Weed control will be key this spring

May 25, 2022

Weeds are starting to become a concern for farmers.

The province's weed specialist Kim Brown-Livingston says it will be important to get ahead of the weeds this spring.

"There's a lot of green stuff coming up now and we've had some really dry springs lately. The last three years for some people. The last couple for sure for most of the province. We have not seen that flush of growth early on in the spring and I think we're really noticing it now," she said. "We're seeing a lot of the annuals starting to come up. We're seeing the buckwheat starting already, lots of kochia, that type of thing. Also, our perennials and our winter annuals have had a really good drink of water so they are bigger than we've seen them in a few years and those are going to cause some problems later on. Really important to get our weeds under control this time of year. It always is and it's really tough right now because everybody's trying to get seeding done but if they have seeders going, have someone running the sprayer as well. We've got to get ahead of those weeds."

Brown-Livingston reminds farmers to check their crop protection guide as some herbicides are suitable for pre-seed only. She says if producers plan to spray after seeding, it will be important to get that done quickly, as crops will emerge quickly with the good soil moisture and warmer conditions.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.