Stonewall, Manitoba, Canada
September 21, 2012
Growing winter wheat makes good business sense – it spreads out your workload, makes more efficient use of equipment, helps you avoid inclement weather during spring seeding or late harvests and is an ecological tool to manage common wheat pests. And now you can add a free 4,100 bu hoppermounted galvanized grain bin to the list!
For the second year in a row, Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC), Bayer CropScience and the Meridian Manufacturing Group are bringing winter wheat growers the Bin Full of Reasons Contest that rewards growers for sharing their successful management decisions.
Only winter wheat growers are eligible to enter this contest that sees three bins awarded next summer – one in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. By participating, growers have access to expert agronomic support to help them maximize their odds of successful winter wheat crops.
The contest starts this fall and runs until spring 2013. Throughout that time, growers will share the management decisions they’re making to ensure they grow a successful winter wheat crop. These are things like the number of acres you seed, and your in-crop management decisions.
“Winter wheat is a great addition to crop rotations in Prairie Canada,” says Paul Thoroughgood, regional agrologist for DUC. “The increased yield potential versus other wheat alternatives and some aggressive pricing opportunities provide growers from across the Prairies with tremendous returns this year.”
“Growing more grain on existing cultivated land is an important part of increasing the sustainability of the agricultural industry,” says Paul Thiel, vice president innovation and public affairs at Bayer CropScience. “Winter wheat often yields 10 to 40 per cent more than other spring sown wheat.”
Farmers grow winter wheat for a variety of reasons that include spreading workload, making more efficient use of equipment, helping avoid inclement weather during spring seeding or late harvests, or employing an ecological tool in management of common wheat pests. Winter wheat also provides great nesting habitat for waterfowl, specifically pintail ducks. Ducks that nest in winter wheat are 24 times more productive than those nesting in spring cereals.
For more information on the Bin Full of Reasons Contest or the benefits of winter wheat, visit growwinterwheat.ca.
The shared vision of Ducks Unlimited Canada and Bayer CropScience for the future of agriculture includes a stewardship model that recognizes the agricultural productivity of farmland, while retaining and improving the habitat available to North America’s waterfowl and other wildlife. As a result, Bayer and DUC have joined together to identify, research and promote cropping system changes that benefit the conservation of our natural resources in an economically viable way. The first step in this relationship is the Winter Cereals: Sustainability in Action project.
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