Deciphering clues to predict yields for the 2018 growing season in Ontario

Did dry weather play a role in the 2018 growing season?

As in 2016 and 2017, this unique yield tour should provide Ontario farmers with clues as to whether 2018 will be another bin buster. Where it was dry it’s a disaster and farmers are already talking crop insurance on corn, but where it was wet (very few pockets) farmers are reporting a potential bin buster. With the Great Ontario Yield Tour team assessing growing conditions and cropping challenges facing Ontario farmers in 2018, the “boots-on-the-ground” team will be making agronomy and marketing recommendations on how to face the 2018 crop season.

At the end of the Great Ontario Yield Tour, experts Moe Agostino, Farms.com Risk Management, and Greg Stewart, MAIZEX Seeds Inc. will be estimating corn and soybean yields for five Ontario regions: South, East, Central, West and North as well as the provincial averages for both.

“Our intent with the tour,” explains Farms.com Risk Management Chief Commodity Strategist Maurizio Agostino “is to share the information gathered on the tour with farmers so that they can make better agronomy decision for next year and crop marketing decisions earlier in the growing season to get the maximum value from their 2018 farming season.”

Agostino explains that the 2018 growing season in Ontario started late but emphasizes that late planting only accounts for about 25 per cent of final yields. Yield potential goes down with delayed planting because of several factors, including a shorter growing season, greater insect and disease pressure, and higher risk of hot, dry conditions during pollination.

Despite the past few years having a late planting start, Ontario has been able to achieve strong, and even record yields thanks to a great finish! Weather-wise, this is the second year of a “La Niña”, when the weather phenomenon often gathers maximum strength. “The tour will help us determine how the 2018 summer weather will impact 2018 yields. The tour will help us predict if 2018 will out-perform the previous two years in terms of corn and soybeans yields in Ontario.” states Agostino.

More than 500 farms across Ontario will have their corn and soybeans counted. The counting will take place August 13th to 22nd, 2018.

Two events will be held to reveal what the counting predictions are for the 2018 growing season. The first event will be held in Winchester on August 23rd. The second event will be held in Woodstock on August 30th.

Both events are by invitation only, but if you work with one of the following hosts and sponsors you can ask your sales rep for an invitation. Hosts include Farms.com Risk Management, Alpine, Maizex, Jacquemet Farms and Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show. Platinum Sponsors include: Climate FieldView, Greenfield Global, NuFarm|Valent, Precision Planting and South West Ag Partners. Silver Sponsors include Dreams Come True Travel, Smellink Realty Inc, TD Canada Trust, TerraNova UAV, and The Mosaic Company.

To learn more about the Great Ontario Yield Tour: https://riskmanagement.farms.com/events/ontario-yield-tour-2018