TheBretonPlots

H O L I DAY N EWS L E T T E R
Ihopethisnewsletterfindsyouingoodhealthandspiritas weapproachtheendofanotheryear.AsIreflectuponthe events of 2012, there were several that were significant to me.Mostnotably,thepassingofalovedone,whichweall experience,earlyin2012.Inmycase,myfather,asuccess ful farmer in southern Alberta, finally passed on after ill nessinthelastdecadeconsiderablydiminishedhisquality of life. Whenthereislife,thereisdeath.Itisourjourney from start to finish that leaves an impression on those aroundus.A farmer indry southernAlberta,heleftwith me the passion for working with water and soil, to grow plants to feed man and/or livestock, and to return to the soil what was removed. Not only is my fathers legacy a partofme,butitcontinuestoliveinthesoilonhisfarm. Byreturninglivestockmanure,andhavingaccesstoirriga tion,hemadewhatoncewascalledStarvationAlleyinto a productive soil that sustained his family, and will likely sustaingenerationstocome.This,too,isamessagefrom theBretonPlots.TheBretonsoilisalive,andthedifferent managementof the soilhas been teaching us how to sus tain this life. Where we have not returned what we have removed, there is diminishing life. We are mere mortals onthisplanet,butthesoilisforever.Ourlegacyshouldbe toensureitssurvival.
BestwishesfortheNewYear! DickPuurveen

2012

OurAnnualSupporters ThesuccessoftheBretonPlotsis largelyduetoitssupporters.Nu merousgroups,industriesandindi vidualsprovidesupporttothePlots onanannualbasis.Ahugethanks tothefollowing2012supporters: BrazeauCounty(AgServices):for maintainingthegroundsinexcep tionalcondition. RockyMountainHouseAgSociety: forprovidingfundingtowardshiring astudent. BrettYoungSeeds:fordonatingfor ageandlegumeseeds. MuellerSeedFarm,Barrhead:for donatingfababeanseed. MonsantoCanada:forproviding herbicideandseed. OurLongtermSupporters

TheBretonPlotsEndowment FundismanagedbytheUniversity
ofAlberta,andprovidesareturnon investment,annually.Thisannual returnfundsdaytodayoperations atthePlots.Thankstomanydona tionsreceived,theBretonPlotshas surviveddespitemanyUniversity budgetcuts.Butwearenotquite selfsufficientPleaseDONATE. Seeinsertforfurtherdetails.

Studentharvestingforagesatthe BretonPlots.

A2012BretonPlotsLesson
Harvestisaveryimportanttime at the Breton Plots. Crop yield datahasbeenannuallycollected since 1929. Therefore, to not have a yield value for any given year would raise concern. But what does that yield number really mean? If you were told that the highest wheat yield in 2012 was 3700 kg per hectare, most people would have a glazedlookintheireyesandlook for other conversations. Most farmers would want to know that this equates to 55 bushels per acre (assuming a 60 lbs/bu weight). They would then know, from experience, if this is a good yield or a poor yield. Therefore, to most people, the actual number does not matter. However,inresearch,theactual numberreallymatters. But what does this yield value really tell us? Yield is influenced by many factors. It begins with seeding,andisinfluencedbysoil conditions (tilth, fertility), seed ing rate, depth, row spacing, fertilizer rate, type, placement (and the list goes on). If all goes as planned, we have seed germination and plant growth. Now at the mercy of Mother Nature to provide water and heat in proper quantities, we also have to deal with weeds, insects and plant disease throughout the growing season. Finally, we have to harvest the crop,andseparationofthegrain from the straw has its own effi ciencies and influence on yield. So, yes, the yield value is very important. However, in re search it is of equal importance to quantify the metadata; all of those factors mentioned above that influences yield. Thatisonebigdataset!

MeasuringwiththeGreenSeeker The GreenSeeker Hand Held Optical SensorUnitisatoolthatprovidesmeas urement and data logging of the Nor malized Difference Vegetative Index (NDVI)ofplantmaterials.Tosimplify,it emits a near infrared light, and meas ureshowgreentheplantsarebasedon reflectance. AttheBretonPlots,studentLeahPredy (above),usedtheGreenSeekertomeas ureNDVIatseveralstagesofwheatde velopment. Greenness is an indicator ofplanthealth,andtreatmentcompari sonscanbereadilyobservedatBreton. This information adds to our under standingofsoilvariabilityandplantsoil fertilityinteractions.

So,howwastheweather? Quite simply, normal, then really wet, then perfect forharvest.PrecipitationinMay,JuneandJulywas 48, 89 and 161 mm, respectively. May and June were near normal. For July, rainfall was 39% above normal! As with 2011, it was great weather if you were a toad, but not so great if you were a forage producer.Anyonewhoattemptedtoharvestfirstcut hayinJulywouldhavefounditdifficulttobaleforage dryorwithoutrain. August and September precipitation was 71 and 13 mm,respectively.Augustwasnearnormal,butSep tember was well below the normal of 53 mm. The dry September was a blessing for harvest given the previousmonthsofnearexcessivemoisture.

AWoodlandToadseeksrefuge amongsttheforagesattheBreton Plots.