Dryland Agriculture on the Canadian Prairies: Current Issues and Future Challenges

Larney, Francis J.; Janzen, H. H.; Smith, Elwin G.; Anderson, Daniel W.

doi:10.2135/cssaspecpub32.c8

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 169 publications

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“…Adoption and consistent use of CA management practices throughout the vast Canadian prairie in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba provinces, beginning in the 1990s, has reduced reliance on the traditional summer fallow, enhanced soil health, increased soil water availability in near-surface layers [157,158], and permitted the introduction of new crops, including oilseeds and legumes [157]. There is also evidence that no-tillage management itself, as an important part of these changed systems, has improved, becoming more reliable in recent years, and that changes in soil properties under no-tillage cropping tend to be positive [159].…”

Section: Canadian Prairiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conservation agriculture systems.

Mitchell¹,

Reicosky²,

Kueneman³

et al. 2019

CABI Reviews

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Despite positive trajectories in global production during the last century, projected food demand and limits on our ability to further expand cropland now dictate an increase in food production by roughly 70% during the first half of the twenty-first century. Conventional systems of agriculture with their general emphasis on intensive soil disturbance, limited biodiversity, monoculture cropping and practices that mine the resource base are extractive and have resulted in slow yet demonstrably severe environmental degradation that ultimately jeopardizes food security for future generations. Because future gains in production are unlikely to be achieved by further increases in genetic yield potential, as have been achieved in the past, applications of new production system paradigms are going to be indispensable. Our existing ones are no longer able to compensate for, nor reverse, the environmental problems they have caused. We summarize the history of how agricultural systems have come to be what they are today and identify ways in which these systems will need to be improved to meet future food security challenges. We describe the development of food production system options that have been proposed in recent decades and show that the core principles and concepts of what are widely regarded as conservation agriculture (CA) systems provide an important unifying framework. Our chapter provides evidence for why these systems, when flexibly applied and in ways that mimic natural ecosystems, provide a best-bet approach for moving forward. We highlight a series of examples of CA systems being applied around the world and conclude by issuing a call to action aimed at developing and more widely adopting food production systems that look long-term, mimic natural systems and transcend jargon.

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Section: Canadian Prairiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conservation agriculture systems.

Mitchell¹,

Reicosky²,

Kueneman³

et al. 2019

CABI Reviews

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“…Farm operators are predominantly (i.e., 75%) males aged 55 and over [4]. Many adaptive practices exist throughout Saskatchewan, such as zero-till, cover cropping, feed stockpiling, increasing farm size, employing beneficial management practices, earlier seeding dates, mixed farming, and changes in crop varieties (e.g., [5]). Nonetheless, producers' overall ability to adapt will be tested by the cumulative impacts of CC [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate Change Perceptions and Associated Characteristics in Canadian Prairie Agricultural Producers

Stewart,

Arbuthnott,

Sauchyn

2023

Challenges

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Climate change (CC) poses a threat to agricultural sustainability, which is important in the Canadian Prairies, as agriculture is a major occupation and driver of the economy. Agriculture involves both the creation and mitigation of emissions related to CC. To implement adaptation and mitigation practices, producers should accept CC as fact. This study is based in Saskatchewan, Canada, where CC denial is prevalent in public comments. To assess the validity of this anecdotal impression, this study provided a snapshot of Saskatchewan agricultural producers’ perceptions and observations of CC and assessed whether views on CC are associated with characteristics of political orientation and affiliation, mental flexibility, systems thinking, time orientation, climate knowledge, climate observations, and demographic variables. A survey was developed with the following four sections: (1) individual characteristics; (2) observed changes in climate-related variables; (3) knowledge and perceptions about CC; and (4) demographic variables. The survey included multiple-choice questions and items scored on a Likert scale. The survey was completed by 330 Saskatchewan agricultural producers (i.e., farmers and ranchers). The results indicated more CC denial in Saskatchewan producers than in other Canadian samples. Individual and socioeconomic characteristics of lower levels of formal education, identifying as male, conservative political affiliation and ideation, low trust in science, and low mental flexibility were associated with less acceptance and concern of CC. It is therefore necessary to consider socioeconomic and individual characteristics of producers in measures aiming to increase the acceptance of the reality of CC. Future intervention research should target male producers with lower levels of formal education, low trust in science, low mental flexibility, and right-leaning political ideation for the improvement of CC perceptions and examine different teaching methods (e.g., lectures, workshops, webinars) and dissemination methods (e.g., online versus in-person sessions) to see how various techniques may influence learning, as well as the way the information is used by particular groups.

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“…Significant areas of agricultural soils are degraded due to improper management [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. World experience shows that traditional farming systems, even with their possible high productivity, lead to soil degradation problems and reduced cost efficiency [8][9][10][11][12][13]. For example, frequent bare fallowing and conventional methods of soil cultivation have been attributed to the main causal factors in the manifestation of soil erosion processes [13][14][15][16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…World experience shows that traditional farming systems, even with their possible high productivity, lead to soil degradation problems and reduced cost efficiency [8][9][10][11][12][13]. For example, frequent bare fallowing and conventional methods of soil cultivation have been attributed to the main causal factors in the manifestation of soil erosion processes [13][14][15][16]. Traditional tillage accumulates in a small amount of crop residues on the field, accelerates decomposition of SOM and affects soil structure, which accelerates depletion of soil fertility and leads to an increased risk of erosion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Productivity of Rainfed Winter Wheat with Direct Sowing and Economic Efficiency of Diversified Fertilization in Arid Region of South Kazakhstan

et al. 2022

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Reduced soil tillage is a powerful means to mitigate soil degradation. However, in arid climates, no-till rainfed technologies often result in yield drop due to lack of soil moisture and mineral nutrition. Rainfed production of winter wheat using direct sowing and diversified fertilization in South Kazakhstan was studied in 2019–2020. Eight field-scale treatments using nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers were studied for biometric parameters of winter wheat. An economic profitability of the amendments used was assessed. The soil managed to accumulate productive moisture to support plants’ needs during formation of productive organs. Use of phosphorus fertilizer at direct sowing accelerated grain maturation, and the combination of phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer lengthened the growing season. The highest production cost of 1 tonne of grain was in the plots that did not receive any amendments, and the lowest cost was in the treatment with use of plant growth stimulants together with micronutrient fertilizer. For the first time, optimization of the soil nutritional regime with consideration of the biological and phenological demands allowed for the balance of the plant nutrition and cost efficiency of grain production with direct sowing of winter wheat in dry conditions in South Kazakhstan.

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Dryland Agriculture on the Canadian Prairies: Current Issues and Future Challenges

Cited by 7 publications

References 169 publications

Conservation agriculture systems.

Conservation agriculture systems.

Climate Change Perceptions and Associated Characteristics in Canadian Prairie Agricultural Producers

Productivity of Rainfed Winter Wheat with Direct Sowing and Economic Efficiency of Diversified Fertilization in Arid Region of South Kazakhstan

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