The Editor's Desk

Hopper Days

Grasshoppers are eating everything in sight. Let’s party! That was the conclusion of community leaders in my home town of Hartney, Manitoba in 1987. I was a teenager on the farm in the 1980s. The decade started with high interest rates and farm foreclosures and ended with dry conditions and grasshoppers. “It wasn’t much fun,”...

In the introduction to the Pan-Canadian Framework, the federal government’s plan to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, it is argued that across the globe humans are seeing increasingly severe weather phenomena. It is becoming more and more apparent that governments need to prepare for changes in climate. There is increasing international pressure to reduce carbon...

Investing in research at the early pre-breeding or germplasm-enhancement stage provides the foundational pieces that complement commercial hybrid seed breeding programs and the ultimate release of new traits and hybrids. SaskCanola strategically invests in canola research, including several upstream projects in germplasm enhancement and trait development. “Our pre-breeding research and innovation strategy encompasses germplasm enhancement,...

Become involved with an organization that is on the cutting edge of the canola industry. Manitoba Canola Growers is seeking members to stand for election to the Board of Directors. Four positions are up for election, each holding a four-year term. Successful applicants will have the unique opportunity to represent the canola farmers in Manitoba....

Feature

How to Improve Yield with Genetics

Canola has a lot of untapped yield potential. Yield starts with cultivar selection, and then relies on environmental conditions and agronomy decisions. This article will look at this three-pronged relationship – genotype (the specific canola hybrid and its traits), environment and management, often shortened to G x E x M – with extra emphasis on genetic decisions.