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Volume 39, Number 18 | DECEMBER 2, 2013

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PRACTICAL PRODUCTION TIPS FOR THE PRAIRIE FARMER

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Get the most from pulses with proper inoculation Good inoculation is the key to high pulse yields.

Choose the right formulation for your farm

BY SARAH WEIGUM

M

uch of what farmers do is an attempt to overcome the challenges of nature — from fighting disease and weeds to protecting livestock from inclement weather. Inoculating pulse crops gives growers the opportunity to work with the natural properties of living organisms for payoff, both economically and environmentally.

Peas, lentils, soybeans and other pulses can produce a profitable crop with little or no nitrogen fertilizer as long as their roots are able to form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia bacteria. Native rhizobia can be found in every soil, but putting the right strain of bacteria on or near the seed when it goes into the ground ensures that the plant can undergo the nitrogen fixing process. While there is little debate among scientists and farmers of the value of inoculating pulses with bacteria, there are still some decisions to make and best management practices to remember.

INOCULANT FORMULATION Choosing an inoculant formulation is still the biggest decision growers have to make. John Treloar, technical agronomist for Novozymes, explained some of the pros and cons of liquid, self-stick peat and granular formulations.

1. Liquid inoculant: Liquid forms of inoculant, Treloar said, are an excellent way to have the bacteria as close as possible to the seedling when the first roots are poking out of the seed.

“If it’s applied correctly you know it’s right on the seed,” said Treloar. Using liquid does, however, mean an extra step before getting in the field as farmers have to apply the inoculant as the seed is going into the truck or drill. Some kind of metered liquid applicator

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should be used to ensure proper bacteria levels are achieved on the seed. These applicators can cost anywhere from less than $500 to into the thousands. When using these kind of treaters it’s important to calibrate them each year or if the weather changes significantly.

Liquid is the most “unstable” of the inoculant formulations, meaning that the bacteria is most vulnerable in this form. Some liquid inoculants are only safe on bare seed for six hours before planting. Very few liquid inoculants are compatible with seed treatments, seed primers or colorants.

2. Peat-based inoculant formulations: Peat-based formulations are applied directly to the seed as well, but they offer a more stable form of the inoculant than liquid. Treloar explained that the peat protects the bacteria.

“The peat gives the bug an environment it can survive in without getting brushed off easily.”

Peat inoculants have a self-sticking agent so they will stick to the seed as it is metered on. However, peats can also be mixed with water to form a slurry.

Because the bacteria is protected, peat-based inoculants can survive on the seed longer than liquid, but in most cases the peat-inoculated seed still needs to be put in the ground within a matter of days.

3. Granular inoculants: Granular inoculants are not applied to the seed, but into the soil from a tank on the air cart. This is the most stable form of inoculant. As David Townsend, BASF brand manager, explained, the granules form a protective defence around the bacteria.

“That’s why the granular can work so well. It’s in its own little house and it can’t get hurt by seed treatment.” There are no compatibility issues between granular inoculant and seed treatments because they do not come into direct contact.

Granular inoculant tends to be more expensive than liquid or peat-based options, but adds convenience as producers can simply empty a bag of inoculant into the third tank on the cart at seeding time rather than have to apply the seed treatment to the seed. The metering system on the granular tank should be calibrated in the field just like farmers would do with seed or fertilizer tanks.

COMPATIBILITY The company representatives interviewed for this story stressed the importance of checking their websites for compatibility between the inoculant and any other product applied to the seed, including treatments, fertilizers and colourants.

Formulations of crop protection products change frequently and inoculant manufacturers do new compatibility tests every year, so it is important to have the current crop year’s information in front of you when making a decision about which inoculant to use.

HANDLING The proper handling of inoculant varies by product, but some general principles apply to all inoculants.

“We are talking about a live organism,” said Treloar. “You can’t leave it in your chemical shed over winter. You can’t leave the liquid in your truck for a couple of days when it’s over 25 degrees.”

