Students return to Farming Smarter for a summer of career growth

Spring is in the air, the birds are signing, and boots are in the field across southern Alberta. These telltale signs mark the start of a new growing season, and with it, the arrival of summer students at Farming Smarter.

Farming Smarter opened its doors to welcome 11 students to the research farm last week, all eager for an exciting summer of learning. Teams quickly got underway with training – a full review of protocol and operations for each project and piece of equipment were first priority.

“We go through all of the applications and calibrations for our equipment, so the students understand how everything works and learn what to look for,” states Mike Gretzinger, Agronomy Research Manager. 

The immediate training is an opportunity for everyone – new and returning students, as well as team leads – to refresh their knowledge. 

“Our work is very seasonal; some things we’re showing the students in their first week we likely haven’t seen for 365 days. Reviewing the entire operation from start to finish gives you a chance to identify bad habits and eliminate them before you go out and ruin your work,” Gretzinger continues. 

Teams take a bottom-up approach to training students. For their sprayer training, students reviewed crop protection guides, protocols, and the underlying fundamentals of pesticides before they began familiarizing themselves with the equipment. Equipment training, like for the Valmar fertilizer spreader, students were shown the ins-and-outs of weighing fertilizer for each trial before testing the equipment. 

“You can teach anybody how to operate these tools and equipment, but when we teach the reasons and principles behind our operations, it adds to the student’s engagement and buy-in to the work,” Gretzinger adds. 

A major component of this training is the confidence it builds in students as they develop a deeper understanding. That confidence plays a key role in their ability to troubleshoot on-the-go, which is especially handy in the field. 

“It’s not uncommon for a student to be out spraying and discover their applications aren’t correct. Teaching them the ins-and-outs of the equipment, how it all functions together, they learn how to identify if it’s a problem with the boom opposed to the gas tank – or even reevaluate their walking speed,” says Gretzinger. 

Students are taken to the field after a training session for the opportunity to apply what they’ve learned. Returning students are given the reins to lead the new arrivals through easier early season tasks. 

Last week saw teams primarily complete staking trials and planting flags to build the research plots for Farming Smarter’s record-setting 2026 growing season. This week, they’ve taken rubber to the road to complete initial applications for a myriad of projects. 

Gretzinger started the week reviewing Valmar calibrations with his Agronomy Research team. Afterwards, Ariana Duerksen led two students through completing nitrogen and phosphorus applications for the second year of trials for the “FerCanStrip” project. 

Duerksen began her third summer of working at Farming Smarter this year while she completes her bachelor’s degree in theology. Although the industry doesn’t apply to her degree, the unique experiences a summer of agriculture work brings are satisfying for her to miss out on.  

“I think that the community and work environment here is really awesome. There’s a lot of good people and learning experiences. I’ve learned so much here, including a lot of good life skills,” Duerksen says. 

Prior to enrolling at the Briercrest Bible College, Duerksen sought out a summer job in agriculture as an end to her high school career. 

“I was interested in getting into the ag industry, and I really wanted some of the experiences that you get from jobs in this industry,” she recalls. 

She immediately found the experiences she was looking for and has since been looking forward to each summer she can spend in the field. “There’s a certain satisfaction that you get from a summer here. The payoff that comes from harvest after all the hard work you get from seeding up to that point is a pretty cool way to end your summer,” she adds. 

The opportunity for unique experiences is a common appeal to students outside of the industry. 

“I saw Farming Smarter at the University of Lethbridge’s job fair and thought that it would be a really great opportunity,” says Lily Ayerhart. “I’m currently in a bachelor’s of science in geography and I want to get into research and the physical sciences – something similar to this.” 

Ayerhart is excited to grow her knowledge and spend the summer working outside, learning new things in an unfamiliar industry before returning for her fifth and final year of university. 

Spring brings an annual reminder to dust off the tools and begin the year’s cycle of work anew. However, for those outside of the industry, the beginning of the season brings new excitement and a plethora of things to learn. 

Farming Smarter is excited to provide this opportunity for students each year. In addition to the 11 students that began a new summer of excitement in May, two more high school students and two international students are yet to arrive. 

Make sure you follow Farming Smarter to stay connected with the great content and fun opportunities in store this summer!