The idea of variable-rate irrigation is hardly new. As early as 2012, news of field trials was coming out of Alberta, although one of the leads of that project, provincial researcher Ted Harms, later noted that his co-operating producers became frustrated with the technology and that more research was needed.

Nevertheless, by 2015 our sister publication Alberta Farmer reported that 50-60 variable-rate irrigation systems, otherwise known as VRI, were set up in the province as farmers chased more efficient water usage.

Researchers out of the CMCDC have been trying to get local numbers for those benefits, as well as a better footing on sensor technology that may or may not be appearing in future fields.

The Carberry station has played host to a list of AAFC variable-rate irrigation projects in recent years.

“It’s not an option that’s going to work for every producer,” Alison Nelson, AAFC researcher and one of the project leads at Carberry, said. “It depends on their field and the level of variability that they deal with, and it’s not going to be a one-size-fits-all solution in terms of how they manage it.”

Nelson’s team found that VRI did, in fact, provide an edge in 2016. The technology was put to the test at both the AAFC site in Carberry and a commercial field. Plots in the commercial field showed, “significantly higher tuber yields under VRI management,” although there was no difference to quality.

There was no similar yield bump at the AAFC site, but defects were cut in half with VRI. Hollow hearts, rot and green dropped from about 16.6 per cent in the regularly irrigated crop to 8.3 per cent with variable irrigation.

The results looked promising, the team noted in the CMCDC’s annual report that year.

Results told a different story in 2017. Variable-rate irrigation gave little benefit in either yield or quality, something Nelson suggests might be due to the dry weather.

“The irrigation was just running all the time to try and keep up,” she said. “There were very few times that we needed to vary the rate across the variable zones.”

The quality boost in 2016 may highlight one of the technology’s most prevalent selling points in Manitoba, given that the province was caught in a wet cycle for much of the preceding decade, according to Jarrett Powers, another Carberry AAFC potato project lead.

How to apply it?

Like other precision agriculture, Powers notes, VRI technology is still running ahead of the industry’s ability to use it. It’s no surprise to say that precision agriculture in general is as much about the farmer’s ability to gather and interpret data as it is the technological ability to turn a nozzle on or off via computer or deliver a specific product at a certain rate and soil depth.

The ability to turn nozzles on and off has been in place for some time, Nelson said, although the first implementations of the technology focused more around turning a pivot off when it crossed roads or uncultivated sections.

More detailed applications, managing the field according to zone, are a relatively recent avenue, she said.

“There’s still work to be done in terms of what’s the most useful decision support tools for producers,” she said. “What’s going to get the information into their hands on a regular basis to make those irrigation decisions on a daily basis? What’s most cost effective? What’s the most accurate and the most real-time information they can get?”

AAFC Carberry hopes that space-age technology might eventually give another option for field-level data.

One research project is putting passive microwave sensors to the test, similar to environmental soil moisture sensors used by NASA satellites.

“They don’t measure soil moisture, per se, but they measure the microwave energy that’s being emitted from the soil, and mostly from the surface, so the top 10 to possibly 20 to 30 centimetres, depending on the soil type and how wet or dry it is,” Powers said.

“That microwave energy is affected by soil moisture,” he added. “So they’re able to derive a soil moisture value based on the microwave energy value that the radiometers are measuring.”

The study hopes to validate soil moisture data from the radiometers and determine whether it can be used for irrigation scheduling.

This year’s data reflected the expected trends across their one test field, Powers said, with lower or less sandy spots indicating greater soil moisture, while sandier ridges indicated drier readings. There needs to be more work done on calibration to derive absolute soil moisture, he added.

AAFC has partnered with Skaha Remote Sensing for the project.

The AAFC team previously looked at mounting sensors on a UAV drone, but moved to mounting radiometers directly onto pivots this year.

Fertigation is the next logical step for VRI, Nelson said, something that early adopters in Alberta have been playing with, but has so far not been explored at the Carberry research station.

The post Potato researchers delve into variable-rate irrigation appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

In fact there’s just one operation in the province using the system, the Berry family, at their Glenboro-area Over and Under the Hill Farms. Chad Berry says this is the second season they’ll be using it, and that roughly 10 per cent of the operation’s potato acres are bed planted.

He says the system appears to have a number of advantages, but cautions that it’s definitely a learning process, since local growing conditions are much different than the Pacific Northwest region where more potato acres are being grown in beds.

