Welcome to another edition of Hort Snacks. Winter is moving along at a fair clip, which is fine by me. Today, the sky is clear and blue, the air fresh and sharp, but not so sharp that it will take your nose off. For your information, an ag-meteorologist colleague shared some interesting tidbits about changes in day length, most of which is easily observed. The days get progressively longer starting when we cross the winter solstice (December 21st), with day lengths increasing by as little as a minute or so per day in January, 3+ minutes in February, 4+ in March and April. At first, it is the evenings that last a bit longer, but once January rolls around, days get longer at both ends. Already, you can see that it isn’t getting dark at 4:30 any more, which is awesome.
In this edition, you’ll find a number of workshops, conferences and other events that you might consider taking in, with some specific details about some Alberta direct market production events. You’ll find some thought-provoking articles (well, I hope that they are thought-provoking) and some information on pests, change and there is the early launch of the Direct Market Fruit/Veg price survey (please contribute).
Enjoy the good days of winter, and stay warm and safe on the rest of them.
Rob Spencer, Commercial Horticulture Specialist
Source : Alberta agriculture and forestry