Recognizing that an area-wide monitoring of pest and natural enemy populations is a cornerstone of integrated pest management, researchers initiated a project to develop a coordinated monitoring program in the prairies.

Researchers initiated a two-year study in 2016 to evaluate the response of canola, pea and wheat to foliar applied phosphorus (P) fertilization growing in different soil zones in Saskatchewan.

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan conducted a multi-year, multi-objective research project developing, analyzing, and testing the use of biomaterials (e.g. flax shives, canola meal, and oat hulls) as a biosorbent to dry natural gas and bio-alcohols.

Cleavers are problematic weed species in canola that can reduce crop yield, impair harvest operations, and reduce crop processing efficiency. A two-year field study was conducted to better understand the biology and impact of pre-harvest herbicides on cleavers populations.

Researchers conducted several field studies in four ecoregions across the Canadian prairies to develop integrated approaches for flea beetle control for modern high-yielding canola varieties.

Researchers in Saskatchewan conducted a project to resolve the connection between primary and secondary dormancy, premature germination (sometimes found in the pods of maturing canola), overall seed biology, and seed and seedling vigour related traits across a diverse panel of Brassica napus (canola) lines.

Although clubroot resistant (CR) hybrids are available in Canada, the recent emergence of new pathotypes such as 5X and the erosion of CR in the Canadian resistant hybrids is of concern.

Researchers conducted a three-year study focusing on four key components using multiple commercial canola varieties to reveal the mechanism of race-specific and non-specific blackleg resistance.

Technology plays a larger role on the farm than ever before throughout all aspects of farming but especially through real-time sensor data collection. However, grain loss monitoring technology for combines has generally experienced minimal advancement since being introduced into the market around 1975.

Clubroot caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae has spread across central Alberta and to isolated fields in southern Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and North Dakota since it was first identified on canola in 2003.

Clubroot, caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae, was first identified in western Canada in 2003, spreading to more than 2700 fields.

Sustainable land management decisions and advancements in precision agriculture technologies need to be based on reliable information about soils and land capability.

With increasing pressure to complete field operations in a timely manner and the trend to using fertilizer custom applicators, a segment of growers in Western Canada are transitioning towards surface applications of granular urea; which represents a departure from the recommended practice of deep banding.

For many years, the main blackleg management strategies in western Canada were variety resistance and crop rotation. However, with tighter crop rotations in most of the canola growing regions, there have been increasing reports of blackleg, with a sudden spike reported in 2012.

Canola meal (CM), a by-product of canola crushing, is the primary high-protein ingredient in Western Canada that is used as a protein supplement in feed rations for livestock, and being evaluated as an ingredient in fish diets.

In recent years herbicide resistant weeds have become increasingly problematic in canola, and weed densities have increased approximately three-fold in comparison to 2003 surveys.

Researchers at PAMI compared header types for straight combining canola in field-scale trials over three years, looking for the optimal system. Overall, the results of the study indicate there was no definitive harvest system that had the highest yield, or the most desirable crop qualities, across all conditions encountered.

A multi-year study was initiated in 2013 at Indian Head to evaluate the impacts of wider row spacing on canola (Brassica napus) performance and investigate implications for seeding rate, N fertilizer and weed management recommendations.

For longer-term storage of canola, determining the best management practices to maintain proper temperature and moisture in the bins during the prairies’ hottest months is required to minimize the risk of spoilage.

The abundance of pollinators in canola fields have the potential to boost yields and improve seed quality.