Dr. Bill Biligetu is an Associate Professor, at the Crop Development Center of the University of Saskatchewan. Growing up on the Mongolian Plateau, Dr. Bill Biligetu (PhD) has seen first-hand the effect climate change can have on grasslands. As the Ministry of Agriculture Strategic Research Program (SRP) Chair in Forage Crop Breeding, his program has focused on developing new varieties of perennial forage species crucial to the western Canadian beef and forage industries such as alfalfa, hybrid brome, meadow brome, and wheatgrasses. His breeding objectives range from improving forage biomass/disease resistance to enhancing salt and drought stress tolerances in these crops. Beside this, he has mentored many M.Sc. and Ph.D students to the industry. Dr. Biligetu was the recipient of the Sask. Industry Innovation Award (2018), and Canadian Society of Agronomy Young Researcher Award (2020).

In today’s episode, Dr. Biligetu shares information about his work developing native and tame forage varieties and mixtures.  We discuss the objectives of this project and what forages were selected for study.  He also shares some of the science behind breeding forages and how this study is being carried out.

Sainfoin is one of the forage species being studied in the project.  Dr. Biliegtu shares some information about what sainfoin is and how it is being studied.

We also chat about the economic benefits that higher yielding, nutritious tame and native forage varieties could have for cow-calf producers in Western Canada.

Links mentioned in this episode:

University of Saskatchewan Project Page: Developing Native and Tame Forage Varieties and Mixtures https://lfce.usask.ca/documents/biligetu_forage_varieties_in_progress.pdf

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

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