The 2000 crop year presented a few challenges. A cool wet spring coupled with excessive rainfall (16+ inches of rainfall between mid-June and late July) and an early frost (August 31) had an impact on the crops. Most projects were completed but results have yet to be tallied. There were a number of successful tours this summer and as in the past, our school program was extremely busy.
Crops
Harvest is done for 2000. The AC Elsa and AC Barrie wheat were very good crops and yielded 55 and 52 bushels per acre respectively. Unfortunately, both crops were touched by the frost on August 31, downgrading the grain to feed. Some trials examined granular versus foliar copper and foliar nitrogen on the Barrie wheat but are waiting for results. The "strip-farmed" AC Metcalfe malting barley was light (47 pounds per bushel) and yielded about 60 bushels per acre.
The fall-seeded canola froze, did not emerge and/or was choked out by weeds. Yield was very poor and dockage very high. Time to swath was a best-guess scenario - part of the field was still blooming, part was ready to be swathed and part was already ripe. We chose the middle road. The section that we sprayed with extra nitrogen and sulphur had large patches that were still blooming when the rest of the field was ready to be swathed. Therefore, when considering applying extra fertilizer it is necessary to take into consideration the effect on the length of the growing season. Some results that were very clear are that fall spraying is extremely important to control winter annuals. Many of the weeds were winter annuals and had a significant impact on the reduced yield.
The Delta peas yielded about 25 bushels per acre. Weed control was (through an oversight on my part) very poor and this no doubt had an impact on yield. The claim of a stronger seed coat certainly appeared to be true with this variety. There seemed to be much less splitting although we will only know for sure once they are sold. Overall the Deltas were a very nice looking pea - smooth and round.
The CLC's precision farming project with Liberty Link canola yielded about 27 bushels per acre. The field was seeded using precision farming technology for varying fertilizer rates. Unfortunately, we could not generate a yield map, as we were unable to source a combine with yield mapping capabilities.
Caraway was seeded without a cover crop on 1.4 acres. Emergence and establishment was very good. Next year the caraway will be fertilized with 60 lbs N, 20 lbs P, 20 lbs S and possibly 20 lbs K (broadcast).
School
The education program was extremely successful again this year, reaching 1853 students in 2000. The following school districts were invited to participate in the program at the CLC: Saskatoon (3), Melfort, Nipawin, Wakaw, Parkland, Saskatchewan Valley, Prince Albert (2), Division Scolaire Francophone and the Saskatchewan Home School Association. We are trying to remember to call the program the "education" program because we are now getting groups that are not school-related such as 4-H clubs, environment clubs and Katimavik. Again, we have had wonderful reviews from the visitors to the CLC. We appreciate the feedback because it helps us expand our program.
The CLC has again been nominated for the Outstanding Agriculture Ambassador Award. The nomination was submitted by Chris Clinton, a teacher involved in the Outdoor School at Carlton Comprehensive High School in Prince Albert. Mr. Clinton and his group camped at the farm again this fall and sessions included the importance of shelterbelts (after which the students had to design a shelterbelt for a farm site), the area of agroforestry, soil development, erosion and conservation and GMO's.
In October, we participated in the National Agriculture Awareness Conference in Saskatoon. All participants were involved in ensuring agriculture is in the classroom. Representatives from all provinces (except New Brunswick) as well as federal officials and educators nationwide were present. Through the course of the conference, over 40 attendees stopped by the booth or approached me to discuss our program. All exclaimed at the good fortune of Saskatchewan teachers to have such a facility at their disposal. Many were excited about the opportunities such a facility could present to school students in their provinces and were interested in more detailed information about the CLC and its operations, including the education program. It was extremely gratifying to see such enthusiasm about our education program from outside the province.
In an effort to attract more schools to the CLC, we will be participating in Showcase 2001 in Saskatoon. It is the annual teachers' convention - attendance for teachers is compulsory and all teachers in the north half of the province (about 7,000) will be attending. We hope to generate more interest in our programs and increase participation further.
Again, thank you to the Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission for supporting our school program.
Partners and Sponsors
The CLC would like to thank its partners and sponsors for the 2000-2001 year:
CURRENT PARTNERS:
Ducks Unlimited
Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission
FOUNDING PARNTERS:
Ducks Unlimited
Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association
Royal Bank
SILVER SPONSORS:
Simplot
Cyanamid
Monsanto
BASF
CONTRIBUTORS:
Ag Depot K & K Seeds
AGSCO
LiphaTech
Aventis
Maple Ridge Farms
Bayer
Neighbours of the CLC
Bio Tepp
Newfield Seeds
Byrne's Agri Service
Novartis
Cargill
Performance Seeds
Cay Seeds
PFRA
Dow AgroSciences
Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
Dupont
Saskatchewan Wheat Pool
Farm Agro Sales Ltd.
SeCan
Farm World
Silhouette Seeds
Gates Fertilizer
United Agri Products
Gustafson
Zeneca Agro
PROJECT FUNDING:
Canada-Saskatchewan Agri-Food Innovation Agreement
Canadian Adaptation and Rural Development Saskatchewan
Without the support of these organizations, groups and individuals, programs at the CLC would be severely affected. Thank you again for your contributions.