“When we went into this we were hoping to increase our water and nitrogen efficiency, get more evenly sized tubers and generally become more efficient,” Berry said during a recent interview. “I would say we’re seeing about a 10 per cent efficiency gain in water and nitrogen, and we’re saving an operation by not hilling.”

Garry Sloik, general manager of the Keystone Potato Producers’ Association (KPPA), says there are compelling reasons for Manitoba growers to look for every efficiency these days, and that’s part of the reason KPPA and the province’s processors are funding some bed-planting trial plots at the Canada-Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre in Carberry and at Berry’s farm this summer.

“In an era of a par dollar, we have to become as efficient as we possibly can,” Sloik said. “Frankly we need to improve our yields if we want to stay in the business.”

To give some sense of the scale of the challenge, the Pacific Northwest region averages yields of about 800 cwt/acre. Manitoba’s 10-year average is about 250 cwt/acre — although Sloik points out that if you take just the last five years, the average climbs to 280 cwt/acre.

“We know we need to move in this direction,” Sloik said.

Part of KPPA’s commitment to improving productivity for the potato sector can be seen in the recent hiring of a staff agronomist, Andrew Ronald, who joined the KPPA after a stint at one of the major processors. One of the opportunities that Ronald is focusing on is looking at the fit for a bed-planting system in the province.

He says it’s too early to tell for sure, but senses there might be some opportunities to incorporate it. For example it may let growers get the same plant populations per acre while increasing the linear spacing of the plants within the row, by sneaking an additional row into the bed. In the bed-planting configuration that the Berrys are using, five rows are planted in the same space that four rows would occupy in a conventional row system.

“I’m a big believer in the role of plant populations in our production system,” Ronald said. “At the end of the day, we’re simply capturing sunlight and this system should let us do that more efficiently spatially within the field.”

However, he also stresses that this won’t be a one-size-fits-all solution and that a big part of the challenge is going to be identifying exactly how and where it might work best. For example, he says there may be a fit for some of the varieties that tend to produce oversize potatoes, since the system seems to encourage more evenly sized tubers. There also may be a fit for end uses that require very specific sizes of potatoes — for example seed potatoes, speciality-type potatoes for the table market, seed potatoes or even a smaller-size processing potato for a speciality use.

“I certainly think that bed planting will prove to be advantageous for some of these uses,” Ronald said.

Back at Glenboro, Chad Berry says he has developed a bit of a feel for the system over the past season, and suspects that it will fit on sandier land, where water conservation is a concern, rather than drainage being the big issue. He also suspects it will be used on newer varieties like Innovator and Russet Ranger, since the widely grown Russet Burbank variety doesn’t seem to benefit much from it.

“I certainly wouldn’t see this taking over the whole farm — not as long as we’re growing Russet Burbank, that’s for sure,” he said. “But I do think there are applications for it, especially with some of the other varieties.”

The post Row cropping potatoes may be headed over the hill appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Five cases of the fungal disease responsible for the Irish Potato Famine in the 1840s, have been detected in potatoes, including in a “sentinel” plot at the Canada-Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre near Winkler last week, said Vikram Bisht, a plant pathologist with Manitoba Agriculture Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI).

The four other infected potato fields were near Holland, Carberry, Winkler and Carman.

“Though the number of fields affected and the severity of late blight is low, the inoculum is present in a wider swath of the province,” Bisht wrote last week in theMB Potato Newsnewsletter. “It is now critical for potato growers and home gardeners to monitor their crops for late blight. Irrigated potato fields and crops protected from wind or in river flats often have dew on the plants for long duration and could be prone to late blight infection.”

Tomatoes, potatoes, the petunia, tomatillo and weed nightshade plants all are susceptible to late blight.

There are many strains of late blight, some of which are more aggressive on tomatoes than potatoes and vice versa, Bisht said in an interview.

In the early stages of infection, the disease appears as water-soaked grey-green lesions on leaves and/or stems, Bisht wrote inMB Potato News.

With high humidity, the fungus will produce spores on the underside of leaves appearing as a white mildew-like growth on the leaves and stems. As the tissue dies, it turns grey to brown and dries up within a few days. Late blight spores are microscopic and are spread both by splashing rain and wind, which can carry them many miles.

However, not all spots on tomatoes or potatoes are necessarily late blight. If there are concentric rings of light-and dark-brown circles, often not crossing the veins and spots do not have white sporulation even under high humidity it could be early blight, another fungal disease.

