Reading Time: 6 minutes Alberta may be oil and gas country, but right now, another natural resource is booming in the province — solar energy. “Alberta is by far the fastest-growing solar market in Canada right now,” said Nicholas Gall, director of distributed energy resources for the Canadian Renewable Energy Association. “Large corporate buyers — companies like Amazon, Budweiser, […] Read more
THE NEW ENERGY BOOM: The sun is shining on Alberta’s solar industry
Every sector of Alberta’s solar energy industry is seeing strong demand — including from agriculture
Could soil electrical conductivity maps give productivity a little jolt?
This easy-to-obtain data could be a way to use fertilizer and irrigation more effectively
Reading Time: 4 minutes You might get a charge out of this — measuring the ability of soil to conduct electricity, turning that info into field maps of moisture, and then using that info to fertilize or irrigate more effectively. Soil electrical conductivity is something that may already be measured on your farm. “Often if farmers are getting their […] Read more
India unveils new rice variety to reduce water use, labour
New Delhi | Reuters — India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched an array of new high-yielding crop varieties, including herbicide-tolerant rice that can be directly sown into the soil, cutting expenditure on water and farm workers. In India, the world’s biggest rice exporter, the conventional method of rice cultivation requires farmers to sow […] Read more
Water outlook ‘bleak’ as glaciers recede in Rocky Mountains
Loss of glaciers would greatly affect summer flows of rivers, already seeing lower water levels
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters – Where fly fisherman Shane Olson once paddled summer tourists around in a boat, he now guides them by foot — carefully navigating shallow waters one step at a time. “Every year, these rivers seem to be getting smaller, faster,” the 48-year-old said as he whipped a fishing line over the Crowsnest River. “We […] Read more
Would you like fries with that? Potato acres up after pandemic drop
It’s a few years off but irrigation expansion should usher in another production leap in the province
Reading Time: 3 minutes Alberta’s potato industry has bounced right back from its dip in acres during the pandemic. “We’re back to the 2019 acres,” said Terence Hochstein, executive director of the Potato Growers of Alberta. “We’ve added a few more acres, but there’s really no new farms and no huge increases on any particular farm. It’s just getting […] Read more
Drought slashes seed supplies across the Prairies
Seed supplies are likely to be lower than average this year, so source your seed earlier than normal
Reading Time: 6 minutes Sarah Weigum started to suspect this wouldn’t be a typical year for seed sales back in July, when one of her customers called to book seed for next spring. “My customers aren’t normally the type who call in July for seed for the next spring, and that was just the beginning,” said the Three Hills-area […] Read more
Schoepp: In a changing world, a host of new questions need answering
Data ownership and who pays for sustainability measures are just two of many issues farmers must grapple with
Reading Time: 3 minutes There is a lot of pressure on farmers to adopt sustainable practices, digitize, understand carbon, conserve water, and add value. What are the top five areas in which all farmers should be asking questions? And what might those questions be? Carbon credits Although Canada’s goals are towards net-zero carbon emission, there is just as great […] Read more
Irrigation adds stability in unstable times
The timing is right for a historic investment in Alberta’s irrigation system
Reading Time: 5 minutes By early July, Richard Stamp already knew he wouldn’t be harvesting his dryland acres this year. “Last year, we had a relatively good crop — double what we would expect on it — but this year, we will not be combining it,” said the Enchant-area pedigreed seed grower. “It’s definitely a big difference this year, […] Read more
Help for those short on water
Reading Time: < 1 minute The provincial Water Pumping Program helps livestock producers needing to secure adequate water supplies. For a nominal fee, a producer (or group) can rent pipe and pumping equipment to fill dugouts or other catch basins from nearby water sources. Any producer experiencing water shortages for livestock use has priority for equipment use, which will be […] Read more
Having a field day: Everyone’s excited about return of in-person learning
Remember when you’d leave home to attend events and get together with experts, friends and peers?
Reading Time: 5 minutes After a year of too many Zoom meetings to count, ag organizations across the province are gearing up for a summer of in-field learning. “I’m so excited — there’s only so many online meetings that you can stay engaged with,” said Jamie Puchinger, assistant manager of Farming Smarter. “I cannot wait to get back out […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
