On Verge of 6 month phase out period for glyphosate????

[riders2010]

Onceyou get rid of glyphos other chemicals will be used more. As if they are any safer in fact I bet they are worse. Either get rid of them all and get more environment al friendly or just forget about cutting any of them. It s the truth.

[WiltonRanch]

Even if the potheads get glyphosate and other chems banned and we go back to 30 bu wheat and 25 bu canola we'll still get no more for it while Eastern Europe and Asia sure as hell won't ban them and will become the breadbasket of the world while we fall on sword of bogus science. I hate being big agros bitch as much as anyone else but tillage screwed a pile of land up even in our heavy clay country. The nimby crowd would love for us to not use any chemicals while they buy their cheap food from China.

[cottonpicken]

Right or wrong this war has been lost and that's all that really matters don't really feel like going through the evidence you all know it anyway.

If Saskatchewan is the bread basket of innovation and ag tech I'd say it's time to build some new tools for the tool box but seeing as how I've never heard the reasoning on wood ash for fertilizer I'm not going to hold my breath on what we are capable of now.

What's the quote"there are more things on heven and earth than you and I will never know"

[Hamloc]

My Dad starting farming in the late thirties and passed away at the age of 90, his brother just celebrated his 90th birthday. Both farmed their whole lives. I asked my Dad one day about going organic. He laughed at me and started telling tales of blowing soil, how grain field were covered in thistles and weeds. Talked about 20 and 30 bus yields. I think humanity has a very short memory, the same people wanting to basically go back to farming with horses are same people pushing socialism. We have had it to good for to long. My dad experienced hard times and hunger I never have. Those who ignore history are going to make the same mistakes all over again. Have a good day:-)

[biglentil]

Glypho is a long way from getting phased out unless chem companies get their wish. Its days as a preharvest may be numbered though. Its like a hot potato don't get caught with bin full of the stuff.

[tstep]

Why do the maltsters not allow glyfos desication but yet it is okay to desicate wheat to make bread we eat? Ban the use of glyfos as a desiccant but leave alone as a tillage tool.

[Braveheart]

Glyphosate was never intended as a desiccant. It is registered for per harvest weed control. Farmers, especially some BTO's, started applying glyphosate earlier than recommended to speed harvest. It is not prudent and this abuse will lead to problems eventually.

[tstep]

There is a bid enough push right now to get rid of glyfos and Monsanto. We better be careful how we use it or that will be another reason to abolish it.

[biglentil]

Let the cereals stand till they naturally finish then straightcut, higher test weight, less shrinkage, better colour, and can save for seed, no sprayer tracks. And guess what? Your spray didn't penetrate the canopy and get the weeds anyways.

Whats the fricken allure?

[checking]

Wood ash for fertilizer. That's got to be carbon neutral because who in the world complains about government reaction to letting the forests burn themselves out, as long as the fire stays away from urban communities.

Brilliant replacement!

[ado089]

Big organic has the politicians and regulators in their pockets.

[chuckChuck]

Google Gabe Brown from Bismarck. He has integrated a livestock operation and crop production. Using cover crops and a good rotation along with direct seeding, Brown has cut his fertilizer use and his chemical bill substantially.

He is not organic but has gone a long way to prove that farmers can save money and produce high yielding crops with less off farm inputs. Is this the way of the future for many farms?

[Braveheart]

It is for our farm. We used a cover crop last year which was barley seeded after barley. We got volunteers and the light seeded barley (KISS technique). Our cows grazed it til November. This year tillage radish for some select wet as well as compaction areas. We need to learn more about how to seed it and what mix works best. I do think though that cover crops are the next tool to add to our toolbox here.

[burnt]

Cover crops might be the next green revolution.

All eyes around here are on the fields of a farming family who took a big plunge with cover crops, planting rye on a lot of their acres last fall.

This spring they planted soys and edible beans into the green, standing rye and sprayed glyphosate post-planting. Tillage was limited to one 3/4" wavy in front of the seed opener. They planted into the green, standing crop because it causes the least resistance and plugging problems.

The beans were coming through the tangle of rye yesterday when we drove by some of their fields.

It will be most interesting to watch as the year unfolds - will they need to apply more herbicide or will the rye residue keep the weeds down? How much organic matter will the rye put back into the soil? And moisture retention should be a huge benefit from the residue as well with the ground shaded until the beans fill out.

And, no doubt, the chemical companies are watching with as much interest as anyone - or maybe more...

[Braveheart]

When I was involved with Pesticide Free Production one of the interesting projects was slowing down flea beetles using clover.

It seems that flea beetles hunt by scent and the clover smell was so strong it confused the beetles. So, if clover was a late part of this years cover and planted into then sprayed out next spring it may provide a bio barrier for flea beetles.