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3

2006 was another interestingyear in agriculture in SouthernAlberta. A long overdue hotsummer helped many crops.Generally higher commodityprices have more than made upfor any hurt that the hot summermight have inflicted.

2006 was also an interestingyear for SARA. The highlight ofthe year was a commitment forfunding for capital purchases thatequip SARA in a fashion thatwould give us the capability to dosmall plot research and field scaledemonstration plots. Anotherhighlight of the year was beingable to host the Diagnostic FieldSchool at our permanent site on theland we leased from the LethbridgeCommunity College. This is one ofour partnerships with other organi-zations that really yielded results.This year also saw funding for otherSARA programs stabilize.

The “Alberta Advantage” and ourhot economy have challenged manyorganizations in Alberta in the areaof manpower and SARA was notimmune. While we had great peoplework with us this year and theirexcellent efforts allowed us to meetour goals and obligations, we didlose our agronomist, PaulJungnitsch, at the end of the year.Paul is completing his masters pro-gram and we will miss him. We havefound a capable replacement in KenColes who has recently joined us.Ken brings a wealth of experienceand great enthusiasm to this role. AsKen has a long history in the local

area, we look forward to having Kenaround for a long time!

SARA is all about farmer-directedapplied research. We bridge the gapbetween technical research and thefarm. SARA has many assets as itmoves forward. We will have anexcellent lineup of equipment as thecapital plan comes together. Wehave land to carry on our appliedresearch. We have a great list ofpartner organizations for projectcollaboration. We have a good staff.The limiting ingredient to futuregrowth and success is farmers todirect this research. Please joinSARA today and get involved.

Best wishes and prosperity in2007.

Corny VanDasselaarSARA Board Chair

C O N T E N T SPulse-Wheat Rotation Update

from Year Three

5SARA takes Advantage of Room to Grow

6Pulse of Pea Production

Pending on Pea Leaf Weevil Control

8Long-term Benefits of Surghum-Sudan

becoming Apparent

9SARA Finds a Keen Agronomist

10For Higher Yields

Include Forages in Crop Rotation

11International Change

the Way of the Future

12Seeding Equipment

13Efficient Water Use

in Dryland Cropping Systems

14Southern Alberta

Winter Pea’s Near Future

16Save Money with a Trap Crop

17Research Funding

Presents Challenges and Rewards

19Join the SARA Network

20Reduce Fertilizer Costs through Soil

Testing

21Book Review

22

SARA Chairman’s Message

Farming Smarteris published annually by the Southern Applied Research Association, RR8-36-11, Lethbridge, T1J 4P4

with the assistance of the Southern Alberta Conservation Association and support from the

Agriculture Opportunities Fund and Alberta Environmentally Sustainable Agriculture program.

Editorial Board: Ron Lamb, Alex Russell, Richard Fritzler.

Editor: Claudette Lacombe • Cover Photo: Claudette Lacombe

Photography: Claudette Lacombe, Hector Carcamo, Jamie Rieger, S.A.R.A.

Published by:

4

The results from the 2006 Southern Applied ResearchAssociation (SARA) Pulse/Wheat rotation seems to lay torest one of the biggest concerns of this practice accord-ing to SARA agronomist Paul Jungnitsch.

“We definitely found that you don’t build up weeds inthis rotation; which was an expressed concern byfarmers,” he says.

An on-going long-term rotation trial (13years) at Bow Island on small plots, trieddifferent rotations such as continuouswheat, wheat-fallow, wheat-wheat-fallow,flax-wheat-fallow, pea-wheat and grass.Ross McKenzie, Agronomy Research Scientistwith the Crop Diversification Centre ofAlberta Agriculture, Food and RuralDevelopment (AAFRD) in Lethbridge led thisstudy.

His study prompted SARA to try a largertrial to take pea-wheat rotation to a fieldscale study. They set out four sites in south-ern Alberta: Lethbridge, Lomond, Etzikomand Schuler. On each site, they planted two80-acre fields alternating between field peasand wheat. SARA plans to continue the studyfor five years.

Results from the third year of SARA’sstudy indicate the rotation creates increasedincome for the field. In his study report,Jungnitsch says, “Compared with the longterm AFSC wheat yield average on fallow inthe same areas, these fields produced anextra three bushels of wheat in addition tothe 36 bu/acre of peas from the otherwisefallow year.”

“Gross income on the sites averaged$118.00/acre over the three years. Netincome (measured cash input costs plus35.00/acre for machinery expenses) aver-aged $53.00/acre. Compared to the netincome from a calculated fallow/wheat rota-tion using AFSC averages the pulse/wheatrotation gained $60.00/acre in gross incomeand $51.00/acre in net income.”

Jungnitsch adds, “There is a symbioticeffect with the root systems. Mycorrhizefungi extend the root system of the pulseplants. This system stays in place for thewheat when you follow them directly in arotation.”

He encourages farmers to try this on their operationsusing peas in one field and fallow in an adjacent field tocompare for themselves. He also encourages farmers toshare their results with SARA.

The root system of a pulse plant. – SARA photo

Pulse-Wheat RotationUpdate from Year Three

5

6

Participants diagnose the growth/disease issues with the seedling crop during Ron Howard’s’ presentation on crop disease. – S.A.R.A.

While there is definite value in learning throughlectures and reading materials, nothing sticks in themind better than applied practice. Southern AlbertaResearch Association’s (SARA) 2006 Diagnostic FieldSchool (DFS) took full advantage of its new spacioushome and organized two days of dig-in-the-dirt experi-ence for participants.

With the 50-acre parcel, SARA invited agricultureresearch scientists to create sessions that offereddirect know-how to people attending the DFS.Organizers also reduced the number of modules toallow more time per module for expanded learningopportunities in the field.

“All winter, farmers go to meetings and conferenceswhere they receive information through presentations.This was an opportunity to walk around the field andlook at results,” says SARA 2006 agronomist PaulJungnitsch.

Over the two-day event, 126 participants dug, caughtbugs and did walking surveys of crops managed withdifferent equipment or inputs.

For instance, in the weeds and herbicides module,Brian Storozynski first showed everyone the differentlow-drift sprayer nozzles available, and then let them golook at crops treated with them.

In another lesson, farmers heard about common croppests from Hector Carcamo. Then they went into thefield, did sweeps and received a lesson on how to meas-ure pest levels and how to identify natural control insectsalso in the sweeps.

“Spraying insecticides isn’t always a good fix. If youlet the natural predators build up, they will fix theproblem for you,” says Jungnitsch.

They also had space to demonstrate various seedbrakes. Jungnitsch mentions that these can be expensiveequipment, so the trials aimed to show if the cost isjustified.

“It definitely cuts the air, but whether it makes adifference or not was hard to tell from the demonstration(50x100 feet). The farmers were able to walk through thefield and judge for themselves if the equipment justifiesits cost.

SARA takes Advantage ofRoom to Grow

They also had an opportunity towork with Ron Howard to identifycrop diseases in-field. Howard hadseeded lots of various varieties andallowed participants to dig in thefields and learn how to identifydiseases.

