Clubroot found in Alberta’s Peace region

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Alberta’s Peace region has taken flack over the years for its tight canola rotations. The snow-canola-snow rotation was once a laughing matter, but after today’s announcement the joke is no longer funny. The Canola Council of Canada has announced that clubroot has been discovered in the southeast corner of the northern Alberta region. This changes things quickly for many farmers, agronomists, and the industry.

Canola School: 13 New Strains Serve as Warnings About Clubroot Resistance

According to the Canola Council of Canada website, the environmental conditions that enable the disease are:

“Warm soil (20-24°C), high soil moisture, and acid soil (pH less than 6.5) all favour infection and the severity of disease development. Soils with a pH over 7.2 tend to inhibit spore germination and disease development, although the disease can still develop. High pH soils will not prevent P. brassicae from arriving in a field, nor prevent the disease from infecting susceptible plants, and nor will it prevent yield loss from occurring.”

Canola School: Genetic Diversity and the Fight to Protect Clubroot Resistance

Seeding clubroot resistant varieties will be just the beginning for growers in the Peace region as they adjust to a life of dealing with clubroot like their farming peers in the Edmonton area have.

In this conversation with Greg Sekulic, Canola Council of Canada agronomist, Shaun asks Greg about the clubroot finding and what this could mean for canola rotations and clubroot stewardship in the future.

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