Continuing on the topic that I introduced last week, this is the second half of the interview about farm financial management blips that you might encounter, whatever your experience level. For this topic, I interviewed my dad, who is president of John Spencer and...

Looking at the title of this article, and perhaps knowing a bit about me, you might short circuit a little bit and wonder why I (horticulturist, plant nerd and plant disease guy) would ever think that I would have the qualifications or knowledge to write on such a...

If 2020 (the Lord Voldemort of years) and the COVID global pandemic have taught us anything, it is that we do not HAVE to be face to face, breathing the same air as someone, in order to learn from them. We have been forced (in some cases, dragged kicking and...

Every year, there are materials and inputs that are used up through the normal course of producing a crop. Some supplies can be purchased in such quantities as to stretch over several years before requiring replenishment. Others must be tracked and replaced regularly,...

For years, I have had a strange connection to decay and rot. Around 22 years ago, I plunged into my graduate studies, with a focus on evaluating a potential treatment for the prevention of post-harvest potato pathogens and their associated diseases. It was the start...

We have had a pretty nice fall, the first that I can recall in recent years. I know that open falls have occurred in recent memory, but the last 2 were so awful as to obliterate all memory of a better example. Despite the good run that we have had, the cold weather...

Since I started out on my own as a private consultant, I find that I spend an extraordinary amount of time thinking about money, or if not money, then the (financial) implications of everything. Few hours pass by in a day where I am not thinking about the current and...

One of the most common annual and ongoing requests that comes to a consultant/agronomist is to assess a crop (at various stages) and then provide recommendations for fertility adjustments. At the same time, there are always a host of other mysterious ailments that...

Weeds are awful and are the bane of most people’s existence. Growers spend a significant amount of time and resources trying to manage weeds, as they can have a negative impact on most crops, including: Competing for nutrients, water, light, and space Harbouring,...