Rob Dunn had two large soilplugs: one from a conventionallyfarmed field and another from ano-till field. He discussed the dif-ferences in soil structure afterlong-term management undereach system.

These are just some examples ofthe modules SARA offered at the2006 DFS. A survey of participantsshowed 98 percent of the partici-pants found the information currentand useful. All of them indicatedthey would use the information on-farm.

“Several people indicated that the2006 DFS was the first field schoolthey had attended and they appreci-ated the learning opportunityoffered by it,” says Jungnitsch.

The 2007 DFS is well into itsplanning stages with modules onirrigation and winter crops con-firmed. It will take place atLethbridge Community College July10-12. To register or for more infor-mation, contact Elizabeth Tokariuk,403-328-0059.

Diagnostic Field School 2006 InstructorsWeeds and Herbicides• Bob Blackshaw Research Scientist, Crop Weeds Sustainable Production

Systems Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Lethbridge Research Centre• Brian Storozynski Project Technologist Agricultural Technology Centre• George Lubberts independent agronomist in Nobleford, AB

Soils/Agronomy • Rob Dunn Conservation Cropping Specialist AB Ag • Lawrence Papworth Seeding and Tillage Project Engineer• Ray Dowbenko P.Ag. Agrium• Blaine Metzger Project Technologist Agricultural Technology Centre

Insects • Hector Carcamo Research Scientist, Insect Pest Management Agricultureand Agri-Food Canada• Scott Meers Integrated Crop Management Specialist

Diseases/Varieties/Novel Crops • Ron Howard Plant Pathology Research Scientist AB Ag

7

Brian Storozynsky talks with farmers about various spray nozzles displayed at the DFS 2006.

– S.A.R.A.

Become a Member of the Southern Applied Research AssociationHelp direct farm research in this region. Receive early notice of conferences,workshops, field days.Send your SARA membership fee, $40 per year toSouthern Applied Research Association,RR8-36-11, Lethbridge T1J 4P4

Name ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Address __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Membership/subscription $ enclosed___________________________________________________________________________________________

Major farm interests _________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The determining factor in whether or not peas becomean integral part of Southern Alberta cropping systems is PeaLeaf weevil control according to Scott Meers, IntegratedCrop Management Specialist with Alberta Agriculture andFood (AF) in Brooks. The Pea Leaf weevil (Sitona lineata), isa pest of seedling pea plants.

Meers indicated that, while southern Alberta is one of thelast major pea growing areas of the world to have the Pealeaf weevil, it has established itself and is continuing tospread its area of influence.

Found as early as 1997, it initially became an issue inAlberta in 2000 in the immediate Lethbridge area. Meersindicated that their AF survey in 2006 found that the pestwas in all the counties south of highway #1 through to theSaskatchewan border with serious concerns fromClaresholm to Foremost through to Bow Island.

Given that it over winters as an adult in hedgerows andperennial legume stands, alfalfa fields in southern Albertaare the primary over wintering sites. With warming tem-peratures in the spring, it will migrate out once thresholdtemperature is reached and is strongly attracted to peafields, feeding as an adult on seedling peas. In order toreproduce in southern Alberta, the host plant for their eggs

must be peas and the larva feed on the nodules on the peaplant. Once the larva finish feeding, they pupate in the soiland emerge in late July to mid-August. As the second gen-eration of adults feed on any legume they can find, in thefall it tends to be alfalfa. As facultative diapods if it getswarm enough in winter the adult pea leaf weevil will wakeup and feed and when it cools off they will go back intodiapods; which Meers noted makes them well suited tosouthern Alberta’s winter climate.

Meers stated that there is a two-fold concern with thepea leaf weevil, the adult stage spring feeding on the emerg-ing pea seedlings and the more significant impact of the peaweevil larva feeding on the nodules of the pea plant therebyreducing the peas nitrogen fixing capability - which is oneof the main reasons we grow peas. Meers stated, “whilewe’re not as concerned with the spring larva feeding, that iswhat we make our economic threshold determinations onbecause it’s an indication of numbers and our opportunityfor control is in the adult stage.” For southern Alberta,Meers indicated that the nominal threshold (the bestestimate based on the information available that it is basedon science not yet well validated by research) is one feedingmark out of three clam-leaf pairs damaged (the mostrecently emerged leaves) for insecticide foiler applicationprior to the six-node stage.

With respect to control measures, Meers noted that therewere no registered insecticide products for Pea Leaf weevilin 2006. However AF has, in cooperation with the productmanufacturers, applied for emergency use registrations oftwo products for 2007.

Meers stated that he and Agriculture Canada’s HectorCarcamo as lead researcher will be involved in 2007 with aresearch project looking at control measures; thresholds;and impact on the nitrogen status of the plant in field plotsin Lethbridge, Foremost and Bow Island, in addition to AF’sWinter Pea trap crop research trials. Pending furtherresearch funding, he said investigation into the impact inother crops would be undertaken particularly in seedlingalfalfa as it is seeded later in the summer after taking asilage crop and emerging at the time of the second genera-tion of the pea leaf weevil. He also indicated that Dr. OwenOlfert at the University of Saskatchewan is doing “climexmodeling” that takes the parameters under which the pealeaf weevil will do well and Western Canada the regionalclimatic parameters to predict where the weevil will becomea problem.

Through the ongoing efforts of SARA and AlbertaAgriculture and Food, focus on pea leaf weevil control maylead peas to become a viable crop option for southernAlberta.

For more information, contact Scott Meers, 403-362-1366or scott.meers@gov.ab.ca

Pulse of Pea Productionpending on Pea Leaf Weevil Control by Reg Norby

8

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Long-term use of warm season grasses, such asSorghum-Sudan, in a rotation appear to offer far morethan simply an alternative forage.

Corns Brothers Farm Ltd. began growing Sorghum-Sudan about 14 years ago according to Brian Corns. Itbegan as a seed trial and showed favorable enoughresults that the Corns brothers kept using it as a foragecrop in their rotations.

Brian says there is much he likes about the crop andhow it fits with other operations on the mixed farm inGrassy Lake, AB.

“Part of everything we do has more than one or twounderlying reasons,” he explains. He adds that his familyfarms in an area of Alberta that throws multiple years ofdrought, intense heat and more weather variability atthem than other areas of Alberta.

Over the years, the Corns tried different ways of hand-ling the mature crop as forage. They tried baling, swathgrazing and finally winter grazing. They found that theSorghum-Sudan contains enough fiber to stand up to theweather and grows large enough for the cattle to easilygraze all winter. In a typical year, Sorghum-Sudan growsto five feet, but recently a neighbor told him that duringa wet year it reached 12 feet.

“I don’t think there are other varieties of forages, otherthan warm season grasses, that fit the same bill. Wetried millets as well, but they don’t seem to have thesame amount of fiber in them to tolerate the weather andanimals tramping through the field as they consume it inthe winter months,” Brian says.

As they grew to have a better understanding of howthey could use it in their rotations, Corns Brothers Farmbegan notice other benefits more difficult to pencil intothe bottom line.

