Planting

Best Planting Equipment?

The seedbed should be fairly level, moderately firm and moist. You should sink no deeper than the heel of your work boot.
If the seedbed is too fine (overworked), it can lose soil moisture and crust.
A moderate amount of crop residue on the soil surface is desirable.
To help conserve moisture, each tillage operation should be shallower than the one before.
Apply preplant fertilizer before final tillage operation
The last tillage should occur less than one week before planting. It should bring moisture close to the surface.
Rollers (packers) can be sued to firm soil and allow moisture into the planting zone.
Consider using state seed bed for planting.
Minimize potential for crusting.

Grain drills and air seeders can be used to plant canola, but seedbed conditions are more critical for its establishment than for wheat.
Factors that hinder stand establishment
- Lack of soil moisture at planting time.
- Soil compaction (even by tillage and planting tools)
- Water-logged soils
- Crusting after planting
- Planting equipment causing deep furrows.
These conditions need to be eliminated before a stand can be established.
No-till canola production shows promise.
Stale seed beds will work well.

Canola should be planted 6 weeks before the first killing frost date for the area (less than 25 degrees F).
Seeding date is important to establishing a crop that has sufficient growth for good winter hardiness.
Planting early tends to decrease winter survival due to excessive growth.
Late planting does not allow for sufficient root reserves to maximize winter survival.

Canola seeding date map

Optimum canola planting dates

Average seeding rates with good seedbed preparation should range from 4.5 to 6 lbs per acre.
A final stand of 4 to 10 plants per square foot is ideal.
High planting rates produce smaller, less vigorous plants hat are more prone to winterkill.
Seeding rates should be reduced if planted earlier than optimum and increased if planted later than optimum.
Carefully evaluate a damaged crop in the spring before destroying it. A spring stand of only one or two plants per square foot can compensate for wider spacing between plants by promoting branching.

Canola seeds are small, and careful placement at a relatively shallow depth is required.
Best germination and emergence occur at 1/2 to 1 inch under conditions of good soil moisture.
Canola has difficulty emerging from crusted soil.
The 6 to 14" row spacing found on most commercial grain drills is acceptable for canola.
Row spacing from 6 to 14" has little impact on yields.
Narrower (6 to 8:) spacing provides quicker row closure and can decrease wind shattering prior to harvest.
If soil crusting caused by heavy rain is a problem after planting but before emergence, consider a rotary hoe or other light tillage operation and use with caution.