“Early blight usually appears when the plants are nearing end of season or on plants with nutrient stress, but it is often not as devastating as late blight,” Bisht wrote.

Samples of diseased plants can be sent to MAFRI’s Crop Diagnostic Lab, 545 University Crescent, Winnipeg, MB or your local MAFRI GO office for a diagnosis. Non-commercial growers are subject to a $10 fee.

Samples should be packaged in containers that can breathe and be kept moist.

Late blight decimated tomatoes in gardens across the province in 2010, aided by extremely wet conditions.

Bisht has the following tips to manage late blight:

Buy certified seed potatoes to reduce the risk of introducing late blight.

Select tomato seedlings that appear healthy.

Keep a close watch on your tomato and potato plants during the growing season.

Preventive fungicide sprays may be applied if late blight is present in your neighbourhood.

Remove plants that show symptoms of the disease. Infected plants should be dug up, destroyed and disposed of properly to prevent the disease from spreading.

As a preventive measure, four compounds are registered for domestic use in home gardens as protectant fungicides. All are copper based.

King ECO-Way PTV Potato, Tomato &Vegetable Fungicide Spray (Wettable Powder).

King PTV Potato, Tomato &Vegetable Dust for Bugs and Blights (Insecticide/Fungicide Dust).

Green Earth BORDO Copper Spray (Wettable Powder).

Wilson Garden Doctor Insecticide/Fungicide (Dust formulation).

Contact your local home and garden centres for these products.

Don’t compost diseased plants. Carefully remove them and put them in plastic bags. Double bagging helps keep the spores from spreading. Set the plastic bags in the sun to heat the infected material enough to kill the plants.

Commercial potato growers who discover a localized late blight infection should use a restricted burn-off with Reglone plus a fungicide. If a hot spot can’t be identified immediately apply a fungicide with curative action. A five-day spray schedule is recommended.

In Prince Edward Island 21 cases of late blight have been confirmed, including on volunteer potato plants in a soybean field, Bisht wrote. For that reason volunteers should be controlled. allan@fbcpublishing.com

———

“Itisnowcriticalforpotatogrowersandhome gardenerstomonitortheircropsforlateblight.”

– VIKRAM BISHT

The post Late Blight Found In Tomatoes appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

After all, the signs weren’t good in the rest of the country.

A number of provinces, especially Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario, were cent ral izing, downs izing and, in some cases, eliminating their extension services. A drastic reduction in government agricultural extension seemed the norm across Canada.

But the doomsayers in Manitoba needn’t have worried. Extension service continued after the department’s first major overhaul in nearly 25 years.

That’s not to say there wasn’t a difference in the approach. There certainly was.

Gone were the local ag reps (agricultural representatives) who traced their roots in Manitoba back to 1915. They were now called production advisers and business development specialists.

Gone, too, were the five agricultural regions into which Manitoba had been carved in the 1970s. Replacing them was a net-w ork of GO (Growing Opportunities) teams. GO team managers took the place of regional directors. Knowledge centres supplanted former departmental branches.

It all seemed a bit bewildering to farmers accustomed to local ag reps and to staff agrologists used to

advising producers about growing things.

But the provincial Agriculture Department had undergone a metamorphosis in recent years and a reorganization was needed to reflect that, said Dori Gingera- Beauchemin, a Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives assistant deputy minister.

The department added “Food” to its moniker soon after the NDP government came to power in 1999. “Rural Initiatives” became part of the title following the NDP’s re-election in 2003.

The broader focus brought about a new mandate for MAFRI . The depar tment wasn’t just about crops and livestock any more. It was also about agricultural diversification, food processing and economic activity out on the land.

“We didn’t drop any programs when we did the realignment. We just developed different approaches to

doing them,” said Gingera- Beauchemin, who led a departmental team overseeing the changes.

Today, 11 GO teams in 41 offices throughout the province act as a front-line delivery arm for programs. Knowledge centres determine needs for programs and design them, Gingera- Beauchemin said.

It’s called horizontal management and it requires a different mindset from the one that prevailed before. GO teams have a wider scope than local agricultural offices used to have, GingeraBeauchemin said.

“It’s no longer serving one community only. The mandate of staff is to serve the entire team.”

Enlarging the focus enabled MAFRI to embrace all three mandates under its umbrella: agriculture, food and rural initiatives, she said.

