If dogs can detect trace amounts of drugs in luggage, could they be trained to sniff out plant disease, too? The short answer is yes — and a research scientist headed up a project to prove it in a one-year, proof of concept study out of Alberta. Mike Harding, research scientist with Alberta Agriculture &… Read More
Category: Clubroot
Manitoba Agriculture reports a new strain of clubroot has been identified in the Rural Municipality of Pembina. The soil-borne pathogen of canola and other brassica species have several pathotypes. The new strain of clubroot is identified as pathotype 3A, and is able to overcome some first-generation sources of genetic resistance in commercial canola varieties, says… Read More
The Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission (SaskCanola) has announced a budget of $170,000 for the 2019 provincial clubroot survey. This is the second year the organization has funded the survey in partnership from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture and the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) Plant Health Officers. “We have a responsibility, as an organization… Read More
Clubroot. Many producers have the viewpoint of “We don’t have it in our area, so we don’t need to sanitize.” This isn’t an alert that clubroot has spread — it’s an acknowledgment that it could come to your area, even if you are in a non-traditional clubroot zone, which is why growers have to be careful… Read More
The Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture has been hosting meetings this winter to help farmers keep up with the most current science and best management practices to deal with clubroot. Many of the meetings have been conducted with the participation of Canola Council of Canada agronomists and other industry specialists. Allie Noble, crops extension specialist with… Read More
John Guelly, farmer from Westlock, Alta., was recently elected chair of the Alberta Canola Producers Commission (ACPC). He has become known in some areas as “Mr. Clubroot,” largely as a result his work to remove the stigma from having clubroot, and being the founding member of Clubroot Anonymous. He recently sat down to talk with… Read More
The Saskatchewan Government has mapped out where clubroot has been discovered in the province. To date, there have been 46 confirmed cases of the disease in commercial canola fields, up from 37 reported late in 2018. The pathogen was even confirmed in three fields that did not exhibit symptoms. “Monitoring the spread of clubroot through… Read More
One thing that is becoming very clear at the agronomy meetings this fall is that, when it comes to clubroot, the maps are changing and not in a good way. Bruce Gossen, plant pathologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), gave a presentation on clubroot at the Canola Industry Days held at Saskatoon recently. He… Read More
Any illusions that Saskatchewan had some sort of secret immunity to clubroot should be put to rest with new findings just announced by SaskCanola. According to a press release, 37 fields in the province have been confirmed to have had clubroot symptoms. Up until this time there have been relatively few fields with clubroot identified… Read More
Every once in a while a group with a real passion for something get a chance to get together and talk about what they care about. If you get to be in room with with them, you can’t help but feel the energy and, most likely, learn something. The Western Forum on Pest Management (WFPM)… Read More
Where clubroot is a risk, are you stretching canola rotations or using a clubroot-resistant variety? Realistically, you should be doing both — and not all clubroot resistance is created equal. While industry and plant breeders should be commended for the speed at which clubroot-resistant varieties were introduced, we know now that that early, single-gene resistance… Read More
Now is the time to check canola fields for symptoms of clubroot, as a new streak of cases have been found in Manitoba over the last few weeks. The clubroot map for the province will likely be changing this fall, as the soil-borne disease has been found in a new municipality, says Holly Derksen, field… Read More
Relatively few cases of clubroot have been confirmed in Saskatchewan, but with many documented cases just to the west in Alberta an obvious question emerges – has Saskatchewan been good or has it been lucky? In this episode of Real Agriculture’s Canola School, Errin Willenborg, research director with SaskCanola, discusses the status of the clubroot… Read More
The Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan, along with the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM), announced a new Pest Biosecurity Program for the province on Thursday. An overview The program will receive an annual investment of $2.85 million from the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP), for five years. Administered by the SARM, it will offer rural municipalities… Read More
Although it’s been proven that high pH soil will not stop the spread of clubroot disease, liming has been used as a tool to curb the disease in other parts of the world. Early results from a research project underway in Alberta show raising the pH of acidic fields with lime could potentially aid in… Read More