Agriculture Programs

Farm Weather Station Assistance Program

Agricultural Production Extension Program

Informally known as ‘farm extension’, this program has been provided by Perennia on behalf of the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture since 2001 at no cost to eligible producers, or cost recovery for some basic costs not covered by the program. Sectors covered include: horticulture, livestock, field crops and soils for both conventional and organic systems. Services covered by the program include: individual farm advice by phone, electronically and in person at the discretion of the specialist; publications and information online and in hard copy; virtual and in-person workshops and field days; and sector development projects. with collaborative partners.

To be eligible for the program, producers must: be a provincially-registered farm operation producing commercially as an income source, or with the desire and commitment to be selling at a commercial level; and show the commitment to learning the hands-on and decision-making skills to successfully manage the day-to-day agronomic needs of their operation with little formal assistance from our specialists (for example, learning how to read soil tests, identify a cow with metabolic disease, and when to harvest a crop).

Under this program, Perennia specialists undertake industry development projects to address industry-wide issues, often with collaborators. When working with partners where Perennia is not an original co-operator or a collaborative in the project scope, in-kind participation by specialists under this program, will be determined on an project-by-project basis.

For more information, please contact one of our offices at:
(902) 678-7722 or (902) 896-0227
or connect with an agricultural production specialist

Biosecurity Program

For five years, Perennia offered a biosecurity education program on behalf of the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture. Signs for your farm are available to no charge. Visit the Biosecurity Nova Scotia website for more information and to order signs.

Atlantic Technology Transfer Team for Apiculture

The first ever Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture was created in 2016 at Perennia Food and Agriculture Corporation as a joint initiative supported by government, provincial beekeeper and wild blueberry associations. The majority of the project is funded under the Pan Atlantic Research and Innovation Program under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, which is program cost-shared between the federal and provincial governments with contributions from provincial commodity associations. The ATTTA apiculturists work with a steering committee to focus on building the pollination capacity of honey bees for wild blueberry pollination through five objectives:

1. Improve honey bee health and nutrition;
2. Improve disease and pest monitoring and treatment (including IPM strategies);
3. Improve overwintering success;
4. Improve biosecurity techniques and
5. Optimize pollination in lowbush blueberry

For more information, please visit https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

For more information, please contact:

Andrew Byers, PhD
abyers@perennia.ca
(902) 324-1832