Brian explains that the Sorghum-Sudan seeding takesplace late in spring (late May-early June). This allowsthem to fit it nicely into the seeding schedule with thesame equipment they use for their other crops.

“It certainly optimizes the seeding tool,” he com-ments. With the ability to winter graze rather than baleor swath, he says they also use less equipment such asbalers than they might if using regular forages.

Also, the move to winter grazing means less on-farmlabor and healthier cattle.

“You don’t have manure issues, confined livestockdisease issues or all the issues oriented around having

cows confined to a corral,” Brian adds. Winter grazingalso removes the need for manure storage and spreadingand takes advantage of direct input of nutrients throughcattle urine.

“The actual nutrient recycling is starting to havenoticeable benefits,” he says. “If you add the sameamount of fertilizer every year after a sorghum rotation(on the following crop of wheat or canola), you have anet kick of 25-50% more available nutrients – all nutri-ents – than you would if you just continued a wheat,pulse, canola rotation.”

Brian says to date the longest they’ve plantedSorghum-Sudan in a field is four years. They haven’tnoticed any negative impacts on the field and in fact seea benefit. He explains that the Sorghum-Sudan gives hisfields a break from most pests. Therefore, when the fieldreturns to wheat or canola production, he saves moneyon pest control. He particularly noticed a drop in wheatsawfly problems.

Brian believes Sorghum-Sudan offers an excellentrotation option. He notes that when a wheat crop followsin the rotation, it seems to be of higher quality with moreprotein.

These benefits appearing from the adoption ofSorghum-Sudan into rotation convinced the Cornsbrothers the crop has a permanent place on their farm.

“We’re keying in on enough benefits that we’re look-ing to continually add more areas of our farm that wefence and run underground water sources for cattle togain those particular advantages,” he says.

“I think in the future if we become more technical,we’ll probably become more diligent with soil testing forvarious main nutrients and try to key-in on the advan-tages and disadvantages, if there are any, ofSorghum-Sudan,”

9

SARA agonomist Paul Jungnitsch stand in a mature crop

of Sorghum-Sudan. – S.A.R.A.

Long-Term Benefitsof Sorghum-SudanBecoming Apparent

10

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Current SARA Board MembersPresident: Corny Van Dasselaar, Lethbridge

Vice President: Don Wentz, Lethbridge Richard Fritzler, Etzikom Jerry Holtman, Taber

Les Chomany, Taber Ron Lamb, ClaresholmAlex Russell, Lethbridge Ron Svanes, Picture ButteDean Hubbard, Granum Dave Yancie, ForemostPhil Hierath, Milk River Susanne Brummelhuis, Brooks

Ken Coles stepped into the Southern Applied ResearchAssociation agronomist position Jan. 15. He brings withhim a Masters of Science, Environment and Manage-ment, a Bachelor of Science degree (chemistry) and 10years experience as an agronomist.

He’s worked with Agriculture and Agrifood Canada,Monsanto Canada, Thiessen Cattle Custom Feedlot,Lethbridge Research Center, Alberta Pool Research andDevelopment and Norwest Labs.

Coles learned of the position about five years ago andkept in touch with former SARA agronomists Pat Pavanand Paul Jungnitsch. He kept thinking that the job lookedvery interesting.

“It’s a very broad-based, big picture position andthat’s what attracts me,” he says. He adds that he sees itas a job with tremendous opportunity to further hisknowledge of the industry and help, teach and learnfrom producers on any area of agriculture.

He hopes to bring some sustainability projects to thejob and emphasizes he means sustainable financially aswell as environmentally.

“I’m there for producers,” he says and wants to hearfrom anyone who has ideas or questions related to agri-culture. He also hopes to foster involvement in SARAamong producers.

“I guarantee any farmer that I can save him at leastthe $40 membership fee if they join SARA.”

Ken Coles joined SARA January 2007.

SARA finds a

Keen Agronomist

11

A comprehensive study thatlooked at the benefits of includingforages in crop rotations has proventhat forages do in fact increaseyields in certain wheat crops andincreases nitrogen levels in the soilas well.

Dr. Paul Jefferson, a researchscientist who has been conductinghis studies at SPARC (Semi-AridPrairie Agriculture Research Centre)in Swift Current, tested a number ofwheat crops with the inclusion ofBeaver alfalfa and barley to deter-mine if forages would increase yieldin reduced tillage fields.

"Beaver alfalfa was used becausewhen you're going for hay produc-tion, you will get better yields offBeaver," said Jefferson, who was aguest speaker at the 13th annualReduced Tillage Conference thattook place in Medicine Hat inDecember.

In his studies, Jefferson comparedshort-lived grasses-Dahurianwildrye and Slender wheatgrass toIntermediate wheatgrass.

"These were used because theyare competitive with alfalfa, withsimilar botanical content, withIntermediary most comparable withalfalfa," said Jefferson.

The findings from this study arebased on three trial crops planted inSwift Current in 1998, 1999 and2000 and each compared the twoshort-lived grasses to Intermediate

wheatgrass. Each trial ran for athree-year span.

Trial One, seeded in 1998 and ter-minated in the spring of 2002, wasseeded to barley in 2002 and 2003.

Trial Two, seeded in 1999 andterminated in the fall of 2003, wasseeded to barley in 2003 and 2004.

Trial Three, which was seeded in2000 and terminated in 2004, wasseeded to barley in 2004 and 2005.

"We found that during the secondyear, there were great yields, but notmuch difference between the grass-es and we had low grain yieldscompared to the continuous wheatwhere we used nitrogen and phos-phorous. In the first year, there wasa negative impact because we didnot put any nitrogen down," saidJefferson.

"Soil moistures were comparableto the continuous wheat as well.Alfalfa uses water to a deeper depththan other grasses. It will tap intosources below 10 feet down. Thelonger you leave alfalfa in, the drierthe profile," he added.

Jefferson recommended a two tothree year maximum for alfalfastands.

"Old alfalfa stands tend to gettougher as they get older," he said.

Jefferson found in his studies thatSlender wheatgrass and Dahurianwheatgrass could yield results com-petitive with Intermediatewheatgrass.

Paul Jefferson

For Higher YieldsInclude Foragesin Crop Rotation Story & Photo by Jamie Rieger

He also discovered that Dahurianwheatgrass did not persist pastthree years, especially if in the mix-ture with alfalfa. Persistent alfalfaproduces a higher yield than annualalfalfa cultivars.

Intermediate wheatgrass reducedbarley yield and barley yield, by2004, was higher after alfalfa/grassthan after grass in two out of threetrials.

Alfalfa produced a nitrogen bene-fit to barley, but N2O emissionswere very low after terminating thealfalfa.

"We need to have that alfalfa inthe hay crop to get the nitrogen ben-efit and this is the benefit. It's nodifferent than chickpeas or lentilsand here it shows that benefit in twoconsecutive years," said Jefferson.

No tilling or reduced tillage alsohas helped increase the benefits ofnitrogen.

"When you till, you create a dis-turbance in the soil and in thenitrogen," he said.

