SASKATOON — The information you pull up on Westco Fertilizer’s new computer database isn’t something that would get published in the Canadian Journal of Soil Science.
But that’s not surprising. Agronomist John Harapiak is visibly proud when he says his company is the industry leader in “doing practical research.”
For 25 years, through field trials scattered throughout the Prairies, Western Co-operative Fertilizers Ltd. has collected data on fertilizer — the pros and cons of application techniques and different formulations, fertilizer’s effect on soil fertility, the best time to apply.
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“With our research, we try and respond to farmers’ questions,” Harapiak said.
In the past, Westco has published the results of the trials on paper, in its Westco Fertilizer Forums and Factsheets.
But from now on, that information is going to be put on computer.
Called the “AgroManager,” Westco representatives in Western Canada and selected wheat pool elevator agents and retail outlets will be able to pull up information on their laptop computers that is keyed to farmers’ questions.
Up-to-date information
Westco has screened its 25 years of research, making sure the results and conclusions aren’t outdated, and put it on the computer. The company has also mined provincial, federal and university agricultural research for fertilizer information that is immediately applicable to farmers.
By looking up a specific subject or doing a key word search — like “phosphorus” or “banding” or “direct seeding” — the AgroManager will find all of the information in the database that is cross-referenced to that particular subject or work.
The data can be printed out on paper so it can be taken home and studied.
Charts and graphs are included in the AgroManager as are common fertilizer questions and Westco’s answers.
Harapiak says the AgroManager has been two years in the making. The idea came out of a dealer meeting. Typesetting and proofreading alone has taken the equivalent of one year’s worth of work and every Westco representative put the AgroManager through a trial run last summer.
Harapiak said not all the bugs are worked out of the system. They’ve missed some key words in the initial stages (a search for “manure” failed to turn up anything) but all data, including adding new key words and new research, as well as deleting irrelevant material, is going to be reviewed once a year.
By the end of the year, farmers should be able to see the AgroManager in 300 locations throughout Western Canada.