Knowledge centres still deal with traditional farming, including crops and livestock. But they now also cover non-traditional ones, such as agri-environment, land use, innovation and adaptation, marketing, value-added and food commercialization.

GO off ices somet imes partner with industry in sharing facilities, Gingera- Beauchemin added. For example, the GO office in Winnipeg (yes, there’s agriculture in the city) is in the same building as the Manitoba Food Processors Association. The Carberry GO office is co-located with the Canada-Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre.

The transition wasn’t always a smooth one. Some staff had to relocate from the city to the country. Others had trouble making the switch in their job requirements, Gingera-Beauchemin acknowledged.

John McGregor, the former ag rep in Steinbach, said he enjoyed the change because his job title became production adviser with an emphasis on crops and livestock.

As a result, he was able to pick fields of specialty he was interested in: cereals, corn and forages.

“Of 100 per cent of my job, I threw away about 40 per cent of it and spent the remaining 60 per cent doing the 100 per cent,” said McGregor, who retired in April 2009 after 34 years with MAFRI.

But some ag reps who became business development specialists experienced more difficulty because they were thrust into an area for which they had limited background, he said.

Doug Chorney, who farms near Selkirk, said the GO team approach sometimes means farmers have to travel farther to get the information they need because the appropriate specialist isn’t available locally.

At the same time, the range of available expertise is broader, added Chorney, who is also Keystone Agricultural Producers vice-president.

For example, a farm business specialist can advise farmers on how to start up a short-line railway – something an ag rep might not have been able to do.

Chorney said he’s heard little from producers about MAFRI’s new extension model, which may be a case of no news being good news. ron@fbcpublishing.com

———

“It’snolongerservingonecommunityonly.”

– DORI GINGERA-BEAUCHEMIN, MAFRI ADM TEST

The post MAFRI Extension Takes On A Whole New Mandate appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

I kept urging my husband this spring, who does the bulk of the spring garden work every year.

He didn’t forget. A good thing too. We lost most of our garden’s potatoes to blight this year. But in our basement cold room where potatoes in gunny sacks would be by now, there are dozens of tan-coloured, bell-shaped squash instead.

This now-sought-after variety of winter squash was once obscure.

ROASTED VEGETABLE SOUP

This recipe is fromGreat Tastes of Manitoba 2009.

1 acorn or butternut

squash, cut into

eighths, seeded

3 carrots, peeled and

coarsely sliced

3 zucchini, peeled and

coarsely sliced

1 red onion, quartered

1/2 head cauliflower, cut

Preheat oven to 400 F. Combine squash, carrots, zucchini, red onion, cauliflower and garlic in a large bowl. Toss with canola oil, basil, salt and pepper. Place mixture on baking sheet, making sure the squash is cut side down. Roast in oven for 50 minutes or until tender. Using a big spoon, scoop the squash out of its skin and into a food processor. Remove garlic skin. Place in food processor. Add carrots, zucchini, onion and cauliflower. Purée the mixture, slowly adding half the amount of chicken broth. May have to work in two batches. A smooth texture is desired. Place purée mixture in large saucepan and add remaining broth. Mix well and heat through. Serve immediately.

Makes 6 servings.

We love hearing from readers and enjoy receiving your recipes or recipe requests.

Please contact us at: ManitobaCo-operatorRecipe Swap

Box 1794 Carman, Man. R0G 0J0 or email lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

Flip through your community cookbooks sometime. I’ve yet to come across a recipe for butternut squash.

It’s only been in the last few years that more home cooks have begun to grow it for their own use, or buy from the store, having discovered its great flavour and texture in soups, stews and casseroles. Recipes now abound in food magazines.

It’s rather interesting how this heavy, not-so-easy fruit – yes it is a fruit – has gained such appeal. A whole squash might

into florets

1 head of garlic

1/2 c. canola oil

1 tbsp. dried basil

Sea salt and pepper

to taste

7 c. chicken broth

look intimidating on the kitchen counter.

But I think cooks have discovered, in addition to its versatility, that it’s also an extremely economical addition to the pantry. Its abundant firm orange flesh is great for any number of meals and baked goodies. From a single squash I’ve produced a rich, creamy soup, a filling casserole, and a stew and still had flesh left over to mix into a quick bread.