Jefferson has 25 years experiencein forage crop research. His currentprojects include short rotation for-age crops in diversified croppingsystems, annual cool- and warm-season forage crops, P fertility toenhance alfalfa productivity andpersistence, light quality impacts onforage seeding growth, and declin-ing hay yields in Saskatchewan.

"Forages haven't typically beenpart of our rotation. Reduced tillagehas allowed us to use forages aspart of our rotations. We have anexcellent outdoor laboratory at SwiftCurrent. We needed to have peren-nial forages in our crop rotationsand we were able to get the threeplots at Swift Current," he said.

12

Alberta farmers should expectmore obstacles on the global frontand need to diversify their currentoperations if they want to remaincompetitive, according to a leadingconsultant in the Agriculture andAgri-food industry.

Darrell Toma, Founding Partner,Toma and Bouma Consultants spokeabout emerging issues and improv-ing management practices to agroup of producers in December.

Toma and Bouma Consultants isa consulting firm that focuses onstrategic development for theAgriculture and Food sectors. Thefirm, with more than 25 yearsexperience, works with agri-busi-nesses, producer organizations andgovernment agencies.

For the past three years, Tomaand a number of research groupshave studied the Future of Farmingand Best Management Practices.

Toma presented key factors thathave been compiled into the“Knowledge Guide” at the SouthernAlberta Conservation Association’sReduced Tillage Conference inMedicine Hat last December.

Toma said international issuessuch as World Trade Organizationtrade negotiations, competition fromthe United States, European Union,China, India, and Russia, trade bar-riers, security and disease mobilityand global change is going to furtherimpact the profitability of theAlberta farm.

“Change is coming in regards tointernational issues. China, India,and Russia are starting to becomemore competitive. If you take labourcost comparisons (2004), it costsChina $59 per month per worker. By

comparison, it costs Singapore,$1,468,” said Toma.

Toma said Alberta producersneed to diversify to remain competi-tive.

“There is a lot of pressure forvalue added products and best man-agement practices. We can learnlessons from people who are doing agood job now,” he said.

Organic products, greenhouseand horticulture, meal ready snacks,and functional food and nutri-ceuticals are a number of avenuesproducers should consider for thefuture.

“Organic vegetables and foodproducts are becoming more com-mon. People are more concernedabout their health and are eatingmore vegetables,” said Toma.

The challenges to starting up agreenhouse or horticultural opera-tion would be in energy costs,labour, packaging, and marketing.

He also said meal ready snacksare an emerging opportunity for theagriculture producer.

“Hospitals get a lot of their mealsready made, using organics andprocessed meat. Given the demo-graphics and the fact that it providesquality and convenience for the cus-tomer, there are many, manyopportunities,” he said.

Local crops such as oats, barley,flax, canola, rhubarb, herbs, and

black current are becoming increas-ingly in demand in the health careindustry and farmers should be con-sidering this avenue for marketingtheir products.

“The drivers here are healthcosts, population demographics anda demand for natural products. Thebiggest challenges would be tech-nology and regulations,” he said.

Biodiesels and ethanol are twoother emerging industries that couldgive the Alberta farmer a competi-tive edge.

“Biogas is becoming a new rev-enue for heat and power andbiomass supplies are in demand.The drivers are energy costs andsupplies and the challenges aretechnology, costs, feedstock supplyand leadership. There is a hugeamount of biomass out there notbeing used,” he said.

The biggest current obstacle forbiodiesels and ethanol in westernCanada is a lack of processing facil-ities, but new federal programsshould see an increase of plants inthe coming years.

“We need to shift from produc-tion oriented to market oriented andwe will need to develop an environ-ment farm plan, an animal careplan, have an HACCP plan, a bio-security plan and integrate withprotocols to make it happen,” hesaid.

International Changethe Way of the Future Story & Photo by Jamie Rieger

Darrell Toma

13

New technology and improve-ments to existing seeding equipmenttechnologies has given the producerwho is using conservation tillingpractices more options for theiroperations.

The trend seems to be movingaway from air seeders to precision-oriented air drills; which accordingto Lawrence Papworth, an engineerwith AgTech Centre in Lethbridge,have increased in popularity forthe double-shoot, low draft open-ers.

Part of the reason for this is thesavings in fuel that they provide.

Papworth said there is a numberof double-shoot, low draft openerson the market today to meet theneeds of the farmer.

“The Dutch opener places tworows of seed on the outside and arow of fertilizer in the middle. TheDutch opener opens like a spreadertip with minimal mixing and notenough to cause damage to thecrop,” said Papworth.

Papworth said the move towardsair drills necessitated the need for asimilar technology for fertilizerapplication.

“A general movement away fromair seeders and towards air drillsnecessitated the development ofnew ways of applying fertilizer. Withair seeders, seed could be plantedand a high level of nitrogen could beapplied at the same time because ofthe wide seed spread of the open-ers,” said Papworth.

The double-shoot openers placethe fertilizer two to three inchesbelow the surface and to the side ofthe seed in a single pass and placethe seed and fertilizer at the samedepth.

AgTech has been testing a num-ber of low draft, double shootopeners that are currently on themarket and have found performanceto be very good.

Improvements to disc openershas also minimized the problem ofdurability. The ‘old-school’ openerstend to be better suited for smallseeds that require shallow andaccurate seeding depths.

Farmers practicing conservationtillage understand the importance ofresidue management to enrich thesoil, conserve moisture and mini-mize weed germination. AgTech hastested a number of existing andemerging types of equipment thatcould spread the residue with mini-mal disturbance to the soil.

“We recently did a three-yearproject that looked at crop emer-gence and yield. Some of theequipment seems better suited forsoybean and corn crops and notsuitable for here,” said Papworth.

A prototype system, developed byTony Brummelhuis was one of thebetter pieces of equipment for cropsplanted in southern Alberta.

“The Brummelhuis system usestwo-fingered wheels and while wefound disturbance to be a bit higherthan with some of the others, the

L. Papworth

SeedingEquipment Story & Photo by Jamie Rieger

mean plant counts were generallypretty good; in some crops, therewas a significantly higher emer-gence. We found, though, that itcleared residue but didn’t neces-sarily increase yield,” saidPapworth.

“From what we’ve observed inour research, it seems that residuemanagers only offer an advantagewhere there are exceptionally highyields and exceptionally highamounts of chaff, such as on irriga-tion farms,” he said.

Another familiar piece of equip-ment making a resurgence is the soilleveler that Papworth said are nowutilized with a set of discs attachedto the shank.

The disc throws the soil backonto the furrow and allows the drillto operate at high speeds with awider opener.

“The soil leveling devices havebecome an issue. People want toseed faster and when you do that,you are going to get the soil mov-ing,” said Papworth.

“These new soil levelers deflectthe soil back and can be put onevery opener or onto just the backshanks. You can adjust the angleand put them on all the shanks toallow you to go a bit faster,” headded.

“In general, I would encourageyou, if you want to get more done, toget the bigger machine and moveslower,” he said.

