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18
By Donna Fleury
Want to get the most out of your seed investment?
Pay attention to the finer details – that’s what makes
you the money.
PRECISION
PLACEMENT
PAYS OFF
ptimizing seed emergence
and stand establishment is more than
a way to maximize yield. It sets up the
crop for the rest of the season and can
make a difference to how it responds
to the potential pressures of pests, frost,
moisture and other climate conditions.
“In the spring we set ourselves up for
what is going to happen for the rest of
the year which ultimately affects what
and how we harvest, so getting the
most out of your seed investment is
important,” says Doug Moisey, Canola
Council of Canada (CCC) Agronomy
Specialist for North-Central Alberta.
“Precision placement at seeding is the
most important factor for increasing
seed survival. Speed is one of many
factors – although there is no ideal
speed, whatever speed places the seed
in a proper manner with seed to soil
contact is the best strategy.”
Even though canola seed genetics are
the best they have ever been, emergence
is generally estimated to be 35 to 50
percent (it can be as high as 70 percent).
“We cannot determine what emergence
will be prior to seeding, so lowering
seeding rates is risky,” explains Moisey.
“Seed is a safety factor and probably
one of the cheapest forms of insurance
to a good crop, allowing for issues
such as frost, insects and diseases.
The recommended seeding rate is an
achievable plant population of five to
10 plants per square foot, with a target
of eight to 10 plants at 20 days after
emergence. The standard recommen-
dation is a seeding rate of five pounds
per acre, but seed size has to be taken
into account. However, if you can achieve
the target plant stand at 3.5 pounds
per acre because you are going slow,
watching soil temperature and precision
placing the seed, then go ahead,”
says Moisey.
Darcy Sarafinchan farms 3,000 acres
near Vegreville, Alberta and seeded
1,800 acres of canola this year. “For me,
the most important factors include
making sure the drill is level, and seeding
to a depth of 0.5 to one inch and at a
speed of less than five miles per hour,”
he says. “Seeding rate is also important
IN THE FIELD