Research Projects
Each year, IRDA's R&D Team conducts more than one hundred research projects in sustainable agriculture. What's more, IRDA is working with Quebec's key agricultural stakeholders to find concrete solutions.
Optimizing methods of installing and maintaining commercial paper mulch
The purpose of the project was to develop techniques and tools for maintaining paper mulch during crop growth.
Researcher: Carl Boivin
Large-scale use of trichogramma wasps against the European corn borer (Ostrinia nubilalis) in fresh and processing sweet corn
The goal of this project is to boost the number of fresh and processing sweet corn producers in Québec using trichogramma to control European corn borer.
Researcher: Annabelle Firlej
Galinsoga management in organic vegetable production
The aim of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of different control strategies.
Researcher: Maryse Leblanc
Control strategies to reduce the impact of the spotted wing drosophila
This project aims to promote a biocontrol solution by testing a complex of natural enemies that attack the spotted wing drosophilia at different development stages.
Researcher: Annabelle Firlej
Vegetative propagation and regenerative capacity of Canada thistle and sow thistle under organic management
The purpose of this project was to study the vegetative propagation and regeneration capacity of Canada thistle and sow thistle with a view to developing effective weed control strategies.
Researcher: Maryse Leblanc
Exclusion nets made from biobased polymers
The purpose of this project is to test the general hypothesis that biobased polymers can be used to replace fossil-fuel-based products and reduce the use of pesticides without increasing GHG emissions.
Researchers: Gérald Chouinard Daniel Cormier
Improving molecular techniques for identifying pests to meet the diagnostic needs of the agricultural industry in the context of climate change
Barcoding can be used to obtain DNA sequences from specimens kept in the official Québec government insect collection and compare these sequences with those from field-caught specimens.
Researcher: Annabelle Firlej
Control strategies against leek moth in organic production
This project aims to evaluate effective and economically viable control strategies for leek moth that are healthy for both humans and ecosystems.
Impact of composite hedges on natural enemies and pollinators in an organic polyculture system in Québec
This project will provide a better understanding of interactions between a vegetable polyculture system and hedges composed of shrubs and perennials in order to enhance the impact of beneficial insects on vegetable crops.
Impact of integrated pest management on the profitability of field crop farms
This project was aimed at evaluating the impact of integrated pest management on the profitability of field crop farms.
Researcher: Luc Belzile
Attract and kill strategies for control of the plum curculio in conventional and organic apple orchards
An attract and kill technique to control plum curculio was recently proposed by U.S. researchers, but it is very little used in orchards and virtually unknown in Québec.
Researcher: Gérald Chouinard
Selection, mass rearing, and field efficiency of a predaceous strain of mullein bug
The goal of the project is to select a strain of the mullein bug to control two spotted and red spider mites when populations tend to explode.
Researcher: Daniel Cormier
Adapting fruit crop pest and disease control to climate change
The goal of this project was to document the impact of climate change on fruit crop pests and diseases in Québec.
Researcher: Annabelle Firlej
Productivity of healthy looking plants that have never received nitrogen fertilizer and that are located in a blueberry field infected by stunt disease
In highbush blueberry fields where stunt disease has been detected, plants that have never received nitrogen fertilizer are more vigorous and homogeneous than plants that have received nitrogen fertilizer.
Researchers: Carl Boivin Christine Landry
Economic cost of herbicide resistance in weeds found in field crops
The aim of the project was to estimate the economic impact of herbicide resistance in weeds.
Researcher: Luc Belzile
The solutions developed by IRDA aim to...
Ensure the sustainability
and quality of soil, water, and air
Protect the health and well-being
of local communities by improving the quality of crop and livestock production, with an emphasis on animal welfare
Safeguard the economic viability
of crop and livestock production