DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF CANOLA IN THE GREAT PLAINS REGION

The goal of this project is to deliver practical outcomes that will make winter canola an agronomically and economically viable rotation crop. The long-term expected outcome of this multi-state, interdisciplinary, and integrated research and extension project is to increase winter canola production and acres in the cropping systems of the Great Plains (GP). To stimulate acreage and production increases, the project will focus on the following objectives.Develop and evaluate high-yielding and regionally-adapted winter canola cultivars. Priority traits for breeding and evaluation include: winter survival, tolerance to sulfonylurea herbicide carryover, tolerance to post-emergence applications of glyphosate herbicide, yield, oil quality and quantity, hybrid parent lines, and blackleg (Leptosphaeria maculans) disease resistance.Improve canola cropping systems by addressing agronomic production issues identified through stakeholder input. Production topics to be addressed include seed quality, crop suitability analysis, source-sink yield relationships, radiation use efficiency, establishment, crop input optimization, and plant resiliency. Deliver cultivar and agronomic management technologies to new and experienced canola growers through appropriate extension programs using an Information Dissemination Plan. Methods of delivery may include, but are not limited to, field days, field tours, production schools, extension and journal publications, professional society meetings, electronic agronomy updates, radio and television interviews, webinars, peer-to-peer interactions, and social media updates. The mode of delivery will be based on current COVID-19 pandemic conditions following all local, state, and federal health guidance.