Liquid products should not be allowed to freeze and all products should be stored below 15 degrees Celsius and out of direct heat.

Granular inoculant bags should be stored on a pallet off of the floor of the shop or warehouse. Liquid inoculants come in small blad-

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PHOTO: BASF

By taking time to survey fields while plants are nodulating, farmers can see how well their pulse crops are fixing nitrogen.

In This Issue

Wheat & Chaff ..................

2

Features ............................

5

Crop Advisor’s Casebook

6

Columns ........................... 22 Machinery & Shop ............ 28 Cattleman’s Corner .......... 37

New camelina variety

LISA GUENTHER PAGE 14

Class 8 Gleaner Combine

SCOTT GARVEY PAGE 34

FarmLife ............................ 44

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Wheat & Chaff STAMPEDE

BY JERRY PALEN

LEEANN MINOGUE

A

couple of weeks ago BASF and Monsanto’s communications staff emailed me a press release. It said, “According to the second annual Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of BASF, 69 per cent of western Canadian growers believe weeds are getting tougher to control.”

The press release went on to recommend a tank mix of Roundup with Heat or Distinct, and mention a discount farmers can get when they buy both.

But the release didn’t explain what the other 31 per cent of farmers were thinking. With new herbicide-resistant weeds popping up all the time, have they just given up?

Or maybe some of them were thinking that weeds are “impossible” to control… not just “tougher?”

USING STATISTICS

CONTACT US

Write, Email or Fax SUBSCRIPTION INQUIRIES: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (CST) 1-800-665-0502

U.S. subscribers call 1-204-944-5568 or email: subscription@fbcpublishing.com If you have story ideas, call us. You can write the article and we’d pay you, or we can write it.

Without a lot of background information, statistics rarely give us all the information we really need or want to get the full understanding of a situation.

My favourite story of statistics gone bad happened to my friend “Rick” back in the early 90s.

Rick got a great job offer and decided to move from Regina to Ottawa. He’d never spent much time in Ottawa and didn’t have any close friends in the city, so when it came time to find an apartment, he had no idea where to start looking. As a recent university grad, Rick didn’t have the means to stay in an Ottawa hotel while he found

I took this photo of my husband Brad and our son Matt, cross country skiing just north of our house last winter. the perfect place. But Rick is an economist. So he went straight to the library to look at the numbers. (Remember, the mid1990s Internet wasn’t the fullservice contraption it is today.)

Rick pulled huge dusty books off the library shelves and browsed detailed statistics about every Ottawa neighbourhood until he found the perfect location. “I’ve found an apartment in the area with the most single women between 20 and 30,” he said. (Some economists might have focused on commute times or local grocery stores. Rick had his own priorities.)

Rick realized his mistake even before he’d carried his last box of books up to his third-floor apart-

ment. He was living in a mainly gay neighbourhood. “Sure, there’s all kinds of women here,” Rick told me when I went to visit. “But none of them are interested in me.”

HAPPY HOLIDAYS This is our last issue before Christmas. My husband and I will be spending the holidays at home this year: driving our son to hockey games, cross-country skiing in the sloughs behind the house and getting the snowmobiles out.

All of us at Grainews wish you a happy holiday and a 2014 with great weather, high yields and just the right amount of rain. † Leeann Minogue

Phone Leeann Minogue at 306-861-2678 Fax to 204-944-5416 Email leeann.minogue@fbcpublishing.com Write to Grainews, 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, Man. R3H 0H1

HEARTS

Ask for hearts When you renew your subscription to Grainews, be sure to ask for six Please Be Careful, We Love You hearts. Then stick them onto equipment that you, your loved ones and your employees operate. That important message could save an arm, a leg or a life.

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Find, read and comment on blog posts easily and with a thumbs up!

