Agronomists, farmers, ag retailers and students can take this course to add region-specific knowledge to their understanding of best practices for nutrient management
By Jackie Clark
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Fertilizer Canada has launched a new e-learning course titled 4R Nutrient Stewardship in Ontario. It builds on foundational knowledge of nutrient best practices and adds a region-specific context.
The course is “targeted for anyone who wants to learn more about our 4R Nutrient Stewardship framework and programming in Ontario. ... Certified crop advisors (CCAs) or other professional agronomists, retail locations sales staff, and growers” are welcome to participate, McKenzie Smith, the director of stewardship and regulatory affairs at Fertilizer Canada, told Farms.com.
Though not a prerequisite, it may be helpful for those who wish to take the Ontario-specific course to first take the 4R Essentials, and three-part 4R Nutrient Stewardship Training e-learning courses also offered by Fertilizer Canada.
Those are “foundational 4R courses, and (the Ontario course) is a build on that – it’s more specific to the province,” Smith explained.
The Ontario course has three modules, the first of which introduces the 4R program. The second gives more specifics about the right source, rate, time and place “for Ontario crop production systems, so it talks more about specific soil and climate as well as crop rotations,” Smith said.
“The final module looks into what the agricultural landscape is in Ontario around nutrient management” including government regulations and voluntary industry programming, she added.
The new e-learning course takes about one-and-a-half to two hours to complete, and participants can pause and go back to it at any time.
“If you want to get the e-learning certificate at the end … then you would have to take the 50-question exam,” Smith said. “For CCAs who are looking to do continuing education unit (CEU) credits, it offers two for this course … and it has a $20 fee associated with it.”
The course and exam are free for participants who are not obtaining the CEU credits.
The Ontario-specific course was developed by farmers from the province who are also 4R nutrient management specialty CCAs. Furthermore, the course was reviewed by stakeholders in the province to ensure it was applicable for Ontario agronomists and growers, Smith explained.
To learn more or register for a course, click here.
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