Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116“You can’t achieve high yields if the weather doesn’t cooperate.” —Murray Hartman 12 www.seed.ab.ca | Advancing Seed in Alberta Although Kuhn found the winning combination to be econom- ically viable, she did note weather was likely the biggest contrib- uting factor to her success. “In 2015, we had the right conditions to get a great yield,” she says. Another of DEKALB’s canola challenge winners produced an average yield of 78.4 bu/ac. Richard Wilde chose DEKALB’s 74-44 BL variety and seeded at a rate of 5.8 lb/ac, planting about 1,000 acres of the same variety. “We always work the land before in the fall thinking that it helps make the soil warmer in the spring before we plant,” says Wilde. “It also came off of irrigation so we were able to control the water portion fairly well. “We sprayed two applications of Roundup for weed control, and one pass of fungicide,” he adds. “I think this practice is eco- nomical to raise canola.”  Like Kuhn, Wilde attributed his success to a good growing season. “The weather was rather dry and warm, and I actually think it was a contributing factor to be able grow that much canola,” he says. DEKALB product manager David Kelner says the Seed for Yourself Yield Challenge is really about what’s possible in canola. Although they did have some protocol on the varieties from which participants could choose, ultimately growers managed their crops in whichever way they saw fit. Seeding rates and timing, and fertilizer and chemical inputs were all left up to the individual. DEKALB marketing associate Marcus Moore found it particu- larly interesting the winning results came from different hybrids. That and the fact the numbers the winners were reporting were significantly higher than the provincial average. “What we’re doing here is not an endorsement of a whole-farm approach,” says Kelner. “It’s more of an exercise to show them, show us, show everybody what the potential is.” Last year’s winners of the DuPont Pioneer yield contest from Alberta, Jim Herder based in Sylvan Lake, hit 84.3 bu/ac by planting Pioneer brand hybrid 45H33 RR; and Ron Krywko from Sturgeon County achieved 81.3 bu/ac with hybrid 45H33. Debbie Stiles, DuPont Pioneer seed marketing manager for Western Canada, says growers are encouraged to showcase how Pioneer brand products perform using their specific farming prac- tices, through their yield hero challenge. “It demonstrates that good agronomy, combined with elite germplasm, traits and technology, do make a difference in each farm’s canola yield opportunity.” On Higher Yields: Contributing and Limiting Factors Understanding limiting factors is a huge part of driving yields in canola. One of the biggest limiting factors in canola produc- tion is the weather. “You can’t achieve high yields if the weather doesn’t cooperate,” says Hartman. Beyond weather, growers can take steps to control disease and fertility. “We don’t have any magical solution for fertilizer,” Hart- man adds. “Just make sure you’re up on the three major ones: nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphur.” In 2013, the Ultimate Canola Challenge plots in Lacombe aver- aged slightly over 100 bu/ac, and there was no yield benefit for additional products such as boron or seed primers over standard agronomic practices and soil test recommendations of nitrogen and phosphorus. Thus, the cost of these additional products actually reduced profit, according to Hartman. PioneerHybrid45H33 Weighsinat116.8bu/ac Forallcanola,cornandsoybeangrowersinWestern Canadainterestedintakingontheyieldchallenge, DuPontPioneerofferstheYieldHerocontest.Winners willbedecidedbasedoncropyield(inbushelsperacre) andqualityinallthreecrops. Thehighestyieldsrecordedaspartofthe2015contest were116bu/acforcanolainSaskatchewan,and200b/ac forcorninManitoba. ThecontestisopentoManitoba,Saskatchewan,Alberta andBritishColumbiagrowers.The18winnersofthis year’schallengewillwinatripfortwotothefinalweekend ofthe2017TimHortonsBrierinSt.John’s,Nfld. Toparticipate,growerscancontacttheirlocalPioneer Hi-Bredsalesrepresentative. “Oursalesrepsareinvolvedrightfromtheget-goin helpingselecttherightproductfortherightacres andensuringthatthey’replacingitintherightsoil conditionsbecauseeachproduct,ofcourse,does performslightlydifferentdependingontheenvironment thatit’sputin,”saysBryceEger,businessdirectorfor DuPontPioneerCanada.“Selectionoftheproductisvery importantbecausewecanpromotebetteryields.” Thisyear,DuPontPioneerhasseveralnewhybridsbeing offeredincanolaandcorn.Thetwonewcanolahybrids arePioneerProtectorHarvestMaxproducts45M35and 46M34.Forcorn,twonewultra-earlymaturityhybrids forWesternCanadaareP7005AMandP7202AM,along withtwonewhigh-yieldingcornproductsP7958AMand P7632AM. “Wehaveinvestedandcontinuetoinvestinresearch anddevelopmentinWesternCanada,andthatisan importantpartofprovidinghigh-yieldingproducts: havingresearchthatisonthegroundinthereal conditionsthataretakingplace,”saysEger.“Our investmentinWesternCanadaisverysignificant.”