Indian Head Agricultural Research Foundation (IHARF) hosted its annual Crop Management Field Day on July 16. The non-profit organization works closely with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, as well as other industry partners, to conduct research relating to various aspects of crop production in Saskatchewan. The field day event provides growers, suppliers, students and others from the agriculture industry with valuable information about small- and large-scale research projects in Indian Head.
Field day participants gathered at the Indian Head Bell Barn on Tuesday morning where four charter buses waited to transport them to nearby field sites. Considering the restored barn’s role in agricultural history, it was a meaningful rendezvous location. Half the group toured fields managed by IHARF in the morning, while the remaining participants visited areas managed by Agri-Food Canada. Following a lunch catered by Indian Head Bakery, the groups alternated tour sites.
During the tour of IHARF’s pulse crop and cereal fields, Research Manager Chris Holzapfel provided a detailed commentary on the various projects undertaken with support from Saskatchewan Pulse Growers and similar industry partners. As the group made its way through the fields on Tuesday morning, Holzapfel explained the purpose and parameters for the different small plot and field scale trials. Other experts like Meagan Reed from Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, Mitchell Japp from Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission (SaskBarley), and Kelly Turkington from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada also shared their knowledge about particular studies.
The tour highlighted research projects relating to peas, lentils, soybeans, faba beans and fenugreek, as well as oats, wheat and barley. Data is currently being collected to determine the best seeding or fertilizer rates, suitable options for disease and pest mitigation, and similar yield improvement strategies.
One trial currently in progress was initiated to investigate means of combating yield loss caused by the Pea Leaf Weevil on faba beans and peas. This research involves experiments with different seeding dates, insecticide treatments, and nitrogen additives. Other trials that were presented during the tour involved testing nitrogen application rates on multiple oat varieties and researching means of combating Fusarium head blight on durum wheat.
Along with the verbal explanations of projects that were provided during the field day tours, researchers at IHARF compile reports of their findings each year which can be accessed online at www.iharf.ca under the “Research” tab.
