmer For Climate Solutions by going to their website and clicking on the Take Action button https://farmersforclimatesolutions.ca/ Find more information about the newly released policy report here: https://farmersforclimatesolutions.ca/budget-2021-recommendation Rural Routes to Climate Solutions https://rr2cs.ca/ Manitoba Organic Alliance https://manitob...

Guest bio for Dr. Doug Cattani Doug received his BSA and MSc. from the University of Manitoba (Plant Breeding) and his PhD. from Wageningen University, The Netherlands in Plant Production Ecology. He has worked with herbaceous perennial for over three decades with emphasis on breeding and seed production. His current position is as Perennial Crop Breeder in the Department of Plant Science at the U...

Resources Our resource list this episode is directly from our guest Ward Middleton and includes the resources he has found helpful on his own farm.   For farmers who may be interested in integrating livestock that they do not own, like winter feeding someone else's cows and are concerned about cost effective ways to make that possible, here are some articles I used:   Assessing Chaff Feed Value: ...

Resources Find out more about the CARA soil health lab  https://www.carasoilhealthlab.ca/ Want to get out on your field and do some measurements?  The CARA soil health lab has some videos demonstrating water infiltration and using a soil penetrometer here: https://www.carasoilhealthlab.ca/gallery-1 The NRCS also has great soil health and assessment resources. Methods to do a water infiltration tes...

Resources links Read about soil health research on organic farms conducted by the Organic Farming Research Foundation: https://ofrf.org/research/reports/ Dig deeper into Soil Health on the National Resources Conservation Service’s website:  https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/soils/health/?cid=stelprdb1245890 https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/national/soils/healt...

Guest bios Iris Iris Vaisman is the Prairie Regional Coordinator for the Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security and the Grains Program Manager at Organic Alberta. In these roles, she has the joy and privilege of partnering with farmers, researchers, industry, government and various stakeholders to work on diverse projects. The projects aim to contribute to the resilience of seed systems...

Sponsor Funding is provided in part by the Canada and Manitoba governments through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. Additional sponsorship has been provided by Secan. SeCan is the largest supplier of certified seed to Canadian farmers with more than 600 independent seed business members from coast to coast engaged in seed production, processing and marketing. We are a private, not-for-profit...

We recorded today’s episode in March at the 2020 Prairie Organics Conference in Brandon Manitoba.  Scott gets into the weeds with Sam Hitchcock Tilton as they discuss ways to control weeds at all stages of their life cycle throughout the growing season. Sponsor Thanks to Regen Ag Solutions for helping to sponsor this episode. If you’re thinking about trying out some of the machines Sam and Scott w...