The Plant Hardiness Zones map outlines the different zones in Canada where various types of trees, shrubs and flowers will most likely survive. It is based on the average climatic conditions of each area. The first such map for North America, released by the United States Department of Agriculture in 1960, was based only on minimum winter temperatures. In 1967, Agriculture Canada scientists created a plant hardiness map using Canadian plant survival data and a wider range of climatic variables, including minimum winter temperatures, length of the frost-free period, summer rainfall, maximum temperatures, snow cover, January rainfall and maximum wind speed. Natural Resources Canada's Canadian Forest Service scientists have now updated the plant hardiness zones using the same variables and more recent climate data (1961-90). They have used modern climate mapping techniques and incorporated the effect of elevation. The new map indicates that there have been changes in the hardiness zones that are generally consistent with what is known about climate change. These changes are most pronounced in western Canada. The new hardiness map is divided into nine major zones: the harshest is 0 and the mildest is 8. Subzones (e.g., 4a or 4b, 5a or 5b) are also noted in the map legend. These subzones are most familiar to Canadian gardeners. Some significant local factors, such as micro-topography, amount of shelter and subtle local variations in snow cover, are too small to be captured on the map. Year-to-year variations in weather and gardening techniques can also have a significant impact on plant survival in any particular location. For more information see: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/50f9f293-f288-4de6-98ad-f69cf85d21ea

The Agri-Environmental Indicator (AEI) dataset series provides information that was created using indicators that assess the environmental impact of agricultural activities. These agri-environmental indicators integrate information on soils, climate and land surface features with statistics on land use and crop and livestock management practices. The datasets provide valuable, location-specific information on the overall environmental risks and conditions in agriculture across Canada and how these change over time. This dataset series collects AEI data that is related to geographic features and can be represented on a map. Other types of AEI data are not included. The datasets can be organized into the following major groups: farm land management, soil health, water quality, air quality, and food and beverage industry (not included). Farm land management datasets: soil cover, wildlife habitat, and farm land management (not included). Soil health datasets: soil erosion, soil organic matter, trace elements, and soil salinity. Water quality datasets: nitrogen, phosphorus, coliforms, and pesticides. Air quality datasets: greenhouse gases, ammonia, particulate matter. For more information, visit: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/e996d9be-6a3b-4059-9afc-17dc68385f05

The "Canada's First Fall Frost Normals (1981-2010)" dataset contains the Mean and Median First Fall Frost Julian day calculated from the ANUSPLIN gridded data set using the date range from January 1, 1981 - December 31, 2010. The dataset also includes the Mean and Median Frost Free Period (given as a count of calendar days). For the purposes of this dataset a Frost Free day is defined as a day where the minimum daily temperature is greater than 0.0 Celsius.For more information, visit: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/c293739c-4e16-4384-bff8-e3fdaddc5e5f

The Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's LiDAR Projects dataset was created from existing spatial data. It contains the footprints (outlines) of all the LiDAR data that is openly distributed by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) is a method of acquiring survey points using optical remote sensing technology. The dataset indicates basic information about the location, source and properties of the data. For more information, visit: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/a760f9e0-7013-4187-9261-2e69b01edd9a

In 2018, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) repeated the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to for all of Canada, in support of a national crop inventory. A Decision Tree (DT) based methodology was applied using optical (Landsat-8, Sentinel-2) and radar (RADARSAT-2) based satellite images, and having a final spatial resolution of 30m. In conjunction with satellite acquisitions, ground-truth information was provided by: provincial crop insurance companies in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec; point observations from the BC Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; and data collection supported by our regional AAFC Research and Development Centres in St. John's, Kentville, Charlottetown, Fredericton, Guelph, and Summerland. For more information, visit: https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/1f2ad87e-6103-4ead-bdd5-147c33fa11e6

The Agro-Pedological Atlas is a set of interactive maps which show the characteristics, the fertility, the quality of the water regime, the vulnerability to degradation and the potential of the agricultural soils and land in the Monteregian region of the province of Quebec.

The "Soils of Canada, Derived" national scale thematic datasets display the distribution and areal extent of soil attributes such as drainage, texture of parent material, kind of material, and classification of soils in terms of provincial Detailed Soil Surveys (DDS) polygons, Soil Landscape Polygons (SLCs), Soil Order and Great Group. The relief and associated slopes of the Canadian landscape are depicted on the local surface form thematic dataset. The purpose of the "Soils of Canada, Derived" series is to facilitate the cartographic display and basic queries of the Soil Landscapes of Canada at a national scale. For more detailed or sophisticated analysis, users should investigate the full "Soil Landscapes of Canada" product. For more information, visit: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/8f496e3f-1e54-4dbb-a501-a91eccf616b8

In 2017, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) repeated the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to for all of Canada, in support of a national crop inventory. A Decision Tree (DT) based methodology was applied using optical (Landsat-8, Sentinel-2, Gaofen-1) and radar (RADARSAT-2) based satellite images, and having a final spatial resolution of 30m. In conjunction with satellite acquisitions, ground-truth information was provided by: provincial crop insurance companies in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec; point observations from the BC Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; and data collection supported by our regional AAFC Research and Development Centres in St. John's, Kentville, Charlottetown, Fredericton, Guelph, and Summerland. For more information, visit: https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/cb3d7dec-ecc6-498b-ac17-949e03f29549

The “Oilseeds Science Sector by CCS” data was derived from the 2011 Census of Agriculture using published documentation describing the Science Sector. It was created for facilitating the geographic description, analysis, and reporting of the sector. The selection of 2011 Census of Agriculture variables was derived from the “AAFC Science and Technology Branch Science Strategy for the AgriFood Sector “Oilseed sector”” ;“At present, the strategy covers the following crop types: canola and rapeseed, mustard, soybeans (oilseed and food-grade), flax, sunflower, hemp, safflower” NOTE: The identified “hemp” and “safflower” making up part of the this sector are not included in this dataset because the data, although collected in the 2011 Census of Agriculture, was published as “Other crops” along with a number of other crops not included in this scope of this sector. For more information, visit: www.agr.gc.ca/atlas/metadata/1f4dcc5c-23d8-4b08-a98e-64c1c93f083c

In 2015, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) repeated the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to for all of Canada, in support of a national crop inventory. A Decision Tree (DT) based methodology was applied using optical (Landsat-8) and radar (RADARSAT-2) based satellite images, and having a final spatial resolution of 30m. In conjunction with satellite acquisitions, ground-truth information was provided by provincial crop insurance companies and point observations from the BC Ministry of Agriculture and our regional AAFC colleagues. For more information, visit: http://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/3688e7d9-7520-42bd-a3eb-8854b685fef3