Spring Canola Regaining Ground

Canola acres are set to rebound this year. After two years of decreased acreage in Ontario (25% less each year), there are good reasons to consider spring canola. With higher prices, and advancements in varieties and production practices, the excitement is back in canola!.

Higher yielding hybrid canola, and herbicide tolerant canola are large improvements over older open pollinated types. Hybrid canola varieties are shorter than open pollinated canola, allowing direct combining, although the majority of canola is still swathed. Growers have adopted either no-till or minimum till seeding of canola.

The recommended nitrogen rate for canola is 130 kg/ha (115 lb/ha). Canola has the same phosphorus requirement as spring cereals. The provincial average yield for canola is 1726 lbs/ac. Follow the market and know your production costs. Consider the following points when seeding canola this spring:

Crop Rotation

Mustard can be the biggest weed problem, especially in non-herbicide tolerant canola. Minimize the risk of white mould by maintaining a 3 - 4 year rotation with non - host crops. Soybeans and edible beans are susceptible to white mould.

Plan your rotation to allow control options for volunteer canola in crops that follow. Volunteer Roundup Ready canola in Roundup Ready soybeans is controlled by Pursuit or Pinnacle. Volunteer canola is difficult to control once it bolts. Watch herbicides used in corn and soybeans: some leave soil residues that injure canola. Canola is particularly sensitive to triazine and ALS (Group 2) herbicides. Pursuit and Atrazine both have a 22 month planting restriction before canola. See OMAFRA publication 75, "Guide to Weed Control", Herbicide Crop Rotation Restrictions (page 64).

The best stands of winter wheat often follow canola. Growers have reported success in underseeding canola with red clover, or other forage crops. Canola could smother the underseeding if it lays in the swath too long at harvest.

Site Selection

Canola does best in cool climates (less than 2700 heat units). It can be planted on a variety of soils, but does not perform well on wet soils. Groundhogs are a major problem. Reduced tillage systems work well, provided seeding equipment can place the seed below the residue and in firm contact with the soil. No-till canola is succesful when residue distribution, weed control, and fertilizer placement are optimized. The soil moisture conserved with no-till systems can be beneficial during a droughty growing season. Slugs can be a problem with heavy surface residues, particularly cereal residue.

Planting

A firm, level seedbed is the most important factor for even stand establishment and high yields. Soils should be firm enough that heel marks are no deeper than the sole of a workboot. Packing both before and after drilling gives the best results in a dry year.

Seeding date has the greatest influence on yield. Later plantings result in late flowering, when high temperatures and dry weather can sharply reduce yield. Canola is not as frost tolerant as a spring cereal crops. The ideal seeding depth is 1 - 2 cm (0.5 - 1 inch).

Seeding Rates

Canola seed is small, and can disappear rapidly while seeding. New seed treatments for flea beetle control further challenge calibration compared to seeding seed plus granular insecticide product. Seeding rate is 4-5 kg/ha, delivering 5-6 seeds per foot of row. This can be a problem with some drills. To compensate, mix the seed with a low salt fertilizer, like MAP (11-52-0 but not mini-map) that has a similar density to canola seed. Occasionally MAP can build up on seed cups.

When seeding with seed only, the opening on each seed cup should be checked and adjusted. Some seed damage from grinding of the seed in the seed rollers can still result. Use a slow speed sprocket to avoid grinding seed, or seed through the grass seed box. A few growers are exploring the option of seeding in 14" rows, blocking off every other run, The effect of this practice on canopy closure, weed control and yields has not yet been evaluated.