Pre-breeding Tools SaskCanola Pre-breeding Tools SaskCanola

Pre-breeding lines combining canola quality with sclerotinia resistance, good agronomy and genomic diversity from PAK93

Seed of PAK93-based pre-breeding lines will be more attractive to plant breeding companies than the original germplasm such as PAK54, primarily because it will be faster to develop hybrid varieties that combine the desirable traits from PAK93-derived lines with other important traits such as herbicide tolerance and resistance to the diseases, blackleg and clubroot.

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Pre-breeding Tools SaskCanola Pre-breeding Tools SaskCanola

A proteomics-based approach towards identifying host and pathogen proteins critical to clubroot establishment in canola

The proposed research will deliver knowledge and tools to improve utilization of existing clubroot resistant cultivars and to accelerate the discovery of new clubroot resistance genes, with the anticipation of exploring broad-spectrum and durable clubroot resistance that will be highly beneficial to breeders and growers of canola and other Brassica crops.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

WCVM Research Chair in Pollinator Health

The Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) was the first veterinary college in North America to begin a honey bee research and teaching program, recognizing the high importance of pollinators for the long-term sustainability of agriculture and food security.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

Investigating interactions of ascospores and pycnidiospores with blackleg resistance in canola and efficacy of seed applied fungicides in these specific interactions in western Canada

This is the first investigation into the infection by pycnidio- and asco-spores, as well as a mixture via wounds under the influence of cultivar resistance and fungicide seed treatment for blackleg disease in canola. The findings from this study suggested that it is feasible to produce ascospores and pycnidiospores in the lab and use these types of spores to test canola materials for blackleg resistance in both controlled environment and field conditions.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

New Clubroot Pathotypes and Second Generation Resistance

Clubroot poses a significant threat to canola growers. Although genetic resistance is critical for managing the disease, changes in pathogen virulence endanger its effectiveness. Second-generation resistance offers promise against pathotypes that can overcome first-generation resistance. However, without an understanding of pathogen virulence on second-generation resistance, we risk compromising its efficacy. This project provided data on the performance of second-generation clubroot-resistant cultivars in the field, along with insights into the virulence characteristics of pathogen populations collected from these cultivars.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

Digital In-Field Phenotyping Vehicle

This will accelerate the breeding of improved canola varieties as breeders from academia/government/industry use this service to phenotype larger breeding programs. This builds research capacity at GIFS, and will provide a useful phenotyping platform that will be utilized in future research proposals.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

Shining Light on Digital Agriculture: Linking Soil NIR measurements, Fertility and Crop Yields

The ability to measure soil fertility on the fly would revolutionize how producers test their soil. Instead of collecting soil core samples in a limited fashion in a field and mailing them for testing each year, soil fertility levels would be measured in real time by a NIR probe linked to variable rate equipment to deliver the optimal amounts of inputs.

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Agronomy SaskCanola Agronomy SaskCanola

Enhancing the Saskatchewan Soil Health Assessment Protocol – Phase 2

Healthy soils form the basis of productive farming systems, and soil health tests can be useful tools to support good management decisions. The concept of soil health recognizes soil as a living and dynamic natural system, a notion that aptly fits in the realm of biology; however, soil health tests are often dominated by indicators of soil fertility and chemistry. Biological indicators of soil health remain understudied and underrepresented in soil health assessments.

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