14

At the Southern AlbertaConservation Association ReducedTillage Conference held in MedicineHat in December, Perry Miller, anAssociate Professor of CroppingSystems in the Land Resources andEnvironmental Sciences departmentat Montana State University-Bozeman discussed with the guestsa number of practices he has beenstudying in the Bozeman area, aswell as studies from AAFC-SPARC inSwift Current that look at fallow, no-till systems and crop diversificationas ways to manage water usage forbest crop yield.

Miller looked at four key timeperiods within the 21-month fallowcycle in his study; first winter,spring, summer, and second winter.

“There is going to be soil waterloss during the short fallow cycle ofwinter wheat. Water is lost duringthe fallow cycle even if you don’ttouch it,” said Miller.

“In-season water is five timesmore important than starting soilwater in terms of exploring yieldvariations,” he added.

At a site in Montana, he foundsoil water in a tilled fallow systempeaked in June and declined by morethan an inch at winter wheat seed-ing in September, despite havingreceived between 1.1 and 2.8 inchesof rain during July and August.

“That means at least 2.3 to 3.8inches of water was wasted duringthat summer. We need to be think-ing about appropriate water useintensity,” he said.

Miller said that a trial conductedin Swift Current on tillage-basedsystems has proven that green

manure lentil during the fallowperiod can be a viable option.

“No-till enables increased wateruse efficiencies, but it remains riskybecause of drought risk. At SwiftCurrent, between 1997 and 1999, itshowed a value in crop diversity ofabout 70 percent, in proportion tofallow yield,” said Miller.

In comparing green fallow totilled fallow however, yield was lostfor the first four years.

“We need to seek a profitable bal-ance here. It took five years to turnaround,” he said.

He also discussed three impor-tant ways no-till systems cancapture water; create a duff layer,infiltration, and stubble micro-climate.

The duff layer, crop residue left invarious stages of decomposition,can be difficult to achieve in dryregions, Miller pointed out.

In order to provide an adequateduff layer, the farmer would have tocrop continuously, using two cerealcrops for every broadleaf crop.

“It is hard to achieve in Montana.It is designed to reduce evaporation,but I have only seen minimal suc-cess,” said Miller.

He said it is crucial for the farmerto take advantage of rapid infiltra-tion opportunities whenever he can.

“You need to capture that rarerain storm,” he said.

Miller said that on a no-till fieldrain is captured and utilized, but ona tilled field, the water will merelyrun off into the ditch.

Snow catch is one of the primarybenefits of standing stubble, butMiller said there are in-season ben-efits to standing stubble, as well.

“There is a real measurable yieldbenefit to spring wheat, peas,lentils, and chickpeas grown in tallversus short stubble, that was notrelated to snow catch,” he said.

Crop diversification and croprooting depth affect the water avail-able to the current crop and theresidual soil water available forfuture crops.

“We compared canola versussunflowers over a five-year periodand we found that three out of fiveyears, the sunflower by far out-yielded the canola. That is becausethe sunflower will go down at leastsix feet for a water source,” he said.

“The pea yield after the sun-flower in wheat two years later wasstill losing 20 percent of winterwheat yield,” he added.

Prior to becoming an AssociateProfessor at Montana StateUniversity, Miller worked from 1994to 1998, as an Alternative Cropsresearch scientist for AAFC-SPARCin Swift Current.

His current projects include com-parison of water-use-efficiency ofno-till and organic cropping sys-tems, pulse crop agronomy, annualforages in cropping sequences,adaptation of winter broadleafcrops, best management practicesfor greenhouse gas mitigation, and anew integrated study on organicwheat-based systems.

Perry Miller

Efficient Water Usein Dryland Cropping Systems by Jamie Rieger

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Winter pulse crops, especiallywinter peas, may eventually have afit for southern Alberta cropping sys-tems according to Rob Dunn, P. Ag.,Conservation Cropping Specialistwith Alberta Agriculture and Food(AF) in Lethbridge. Washington StateUniversity developed several varietiesof winter pea and winter lentil overthe past decade and Montanaresearch in similar climates to south-ern Alberta has shown good wintersurvival for pea and fair winter sur-vival for lentils.

SARA (Southern Alberta ResearchAssociation) and AF trials examinedwinter peas over the past three yearsas a potential crop for southernAlberta. AF trials at Lethbridge alsoincluded winter lentils in 2006 withpromising results, but then 2006 wasa very mild winter, so it is too early todraw conclusions.

Small plot winter pea trials atLethbridge by Dunn and Dr. RossMcKenzie, Research Scientist with AFshowed good winter survival for thepast 3 years. SARA also had good

winter pea survival at three fieldscale sites in 2006. Winter peas wereplanted in mid-September, develop-ing about one or two nodes beforefreeze-up and then resuming growthfrom a scale node in early spring.They appear to have very goodspring frost tolerance and floweringbegins in late May to early June withmaturity reached by late July. Most ofthe trials have used Austrian wintertypes that are only suitable as a for-age, but newer yellow and greencotyledon types suitable as food orfeed have also looked promising inlast year’s trial.

While a lot of work remains, winterpeas may provide a useful croppingoption for some producers. Along withall of the benefits associated withspring pea, they also widen the plant-ing and harvest window to include falland mid-summer. They have thepotential for higher or at least morereliable yields by flowering well beforethe onset of mid-summer heat; sincepeas don’t tolerate heat or droughtduring the flowering stage. For this

reason, most farmers try to plant earlyto beat the heat and winter peas willtake some of the pressure off of thetight spring planting schedule, allow-ing for an earlier start to harvest.

Winter peas may also fit as a forageor green manure option to conven-tional fallow. Research in Montana hasshown that winter pea terminated inmid-June as either forage or greenmanure (chemical control) is a viablesummerfallow alternative with similaryields but better protein in the follow-ing wheat crop.

Still another potential benefit ofwinter pea is avoidance of damagefrom the pea leaf weevil, a newthreat to southern Alberta pea pro-duction. Pea leaf weevil adults areattracted to pea fields, foraging onthe leaves and laying eggs near theplant base. Hatching larvae burrowdown to feed on the nitrogen fixingroot nodules which is thought tocompromise pea yield and quality.Research needs to determinewhether winter peas can matureearly enough to avoid much of thedamage from pea leaf weevil.

Even though winter pea maymature before the pea leaf weevilcan destroy the nitrogen fixing abil-ity, they do seem to attract the pest.This could be a real advantage if astrip of winter peas or a nearby win-ter pea field can serve as a “trapcrop” to prevent infestation of springpea fields. In fact, SARA is inves-tigating this practice at two differentfarms. At Nobleford, the outside 80’of a 160-acre field was fall seededwith winter peas and the rest of thefield will be planted to a pea cropnext spring. Another site atLethbridge has 65’ winter pea stripsseeded on both sides of an 80-acrefield that will be likewise planted tospring pea. According to Dunn, theearlier growth/development of the

16

Southern AlbertaWinter Pea’s Near Future by Reg Norby

Research Drives Manure Technology for the 21st Century

Research innovations are criticalto make it more practical and eco-nomical for Canada's beef industryto manage manure, says Dr.Xiaomei Li of the Alberta ResearchCouncil.