A little background on the butternut squash. It’s a winter squash, and, as mentioned, fruit, being loaded with seeds

WHIPPED SQUASH

This is a simple way to make a colourful and great-tasting side dish. It’s my own adaptation from several recipes for mashed or whipped squash. – Lorraine

1 butternut squash,

halved and seeded

1/4 c. butter

1/4 c. light sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place squash halves on a cookie sheet and cover with aluminum foil. Bake about one hour until tender. Scrape squash from skin and mix with rest of ingredients. Whip until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

MEXICAN SQUASH STEW

1 c. canned tomatoes

1 389-ml can tomatoes

1 tbsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

and oregano

1/2 tsp. each cayenne

and allspice

3 garlic cloves, minced

4 c. butternut squash, cut

In a large pan mix together tomatoes with tomato sauce, spices and garlic. Boil, then add cubed squash. Cook at lower temperature until squash is tender. Stir in remaining ingredients. Serve topped with parsley and sour cream.

1 tbsp. brown sugar

1/4 tsp. mace, cinnamon

or nutmeg

into 1-inch cubes

1 19-oz. can (540 mL)

black beans, rinsed

and drained

1 c. frozen peas or corn

Fresh parsley if you

have it

Sour cream

you scrape out from its stringy interior. Don’t confuse butternut squash with buttercup squash, which is a turban squash type with dark-green skin. On the other hand, it doesn’t matter if you do. Buttercup squash works well in most recipes calling for butternut squash.

And if you find you can’t get it year round, and don’t grow it yourself, pay heed. It’s growing popularity hasn’t gone unnoticed and prompted provincial agricultural staff to begin research into new ways to make it available for longer periods.

Butternut squash does grow well here, but currently the only markets for it are fresh markets, limiting its sales to retailers or direct to consumers.

This year, three butternut squash growers in Manitoba teamed up with the Canada Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre and MAFRI staff to grow a demonstration plot and evaluate a novel processing method for butternut squash and the process quality of different butternut squash varieties.

Here’s a few recipes for using butternut squash this fall.

BUTTERCUP SQUASH CASSEROLE

This is a recipe found on Peak of the Market’s recipe site. This is a recipe for buttercup squash but you can substitute butternut squash for it too. You can find many more recipes on this website at www.peakmarket.com/recipes.

2 c. butternut squash,

cut into small cubes

1 c. potatoes,

cut into cubes

1 medium red

onion, chopped

1 small container of

sour cream

1 c. marble cheese

(your choice of mild,

medium or strong)

1 c. mozzarella cheese

(grated or cut in

small cubes)

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. basil leaf

In a large bowl; mix ingredients together. Transfer to a glass pan with a cover and place in oven for about 1 hour at 325 F. Note: You can substitute butternut squash for buttercup.

Serves 4

A RECIPE REQUEST

Karen Tjaden of Homewoodis looking for a Skor apple cake recipe which she recalls making several times but has since lost the recipe. The recipe includes a bag of Skor bits (half in the cake batter, the other half on top with slivered almonds) and chopped apples. If someone has this recipe could they share it with us? Many thanks!

The post The Butternut Squash Rediscovered appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Right now, all the hops used by breweries in Manitoba is imported. But in a few years, with some luck, local brewers could have a homegrown variety to use in producing their suds.

A project by Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives is trying to develop a variety of hops suitable for local growing conditions.

No one thought it could be done at first. Hops, a flowering plant, are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including Oregon, Washington and even British Columbia.

But MAFRI’s Brian Hunt cleared a big hurdle this year by getting root stock from the Pacific Coast to survive a harsh Manitoba winter.

Hunt now has samples of seven different commercial hops varieties growing in a test plot at the Canada-Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre.

He’s also growing some native hops in case it’s needed to help breed a variety specifically for Manitoba conditions.

Native hops grow wild throughout Manitoba. They’re not suitable for beer making, although home brewers sometimes do use it.

Hunt, a MAFRI vegetable and greenhouse specialist, hopes the West Coast plants, planted in the spring of 2008, have established themselves and genetic back-crossing with native stock may not be necessary. But future plans call for cross-pollinating varieties to increase hardiness, yield, vigour and quality.

The flowers are about to bloom and Hunt expects to start picking them in early September. The female flowers, or cones, are the part of hops used in brewing.

Hunt described his hops project during a recent field tour hosted by the Prairie Fruit Growers Association.

Hops is a perennial vine (technically, a “bine”) which dies back in autumn and sends up new shoots in spring. A climbing plant, it can be trained to grow along string or wires in fields called hop yards. Hunt has his hops growing around poles stacked in a teepee-like fashion.

