How a trip to the mountains helped me change my crop rotation.
As a farmer director on the Alberta Canola Producers Commission board, I had the opportunity to attend the Canola Discovery Forum in Canmore last week. Organized and hosted by the Canola Council of Canada, this forum brought together researchers, scientists, industry representatives, and farmers from across Canada that are involved in the development of the canola industry. It was a great experience to see the overwhelming effort by many to ensure canola remains a mainstay on my farm for many years into the future.
There are many people involved in the canola research community in Canada, both in the public and private sectors. Generally the public sector conducts more exploratory research, while the private sector conducts research on technologies that are closer to commercialization. As one of a number of farmers in attendance, our job was to help ensure that there would be value in these technologies for growing canola at the farm level. We are all trying to increase our productivity and finding new ways to manage diseases and pests.
The forum was split into a number of broad themes of canola production, including:
- Plant establishment
- Fertility management
- Integrated pest management
- Harvest management
I had the opportunity to provide some farmer perspective on stage, speaking to integrated pest management, specifically in managing clubroot. There is lots of effort into improving clubroot resistance, but at this point in time it appears it will be difficult to develop a robust and long-lasting resistance in every variety. Consequently, on my farm, I am lengthening my crop rotation while waiting for new technologies to be made available to the marketplace.
There was tons of great information at this forum. I was encouraged to see that the grower groups from the three prairie provinces were working on getting this information out to farmers in a timely and relevant format.
Overall, I left the forum feeling both humbled and proud. I was humbled by all the efforts that many incredibly smart people were putting into developing this industry. On the other hand, I was proud that my job as a farmer growing canola contributed so greatly to the economy, my community, and the nation.
Source : AlbertaCanola