It's back to school....

Saskatchewan's Crop Diagnostic School kicked off yesterday in Swift Current.

The two day event continues today for pre-registered participants.

Crops Extension Specialist Allie Noble says this year's event gives producers, agronomists, industry and retail staff from across the province the opportunity to take part in training sessions focusing on everything from crop scouting to agronomics.

Participants are going through five different stations covering a variety of topics ranging from weeds, to disease and insects, herbicide injury and soils.

The soil station with Dr Jeff Schoenau and Ken Wall focuses on how higher levels of seed placed nitrogen can affect seedling survival, and how different crops can tolerate varying levels of salinity. 

The weed identification station focuses on commonly found and misidentified broadleaf and grassy weeds as well as information on noxious weeds and weed seed longevity. 

The disease station covers a lot of ground from chickpea issues with Dr. Michelle Hubbard to Dr. Sabine Banniza on root rots in pulses.  Dr. Alireza Akhavan focused on verticillium stripe in canola, Dr. Randy Kutcher spoke on cereal diseases while Dr. Dean Malvick talked about Goss’s Wilt and Tar Spot in corn.

At the insect station, Dr. James Tansey along with AAFC Scientists Dr. Meghan Vankosky and Dr. Tyler Wist focus on how to identify and properly scout for insects that you might find across Saskatchewan.

Provincial Weed Control Specialist Clark Brenzil walks participants through herbicide injury symptoms and what to look for on cereals, oilseeds and pulses.