One hops plant can yield up to 200 pounds of flowers. World prices, which recently collapsed below $1.20 a pound because of oversupply, have recovered to around $12.50 a pound. This potentially enables a single plant to produce $2,500 worth of product. Hunt believes hops can be a commercially viable crop at $5 to $7 per pound.

If a suitable variety can be developed, Hunt sees no reason why a local entrepreneur couldn’t become a commercial hops grower. Micro-breweries in Winnipeg have expressed interest, although they’d need a reliable supply of a product which has to meet exacting standards for the highly competitive brewing industry.

But first things first. Hunt says the next step, after developing a Manitoba-grown hops, will be to analyze it and see if it’s good enough to market.

The market might be bigger than brewers. According to recent U. S. research, hops contain substances that control pathogenic bacteria in the intestines of chickens. One such antimicrobial substance, a compound called lupalone, may help control clostridium, a bacterial disease, in chickens. This could make it an antibiotic alternative for poultry flocks.

Hops extract may also have value as a nutraceutical for humans. ron@fbcpublishing.com

The post New Crop For Local Brewers May Be Possible appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Please forward your agricultural events to daveb@fbcpublishing.comor call 204-944-5762

June 16-19– Canadian Co-operative Association congress and annual general meeting, Westin Ottawa, 11 Colonel By Dr., Ottawa. Theme: “Celebrating a century of co-operation.” For more info call 613-238-6711, ext. 243, or visit www. coopscanada. coop/100th/congress. cfm.

June 17-19 – Western Canada Farm Progress Show, Evraz Place (formerly Regina Exhibition Park), Regina. For more info visit www.myfarmshow.com.

June 18 – Escarpment Woodlots: Opportunities for Management and Conservation, 7-9 p. m., Ski Birch, near Roseisle. Presented by Manitoba Agro Woodlot Program. For more info call Shawn Dias at 204-526-0836 or e-mail shawn. dias@gov.mb.ca.

June 23 – Western Beef Development Centre summer field day, Termuende Research Farm, near Lanigan, Sask. For more info visit www.wbdc.sk.caand click on “Producer Events.” June 23-25 – In-field potato agronomy meetings at Canada Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre sites. Breakfast, 7:30 a. m.; demo plot tours 8:45 a. m. No pre-registration required. Tuesday, CMCDC building, Carberry; Wednesday, Triangle Oasis restaurant, Winkler; Thursday, Days Inn, Portage la Prairie. For more info call Tom Gonsalves at 204-745-5671. July 7-8 – Canadian Swine Health Forum, Radisson Hotel, 405 20th St. E., Saskatoon. For more info visit www.swine-health.ca.

July 8-10 – Grain Growers of Canada annual summer meeting, Bayshore Inn, 111 Waterton Ave., Waterton Lakes National Park, Alta. For more info visit www.ggc-pgc.ca.July 12-15 – Canadian Seed Trade Association annual general meeting, Westin Resort, 4090 Whistler Way, Whistler, B. C. For more info visit www.cdnseed.org.

July 13-16 – World Angus Forum, Spruce Meadows, Calgary. For more info visit www.worldangusforum.comor e-mail forum@cdnangus.ca.

July 13-16 – Canadian Special Crops Association annual convention, Fairmont Hotel, 2 Lombard Place, Winnipeg. For more info visit www.specialcrops.mb.ca.

July 15 – Manitoba holistic management summer pasture tour for holistic managers and clubs. To register, contact Jo-Lene at 204-825-3512.

July 16 – Valley Soybean Expo, 10 a. m. to 3 p. m., Morrison Sports Park, Oakville. Free admission, free lunch. For more info call 1-888-274-9243.

July 22-25 – National Charolais Youth Conference and Show, R. A. Morrow Building, Morrow Memorial Park, Peterborough, Ont. For more info visit http://youth.charolais.comor e-mail ccya2009@hotmail.com.

The post What’s Up – for Jun. 18, 2009 appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Please forward your agricultural events to daveb@fbcpublishing.comor call 204-944-5762

June 12-14 – Heifer International fifth annual Project Partners’ meeting, Clearwater. Includes skill-building workshops and keynote speech Saturday by Ken Meter of Crossroads Resource Group in Minnesota (Clearwater United Church, 8 p. m.). For more info call Deb at 306-665-1001 or e-mail deb.firus@heifer.org,or call Pam at 204-825-2465.