Find us on Twitter: Leeann Minogue is @grainmuse Lisa Guenther is @LtoG Lee Hart is @hartattacks Scott Garvey is @machineryeditor

Lowline cattle at Agribition

I

took this photo of Melissa Monteith and “Bess” at Agribition in Regina in November. Melissa is part of the Mervin, Sask., 4-H beef club.

Many of the cows at Agribition were bigger than a small car and much more intimidating. But Bess was barely as high as a good-sized bicycle.

Melissa and her mom, Cathy Monteith, told me the story of this line of cattle.

In the late 1920s, Aberdeen Angus cattle were shipped from Canada to the Trangie research station in Australia. In 1964, the Trangie herd was closed to additional animals. To see which size of animals were the most efficient, researchers divided this herd into three groups: Highline, Lowline (chosen for its low yearling growth rate) and a control

group. Over the years, the Lowline group stabilized at a size about 30 per cent smaller than the Highline group.

When the research station closed in the early 1990s, some of the embryos found their way “home” to Canada.

Cathy says some of the advantages to this smaller-sized herd are that they’re more feedefficient (they finish on grass at 15 months versus three to four years for other breeds), and they produce a smaller carcass — something that appeals to consumers looking for smaller portions.

You can learn more about these cattle and Cathy and Melissa’s operation at Edam, Sask., online at www.HoneybrookLowlines.com. †

DECEMBER 2, 2013

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Wheat & Chaff Farm safety

Don’t let winter sabotage safety

W

ith some weather forecasters spinning tales of ominous Arctic air masses settling over much of the Prairies this winter, farmers may be filled with a combination of dread and denial.

Whatever the forecast has in store, it’s time to put some safety plans in place for your snow clearing activities.

Start with a little yard housekeeping.

Comb the yard and lane for any debris and clear it out. Metal, stones, and wood can become dangerous projectiles when picked up by a snow blower. Lane boundaries and equipment can easily become buried in snow. Mark off lane edges with posts to prevent unexpected dips that could cause rollovers. Mark off equipment hitches. This could prevent collisions.

Cover the mechanical components of any equipment you plan to use over the winter to prevent snow buildup, and assess tem-

porary shelters to ensure their roofs can withstand a heavy burden of snow.

Inspect snowblowers and plows for service issues. Make sure all guards and shields are in place. Check components like chains, U-joints and bearings. If any components are damaged, get them repaired and make sure you have extra sheer pins or bolts on hand.

Once winter has arrived, it’s time to spring into action. Snow-removal equipment should be located somewhere easy to access. Plan your clearing and dumping route. Before you start your engine, ensure your working area is clear of bystanders.

Snowblowers are powerful, but dangerous machines.

Visibility is a big issue for operators.

For one, blowers are often attached to the back of tractors, which means operators are constantly backing up to clear snow. Secondly, swirling snow can fur-

You might be from the Prairies if...

photo contest

GIVE US YOUR BEST SHOT Jenny Jerke’s neighbour, Camille Giacobbo, took this great photo of Jenny taking some kids for an oldfashioned Sunday buggy ride near Wetaskiwin, Alta.

Jenny is driving the buggy. Her young passengers are Carter Jerke, Jennifer Reid, Emma Reid, Brayln Schwad and Joe Giacobbo. The Haflinger horse is called Dusty.

Jenny, thanks so much for sending us this photo of a great Sunday tradition! We’ll send you a cheque for $25.

To get your cheque, send your best shot to leeann. minogue@fbcpublishing.com. Please send only one or two photos at a time and include your name and address, the names of anyone in the photo, where the photo was taken and a bit about what was going on that day. A little write-up about your farm is welcome, too. Please ensure that images are of high resolution (1 MB is preferred), and if the image includes a person, we need to be able to see their face clearly.

Leeann

get out of vehicle without powering down and locking out your equipment. Once you are on or near the ground you are as much a bystander as anyone else and you need to protect yourself from moving parts in the event that you slip, become disorientated, or the brakes of your equipment fail. Dress for the weather, and follow working along procedures, including informing someone where you will be and when you are expected back. Equip yourself with a phone in case of emergency.

