Les Henry. (University of Saskatchewan video screengrab)

Prairie soil scientist and author Les Henry, 83

Henry's outreach to farmers spanned more than half a century

Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia — Saskatchewan soil scientist Les Henry, well known for his work on improving Prairie farmland and his outreach to Prairie farmers in the pages of Grainews, has died. Ending a long fight with congestive heart failure, Henry died Friday in Saskatoon at age 83, having continued to write until very shortly before his […] Read more


Photo: Thinkstock

Soil should be a strategic national asset: Senate committee 

The two-year study of Canada’s soils is now complete and recognizes that while conservation efforts over recent decades have been tremendous there is still more to be done 

Reading Time: < 1 minute The Critical Ground: Why Soil is Essential to Canada’s Economic, Environmental, Human and Social Health report said Canada requires an overarching strategy to collect better data. It says a national soils institute database that shares information with provinces, academics and producers should be established.



(Okea/iStock/Getty Images)

At Ag in Motion: New ‘Soil Champions’ team to promote soil health

'Societies live and die by soil'

Reading Time: < 1 minute A new group of “Soil Champions” has been formed to promote the benefits of soil health. This new committee — announced Wednesday at the Ag in Motion farm show at Langham, Sask. — will work to ensure the care and protection of Canada’s agricultural soil through education, knowledge transfer, forums for collaboration and other activities. […] Read more

Peter VanderZaag has taken all he’s learned about soil health and applied it to his Sunrise Potato Storage endeavour.

A potato producer’s commitment to change

Embracing soil health and new technologies helped Peter VanderZaag build a successful potato business. Like most farmers these days, he’s faced with having to do more with less

Reading Time: 4 minutes Every farmer knows that change is inevitable. New markets beckon, new technologies emerge, end-user tastes, preferences and opportunities shift, and it’s often the primary producer who’s one of the first to react. Peter VanderZaag has spent much of his farming career investing wisely in new equipment, securing contracts and growing his Sunrise Potato Storage business […] Read more


Flags marked the spot for consistent sampling throughout the season.

Sampling plant tissue for a mid-season boost

Precision ag technology provides an opportunity to determine if applications are effective

Reading Time: 5 minutes Growers are challenged to achieve the highest yields with the least inputs, and more agronomists, advisors, technicians and researchers are interested helping them focus on specific soil and plant needs such as what macronutrients and micronutrients are needed, and when and where is best to use them. The 2022 growing season was the first year […] Read more

The scoring system is designed to evaluate three important dimensions of soil health — its chemical, biological and physical attributes — and offer a value between 0 and 100, much like a report card.

Beyond N, P and K fertilizer

A Saskatchewan-developed system will give an overall score for soil health

Reading Time: 3 minutes What do soil-health testing systems have in common? Obvious answers aside, most weren’t developed in — or for — the Canadian Prairies. Two University of Saskatchewan researchers aim to change that with the first Saskatchewan-based soil health scoring framework. “Soil health is defined as the capacity of the soil to function,” says Qianyi (Athena) Wu, […] Read more


A handful of soil health projects have secured funding for the next five years in the hope of kick starting soil health practices in the field. (Assiniboine Community College photo)

Multi-million-dollar fund greenlights soil health projects

Eight projects to push soil health practices will get funding for the next five years

Reading Time: 2 minutes Eight soil health projects across Canada will be getting a multi-million-dollar boost in private funding over the next five years. The Weston Family Foundation — the philanthropic arm of the Weston business empire — has slated $10 million for those eight projects through the organization’s soil health initiative, it was announced Feb. 13. The initiative […] Read more

In healthier soils, drought-stressed corn leaves might curl in the afternoon, but plants remain green and productive.

Longer crop rotations can pay

The past season illustrated the benefits of building resilience through diversity

Reading Time: 5 minutes While there may be short-term costs of improving soil health through longer rotations, the past growing season in Ontario has demonstrated that they can be a good investment. “It’s one of those messages — especially in a year like 2022 — where there are growing seasons that bring it to the fore,” says Jake Munroe, […] Read more