Grain growers in Alberta have gained access to a valuable new tool aimed at controlling the spread of Fusarium graminearum. Last month, the Alberta Seed Processors released an interim report that quantifies the incidence of the pathogen on seed samples submitted to Alberta seed testing labs. The report, which includes a provincial map showing the […] Read more
Tag Archives fusarium
Check-off protest erupts over fusarium
Some producers in Alberta’s northern rural municipalities are requesting refunds of wheat and barley check-off payments as a way to protest the removal of fusarium from the Alberta Pests Act. The crop disease has been slowly spreading westward for decades and until a change in May to the Pest Nuisance Control Regulation, Alberta had a […] Read more
Gene discovery brings FHB resistance to cereals
New Fhb7 varieties of wheat with better FHB resistance may be available in a few years, developed in North Dakota
Plant geneticists the world around are devoting billions of dollars and centuries of accumulated time trying to breed better fusarium head blight resistance into wheat. Some fail. Some succeed. One of the most promising endeavours is the discovery and cloning of a gene that has been named Fhb7. The gene reduces FHB by detoxifying mycotoxins […] Read more
Alta. removes fusarium from pest act
The Alberta government is removing fusarium graminearum from its pest regulation, a move industry says will allow for better management of the disease. The government said in a news release today that regulating the disease has failed to stop it, arguing the changes allow for the modernization of management practices. It said rates of fusarium […] Read more
Community builds to fight fusarium
Not a lot of people are members of the “fusarium headblight community,” but for the few hundred who are, it’s a rich society of researchers, agriculture industry players, government officials and farmers. That community recently gathered in Winnipeg, and it became clear that one of the triumphs of fusarium research has been the creation of […] Read more
Got fusarium? Turn to worms
Insects and disease are two enemies of the prairie wheat farmer, but researchers feel there is a unique case where one can help deal with damage inflicted by the other. Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan have determined they can fatten up mealworms on a diet of fusarium-damaged wheat and then safely feed the mealworms […] Read more
World doesn’t end after fusarium, clean it
BRANDON — It’s easy to throw in the towel when looking at a bin of grain heavily damaged by fusarium. However, feed scientist Rex Newkirk says farmers can salvage “significant value” from grain they are assuming has little. “There’s lots of value to be had,” Newkirk, a University of Saskatchewan researcher, said after a presentation at […] Read more
Why organic wheat escaped fusarium last year
Researchers say practices such as proper varieties and rotations are just as important as fungicides in disease control
One thing is clear to Myriam Fernandez. Fungicides are one tool to tackle fusarium head blight, along with longer crop rotations and growing varieties with the highest possible resistance. But fungicides aren’t the only tool. “If you’re going to rely on fungicide application as the solution for your FHB problem, if you don’t do anything […] Read more
Alberta company buys infrared grain sorter
An Alberta seed cleaning company has placed an order for a high-tech grain sorter that has the ability to clean fusarium-damaged kernels out of bulk grain shipments. Spectrum Grain Solutions of Bashaw, Alta., plans to use a Swedish-built Bo-Mill TriQ grain sorter to add value to grain that’s been degraded due to fusarium, ergot or […] Read more
