The First Cut the Deepest for Alberta Winter Wheat Agronomy Research

Jun 30, 2023

Shock, dismay for those in involved as Alberta winter wheat agronomy program axed.

The origin of winter wheat in the West has a long, scrappy history. What was truly an overlooked, if-I-have-time crop choice for fall has been transformed in a generation to become one of the highest yielding, most agronomically reliable crops for farmers on the Prairies. There have been many key players that have helped raise the profile of winter wheat, especially in Alberta. The current face of this success is Brian Beres, a federal senior research scientist focused on agronomy at the Lethbridge Research and Development Centre. Of his 32 years in public service, 23 of those have focused on winter wheat agronomy research. Usually, though, winter wheat is looked at one way, and one way only.

“It’s a bit of an orphan crop,” says Beres. “It’s never going to that sort of premium export class of wheat or anything like that, but it’s got a lot of value to grain merchants, the stakeholders, and growers of winter wheat, yet it gets overlooked. A good, high protein winter wheat is often used to blend off shipments of CWRS to enhance supply to meet a certain customer spec with respect to grain protein or some other quality parameter.”

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Video: Winter Canola Trial in Mississippi | Can It Work for Double Cropping? | Pioneer Agronomy

Can winter canola open new opportunities for growers in the Mid-South? In this agronomy update from Noxubee County, Mississippi, Pioneer agronomist Gus Eifling shares an early look at a first-year winter canola trial and what farmers are learning from the field.

Planted in late October on 30-inch rows, the crop is now entering the bloom stage and progressing quickly. In this video, we walk through current field conditions, fertility management, and how timing could make this crop a valuable option for double-cropping soybeans or cotton.

If harvest timing lines up with early May, growers may be able to transition directly into another crop during ideal planting windows. Ongoing field trials will help determine whether canola could become a viable rotational option for the region.

Watch for:

How winter canola is performing in its first season in this Mississippi field

Why growers chose 30-inch rows for this trial

What the crop looks like as it moves from bolting into bloom

Fertility strategy, including nitrogen and sulfur applications

How canola harvest timing could enable double-cropping with soybeans or cotton

Upcoming trials comparing soybeans after canola vs. traditional planting

As more growers look for ways to maximize acres and diversify rotations, experiments like this help determine what new crops might fit into existing systems.