Control Kochia, Cut Losses

As harvest unfolds across Saskatchewan, an increasingly common pattern is emerging. Next to neat and tidy fields of crop stubble, a dense, waist-high jumble of kochia persists in the corners and field margins, like unkempt sideburns on a clean-shaven face.

In Saskatchewan and across the Prairies, these kochia-affected areas are expanding each year. Kochia’s natural characteristics give it competitive clout; more recently, the noxious weed has become even more obnoxious, outmaneuvering pesticides including glyphosate, as well as Group 2, Group 4 and now Group 14 modes of action. Researchers have also tracked a relentless northward expansion of kochia’s range, as it continues to colonize new ground outside of expected areas.

But kochia is more than just a nuisance—it’s often a symptom of deeper, underlying soil issues, notably salinity—that make areas unproductive for annual crop growth. The Prairie Precision Sustainability Network (PPSN) is a Canadian research‐producer partnership that aims to better understand and inform management of marginal cropland. PPSN researcher and scientist with Ducks Unlimited Canada’s (DUC’s) Institute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research, Sam Robinson, estimates that there are roughly 7.3 million acres of marginal farmland across the Canadian Prairies. That’s the equivalent of 13 acres in every quarter section—land that remains unproductive despite fertilizer inputs, crop protection products, and careful management.

“These consistently low-yielding acres really don’t pay,” says Robinson. “On average, prairie farmers lose about $68 per acre trying to grow annual crops in these areas. But perennial forages are another tool in a farmer’s toolbox to turn underperforming acres into productive forage while reducing weed pressure and input costs.”

This fall, DUC is helping Saskatchewan producers take action through its Fall Marginal Areas Program. DUC is coordinating custom seed application and working with federal and provincial partners to help maximize financial incentives in producer pockets, with up to $390 per acre available.

With rising input costs, high land values, and volatile commodity prices, farmers need practical solutions to tackle weeds like kochia. Seeding forages in affected areas provides a long-term, sustainable strategy for controlling kochia, a “one and done” approach that frees up resources for more productive field acres.

Interested in reclaiming your margins?  Contact Ducks Unlimited Canada at 1‑866‑252‑3825 or du_regina@ducks.ca to learn more.