"Our technology to produce ani-mals is modern technology - 21stcentury technology," observes Li, asenior scientist in the environmen-tal technologies unit. "But equallyimportant is technology to managethe manure that results from thatproduction. That technology hasnot been 21st century technology,so that's where we're pushing tocatch up. The beef industry isdoing an excellent job of managing

manure to the best of its abilityconsidering the limited tools it has.What we need is a push for bettertechnology to take manure man-agement as a whole to anotherlevel."

More of Li's perspective on thechallenges and opportunities formanure management is featured ina new, "Perspectives on BeefScience" article, now available onthe Meristem Land and ScienceWeb site, www.meristem.com.

For more information contact:Dr. Xiaomei Li, Senior ScientistAlberta Research Council, (780)450-5290.

winter pea should attract and thereforeconcentrate the pea-leaf weevil, restrict-ing pesticide control measures to theborder versus entire field area. Benefitsinclude reduced pesticide costs andexposure for the many beneficial insectspecies that inhabit the field area.

The first winter pea trial at Lethbridgein 2004 showed good winter survival of acommon Austrian winter type available inAlberta from Progressive Seeds. Becauseof local access to seed, this type has beenused for the SARA field trials, although,according to Dunn, newer Austrian wintertypes have replaced this variety in the US.

Austrian winter types have a verysmall seed size, high seed coat tannin lev-els, longer vine length and indeterminategrowth habit (flower until drought). Theywork well for green feed but poorly forgrain because they go flat, making for dif-ficult combining and the peas cannot befed to pigs because of the tannins. SomeUS farmers mix these types with wintertriticale as a fall seeded forage.

In 2005, Dunn and McKenzie screenedsome of the new winter pea types avail-able from plant breeder Dr. Kevin McPheeat Washington State University. Several ofthe green and yellow cotyledon typeslooked promising which has led to furtherwork in 2006. According to Dunn, themore upright, yellow and green peasyielded in the 80 bu/acre range comparedto about 50 bu/acre for the Austrian win-ter types.

Having begun to establish the agro-nomic viability of these suitable winterpea varieties, Dunn indicated that the2007 AF small plot winter pea trials willbe focused on agronomic issues related tothe newer yellow and green types thathave both feed grain and forage potential.SARA will continue to investigate winterpea potential in southern cropping sys-tems as a pea-leaf weevil trap crop andsummer fallow alternative using thelocally available Austrian winter (AW)type.

Thanks to the efforts begun by SARAand Alberta Agriculture and Food, winterpeas now have to be further investigatedas a potential crop option for southernAlberta dryland rotations.

For more information, contact RobDunn, 403-381-5904 or rob.dunn@-gov.ab.ca

Using a trap crop to attract cabbage seedpod weevils that infestcanola may save farmers a lot of money in pesticide applicationsaccording to Hector Carcamo, Research Scientist, Insect PestManagement Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

“In the case of the canola crop trap, we estimated it’s possible tosave up to 90 percent of the cost and that’s a major economic bene-fit,” he says. “Saving of that magnitude more than makes up for theinconvenience of having to seed the trap crop separately or makechanges to the harvest.”

Carcamo has worked on finding the best method of trap croppingto control the cabbage seedpod weevil in southern Alberta since2000. Some of his findings include: the weevil can fly 5-10 kilome-ters and disperse on its own; they like to over winter in shelterbeltsand prefer caragana; they can survive Alberta winters and they cancause huge yield losses up to 35 percent.

For his most recent study, Carcamo wanted to determine if earlierflowering canola strips along the borders of large commercial canolafields could concentrate populations of the weevil for control withinsecticides.

“One objective of this study was to expand our toolbox for pestmanagement,” Carcamo explains. The study area included sites nearStirling and Skiff under dryland agriculture and sites near Coaldale,Nobleford and Coalhurst under irrigation.

He stresses that the most important factor for a successful trapcrop is that it flower at least one week before the main crop.

“We found the best way to establish a trap crop is by planting aPolish Canola species (Brassicaceous Rapa or B. Rapa) because it willflower one week to 10 days earlier than canola ( B. Napus L).” The

Save Moneywith a Trap Crop

17

B. rapa trap crop in flower at the Fletcher site in 2006. – Hector Carcamo

continued on next page

adults emerge from winter shelter in April-May andmove to canola in early to mid-June. The adults feed onthe flowers and buds; then lay eggs in the pods. It’s thelarvae in the pods that cause the damage to yield.

Carcamo found that the weevils first appear along theedges of the fields and quickly move into the crop.However, if an early flowering trap crop attracts them tothe field, the farmer can control the population by spray-ing the trap crop before the main crop starts to flower.For this reason, it may be possible to carefully monitor acanola crop edge to get a jump on weevil infestation, butthe trap crop increases dramatically the possibility ofsuccessful control.

“They will be higher in abundance along the edges atthe beginning of the flowering period. The only problemis they tend to move into the field quickly, so the farmerwould have to monitor the field edges every two daysprior to and during the flower emergence,” Carcamosays. He recommends sweep monitoring the crop – withor without a trap crop – while keeping in mind the eco-nomic threshold for weevils is four (4) per sweep.

18

Cabbage seedpod weevil. – Hector Carcamo

continued from previous page

Carcamo adds an extra caution for irrigation farmersgrowing canola. Because the weevils like humid andcooler weather, hot dry summers reduce populations forthe following year. However, this also means entomolo-gists suspect the weevils do better under irrigation. Infact, because irrigated crops often flower earlier andgrow more vigorously, they attract the weevils.

“Irrigated fields usually tend to get hit the worst byweevils. You can almost bet your money that irrigatedfields will have the most weevils and act like a giant trapcrop,” Carcamo warns.

For more information or the complete report, contactHector Carcamo, 317-2247 or CarcamoH@AGR.GC.CA.

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As one of 12 Applied Research and ForageAssociations under the umbrella of the AgricultureResearch and Extension Council of Alberta (ARECA), theSouthern Applied Research Association (SARA) providesresearch and extension services in a number of produc-er related interest areas.

ARECA’s mandate has four main parts that are in turnapplicable to each respective association such as SARA –fostering communication among members, partners andproducers; achieving sustainability for ARECA and itsmembers through successful partnering; representing itsmembers and the interest of producers at all levels andpromoting extension through coordination of memberAssociation activities and hosting of conferences.(Information is available at www.areca.ab.ca)

Although each association provides individualizedservices for its members, this collaborative effort offersnumerous benefits to the combined approximate 1,500producer-association members and to over 50,000 otherAlbertans that attend events, receive newsletters and soon. Research funding for these twelve non-profit produc-er groups presents an ongoing challenge for therespective staff from year to year.

SARA’s research receives funds from a number ofsources with the majority coming from the program-based Agricultural Opportunities Fund (AOF) initiated byAgriculture Food (AF) in 2003. Portions of this financialsupport are directed toward both the Diagnostic FieldSchool and the Novel Crops program.

SARA’s extension side is partially funded by AlbertaEnvironmentally Sustainable Agriculture (AESA). Created in1997, this long-term, provincially funded program facilitatesthe continued development and adoption of managementpractices and technologies that make agricultural productionand processing more environmentally sustainable.

