Parkland College and the East Central Research Foundation (ECRF) have cancelled their annual Research Farm Field Day for 2020 due to COVID-19.
Public gatherings in Saskatchewan are currently limited to 30 people, and physical distancing guidelines remain in effect. The field tours, held annually in July at the research farm just south of Yorkton, typically attract close to 100 farmers, agriculture professionals, and industry representatives.
In lieu of an in-person event, researchers are planning to record a virtual tour of this year’s research projects. The video will be shared online and posted at www.ecrf.ca, likely around the middle of July.
This season, researchers are conducting a number of trials and demonstration projects on land supplied by the City of Yorkton. Some of these projects are supported by the provincial government Agriculture Demonstration of Practices and Technologies (ADOPT) program, with others sponsored by businesses in the agriculture industry.
Last month, Parkland College was awarded a $200,000 research grant by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). The grant is being used to hire students for work integrated learning opportunities at the research farm, while also funding the purchase of new equipment.
