Preharvest Management of Small Grains

Jul 26, 2019

There are two methods of pre-harvest management that can speed up the small grain harvest: Swathing or applying glyphosate. Because modern varieties allow for it, most wheat and barley is now straight-cut instead of swathed. Oats are still commonly swathed. A pre-harvest application of glyphosate is only labeled in wheat.

The advantages and disadvantages of the different preharvest management tactics can be found here: https://extension.umn.edu/small-grains-harvest-and-storage/managing-wheat-harvest

If you suspect you have a moderate to high infestation of wheat stem sawfly, swathing may be a good choice to avoid harvest losses. Because wheat stem sawfly migrated into this year wheat crop from adjacent wheat stubble, there is generally a very strong edge effect. To determine if you need to swath edges of fields, sample the wheat crop and determine the percent of plants infested by wheat stem sawflies before harvest. Simply split the stems longitudinally and look for the S-shaped larvae inside the stems.

If more than 15 percent of stems ae infested by sawflies, you should consider swathing. Swath the sawfly-infested wheat as soon as the crop has reached physiological maturity to prevent infested stems from lodging.

Source: umn.edu

Video: From Conventional to Regenerative: Will Groeneveld’s Journey Back to the Land

"You realize you've got a pretty finite number of years to do this. If you ever want to try something new, you better do it."

That mindset helped Will Groeneveld take a bold turn on his Alberta grain farm. A lifelong farmer, Will had never heard of regenerative agriculture until 2018, when he attended a seminar by Kevin Elmy that shifted his worldview. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a deep exploration of how biology—not just chemistry—shapes the health of our soils, crops and ecosystems.

In this video, Will candidly reflects on his family’s farming history, how the operation evolved from a traditional mixed farm to grain-only, and how the desire to improve the land pushed him to invite livestock back into the rotation—without owning a single cow.

Today, through creative partnerships and a commitment to the five principles of regenerative agriculture, Will is reintroducing diversity, building soil health and extending living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible. Whether it’s through intercropping, zero tillage (which he’s practiced since the 1980s) or managing forage for visiting cattle, Will’s approach is a testament to continuous learning and a willingness to challenge old norms.

Will is a participant in the Regenerative Agriculture Lab (RAL), a social innovation process bringing together producers, researchers, retailers and others to co-create a resilient regenerative agriculture system in Alberta. His story highlights both the potential and humility required to farm with nature, not against it.