SARA is also involved in some Regional Variety Trialwork funded directly through ARECA. On occasion pri-vate research is also conducted and funded by therespective agribusiness. Securing funding sources thatwill enable research in areas that members find signifi-cant is an ongoing priority.

An example of shared event sponsorship was the pop-ular two-day Southern Alberta Diagnostic Field School in2006 that drew over 120 attendees. Sponsors includedthe Alberta Canola Producers Commission and AlbertaPulse Growers with additional contributions from manyrelated companies and individuals. Agriculture Food(AF), Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, Agrium andComplete Agronomic Services provided both assistancein the form of instructors and equipment. (Check

www.diagnosticfieldschool.com for details on next year’sevent.)

Elizabeth Tokariuk, Manager of SARA comments that,“Funding concerns for us are a challenge that we aremeeting head-on. Our board and members identify alarge number of issues that they would like to seeaddressed through our work. However, there is neverenough consistent funding to do everything we wouldlike. The funding programs in place now are very good,but as with all programs, in order to ensure the projectsremain relevant, each of the projects has to be renewedon a regular basis. The uncertainty of running a five-yearproject through an initial three-year program, for exam-ple, can lead to some anxiety no matter how current andrelevant the project.”

A visit to SARA’s website at www.areca.ab.ca/sara/will lead you to a newsletter link which in turn providesinformation on past, present and future activities. Youcan also contact SARA by telephone in Lethbridge at(403) 328-0059 or by e-mail to sara-research@connect-comm.ca

Research FundingPresents Challenges & Rewards By Ron Montgomery

19

Research Champions New Approachto Antimicrobials for Beef Industry

Research is helping Canada's beef industrystrengthen the management of antimicrobial drugs, toreduce resistance issues and producer cost while sup-porting animal health.

"Finding ways to reduce reliance on antimicrobialsis not an easy thing, but it's clear that's the directionthe industry has to move," says Dr. Tim McAllister,beef cattle researcher at Agriculture and Agri-FoodCanada's (AAFC) Lethbridge Research Centre.

"We have the knowledge today to manage animalsbetter. We know about handling procedures that min-imize stress. And we know about a range of animalmanagement practices in the feedlot, includingdietary strategies, that can minimize the risk of dis-ease without adding major cost to production.Employing those practices can go a long way towardreducing reliance on antimicrobials."

McAllister discusses the research effort tostrengthen antimicrobial strategies in a new,"Perspectives on Beef Science" article on theMeristem Land and Science Web site, www.meris-tem.com.

For more information contact: Dr. Tim McAllister,Research Scientist Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada,(403) 317-2240

Wouldn't it be nice to have adirect line to a network of agricul-tural practice experts on the leadingedge of farming in southern Alberta?

According to Ron Svanes, this iswhat you get out of a position as aDirector on the Southern AppliedResearch Association (SARA) Board.

"I always look forward to SARAmeetings. I like the fellowship.

When you serve on a board, youmeet new people and get exposed tonew ideas," says Svanes. He consid-ers what he learns through hisinvolvement in agricultural researcha way out of a rut. In the past 25years, Svanes has given a home onhis farm to many applied and pureresearch projects and demonstrationplots. He's worked with AlbertaAgriculture, Agriculture Canada andSARA.

"You always pick up some neatideas and it gives you the confidenceto try it on your own farm. When

you see the plots work, it's not a bigjump to use the technology or man-agement on my own farm," he says.

He's also built up lots of contactsover the years to talk about farmingquestions.

"It's a great network," he says.He points out there is another

side to this coin. Some years back,Alberta Agriculture made cutbacksto budgets that ceased funding formany agricultural research projects.This has forced research scientistsand applied scientists to search forother funding sources.

"It's a fund raising game. I thinkone of SARA's roles is to providemechanisms for applied researchscientists to do their work," Svanessays. He believes the research com-munity needs support and SARAtakes the onus off the scientists tochase funding for their work. In thisway, Svanes feels that by sitting onthe board he contributes to the over-

all progress of agriculture in south-ern Alberta.

"Farmers need to see new ideastried and proven in their area beforetaking risks," he explains and SARAmakes this possible. "The scientistswill challenge us to try somethingdifferent."

As just about anyone who'sserved on a board knows, the jobcan get bigger every time you go toa meeting. Not so with SARAaccording to Svanes. ExecutiveDirector Elizabeth Tokariuk keepsthe organizations day-to-day busi-ness up to date freeing the Boardmembers to concentrate on Boardresponsibilities.

"She makes our jobs as directorseasy and we focus on policy, direc-tion and ideas," he says. The boardmeets six times a year in Lethbridgeor Taber; which Svanes takes advan-tage of by using the trip to take careof other business as well.

"When I go to Lethbridge, there'salways things to pick up or I visit theaccountant, so I tend to multi-taskwhen I go to the meetings," he says.At the meetings, he enjoys hearingabout what's new and talking withfellow members. Occasionally, theBoard gets the opportunity to have aone-on-one meeting with an inter-national expert visiting the region.

"SARA will organize a smallmeeting that gives us the opportuni-ty to ask direct questions. It feelsvery hands-on and intimate," hesays.

He lists the three greatest benefitsof sitting on this board as: smalltime commitment, exposure toextension and research profession-als and special meetings withvisiting experts.

The SARA Board has 12 directorswho serve three-year terms.Elections take place at the annualmeetings in a rotation so that thereare always some experienced direc-tors on the Board.

Join the SARA Network by C. Lacombe

20

Photo by Claudette Lacombe

Fertilizer is one of the major costsfacing farmers as they head backonto their fields each spring. Thenecessary nutrients to enable targetyields come harvest are not cheap,but deciding what to apply andwhere can be a crapshoot withoutthe proper information.

That detailed support, however,is available to Alberta’s farmersthrough Alberta Agriculture’s web-site at www.agric.gov.ab.ca and,coupled with their own knowledgeof their fields and previous crops,can help farmers ensure they applyonly what they require. It’s AFFIRM(Alberta Farm Fertilizer InformationRecommendation Manager), and,says Ross McKenzie, a valuable toolthat can save money for those whouse it while aiding them in achievingtheir yield projections.

McKenzie, a research agronomistwith Alberta Agriculture in Lethbridge,favours a combination approachwhen determining fertilizer use.

“Soil testing, combined with datafrom AFFIRM and each farmer’sknowledge of their operation makesfor the best choice,” says McKenzie.

Yet, the majority of the province’sfarmers do not test their soil, relyinginstead on crop rotation to givethem a benchmark for the comingseason. It’s a gamble, another roleof the dice that can be eliminated.

McKenzie recommends farmersobtain soil samples from each oftheir fields in 15 to 20 locations atvaried depths and have them labtested to provide data they can thenplug into the AFFIRM website. Areputable lab will send back com-prehensive information on nitrogen,phosphorus, potassium and sulfurlevels and pH, along with a recom-mendation for the most effective useof fertilizer to obtain target yields.

