The Extensionists

With the holiday season upon us, The Extensionists hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter decided to take a break from interviewing the great thinkers of agriculture and instead share a reimagined Christmas poem with you, our dear listeners. So curl up by the fireplace and listen to The Extensionists version of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.Happy holidays to your and yours from the team here at The Extensionists and tune in on Jan. 7 for our first episode of the New Year!Website:

In the sixth episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with University of Manitoba professor and soil scientist Afua Mante. Afua’s fervor and perspective on soil breathe new life into a topic foundational to a successful ag sector.In this episode, Afua likens soil structure to the frame of a house with many rooms. Like in a house, compact rooms are hard to work in, and in general, we protect our homes with roofs and deadbolts. For Afua, the same can be said of soils:

In the fifth episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with AAFC Lacombe research scientist Breanne Tidemann. Breanne is a self proclaimed weed nerd and creator of #WeedIDWednesday, an extension tool that uses social media to make weed education and identification more accessible.In this episode, Breanne shares all about what weeds she battles in Lacombe, including Kochia. Breanne also shares just how crafty weeds can be and how they ‘punk’ us by always finding a way to

In the fourth episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with former high school teacher and current University of Calgary associate professor Paul Galpern. Paul’s love of insects is contagious, and he thinks farmers should embrace the “messy” parts of the vocation. He makes a convincing, impassioned case.In this episode, Paul talks about his involvement with the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network, which works with farmers to identify and share data related to the

In the third episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with one of the “fathers of canola” Keith Downey. Back in the ‘60s and ‘70s, while working with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Saskatoon, Keith was instrumental in creating the crop we now know as canola – Canada’s most valuable crop.In this episode, Keith talks about the science, policy and the business team effort to develop the canola industry ecosystem, and how oilseed processor J. Gordon Ross saved the day

In this second episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter sit down with Marla Riekman, soil management specialist with Manitoba Agriculture. Marla is passionate about all things soil, but her journey to becoming a soil expert wasn’t always a straight line. From her nerdy high school days immersed in science and music, to her brief flirtation with entomology, Marla eventually found her calling in soil science—although, as she says, she never would have believed it back

In the inaugural episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter talk with Alanna Koch. Alanna, a well-known and respected leader, does not wear jogging pants to the grocery store, and she values a good debate. Alanna and her husband, Gerry Hertz, farm near Edenwold, Sask. She has held various senior executive roles with the Saskatchewan government, including Deputy Minister to the Premier of Saskatchewan. Alanna talks about all of this and a whole lot more, all while sharing a few

Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter talk to researchers, inventors, and farmers with ideas and discoveries for the economic, environmental, and social enhancement of Canadian agriculture.