Reading Time: < 1 minute Applications are now being accepted for the Irrigation Efficiency program under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. The program offers grants for new low-pressure centre pivots or upgrades to existing pivots (such as sprinkler and nozzle packages, control panels, and variable-rate irrigation) as well as drip irrigation. Any active producer who owns an irrigated agricultural operation in […] Read more
Grants available for irrigation upgrades
Grants to reduce water use or energy use can be as much as $15,000 for each irrigated parcel
Bringing crops indoors generating research insights
Indoor beds allow scientists to take ‘a peek underground’ to see how subsurface drip irrigation works
Reading Time: 4 minutes Indoors’ doesn’t usually come to mind when thinking of applied irrigation research, but it has its advantages. “We have to be careful (with field studies) because you might harm somebody’s crop or interfere with whatever the farmer had planned,” said Willemijn Appels, a hydrologist and soil physicist. “You can’t push systems and the crops growing […] Read more
Want to plant a shelterbelt? Here are some tips
A windbreak designed for your farm site is well worth the investment, but mistakes can cause years of headaches
Reading Time: 3 minutes It pays to think ahead when planting a shelterbelt. The first step is site selection, said Jeff Renton of the Agroforestry and Woodlot Extension Society, a joint venture of government, industry, and conservation agencies that promotes stewardship and offers extension services. The site needs proper setbacks from homes, roads, crops, and utilities. “Know where the […] Read more
Irrigation technology centre has a wide range of research
Whether it’s research on potatoes, sugar beets, infrared sensors or nozzles, the goal is to get more crop per drop
Reading Time: 4 minutes Just outside of Lethbridge, where ideal location, expertise and cutting-edge technology meet, we find the Alberta Irrigation Technology Centre (AITC). The centre was established in 2000 as a partnership between Alberta’s irrigation industry and the provincial and federal Agriculture Departments. “The main focus of the centre is to support improved water conservation, efficiency, and productivity […] Read more
California communities beg for relief from drought restrictions
Sacramento | Reuters — California communities where a wet winter has filled reservoirs and begun ameliorating the state’s catastrophic four-year drought begged water regulators on Wednesday to reduce or eliminate emergency conservation measures imposed last year. Facing pushback from aggravated consumers under the ongoing rules, water utilities say they will have little credibility asking for […] Read more
Fall yard care pays dividends next year
Reading Time: < 1 minute Autumn yard care can pay big dividends next year. Topping or cutting back herbaceous perennials can help prevent the overwintering of diseases and insects. Mulching will help to prevent plants from being forced from the ground (but apply mulch after the ground is frozen). Watering lightly after applying the mulch will help hold it in […] Read more
Irrigation investments, programs playing a big part in water conservation
A soon-to-be-published study estimates 170 million to 200 million cubic metres were saved from 1999 to 2012
Reading Time: 3 minutes Alberta producers and irrigation districts are making great strides toward conserving water, with both grants and individual investment producing tangible water and energy savings. Those efforts produced overall water savings of 170 million to 200 million cubic metres in Alberta’s 13 irrigation districts from 1999 to 2012, said Rod Bennett, director of Alberta Agriculture and […] Read more
California tightens water regulations amid long drought
Sacramento | Reuters — Water regulators in California voted on Tuesday to outlaw watering the lawn within 48 hours of a rainstorm, the latest effort to spur Californians to conserve as the state enters its fourth year of drought. Facing a dramatic slowdown in voluntary conservation efforts by property owners, the state Water Resources Control […] Read more
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