Flora of Saskatchewan

[4] There is listed Small White Lady's Slipper (Cypripedium candidum) as the only local extinction, (extirpated) plant.

Blueberry, Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi ), Sand Heather (Hudsonia tomentosa), Crowberry (Empetrum) and grasses survive here.

Bearberry, low-bush cranberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea), Red Osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea, syn.

[19] Peatlands, fens, marsh complexes occur with wetter soils such as those found above the basin of the Quaternary Glacial Lake Agassiz in the south eastern portion of the Southern Boreal Forest.

[23]Bog Labrador Tea (Ledum groenlandicum), Sphagnum mosses, and cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus) flourish in the peatland areas.

Reed Grass (Calamagrostis), Willows, marsh cinquefoil (Potentilla), and False Solomon's Seal (Maianthemum racemosum) gow in fen regions.

The Aspen parkland corresponds to the Transitional Grassland Ecoclimatic Region with lower precipitation and a higher average annual temperature of about 1.3 °C (34.3 °F).

Trembling aspen form bluffs (small islands or shelter belts) which are typical in this area.

Trees in this area are Bur Oak, (Quercus macrocarpa), Green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica), Manitoba maple (Acer negundo), and balsam poplar (Populus sect.

The western parkland has ground cover of plains rough fescue Needle and thread grass (Hesperostipa comata).

Saskatoon (Amelanchier alnifolia), pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica), choke cherry (Prunus virginiana), hawthorn (Crataegus), western snow berry (Symphoricarpos), woods rose (Rosa woodsii), Wolf willow (Elaeagnus commutata) and Canada buffaloberry (Shepherdia canadensis) are a few of the shrubs of the area.

[13] The marshes and prairie sloughs of the Aspen Parkland support flora similar to the marshlands of the Southern Boreal Forest.

[18][24] Big sandgrass, blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) grass grow in the higher dry areas.

[17] Needle and thread grass, northern wheat grass (Elymus lanceolatus), hair sedge (Carex atherodes), bottle sedge (Carex rostrata) grow in the intermediate mesic sites, with cottonwoods and willow growing along riverbanks.

[13] The Cypress Hills has an elevation over 1,200 metres (3,900 ft), with cooler resulting temperatures and higher precipitation which are more similar to the boreal forest than the prairie grasslands.Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta) occurs only in the Cypress Hills area of Saskatchewan and also in the Rocky Mountain forests.

Shining leaved meadowsweet (Spiraea lucida), low larkspur (Delphinium bicolor ), pinegrass (Calamagrostis rubescens ) provide ground cover.

There are many native plants of Saskatchewan which can be prepared as vegetables, teas, wine, jams, syrups and flour.

Blackberry, dewberry, blueberry, buffaloberry, currant, huckleberry, prickly pear, raspberry, and rose hips all make delicious jams or jellies.

[25] Herbal solutions used as remedies for ailments could be ingested as tea, used as ointments, or poultices or inhaled as smoke or steam from a decoction.

Cow parsnip (Heracleum maximum) and broad-leaved water plantain (Alisma plantago-aquatica) are two herbal remedies which were cultivated by the Cree.

[25] Flora of Saskatchewan have also aided humans in other ways; trees provide wood such as birch bark for canoes, reeds could be fashioned into whistles and baskets.

[19] Eugène Bourgeau (1813 - 1877) was the botanist who traveled with Captain John Palliser (1817–1887) and Henry Youle Hind (1823 - 1908) during the British North American Exploring Expedition.

[26][27] John Macoun (1831-1920) was a naturalist who accompanied Sir Sanford Fleming to the prairies in 1872 and he offered agricultural possibilities for the region.

[28] Isabel M. Priestly (1893-1946) was a botanist who made botanical collections and formed the Yorkton Natural History Society.

Agriculture in Saskatchewan is the production of various food, feed, or fiber commodities to fulfill domestic and international human and animal sustenance needs.

[32] cultivation and livestock production have abandoned subsistence agricultural practices in favor of intensive technological farming resulting in cash crops which contribute to the economy of Saskatchewan.

The first nation nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle and the early immigrant ox and plow farmer proving up on his quarter section of land in no way resemble the present farmer operating huge amounts of land or livestock with their attendant technological mechanization.

[33] Challenges to the future of Saskatchewan agriculture include developing sustainable water management strategies for a cyclical drought prone climate in south western Saskatchewan, updating dryland farming techniques, stabilizing organic definitions or protocols and the decision to grow, or not to grow genetically modified foods.

Domestically and internationally, some commodities have faced increased scrutiny from disease and the ensuing marketing issues.

[34] Saskatchewan still has cattle ranching along the southwestern corner of the province, However, grain farming and growing crops such as wheat, oats, flax, alfalfa, and rapeseed (especially canola) dominate the parkland area.