Glacier FarmMedia – A major agronomic announcement at Ag in Motion 2024 was the introduction and naming of a new sawfly and midge tolerant Canadian Western Red Spring wheat: AAC Oakman VB. The variety still has two years of propagation ahead, but distributor SeCan expects it to hit the commercial market in 2026. Related story: […] Read more
Jeff Melchior
Stories by Jeff Melchior
‘Midgebusters’ seek resistant genes
Scientists explore wheat midge resistance in order to stack them into new varieties and extending the life of Sm1
Glacier FarmMedia – A new public-academic research project is scrutinizing an older spring wheat variety to assess its potential for midge tolerance. Researchers with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the University of Manitoba are genomically mapping the 2013-released AC Vesper VB spring wheat to understand a trait that appears to repel female midge from laying […] Read more
Calves for Ukraine program to help with rebuilding effort
A second charity auction to assist the war-torn country will take place in October at an auction mart in Olds, Alta.
Glacier FarmMedia – A retired cattle producer from central Alberta is teaming up with a humanitarian organization for a Calves for Ukraine benefit auction, the second one he has held. The auction, organized by Al Rand in association with the Humanitarian Aid and Response Team (HART), will take place Oct. 22 at Olds Auction Mart. […] Read more
Sask. company pitches decarbonized fertilizer
Post-production carbon capture will remove carbon dioxide and send it deep underground: company
Corporate backers of a planned fertilizer plant in Saskatchewan say they will one day sell fertilizer with lower greenhouse gas output than is usually associated with synthetic fertilizer production. The plant, to be built in Belle Plaine in central Saskatchewan, is the brain child of Saskatoon’s Genesis Fertilizers and CARBONCO, a South Korea-based Total Solution […] Read more
New variety aims to grab Prairie wheat crown
Developers of AAC Westking are confident the new variety will supplant AAC Brandon as the spring wheat of choice
Glacier FarmMedia – Can a single wheat variety become synonymous with prairie spring wheat production? If so, it would be AAC Brandon. One of the most widely grown Canadian Western Red Spring wheats in Western Canada for the past nine years, Brandon first hit the seed market in 2014 and quickly became a farmer favourite, […] Read more
Researchers make a case for protecting field boundaries
Federal scientists hope to weigh both the agricultural value and the risks from habitat such as ditches and shelterbelts
Glacier FarmMedia – It’s a common scenario. A farmer has a field boundary that causes some headaches. Maybe it’s a ditch they figure is nursing crop disease, or maybe the ditch is a pain to navigate around. In response, the farmer drains the ditch or otherwise takes it out of commission. Researchers who recently completed […] Read more
Prof receives cattle research award
Glacier FarmMedia – A well-known innovator in beef cattle health and welfare was honoured by her peers Aug. 21. Dr. Cheryl Waldner, a professor and researcher at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine, won the 2024 Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation. She was named to the honour during […] Read more
Changes to Alberta’s next generation loan receive praise
Glacier FarmMedia – A major insurer and lender is expanding eligibility and incentives for a loan dedicated to young and new ag producers in Alberta. The Agricultural Financial Services Corporation’s (AFSC) Next Generation Loan program is meant to provide these producers with “a consistent source of fixed-rate term loans to establish their own farming operation,” […] Read more
Verticillium stripe in spotlight as threat grows
A U of A study just wrapped up, and four Canola Agronomic Research Program projects are now investigating the disease
Glacier FarmMedia – If you’re a canola grower on the Prairies, you know there are no chemical solutions or varieties to kill or resist soil-borne verticillium stripe disease. You may also know the handful of management practices that can thwart the disease to some extent. And if a crop has been damaged by it, you […] Read more
Putting a dollar to rangeland benefits
Glacier FarmMedia – How much are native grasslands worth? One research project is aimed at answering that question. The Genome Prairie project, a multi-year, $5.9 million endeavour that involves public and academic stakeholders, will use genomic tools in attempts to figure out the dollar value of rangelands and the ecological goods and services they provide. […] Read more
