Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112sity, even when practiced alongside a tight crop rotation, can offer significant agronomic and even yield benefits. At first glance, the concept seems counter intuitive: in order to increase total profit, research now shows that one should inten- tionally leave a percentage of land unplanted. “I was skeptical at first but the research is there. The presence of a more diverse landscape with semi-natural, uncultivated land in and around crop land increases the production of the crop land and decreases necessary inputs,” says Sekulic. “The data remain, for the most part, in ecologist circles. One of my goals is its wider dissemination.” In a British study released in July of 2015, eight per cent of arable land was removed from production to create habitat along field edges in a wheat-oilseed-bean rotation. The study showed that despite a decrease in total productive acres, total yield was main- tained and, in some cases, increased due to the habitat creation. A study conducted in northern Alberta a decade ago is even more extreme: it showed that land produced an overall increase in yield, due largely to better pollination, if 30 per cent of it was left uncultivated, so long as cultivated land was within 750 metres of the uncultivated areas. In still another study, researchers compared eight similar, monocropped fields: four with hedgerows planted through the middle of them and four without. Three of the four fields without hedgerows required foliar insecticide to counter aphids. Only one in four of the fields containing hedgerows required insecticide. The results of all three of these studies fly in the face of our conventional yield maximization strategies. However, they show a tantalizing taste that improvements in sustainability may align well with tomorrow’s agronomic best management practices. Research Investment Growing Investment in agronomic research is increasing among research bodies and producer groups. Until recently, the WGRF focused its efforts and its investment largely on plant breeding efforts. Today, WGRF considers agro- nomic research a huge research priority. Several factors have influenced that change. First, starting sev- eral years ago, WGRF’s membership groups started expressing concern about changes in the agronomic research community. “Our membership groups started to say they were nervous about where things were going in the agronomic research community. We were seeing key researchers not being replaced when they retired. We looked at what the agronomic research capacity was in Canada, and that grew into looking at what our needs in the future will be,” says Flaten. In response, WGRF is now actively encouraging institutions to strengthen their agronomy programs, and it is also prioritizing its own investment in agronomic study. Today, Flaten is pleased to see WGRF’s investment in agronomy research, resulting in important steps forward in the research community. She is also pleased that there appears to be at least a partial turn-around at public research facilities. “For example, in the last nine months, Agriculture and Agri- Food Canada has been advertising and filling some agronomy positions. Some of those new people have begun applying for funding, which is really exciting. The more we can learn about agronomy, the better for farmers.” Madeleine Baerg 45 Advancing Seed in Alberta | spring.2017 OUR VARIETIES INCLUDE: WHEAT WHEAT HRSW: HRSW: • AAC Elie • AAC Elie • AAC Brandon – NEW! • AC® Cardale • AC® Carberry • CDC Go • AAC Redberry – NEW! CNHR: Faller – NEW! 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