Nested association mapping is a tool to identify, with reasonable accuracy, the segments of DNA associated with complex traits – like nutrient use efficiency and drought tolerance. Sally Vail, research scientist and canola breeder with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Saskatoon, describes the highly valuable NAM tool she helped develop for canola breeding.

Host Jay Whetter shares a few highlights from the Canola Digest Science Edition for 2023. Read the whole magazine at canoladigest.ca. Look for "Science Edition 2023" in the Issues column on the left.

What causes yield variability within a field, and which factors are most significant? Taras Lychuk, research scientist in precision agriculture and crop systems at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Brandon, Manitoba, and Alan Moulin, retired soil scientist, share research (ongoing and completed) that will help answer these questions.

Our guest Linda Gorim is an assistant professor and Western Grains Research Foundation chair in cropping systems at the University of Alberta Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Science. Gorim leads a project to screen 160 canola lines to observe differences in photosynthetic efficiency. Before getting to that, the podcast starts with Gorim's long career path to Edmonton, including early ambitions to be a pilot.

Brian Beres, research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge, Alberta, shares results from his recent research on seeding rate, cultivar maturity and harvest method and how they stack together for higher canola yields. A summary of the study, including an elegant grid graph of results, will be posted soon at canoladigest.ca. Look for the Beres study in the 2023 Science Edition.

Alex Liu, a PhD student at the University of Saskatchewan, talks to host Jay Whetter about the canola root microbiome and how it relates to phosphorus availability. She has interesting observations about what happens when you remove the microbiome. (Hint: Plant yield drops dramatically!) Here are the Latin names of the microbes Alex mentions, if you want to look them up: Burkholderia, Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Sordariomycetes, Olpidium (Olpidiomycota).

In the first episode of our 2023 Science Series, AAFC research scientist Raju Soolanayakanahally explains the benefit of sulphur for canola heat and drought tolerance and how a Bollywood movie, "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge," inspired him to research canola.

Chris Manchur, Canola Council of Canada agronomy specialist and team lead on sclerotinia stem rot, chats with CCC agronomy director Clint Jurke and host Jay Whetter about advanced sclerotinia stem rot management practices. Hopefully the dry start to 2023 turns around, yield potential picks up and a conversation about sclerotinia stem rot makes sense this year!

Shayla Wourms farms at St. Walburg, in northwest Saskatchewan. In episode seven of the Farmer Series, host Jay Whetter talks with Shayla Wourms about the farm business, rocks, 4-H, and Women in Ag. At the end, Jay asks a random question and Shayla provides an inspiring answer.

Scott Day farms at Dand, Manitoba and is the chief agronomist and a director with Fall Line Capital based in California. In this sixth edition of the farmer series, Scott talks with host Jay Whetter about their shared home town, Scott's job with Fall Line and new technology – especially to improve pest management.

Joel Bokenfohr farms at Morinville, Alberta and is a business advisor with Farm Credit Canada. In this episode of the farmer series, host Jay Whetter talks with Joel Bokenfohr about transition planning on his farm, Joel's goals and the book he's reading, "How will you measure your life?"

Mannville, Alberta farmer Brian Tischler started AgOpenGPS to develop low cost auto-steer for his older John Deere tractor. He now shares do-it-yourself technology tips to farmers around the world though discourse.agopengps.com. Host Jay Whetter talks to Brian Tischler about his robot tractor, variable rate technology and why he says "farming is what I do, it's not who I am."

The farmer series continues with Jackie Dudgeon-MacDonald of Darlingford, Manitoba. Dudgeon-MacDonald talks with host Jay Whetter about imposter syndrome, website design, becoming a commodity organization director and "So you want to be a farmer?"

For this second episode in our farmer series, host Jay Whetter talks with Anthony Eliason who farms near Outlook, Saskatchewan. They talk irrigation, variable rate, Twitter and starting the farm from scratch.

Welcome to the Canola Watch farmer series. In this episode, host Jay Whetter talks with Alberta mixed farmer and farm writer Jill Burkhardt. They talk about writing, farmers markets, Living Labs, straight combining canola and training the next generation.

Do soil tests measure the right nitrogen pool? And do we need to update our tables for nutrient uptake and removal by field crops? University of Saskatchewan researchers Richard Farrell and Fran Walley answer these questions with host Jay Whetter.

Edel Pérez-López is a clubroot researcher and assistant professor at Université Laval. He speaks with host Jay Whetter about the clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae and challenges it presents for canola plant resistance. Find more about the work at his website, edelabcriv.com. Here's a link to the journal article "The clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae: A profile update": https://bsppjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mpp.13283

University of Manitoba professor and plant disease specialist Dilantha Fernando talks verticillium stripe with host Jay Whetter. Verticillium stripe is a relatively new disease of canola on the Canadian Prairies. This podcast conversation starts with disease origins and moves on to identification and management.

Christine Noronha, research scientist at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Charlottetown, P.E.I., is preparing canola farmers for pollen beetle. The invasive pest, which causes a lot of yield loss in Europe, has been in Atlantic Canada for decades and climate change could make the Prairies more hospitable. Listen to the end when host Jay Whetter asks Christine Noronha about her favourite insect.

Roy Maki leads a project at Olds College of Agriculture & Technology to study synchronous operation of two field machines – one autonomous, one not – working together doing the same job following the same map. Maki describes to host Jay Whetter the field-scale seeding and spraying project, and how one person can run two machines.

What is canola oil? Michael Eskin, University of Manitoba distinguished professor, talks to host Jay Whetter about the fatty acids, including the kinky ones, that make up canola oil. After listening to this podcast, watch Eskin's rap – yes, rap – about fatty acids. https://youtu.be/fTw41CO2qmQ

Host Jay Whetter has three guests to talk about aster leafhoppers and the aster-yellows-causing phytoplasma they (the leafhoppers, not the guests) inject into canola plants. The team of aster yellows researchers are Berenice Romero and Sean Prager from the University of Saskatchewan and Tyler Wist from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada – all based in Saskatoon.

Meghan Vankosky, insect researcher with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Saskatoon, talks with host Jay Whetter about her favourite and least favourite insects. Oh, and also about the Prairie Pest Monitoring Network. The network counts on farmers to volunteer land for insect monitoring. Interested Manitoba farmers can email provincial entomologist John Gavloski at [email protected]. Albertans can email Shelley Barkley at [email protected]. Saskatchewanians need to fill in the...

Southern Alberta farmer Kevin Auch talks with host Jay Whetter about stripper headers. Auch says his no-till farming system – which includes harvest with a stripper header that leaves most crop residue standing, and direct seeding into the long stubble with disc drills – has greatly reduced his diesel fuel use. It also reduces soil erosion and improves soil health in his drier and windier part of the Prairies.