Project aims to benefit wildlife habitat and take action on sustainable agriculture.

Some areas of the Prairie Pothole Region contain soils and topography very conducive to row crop agriculture. As a result, in the early 1990s Ducks Unlimited began research on and promotion of waterfowl friendly cropping systems. The most promising crop to emerge from this preliminary work was winter wheat. Winter wheat is planted in the fall and harvested in the summer and as such it is relatively undisturbed during the spring nesting season. In Canada, ducks have been shown to achieve 20% nest success on average, which is high enough to grow population levels. Armed with this knowledge, DU began deploying agronomists in Canada and the U.S. to promote winter wheat through technical guidance and incentives.

Our efforts have contributed to a three fold increase in conversion of cropland to winter wheat production across the prairies during a period when other wheat varieties have been declining. It is important to note that this increase in winter wheat did not result from plowing of native prairie. A number of industry and agency partners have supported our efforts over the years and contributed to the success of the program.

A pintail nest in winter wheat. Winter wheat is beneficial to spring nesting waterfowl, particularly Northern pintails, a species that has declined since the late 1970s.

More recently, Bayer CropScience, which has established a global commitment to pursuing sustainable agricultural production, has become a primary partner in our winter cereal efforts. Bayer’s desire is to support cropping systems that maintain wildlife populations as well as improve soil, water, and air quality. These shared values have set the stage for an enhanced partnership with Bayer to promote winter cereals across the U.S. and Canadian prairies.

Today, DU announced a $20 million investment by Bayer over five years in our joint U.S. and Canada winter cereals efforts (Press Release). This is a landmark corporate investment in DU’s conservation work and it will provide increased breeding habitat in the prairies at a time when some traditional covers, like CRP, are declining.

Check Out:

Press Release: DU & Bayer CropScience team up to increase Winter Wheat in North America

DU Magazine Article: Ducks and Winter Wheat

Winter Wheat Program

Information Brochure

Winter Wheat Blog

Winter Wheat Canada Blog