McKenzie recommends usinglabs in Western Canada rather thanAmerican labs or those in EasternCanada, as they will base their rec-ommendations on prevailingconditions for the soils and crops intheir areas.

There is a price to soil testing, ofcourse, but when fertilizer costs fora good-sized farm can run between$50,000 to over $100,000, a bill for$100 to $125 per field for informa-tion that can ensure it’s usedeffectively is a legitimate expendi-ture, says McKenzie.

“It allows farmers to makeinformed decisions by indicatingwhether nutrients in a given field arelow, marginal, adequate or high. It’sa great tool.”

Soil testing in Alberta began inthe 1950s at the University ofAlberta, before being taken over byAlberta Agriculture. By the mid1980s, says McKenzie, private labshad sprung up and the provinceslowly backed out, leaving them toprovide the service. A similar evolu-tion occurred in Saskatchewan andManitoba.

McKenzie notes soil testing is notalways a yearly requirement; nitro-gen and sulfur content can varyfrom season to season, while phos-phorus and potassium generallyremain fairly constant. Using thisknowledge, farmers can make rea-sonable assumptions.

“I recognize they may not wanttest every field, every year due totime and cost. But if they test repre-sentative fields and combine thoseresults with their past experienceand knowledge, they can make edu-cated estimates of their fertilizerrequirements.”

Crop rotation plays a role in fer-tilizer use, as does weather. Peas, for

instance, use little nitrogen and, infact, their stubble releases nitrogeninto the soil. A farmer planning tofollow a pea crop with wheat cancut nitrogen fertilizer requirementsby 25 to 40 pounds per acre. A dryyear and a low yield will removefewer nutrients, thus requiring lessapplication the following season.

Location is another variable thatAFFIRM addresses. Soil and envir-onmental conditions in Lethbridgediffer from those in Medicine Hat orHigh River. Using the data specific tothe appropriate area, gleaned from20 years of research, and factoringin soil test values, farmers can dotheir own economics.

“If nitrogen fertilizer is 45 cents apound and the price per bushel ofbarley is $2, the economics ofapplying fertilizer is quite differentthan if fertilizer is 30 cents a poundand barley is worth $4 a bushel,”says McKenzie.

Fertilizer prices have beenincreasing of late, primarily the costof nitrogen, which requires naturalgas to manufacture. Potassium,meanwhile, is rarely needed insouthern Alberta. Yet, fewer thanone in four irrigation farmers botherto test their land; the number is evenlower for dryland operations.

“Without soil testing, farmers aremerely guessing and it’s costingthem money. The best combinationis soil testing coupled with logic ofknowing fertilizer prices, crop val-ues, and the production potential ofyour land,” says McKenzie.

Reduce Fertilizer Coststhrough Soil Testingby Peter Scott

21

Until reading this book, the whole issue of globalwarming/climate change seemed like a block of Swisscheese for me. It was a block of information full of holes.I kept adding slices of information, but those holes havea habit of lining up and making understanding incom-plete.

I'm a Canadian that lives in one of the coldestprovinces in winter. The standing joke in our family is,"Global warming? Bring it on!" When the wind blows at-25, it's very tempting to think of a moderating climatefor our region. In fact, a measly three degrees seemednot enough. Let's go for California north! Pump that CO2,it's still too cold around here.

At the same time, it's been difficult to ignore how dryit's getting in summer and how much time we spend out-side by the fire at my Christmas party. We still get coldsnaps, but overall winter seems dry and warm in myneck of the woods - prairie actually.

Flannery gave me the answers to many questions.Now I understand that what's happening in my backyardis a tiny part of a much bigger phenomenon.

Flannery explains global warming, climate changeand global dimming; the composition of the aerial oceanand the impact of chemical changes on its behavior.

He explains the interaction between the aerial and liq-uid oceans that make weather and regulate climate. Also,the major climate regulators, such as the Gulf Stream,and some history of past changes to these that changedclimate in different epochs.

He also explains the fact that climate change scienceis about 50 years old and there has never been any sci-entific doubt that it is occuring. He gives the reasons thepublic has experienced confusion and doubt about theimpacts human activities cause to the planet's weathermaking systems.

He informs his readers about the climate changes wewill experience that we are committed to as of 2006 dueto the changes already made in the aerial ocean. Becausecertain substances have documented life spans in theatmosphere, the planet cannot avoid a 1-3C increase intemperature. He catalogues the likely climate impactsunder these circumstances and points out that we con-tinue to contribute the catalysts to the atmosphere that

can increase this range. He also explains why someregions will see more climate change than others, butthat because climate is a global system, no one willescape hardship and changes.

He tells us about the extinctions already directlyattributable to climate change and those that areinevitable due to current conditions. He introduces theterm "committed to extinction" and catalogues theecosystems and species we will lose over the next 30-40years - guaranteed.

He introduces the term "climate magic gates" thatoccur at tipping points. Earth passed through two magicgates already - one in 1976 and another in 1998. He alsocautions about positive feedback loops; which is whenchanges begin to create their own momentum.

He also talks about how the problem will escalate ifwe don't make changes and writes about the solutionsand steps humans can take to stop further climatechange. He outlines which processes contribute the mostdangerous emissions and the existing technologies thatcan replace them. This is where I realized leaving lightson can be more damaging than driving my car in Alberta.Partly because I drive very little, but mostly because wegenerate electricity with coal in Alberta.

I cannot possibly give you all the information in thisbook in a book review. However, I will say that if youwant to understand this issue, The Weather Makersoffers the most information tied together to create a solidblock that anyone can read. It gives you the ability tomake decisions based on scientific information to daterelated to climate change. For me, it melted the Swisscheese into cheese sauce that I can use to flavor my deci-sions.

Book Review by C. Lacombe

22

The Weather Makers

Author: Tim Flannery

ISBN-13: 978-0-00-200751-1

ISBN-10: 0-00-200751-7

Published in Canada by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

New Publication from Alberta Environmental Farm Plan CompanyA new publication available free of charge to Alberta

producers provides an overview of the EnvironmentalFarm Plan (EFP) program in Alberta and an easilyscanned snapshot of the resources available.

The publication is a special print version of theAEFP Journal, a Web-based magazine that offers pro-

ducers success stories, EFP program information andlinks to resources. The AEFP Journal Web magazine isupdated throughout the year and is also available freeof charge at the Alberta Environmental Farm PlanCompany (AEFP) Web site, www.AlbertaEFP.com.

Soil Fertility, Agronomy, Weeds, Herbicides, Diseases, Insects

SARA, AAFRD, AAFC and industry to present hands-on workshops. Experts addresscurrent issues and challenge you to see more in the plots. An intense learning experiencethat's invaluable for crop planning, problem diagnosis and management.

If you can't come, make sure your crop advisor attends.

To register or for more info: Elizabeth Tokariuk 403-328-0059 (Fax 380-3889)

E-mail: Sara.research@connectcomm.ca

Soils & CropsDiagnostic Field School

Lethbridge Research Centre – July 27 – 29th, 2006 Lethbridge Community College Animal Husbandry Site – July 10-12, 2007

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