Head Researcher
R. H. (Bob) Bors Assistant Professor
B.Sc. (University of Maryland), Ph.D. (University of Guelph)
Dr. Bob Bors has been a Professor in the Plant Sci. Dept. at the University of Saskatchewan since 1999. He teaches classes on Fruit Science, Plant Propagation, Greenhouse Management and Introduction to Horticulture. His research involves breeding hardy fruits for northern areas with an emphasis on crops that can be mechanically harvested and need little or no pesticides. His program has 40 acres of fruit and a 93 year history of developing varieties for Northern Canada and is the coldest location in North America for a major fruit breeding program. In recent years his program has released 5 sour cherries, 4 apples and 8 Haskap varieties He runs a Prairie Fruit Genebank and regularly writes articles for his website www.fruit.usask.ca.
Fruit Program Technicians
Justin Schaffer: Is now the head technician for the Fruit Program, he is now in charge of fruit research projects and many experiments in the field and in the greenhouse. He and Bob Bors also manage our website. justin.schaeffer@usask.ca
Laura Billington: She is our newest technician. She is mainly helping in all areas but will be specializing in nutraceutical research when it is too cold for fieldwork. Laura is a U of SK Horticulture Grad who also has a degree in Pharmacy!
Questions about fruits (cultivation, diseases, insects etc) can be submitted to Gardenline, a free service offered by the Plant Sciences department at USask. This service is open from May 1 – September 30. Please submit questions using the form found on this page: https://gardening.usask.ca/gardening-advice/help.php Scroll down to the section called “Got a question? Ask Gardenline.
The Fruit Program is on Facebook!
The U of S Fruit program now has its own Facebook page. Be sure to like us in order to follow our progress through the field season as well as keep up to date with events and other information.