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.

Cultivar resistance is considered the most effective and practical approach for clubroot management. However, current resistant canola cultivars, available in Canada since 2009, were based on a single clubroot resistance (CR) gene.

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

Surveillance monitoring has shown that blackleg is again increasing in incidence and severity in western Canada, in part due to breakdown of a widely used major resistance gene. Sclerotinia stem rot is also a serious disease for canola growers, particularly in severe wet and cool growing seasons.

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

Researchers initiated a four-year project in 2014 to develop a set of differential lines of spring type Brassica napus with single genes for identification of races of Plasmodiophora brassicae and for durable resistance to clubroot.

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan conducted a two-year project to further the discovery and subsequent genetic transformation for the introduction of apomixis technology into agriculture crops.

Clubroot, a serious threat to canola (Brassica napus) yields across Canada, is caused by the intracellular parasite Plasmodiophora brassicae.

Canadian canola-based biodiesel production is projected to increase over the next few years. Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan conducted a multi-year, multi-objective project with the aim to improve the glycerol purification process as well as the glycerol-based by-product process.

Canola meal use in starter mixtures for calves has been limited due to a perception that it has low palatability and digestibility. Researchers conducted a four-year project and four studies to evaluate the use of canola meal as a protein source for dairy calves.

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.