(File photo/farmnewsNOW staff)

By Angie Rolheiser

Agriculture roundup

Agriculture Roundup for Tuesday July 30, 2019

Jul 30, 2019 | 12:00 PM

A four-year study will examine ways to develop a genetically superior wheat that is more resistant to diseases and deliver better yields.

The Prairie wheat commissions have announced a combined investment of more than $1.9 million over four years for research, which builds on work that started five years ago, with the sequencing of the wheat genome.

Harvey Brooks with the Saskatchewan Wheat Commission said the end goal is pretty simple.

“The end goal here is to improve the relative profitability of wheat for Saskatchewan farmers,” Brooks said.

Brooks said they were able to get results much earlier than expected and so can start the next phase.

Responsive measures

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Health Canada said the total sales of legal dried cannabis grew seven per cent in May from the previous month as an uptick in recreational sales compensated for a steep drop in medical pot purchases.

Total sales of dried pot amounted to almost 9,500 kilograms in May, up from 8,874 kilograms in April.

However, the latest monthly data shows dried medical cannabis sales slipped by 20 per cent to just under 1,700 kilograms while recreational pot purchases climbed more than 15 per cent per cent to 7,798 kilograms.

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A hybrid version of a New Mexico chili plant has been selected to be grown in space as part of a NASA experiment.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that the chili, from Espanola, New Mexico, is tentatively scheduled to be launched to the International Space Station for testing in March 2020.

Jacob Torres — an Espanola native and NASA researcher — said the point of sending the plant into space is to demonstrate how NASA’s Advanced Plant Habitat works not only for leafy greens, but for fruiting crops, as well.

He said understanding how to grow plants to supplement astronauts’ diets would be essential for long missions to deep space, the moon, or Mars.