Robert Arnason, The Western Producer

Almost no rain has fallen since April 1 in Nipawin and Prince Albert 

Rain has become a rarity in Nipawin, Sask.

In the 30 days of April, Nipawin received one millimetre of precipitation. In the first 27 days of May, the Environment Canada weather station in Nipawin recorded 1.5 mm of rain and snow.

It’s a similar story across the northern agricultural region of Saskatchewan. There’s been almost no rain this spring in Hudson Bay, Carrot River and Prince Albert.

The department says producer engagement, field demonstrations and making data available online are expected of its researchers

Agriculture Canada employs about 380 scientists at its 20 research centres across the country.

Their job?

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India takes the plunge, but some crop sectors remain hesitant.

May 4, 2025, could be a significant day in the history of agriculture.

On that day, Indian agriculture minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced the release of two gene-edited rice varieties.

The announcement signals to the world that India — a country of nearly 1.5 billion people — is committed to gene edited technologies and modern tools to improve crop production.

A U.S. company develops a trait that it says provides genetic resistance to sclerotinia, which can be challenging for growers.

A San Diego company is closer to commercializing a trait that could protect canola from sclerotinia.

In April, Cibus announced that two of its disease resistance traits for canola have been designated as “not regulated” by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“We are encouraged by USDA-APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) broad designation for these traits being developed,” said Cibus co-founder Peter Beetham.

Land grant universities mainly handle extension work in the United States; in Canada, it’s described as more of a ‘mish-mash’

WINNIPEG — Canada’s system of getting the latest and most useful information to farmers is very different from what happens in the United States.

South of the border, there are more than 200 land grant universities across the U.S.

All universities teach students and do research, but land grant universities have a third mission — extension.

WINNIPEG — Wheat growers in North Dakota have altered how they use fungicides to control fusarium head blight.

Many farmers now apply fungicides later, after flowers first appear on wheat heads, to cut the risk of fusarium damaged kernels (FDK) and reduce levels of deoxynivalenol (DON) in cereals.

Western Canadian farmers should make a similar switch, says a plant pathologist with Agriculture Canada in Alberta.

Right now, some agronomists and grower groups say the ideal fungicide timing starts when 75 per cent of wheat heads are fully emerged.