Farmers and others involved in the ag industry were hosted at the Scott Research Farm, part of the Saskatoon Research Centre, for a field day Aug. 1.
Eric Johnson, officer in charge of the Scott Research Farm, was pleased with the turnout of approximately 110 visitors. The original field day date of July 11 had to be cancelled due to the fields being too wet and with the change in dates, the change to a half-day from a full day and only two weeks of advertising, research staff weren't sure how many attendees they would have on the rescheduled date.
Three fully loaded trailers transported the group out to the fields to have a look at a number of test plots. During the trailer ride to the field, summer students shared the weather statistics with the field day participants. While temperatures this year have not been far off the long-term averages, to date total rainfall has been 13.8 inches, about 6.9 inches above the long-term average.
The first stop was at a wild oats weed control demonstration project, funded by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture's Agricultural Demonstration of Practices and Technologies (ADOPT) program.
Johnson spoke about the options for managing herbicide resistance in wild oats. Wild oats in different pots had been treated with various combinations of group 1 and group 2 herbicides. As much as 35 to 50 per cent of wild oats in the province are group 1 resistant today. Johnson said that while many producers were switching to group 2 herbicides as a result, that is a short-term solution only. Already 10 per cent of wild oats are both group 1 and group 2 resistant.
The importance of cultural methods of control is increasing and farmers will need to "rely less on herbicide," according to Johnson. Research plots of three varieties of hard red wheat were planted at different densities in order to determine the best number of seeds to plant for a competitive crop and less wild oats. The recommendation emerging from the research is that 26-40 seeds per square metre results in the optimum density. Farmers may have to start seeding by number of seeds per acre as opposed to seeding by weight.
Some of the test plots of different densities also had had different herbicides applied and it appeared that adjusting the seeding rate to the 26-40 seeds per square metre and the use of Avenge was the best combination, at least for now.
The group were then driven out to section 19 to see a number of test plots. The first stop in section 19 was to look at the results of a study investigating nitrogen management in cropping systems, using pulses, wheat and canola in rotation. Johnson said the question underlying the project was: "do pulse crops reduce nitrogen requirements?"
The study is being repeated at five other locations in addition to Scott and researchers are generally finding there is an increase in yield for both wheat and canola when planted on pulse stubble. Johnson did caution that at the Lethbridge location they have found cutworm damage on canola to be worse when planting specifically into lentil stubble.
Next up was a project, in its second year, which integrates cultural, chemical and mechanical weed management to control herbicide resistant broadleaf weeds in lentil fields, funded by the Agriculture Development Fund of SaskAg and by the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers.
Colleen Redlick, a graduate student from the University of Saskatchewan, introduced the project by saying she remembers being out with her dad and seeing what they thought were poor canola fields in the distance which turned out to be lentils full of wild mustard.
Redlick said they are finding there is the potential to cut herbicide rates if cultural and mechanical methods are also used. Again, different seeding rates were used in test plots - anywhere from 130 to 520 seeds per square metre. Higher density crops do crowd out weeds but Redlick noted that further research needed to be done at the 520 seeds per square metre rate as that did seem to increase sclerotinia, a stem rot disease.
The mechanical method used was a rotary hoe, which Johnson said they had already been using for a number of years in organic production. The rotary hoe's two sets of plates are about a foot apart to ensure they don't plug up. The faster you go, the better, and it works best on slightly hard, dry ground. This year they had a little more injury to the crops because it was so wet. The plates on the hoe rotate and flick out the little shallow-rooted weeds, leaving the deeper rooted crop intact. Usually more than one pass is necessary.
A short walk away was a field pea input experiment. Western Applied Research Corporation (WARC) research manager Anne Kirk explained this was the first year of a four-year project taking place in four different locations in Saskatchewan. Test plots were planted with different combinations of inputs and to date it seems the granular inoculant seems to be the input which makes the biggest difference and provides the most benefit.
Kirk also showed the group plots testing canola seeding rates, time of seeding and when is reseeding justified. This study, taking place in five locations in Saskatchewan, is in its third and final year.
While it's generally accepted that a minimum of 45 canola plants per square metre is needed for a 90 per cent yield, there has not been much information regarding hybrid varieties. What the researchers have found is that for hybrid canola, a minimum of 22 plants per square metre is sufficient. Kirk said they are finding that the branches and pods on a canola plant increase to compensate for low density.
Kirk did caution weeds are a problem when there is not much canola to compete against.
Complementary to the seeding rate study was a study looking at different times for seeding and reseeding. Reseeding in early June resulted in similar yield and no less green seed than using a high seeding rate in early May. Reseeding in mid-June, however, did result in yield losses and increases in green seed.
Then it was time for another ride on the trailers as the group was taken to a project looking at the impact of seeding speeds on canola, funded by ADOPT.
Sherrilyn Phelps with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture said the experiment has also included a number of producers testing different seeding speeds in their own fields, using their own equipment. While a very few locations have showed a negative response to faster seeding, the loss of plants per square metre has not been large. "So," Phelps concluded, "if you are pressed for time, you can go faster rather than delay seeding."
Phelps said that depth of seed has a bigger impact on emergence than speed. She recommended producers take an extra hour in that first field on the first day of seeding to check and adjust equipment for depth, calibration and uniformity for the best emergence rates.
Before leaving the patches of canola, Phelps also spoke about diseases and pests in canola. She demonstrated how to sweep for pests, using a cloth net. Small amounts of pests don't necessarily call for spraying as "you have to also consider the beneficial insects," she said. Bertha armyworms and lygas have been reported as problems this year and the threshold for spraying is finding 10 bertha armyworms per square metre and/or 10 lygas per sweep. Phelps advised, "Now is the time to be vigilantly checking your crops for these."
The next stop was at a study looking at the impact of fungicide and herbicide timing on disease, weed control and yield of barley, funded by the Growing Forward Barley DIAP program. Johnson started the presentation by saying this was part of a collaborative study right across Canada.
Johnson said the flag leaf of a barley plant is the critical part to protect as loss of the flag leaf results in about a 40 per cent yield loss. In the experiment, now in its second year, various combinations of herbicides and fungicides were applied at varying times. What they have found is that the best benefits came from applying the fungicide at the flag leaf stage versus combining it with herbicides at the 2 to 3 and/or 5 to 6 leaf stages. Applying fungicide at the flag leaf stage resulted in increased yields of between 28 to 38 bushels per acre.
As a side note, he added they have found higher seeding rates of malt barley result in kernels not as plump but more uniform.
The final presentation of the day took place back at the yard, where John Hauer, forage specialist with SaskAg, showed off the test plots of forages planted to test saline tolerance. This project, funded by ADOPT, was initiated by the number of saline areas in Saskatchewan. At the far end of the plots, it was easy to see which forages tolerated the increased salinity best as some areas were completely bare. Hauer pointed out, however, that the palatability of the forage for livestock also has to be considered and so they are experimenting with new varieties of alfalfa.
The Scott Research Farm employs eight people, including two biologists, as well as 15 summer students and seasonal employees. The farm has been associated with WARC for 10 years. WARC is directed by a seven-member board representing producers from the northwest agricultural region of Saskatchewan and has two full-time and four part-time employees. WARC is a producer-based organization, facilitating field research, demonstrations and communication of research results and information to producers.