Removing snow involves large equipment with blind spots, visibility challenges and fast-moving parts. You are at the mercy of the elements, often working alone, and sometimes in a hurry. Make time to operate your snow blower safely, so you and your family can enjoy the holiday season safe and sound. † Canadian Agricultural Safety Association

Agronomy tips… from the field

Weather Lore

Reconsider rotations Red skies and sailors

I

You consider one cabbage roll and six types of perogies to be a seven-course meal.

ther obscure visibility for operators and bystanders. A bystander could be run over by an unsuspecting operator, become disorientated and walk or fall right into the machinery components.

Once snow blowing or plowing begins, protect people and property by piling snow away from vehicles, buildings, utility meters, power lines, livestock and people.

Don’t pile snow near an intersection, it could reduce motorists’ visibility. During the first pass of the season, keep the snowblower cutting edge tilted up slightly.

This will enable you to leave a thin bed of snow over cleared areas, creating a buffer between the ground and your implement and reducing the chance of picking up rocks or other debris. Try to blow with the prevailing winds if possible; this will increase visibility and efficiency.

Lastly, whether you are driving in an open station or cabbed-in tractor, never

t’s hard to consider longer crop rotations when canola and wheat have been delivering solid returns. But I’ll make an argument for you to consider a longer rotation that includes a nitrogen-fixing crop.

Let’s take a closer look at how this approach can benefit you.

Disease and insect barrier: With a tight rotation of canola and wheat, many cropspecific diseases can persist in stubble or soil. Blackleg spores, for instance, can survive in stubble for several years. Increasing the number of years between canola crops in the rotation can reduce the incidence and severity of blackleg in fields. A similar argument can be made for insect control.

Nitrogen balance: Seeding inoculated pulses and soybeans, as we all know, can

reduce the need for nitrogen fertilizer. You’ll also benefit from improved soil health as the pulse crops in the rotation can provide residual nitrogen for the following crop. For wheat growers, this carryover effect can improve yield and/or grain protein content, an important consideration in years when there’s a protein premium.

It’s easy to overlook the agronoamic benefits of a longer rotation. But those benefits can be substantial, particularly when pulses are included. Pulses can lower nitrogen fertilizer requirements, improve the quality of the following year’s crop and help play a role in pest management. † This agronomy tip is brought to you by David Forster, agronomic service representative for Syngenta Canada Inc.

R

ed sky at night, sailors’ delight!

Red sky in the morning — sailors take warning!

In Canada, weather moves from west to east. If it is raining in Manitoba tonight, it may be raining in Ontario tomorrow. If the evening sky is red as the sun sets in the west, it is likely caused by the reflection of the sun’s rays on tiny particles suspended in the air, indicating dry air between the sun and us, and no clouds and no rain coming from the west.

However, a red sky in the morning is most likely to occur when drier, clearer air is moving to the east and an advancing low pressure system is bringing rain in from the west. †

Shirley Byers’ book “Never Sell Your Hen on a Rainy Day” explores over 100 weather rhymes and sayings. It is available from McNally Robinson at: www.mcnallyrobinson.com.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Cover Stories Pulse crop production

New inoculant options for 2014 New inoculants registered for 2014 will give pulse growers more choice

By Sarah Weigum

T

here are a few changes in the inoculant business.

As of September 2012, BASF acquired Becker Underwood, manufacturer of the Nodulator brand of inoculants.

According to David Townsend, BASF brand manager, Nodulator packaging will look the same for the 2014 crop year with changes to the label still needing to go through the CFIA.

New rhizobia strain BASF announced a new strain of rhizobia for peas and lentils at Agri-Trade in Red Deer this N o v e m b e r. To w n s e n d , w h o worked for Becker Underwood before the BASF acquisition, said the company is always working with new strains of bacteria and this one rose to the top over a number of years.

