OUTLOOK, Sask. – The loss of a native fruit specialist in Saskatchewan this year will hurt the province’s fledgling fruit industry, says grower Myrna Engelberts.
Engelberts grows saskatoons and strawberries at Crocus Gardens near Blucher, Sask., with her son Tony and hopes to add a winery to the operation one day.
The Engelberts often turned to native fruit specialist Richard St. Pierre at the University of Saskatchewan when they had a problem, she said. His department and position, which had been supported by an Agricultural Development Fund grant were cut in March.
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“It’s terrible, devastating. He was our brain. No matter what problem we had, he had an answer. He was for us small farmers,” she said.
Instead of cutting positions and research in fruits, she said government and growers should be promoting these crops and their potential as high-end, gourmet foods.
She suggested making recipes available to encourage their use.
Bob Bors, who added St. Pierre’s duties in native fruits to his considerable workload in plant sciences at the university, said the cuts are part of a general decline in government funding that hit all sectors of agriculture.
“With the drought and a poor farm economy, there is just not the money,” he said.
Bors hoped the fruit research could continue with help from producers.
For example, he said 40 farmers are growing 15,000 cherry seedlings and the university is also testing varieties. The same type of program could be implemented for native fruits like saskatoons, he said.
“It’s a way to try new crops and learn about them, at a low cost,” said Bors.
In addition to field trials, fruit growers are also asking for more research on the uses of fruit and the development of value-added products like the new cherry sausage.
At the irrigation diversification centre at Outlook, the orchards St. Pierre once managed will be maintained until funds are found to support a researcher in this field.