June 16-19– Canadian Co-operative Association congress and annual general meeting, Westin Ottawa, 11 Colonel By Dr., Ottawa. Theme: “Celebrating a century of co-operation.” For more info call 613-238-6711, ext. 243, or visit www. coopscanada. coop/100th/congress. cfm.

June 17-19 – Western Canada Farm Progress Show, Evraz Place (formerly Regina Exhibition Park), Regina. For more info visit www.myfarmshow.com.

June 18 – Escarpment Woodlots: Opportunities for Management and Conservation, 7-9 p. m., Ski Birch, near Roseisle. Presented by Manitoba Agro Woodlot Program. For more info call Shawn Dias at 204-526-0836 or e-mail shawn. dias@gov.mb.ca.

June 23 – Western Beef Development Centre summer field day, Termuende Research Farm, near Lanigan, Sask. For more info visit www.wbdc.sk.caand click on “Producer Events.”

June 23-25 – In-field potato agronomy meetings at Canada Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre sites. Breakfast, 7:30 a. m.; demo plot tours 8:45 a. m. No pre-registration required. Tuesday, CMCDC building, Carberry; Wednesday. Triangle Oasis restaurant, Winkler; Thursday, Days Inn, Portage la Prairie. For more info call Tom Gonsalves at 204-745-5671.

July 7-8 – Canadian Swine Health Forum, Radisson Hotel, 405 20th St. E., Saskatoon. For more info visit www.swine-health.ca.

July 8-10 – Grain Growers of Canada annual summer meeting, Bayshore Inn, 111 Waterton Ave., Waterton Lakes National Park, Alta. For more info visit www.ggc-pgc.ca.

July 12-15 – Canadian Seed Trade Association annual general meeting, Westin Resort, 4090 Whistler Way, Whistler, B. C. For more info visit www.cdnseed.org.

July 13-16 – World Angus Forum, Spruce Meadows, Calgary. For more info visit www.worldangusforum.comor e-mail forum@cdnangus.ca.

July 13-16 – Canadian Special Crops Association annual convention, Fairmont Hotel, 2 Lombard Place, Winnipeg. For more info visit www.specialcrops.mb.ca.

July 15 – Manitoba holistic management summer pasture tour for holistic managers and clubs. To register, contact Jo-Lene at 204-825-3512.

The post What’s Up – for Jun. 11, 2009 appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Please forward your agricultural events to daveb@fbcpublishing.comor call 204-944-5762

June 2-6 – International Wheat Quality Conference IV, Radisson Hotel, Saskatoon. For more info visit www.usask.ca/iwqc4.

June 3-5 – World Pork Expo, Iowa State Fairgrounds, Des Moines. For more info visit www.worldpork.org.

June 12-14 – Heifer International fifth annual Project Partners’ meeting, Clearwater. Includes skill-building workshops and keynote speech Saturday by Ken Meter of Crossroads Resource Group in Minnesota (Clearwater United Church, 8 p. m.). For more info call Deb at 306-665-1001 or e-mail deb.firus@heifer.org,or call Pam at 204-825-2465.

June 16-19– Canadian Co-operative Association congress and annual general meeting, Westin Ottawa, 11 Colonel By Dr., Ottawa. Theme: “Celebrating a century of co-operation.” For more info call 613-238-6711, ext. 243, or visit www. coopscanada. coop/100th/congress. cfm.

June 17-19 – Western Canada Farm Progress Show, Evraz Place (formerly Regina Exhibition Park), Regina. For more info visit www.myfarmshow.com.

June 18 – Escarpment Woodlots: Opportunities for Management and Conservation, 7-9 p. m., Ski Birch, near Roseisle. Presented by Manitoba Agro Woodlot Program. For more info call Shawn Dias at 204-526-0836 or e-mail shawn. dias@gov.mb.ca.

June 23 – Western Beef Development Centre summer field day, Termuende Research Farm, near Lanigan, Sask. For more info visit www.wbdc.sk.caand click on “Producer Events.”

June 23-25 – In-field potato agronomy meetings at Canada Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre sites. Breakfast, 7:30 a. m.; demo plot tours 8:45 a. m. No pre-registration required. Tuesday, CMCDC building, Carberry; Wednesday. Triangle Oasis restaurant, Winkler; Thursday, Days Inn, Portage la

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