Native grass prairies and sunset

Forage seed rebate offered

Reading Time: < 1 minute Ducks Unlimited Canada and Crop Production Services are again offering a forage seed rebate for producers wanting to sow fields to grass. Under the program, Alberta producers receive a $100 rebate on every 50-pound bag of Proven Seed forage varieties purchased at CPS retail locations. While the program is best suited to producers in the […] Read more

Ducks Unlimited Canada and Crop Production Services will cover about half the seed cost of converting cropland to pasture.

Seed rebate for cropland conversion

Reading Time: < 1 minute Ducks Unlimited Canada and Crop Production Services are once again offering a discount on Proven forage seed for producers who convert cropland to pastures. Alberta and Saskatchewan producers receive a rebate of $100 per 50-pound bag of forage seed, while Manitoba producers can get up to $125 for every new forage acre seeded as part […] Read more


cattle on a pasture

Keeping land in grass has a side benefit

Young beef producers need affordable access to grassland 
if the industry is going to grow

Reading Time: 2 minutes The beef industry has been struggling to retain and attract new producers while the average age of farmers, at 54, keeps creeping up. The next generation of cattle producers might be looking for something different. The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) released the National Beef Sustainability Assessment and Strategy this fall. The industry garnered […] Read more

Rob Graff’s winter wheat research plots at the 2015 Alberta Wheat Day at AAFC’s Lethbridge Research Station drew an interested crowd, but it’s been slow going to increase acreage of the fall-seeded crop in the province.

Winter wheat not feeling the love

The crop’s backers say there’s a host of reasons to grow the 
fall-seeded crops, but admit it’s been a struggle to convince farmers

Reading Time: 3 minutes The arguments are persuasive: Winter wheat typically requires less crop inputs than its spring-seeded counterparts, yet can yield 20 per cent more and is known to bring greater — sometimes significantly greater — financial returns. The crop also reduces spring seeding time pressure, widens the fall harvest window, and offers environmental benefits. Yet, winter wheat […] Read more


cattle grazing grass

Cropland conversion program seeing increased uptake

Program gives rebates on Proven Seed forages for producers putting cropland into grass

Reading Time: < 1 minute There’s increased interest in a program that offers producers a price break when converting cropland to forages, says Ducks Unlimited Canada. “Declining prices for wheat and other cereal crops, as well as a simultaneous increase in beef prices, are leading many landowners to seriously consider the move to increase their cattle herd,” said Craig Bishop, […] Read more

Ducks Unlimited Canada opens Strathmore office

Reading Time: < 1 minute Ducks Unlimited Canada has opened a new office in Strathmore. It will house an expanded number of wetland restoration and conservation staff and will complement DUC’s current network of personnel who already work in southern and central Alberta with landowners, communities and municipal governments within the counties of Acadia, Cypress, Wheatland, Foothills, Newell, Paintearth, Taber, […] Read more


field of wheatgrass

New developments in forage-breeding research

One of the more recent offerings is hybrid bromegrass, which offers high first-cut yields and fairly rapid regrowth for grazing

Reading Time: 3 minutes Cattle producers across Western Canada rely on perennial forage grass species to provide their livestock with ample nutrition during the grazing period and for hay. Mother Nature provided these grasses with winter hardiness and reasonable drought tolerance needed to prosper in the Prairie climate — but University of Saskatchewan researchers have done their part, too. […] Read more

wetlands

Alberta wetlands receive funding for conservation projects

More than 1,300 acres will be conserved or restored thanks to $11.6 million grant

Reading Time: < 1 minute Ducks Unlimited Canada will receive more than $11.6 million in grant funds for wetland conservation and restoration work to help reduce the impact of flooding and drought in Alberta. The funding comes from the Alberta government’s Watershed Resiliency and Restoration Program. Wetlands have the ability to store water and slow the release of water into […] Read more


Canola Council of Canada agronomist Greg Sekulic is a member of the new habitat conservation group that is working to research and spread the message about habitat conservation.

New working group gears up to get answers about habitat conservation

Maintaining habitat is also important for pollinators and parasitoids that prey on crop pests

Reading Time: 3 minutes When you cut down your shelterbelt or take out a windrow, you might not think about the effect it has on the beneficial species living on your farmland. A new working group, unofficially known as the Habitat Working Group, is gearing up to inform producers about the changes they can make to conserve habitat for […] Read more

stripe rust on wheat

Start scouting: stripe rust in winter wheat is spreading north

Producers across the province need to start scouting their winter wheat fields for signs of stripe rust

Reading Time: 3 minutes Stripe rust overwintering on three winter wheat fields in the Edmonton area is “concerning,” says a provincial winter wheat agronomist. “Last year, stripe rust overwintered in the central Alberta region, near Lacombe, Red Deer, and Olds, which was alarming because it really hasn’t overwintered in years,” said Janine Paly of Ducks Unlimited Canada. “Last year, […] Read more