Lethbridge College’s Research Farm Field Day returns for a second year

Lethbridge College held its 2023 Research Farm Field Day on Tuesday, July 11.

Lethbridge College’s Centre for Applied Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CARIE) held its second-annual Research Farm Field Day on Tuesday.

"It is a day to showcase all of the applied research that Lethbridge College does in the field of agriculture," said Megan Shapka, director of applied research.

"It’s all about collaboration and sharing best practices and innovative ideas for the agriculture industry."

The event was held at Lethbridge College's 385-acre research farm, east of Lethbridge, from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 

It's there at the farm that CARIE is pushing the boundaries of what can be done with irrigation, hydrology and emerging technologies.

"We have a whole bunch of water and nutrients projects on the go, testing some practical aspects of growing a crop with drip lines buried underneath, and we have a greenhouse gas study that's in it's second year," said senior research chair Willemijn Appels.

Over 100 people attended the event, receiving tours of the research farm and speaking with researchers to learn more about the program.

Earlier this year, Lethbridge College became the newest member of the Pan-Canadian Smart Farm Network, started by Olds College, to support emerging opportunities in Canada’s agriculture sector.                                                                                                   

The field day gave representatives from the Olds College Centre of Innovation a chance to see the farm in person.

"I’ve heard so much about what they're doing," said David Fullerton, Olds College’s director of applied research.

"It's fantastic to come down and see the work that they're doing and how that might translate to something we could do in partnership with them."

Fullerton says they're excited for representatives from Lethbridge College to visit during the annual AgSmart showcase in August.