Growing for the future the focus of upcoming conference

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food

Plant specialists from across Canada and beyond will converge on Saskatoon for the Plant Canada 2007 conference, “Growing for the Future,” June 10 to 14 at TCU Place.

The conference will be a multidisciplinary meeting covering the latest research in botany, plant physiology, plant pathology, horticultural science, agronomy and weed science.

“Plant Canada was initiated in 2001 as an umbrella organization so that different plant-related associations and disciplines could get together, exchange information and broaden their knowledge, scope and contacts,” said Dr. Karen Bailey, a plant pathology research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Although plant specialists have their own separate groups, meetings and areas of specialization, Bailey says there are a lot of common interests and linkages that can be found throughout the field.

“So Plant Canada, and this conference in particular, enables us to develop some synergies working together on common issues,” she noted. “Sometimes, you’ll end up with new collaborations or new research ideas that stem from these discussions.”

Plant Canada’s national conferences are held every two years. The last one was in Edmonton in 2005, while the 2009 meeting will be in Halifax.

This year’s conference features two main plenary sessions, one on natural products and a second on developing a Canadian plant health network. “We have some very prominent international speakers coming to talk about these issues, so it should be a very interesting and informative discussion,” Bailey stated.

In addition, the organizations comprising Plant Canada have each been asked to organize two “mini-symposia” in areas that relate to the larger plenary sessions. As a result, Bailey says other workshops will be held on topics such as using natural products in horticulture.

An industry session will feature a number of speakers talking about different plant products, how value has been added to them, and where research is taking this field in the future.

Bailey says the program also includes sessions for contributed papers, as well as student paper and poster competitions. “We’ve encouraged graduate students to make presentations on some of their work, which is always exciting to hear about.”

On top of these discussions, tours are planned that will showcase the synchrotron and other leading-edge research facilities at the University of Saskatchewan, as well as some of the actual field test plots that are being used for various studies.

The conference will include a great deal of discussion in areas of agricultural interest. The industry session, entitled “Designing a New Agri-Food Industry,” is one Bailey particularly highlighted.

“We’ll be looking at things like trends and opportunities in agriculture, research in areas such as biofuels, innovative products that are being made from grain, and a lot more,” she said.

In addition, Bailey noted that lectures on the development of bioherbicides and biopesticides as an alternative to chemicals, dealing with swine manure and compost, working with different types of soil, and nitrogen recycling concepts are all areas that hold considerable interest for the farming community.

As a result, she says the conference will be as relevant to agricultural producers and people who enjoy working with plants as it will be to academics, scientists and those who do research in the field.

Registrations are available for single days or for the full four-day program. Organizers expect to attract around 300 people from all across Canada, the United States and overseas.

For more program details and registration information for the 2007 Plant Canada conference, visit www.plantcanada.ca/2007 or call conference manager Debbie Apfeld at (403) 932-3893.

For more information, contact:

Dr. Karen Bailey, Research Scientist – Plant Pathology
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Phone: (306) 956-7260
E-mail: baileyk@agr.gc.ca
Website : www.plantcanada.ca/2007