canola on canola

[Ron]

anybody try it? with the new R rating for blackleg and fungicide for schlerotinia is it possible? How tight are your rotations? I have seen guys go canola/wheat/canola and it looks ok from the road. i have heard in the peace country rotations are tighter but how much?

[emiled]

Canola, snow, canola was a headline in many farm magazines a few years back when canola prices were encouraging tighter rotations. We all know and have heard of growers growing canola on tight rotations and often encountering few problems but.........

While I understand the financial incentive to do this and recognize the limited options we have in crop rotation given our climate, tight rotations like this leave plant pathologists screaming.

Current issues like new strains of blackleg appearing, higher frequency of seedling blight, flea beetles and things like clubroot disease suggest it may be a "short term gain vs long term pain" decision.

[ALLFARMER]

I know of 6 or 7 farmers who have planted Canola on Canola. One farmer only grows canola and has done so for 7 years now, and he gets good crops. I grew DKL34-55 last yr and plan to grow an invigor variety this yr.

[ALLFARMER]

I should add that I am in the northern peace country. Also my 34-55 did 34 bu/ac after dockage (I should have sprayed it all twice) the previous crop was barley and before that canola.

[mhartman]

I certainly would discourage canola on canola, since you will greatly increase your risk from several diseases. First, damping off or seedling blight definitely increases. Seed treatments do help control this, but are not sufficient under conditions of very slow germination. Second, sclerotinia will increase, but that can be combatted with one or two fungicide applications. Third, you increase the selection pressure for new strains of blackleg -- which have been found. Last, you risk allowing new diseases to get established. Case in point, this year a serious new canola disease, clubroot, was found near St. Albert on a field growing canola every second year. If a longer rotation had been practised, the disease would likely not have developed to the level where more than 90% of the field was infested.
The rotation I advocate is a 4 year with cereal - oilseed (canola or flax) -- a different cereal - peas. You get the biggest rotation benefit when broadleaf and cereal crops are alternated.