Saskatchewan's Crop Protection Lab Has Been Busy

Jul 21, 2020
Farmers have been busy scouting crops looking for any signs of weeds, disease, or insects. 
 
Scott Hartley is Manager of Saskatchewan's Crop Protection Lab.
 
He says the majority of samples that have come in so far relate to environmental conditions.
 
"Early on they were trying to get down to moisture so the plants have been stressed a little bit getting through to the surface.  Then with some of the winds, there's been a lot of twisting and flipping of the plants, that has caused some damage that sort of looks like a disease but ultimately comes down to primarily environmental. There's also been some drought stress."
 
He says they've seen some herbicide carryover, a little bit of insect damage, and probably one of the biggest issues has been root rot.
 
"That's shown up in various crops.  Pulses a lot and there ones that have infected it with fusarium. We also have it in some of the pulses, aphanomyces, or pythium related."
 
The recent hail damage can result in crop injury, combine that with hot humid weather and there's a potential for disease development.
 
Hartley reminds producers if they are sending samples into the Crop Protection Lab to be sure to send the whole plant including the roots, so they can get a real understanding of what's happening with the plant.  
 
He notes to be sure to wrap the base in wet paper towels, for insects put them in a secure pill bottle or plastic jar when sending them in.
 
Full information on how to send samples into the lab can be found here.
 
The Crop Protection Lab moved earlier this year to 1610 Park Street in Regina.
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