It won't be long before Manitoba's sunflower fields start to turn yellow.
Ben Friesen, with Scoular Canada, says the crop is looking good so far, adding that a lot of the flowers are starting to open.
"The heat was really good because they had ample moisture down there. The crop is tall, it's green, it's lush, it's looking really good right now," he said.
Friesen notes most of the sunflower crop has caught up after a slow start to the season. He mentions that some of the crop is into the R5.1 to R5.5 stage right now, with a lot of the crop starting to bud (R3-R4).
According to Friesen, there have been no major disease issues in the areas they've looked at.
Lygus bugs have been showing up, as have grasshoppers. Diamondback moths are also present. Friesen expects that farmers will need to apply at least one insecticide application to ensure top quality sunflowers.
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