“The neat thing about this product is we tested it over three years and we saw some really cool benefits to the grower,” said Townsend.

“We noticed that we were getting a larger root mass, faster developing root mass, more nodules, and the strain seemed to be pinker longer which in general terms meant we’re fixing more nitrogen.”

Placing the new bacteria with pea and lentil seed showed a three to eight per cent yield increase compared to the old Nodulator strain, added Townsend.

This new strain will be packaged in liquid, peat and a solid core granular formation. Townsend is enthusiastic about the solid core granular which differs from other

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get the most from pulses with proper inoculation ders that are permeable to oxygen, which the rhizobia requires.

Townsend explained that the bladder should be stored flat so that it is no more than one inch thick in order to get proper oxygen movement through the whole package.

Once peat or liquid inoculant is applied to the seed, the clock starts ticking. If the seeder breaks down and the treated seed sits in the tank for a day or two, the best option is to empty the cart and reinoculate the seed. It’s best to only inoculate seed as needed to avoid the risk of having to re-inoculate seed not used promptly.

There are also precautions to take with granular inoculants at seeding time. If possible, the granular tank should be emptied at the end of the day or before moving to a different field as product can be compacted and bridge in the tank.

peat-based granular products on the market. The manufactured granule is harder and more evenly sized and shaped for improved flowability.

“The granular itself doesn’t break down through transportation and handling or movement in the equipment,” said Townsend, explaining that this keeps it from compacting in the air cart. “We’re working at pretty low rates of three to five pounds an acre that’s dribbling out really slowly, so flowability is a key to even application.”

Inoculating soybeans Another trend on the Prairies is the move of soybean production further west. As more virgin soybean acres are planted in Saskatchewan and Alberta it is important for farmers to consider double-inoculation. This means using a full rate of a seed applied inoculant as well as the granular inoculant in the soil.

“The soil does not have the native and background rhizobia for soybeans,” said John Treloar of Novozymes, hence the need for a double dose. Using twice as much product does not necessarily have to mean double the work for farmers considering soybeans in 2014.

That’s because the soybean strain of rhizobia is much more robust and can survive on bare (untreated) seed for 120 to 225 days depending on the product. Producers can order inoculated seed in the winter and not worry about rhizobia viability. † Sarah Weigum grows pedigreed seed and writes in Three Hills, Alta. Follow her on Twitter: @sweigum.

Following the nodules

S

o you’ve chosen a type of inoculant with the proper bacteria strain and applied it at the right rate? Now you need to get out into that pulse crop and make sure that the plants are actually forming the nodules that fix nitrogen.

Robyne Bowness, pulse researcher and extension agronomist with Alberta Agriculture, recommends farmers survey their fields when the plants are nodulating, looking in at least five to 10 areas of the field away from the headlands. Checking low spots and high spots in the field also help give farmers an accurate assessment of how well the plant is fixing nitrogen. The best time to check peas for nodules is about three to four weeks after seeding as nodulating slows down after full flower. Fababeans have a longer nodulating period and can be inspected from before flowering until closer to harvest.

Because the nodules are affixed loosely to the plants’ roots, Bowness says to take care not to slough them off when removing the plant from the ground.

“Take a shovel or a heavyduty spade and dig all around the plant, bringing up at least two handfuls of soil and then carefully, gently shake the root.”

Bowness then puts the root mass in a bucket of water and sloshes it around to remove the rest of the dirt without losing nodules.

One or two nodules per plant is poor nodulation, while 15 to 20 is a sign of a healthy plant.

The nodules should also be pink when cut open.

“If they’re not pink, they’re not fixing nitrogen,” said Bowness.

If the plant is not nodulating, unfortunately it’s too late for this year, but reviewing production practices may help you do a better job next year. Was the inoculant applied at the right rate? Did

it mix with any incompatible seed treatments? Did the seed get planted within the window of viability? Were all other label instructions followed? If these questions do not offer revealing answers, talk to the inoculant manufacturer.

