April 2003

Meeting Needs in a Demanding World

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is committed to working with Canadians to meet the demands of consumers at home and abroad, strengthen the agriculture and agri-food industry, and increase prosperity. Items in this Tipsheet show how AAFC has taken up the challenges of developing management systems and manuals for nursery operations, adapting software for vegetable growers, getting the most out of manure and fertilizers while respecting the environment, and helping rural youth find or create jobs.

Northern Berries For Southern Climes

Understanding the customers' needs is essential to maintaining and growing a business. From May to September, strawberry growers in Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia ship nearly 90 million, bare-root strawberry transplants to Florida where they need up to12 days of continuous irrigation to establish new roots. With continued pressure on Florida's water resources, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers in Kentville, NS, are developing ways to improve the resilience of transplants because Florida growers represent Canadian nurseries' most important customers. Protection and enhancement of this $10-million a year market is crucial. New management systems in Canadian nurseries are improving the establishment and performance of Canadian strawberry plants in southern fields, alleviating the pressure on Florida's increasingly scarce water reserves and keeping Canadian transplants attractive.
Peter Hicklenton, AAFC, (902) 679-5760

An Environmental Carrot for Producers

User-friendly software is a mantra for producers looking for high-tech advantages and solutions. CIPRA, the Computer Centre for Agricultural Pest Forecasting, is an easy-to-use software able to predict insect and disease development for a variety of crops. In Charlottetown, P.E.I., an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research team is evaluating the technology for the Island's fresh-pack carrot industry and for the processing-carrot industry in Nova Scotia. The environmentally helpful CIPRA program minimizes the number of pesticide applications by indicating the ideal times to treat a crop. In the second and third years of the evaluation, the Island producer cooperating in the assessment has reduced pesticide applications by as much as 70 per cent, a huge financial and environmental saving.
Kevin Sanderson, AAFC, (902) 566-6881

The Key to Choosing the Right Ornamental

In a world awash in information, knowing where to look is critical. Nursery operators and landscapers can now refer to new manuals on the hardiness and growth of woody ornamentals: Hardiness and Growth of Woody Ornamental Plants and Rusticité et croissance de plantes ligneuses ornementales au Québec. In the books, the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada ornamentals management and physiology team details 450 woody ornamental species and cultivars observed in Canadian climatic zones 2a to 5b (generally within 500 km of the U.S. border). The work, spread over 20 years, was a collaboration among Laval Univer- sity, the Montreal Botanical Garden, and several federal and provincial research stations. The fifth volume and final volume completing the collection was published in March. The five volumes contain botanical descriptions, outlines of propagation techniques, recommendations to producers and consumers, and other pertinent observations.
Claude Richer, AAFC, (450) 346-4494, Ext. 221

Technology to Benefit Vegetable Growers

Timing is everything in meeting consumer demands for fresh produce. Thanks to the STICS (Simulateur multidisciplinaire pour les Cultures Standards) software, calculating and predicting the growth and yield of vegetable crops is no longer an educated guess. Based on computer simulations, growers can test cultural and weather scenarios to plan their planting and harvesting dates, and adjust the calendar of seasonal sales to market demands. The bioclimatology and modelling research team of Agriculture and Agri-food Canada in Saint-Jean-sur- Richelieu, QC, has adapted the French software to the organic soils in southern Quebec. The program simulates interactions between soil, crops, climate and production management, and predicts yields for carrot, onion and others crops.
Gaétan Bourgeois, AAFC, (450) 346-4494

Porcine Pesticide

Pig manure has not been high on the popularity list lately, but it does have redeeming value beyond fertilizer. Although seemingly unlikely, applications to some potato fields have eliminated or reduced potato scab and disease-causing nematode species. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers in London, ON, discovered low soil pH was the key to success. In acidic soils, with a pH around 5.0, the treatment was most effective. Vinegar, an active component in manure, along with other volatile fatty acids, kills the pathogens, leaving crops and soil unaffected. Researchers would like to develop a safe, manure product, formulated for a variety of soil types. Under an agreement with AAFC, the research funding was shared by Ontario Pork, the Ontario Potato Board and the Agriculture Adaptation Council.
George Lazarovits, AAFC, (519) 457-1470

Something Fishy About Fertilizers

The nutrient value of fish has been recognized since pre-contact days when aboriginal people used whole fish to fertilize germinating corn. Today, waste products from fish-processing plants are used as natural-source agricultural fertilizers which pose minimal environmental risks. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers in Charlottetown, P.E.I., are studying variations of this practice on agricultural ecosystems. Applications of fresh and composted seafood waste showed composting does not produce better yields than freshly applied spoils, but producers must properly time the applications to get the best results. Although generally free of heavy metals, further analysis is needed to ensure seafood by-products do not deposit excess heavy metals in the soil. Research continues to determine the usefulness of seafood processing waste and its safe, efficient use.
John MacLeod, AAFC, (902) 566-6848

Getting the Best out of Fertilizer

Without good weed control in lowbush blueberry fields, fertilizer applications can waste a producer's time and money. A 14-year study in Newfoundland by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers found, in conditions of good weed control, fertilizer applied in crop years increased production but not when applied in vegetative (pruning) years. Potassium applied with nitrogen and phosphorous initially increased production, but repeated potassium applications, over several cropping years, eventually reduced yield. These findings should help the lowbush blueberry industry make more effective use of fertilizers and improve production. The findings are valid for crops in two- and three-year pruning cycles. (See Hot Embers Cull Problem Wasps, Tipsheet, March 2003.)
Boyd Penney, AAFC, (709) 722-5277
Kenneth McRae, AAFC, (902) 679-5574

A Rotten Job

The fruit-rot challenge has been taken up by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers in Vineland, ON. To assist the fruit industry, they are seeking the best ways to protect peaches and plums, apples and pears from disease. One priority is the study of peach cultivar susceptibility to plum pox virus and its distribution in the fruit of peach cultivars throughout the Niagara Region. More rapid and accurate detection would further protect Canada's industry by limiting the orchards to be quarantined, if there is a disease outbreak. Research is directed to screening new apple cultivars for susceptibility to blue and gray moulds. Understanding mould will lead to better storage management and higher-quality fruit. The studies go beyound helping the processing and fresh-market industry select new cultivars, to protecting markets and maintaining consumer confidence.
Dr. Deena Errampalli, AAFC, (905) 562-4113

Rural Youth - Grabbing the Brass Ring

It is never too late to create opportunities, especially when one is young. To give rural youth a boost towards the brass ring, there is an on-line pathfinder providing information about entrepreneurship and opportunities. The selective guide called Entrepreneurship and Opportunities for Rural Youth links to journal articles, government publications, associations of interest, funding and mentoring programs and scholarships.
See www.rural.gc.ca/cris/youth/index_e.phtml
Lynne Thacker, Canadian Rural Information Service, (613) 759-7248