This type of deep knowledge will be particularly essential for farmers facing an increasingly variable climate - they need to understand how and why different areas of their fields might respond under marginal production conditions in order to maximize both their profits and their productivity.
Nitrogen fertilizer to wheat and canola is one of the major input costs for growers and there has been continuous effort to improve N use efficiency for higher yield and seed quality.
Our knowledge of pathogen virulence genes and plant race specific resistance (R) genes in the Leptosphaeria-Brassica pathosystem has tremendously advanced in the past two decades.
Growing clubroot-resistant (CR) cultivars in appropriate rotations remains the most effective solution to the long-term management of clubroot disease.
4R Nutrient Stewardship is a tremendous success story of a decision support framework that has been widely adopted among Canadian Prairie farmers as an easily understood tool to optimize agricultural productivity through judicious fertilizer use and subsequently manage risk.
Consumers are increasingly concerned about the safety and sustainability of agricultural production practices. In response, many corporations now require suppliers to demonstrate the sustainability of their products and practices.
In 2018, Health Canada proposed to phase out all agricultural uses of thiamethoxam and clothianidin neonicotinoids which are the most used insecticides for canola protection against flea beetles in the Canadian prairies.
Crop residues supply critically needed carbon (C) and nutrients to the soil. These residue-derived resources support plant growth and the formation of soil organic matter, a cornerstone of soil health.
The ability to integrate stable clubroot resistance into new germplasm is needed to protect the economy while ensuring sustainability and growth in canola growing regions.
Prairie crop producers have been seeking effective approaches to increase crop yields, improve resource use efficiencies or minimize input costs, enhance agroecosystem resiliency and the whole-farm economics, and decrease the negative impact of farming on the environment while protecting the soil resource. To achieve those multiple goals simultaneously, a systems approach must be taken where Best Management Practices (BMPs) are integrated together for the entire farm.
Surveillance of crop health issues provides growers, extension staff, researchers, government agencies, and industry stakeholders with information that enables informed decision making with respect to integrated pest management, setting research/funding priorities, product placement, and pest distribution and severity.
The Prairie Pest Monitoring Network is a collaborative project. Monitoring data is released on a weekly basis when insect pests pose the greatest threat to crop yield.
