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
Tag: Mike Harding
Harvest has progressed in some areas but unfortunately for some, it came to a screeching halt with a blast of snow. RealAg Radio host, Shaun Haney hopes that if you were stuck from getting into the combine you at least got the chance to catch up with family and friends, rest, and then be ready… Read More
Visible clubroot symptoms were first identified in a canola field in Alberta in 2003. It has since spread through much of the province, and by the end of 2014, it was present in 30 municipalities and into neighbouring provinces. It was also that year, that a pathotype of the disease observed the year earlier was confirmed… Read More
It’s certainly not a disease you want to find in your fields, but if you do, there are good reasons to talk about it — specifically, report it — says Michael Harding, research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry.“If it’s the first time clubroot’s been found in the field, by reporting it, you can get help…. Read More
Blackleg, a fungal disease of canola, is getting away with murder. That’s right, murder. This fall, dead, brittle canola plants at swathing or harvest are being attributed, sometimes very wrongly, to sclerotinia infection when, in fact, blackleg is to blame. It’s likely been happening for years, Clint Jurke, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of… Read More