Canola disease takes root in Saskatchewan

Clubroot, a disease that chokes off water and nutrients to canola plants, now has a toehold in Saskatchewan for the first time in history.

A few days ago, plants infected with clubroot turned up in two fields in the north-central region of the province.

The infected plants had swollen roots but showed no other signs, says Faye Dokken-Bouchard, the province's plant disease specialist.

"What this finding reminds us is that the clubroot risk is real," said Dokken-Bouchard. "And so we're just really remembering that we should be watching out for it."

Clubroot spores first appeared in a soil sample from a field in the west central area of Saskatchewan three years ago, but this is the first time plants have shown symptoms.

The discovery means farmers will have to limit how often they plant canola, says the chair of SaskCanola, Brett Halstead.

However, Halstead admits that may be easier said than done, because canola is a lucrative crop.

"So it's tempting to tighten those rotations," he told CBC. "We all do it at times but you know there just needs to be a word of caution, and watch how you're doing it and scout your fields as you're doing it."

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture says the risk of clubroot is low if canola is planted once every four years in the same field, but the risk increases if the rotation period is shortened.