SaskCrops has sent in their submission for the Federal pre-budget consultations

Sep 06, 2024

SaskCrops sent in their annual submission last week for Finance Canada’s federal pre-budget consultations.

SaskCrops represents the vast majority of grain and oilseed producers in Saskatchewan through the participating growers' associations - SaskBarley, SaskCanola, SaskFlax, SaskOats, Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, and Sask Wheat.

The groups note that research funding remains a key advocacy priority for SaskCrops and want to see significant, predictable, and sustained investment in research from the government.

Here is a list of recommendations the group would like to see included in the next budget and implemented.

- Recommendation 1: That the government provides continued, stable, and enhanced investments in crop plant genetic research.

- Recommendation 2: That the government invests in regional agronomic research to identify best management practices that capture increased yield potential from enhanced genetic innovations across diverse agroecological landscapes.

- Recommendation 3: That the government invest in research to support the development and application of precision agriculture technology to further strengthen the competitiveness and sustainability of the agriculture sector.

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Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.