With the CFIA relaxing the registration process for new fertilizer products (which includes inoculants) and no longer requiring lot numbers with bacteria counts on every package of inoculant, farmers need to be more vigilant in product selection.

John Treloar, technical agronomist with Novozymes, said there is talk among inoculant manufacturers of developing quality assurance protocols as an industry, but farmers need to “do your research and see what’s worked in your area.”

As Bowness pointed out, “It’s going to fall back into [the company’s] bottom line. It now becomes the responsibility of the company that their product can do the best job.”

Disease can also affect nodulation so look for signs of poor plant health. Overall, Bowness said good cropping practices will give farmers the best nodulation.

“Give your crop the most advantage you possibly can so it will nodulate to its full potential,” she said. Remember that phosphorus is an important nutrient for pulse crops to establish those roots that will produce nodules.

“Phosphorus is sometimes a nutrient that plants have trouble accessing, but pulse crops are really good at going out and getting that phos as long as it’s not too far away,” she said. Bowness recommends putting phosphorus fertilizer down with the seed if not using an inoculant with a phosphorus component. † Sarah Weigum

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Edi tor

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If the cart is moved with granular in the tank make sure it is flowing at the proper rate when back into seeding mode. Inoculant manufacturers also recommend limiting the amount of granular put in the tank at once as too much product can lead to compaction in the tank.

Canadian Postmaster: Send address changes and undeliverable copies (covers only) to PO Box 9800, Winnipeg, Man. R3C 3K7.

Proper strain Different pulse crops require different require different strains of the rhizobia to maximize nitrogen fixation. The same inoculants can be used for peas and lentils, but fababeans, soybeans, chickpea and dry beans all require unique strains of bacteria. The major inoculant manufacturers have crop specific strains available in a variety of formulations. Fababeans are an exception. Currently, only Nodulator XL in a self-stick peat form is available specifically for fabas. Novozymes has a granular formulation for fababeans in the registration process. † Sarah Weigum grows pedigreed seed and writes in Three Hills, Alta. Follow her on Twitter: @sweigum.

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photo: alberta pulse growers

A healthy plant will have 15 to 20 nodules. If the nodules are not pink when they’re cut open, they’re not fixing nitrogen.

At Farm Business Communications we have a firm commitment to protecting your privacy and security as our customer. Farm Business Communications will only collect personal information if it is required for the proper functioning of our business. As part of our commitment to enhance customer service, we may share this personal information with other strategic business partners. For more information regarding our Customer Information Privacy Policy, write to: Information Protection Officer, Farm Business Communications, 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1 Occasionally we make our list of subscribers available to other reputable firms whose products and services might be of interest to you. If you would prefer not to receive such offers, please contact us at the address in the preceding paragraph, or call 1-800-665-0502.

The editors and journalists who write, contribute and provide opinions to Grainews and Farm Business Communications attempt to provide accurate and useful opinions, information and analysis. However, the editors, journalists and Grainews and Farm Business Communications, cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy of the information contained in this publication and the editors as well as Grainews and Farm Business Communications assume no responsibility for any actions or decisions taken by any reader for this publication based on any and all information provided.

DECEMBER 2, 2013

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Features PULSE PRODUCTION

Dry edible beans compete with soybeans Dry bean acreage varies greatly from year to year, depending on other commodity prices and the rise of soybeans

BY REBECA KUROPATWA

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n Manitoba dry edible bean acres have been up and down over the past five years.

The five-year average acreage seeded to dry beans in Manitoba is 131,654 acres. In 2009, the province had 140,027 acres of edible beans. In 2011, there was a drop down to 51,000 acres. In 2012, it came back up to 131,000.

This year (in 2013), there were 96,000 acres.

“The main factor controlling these shifts in acres has been higher commodity prices in other crops, such as soybeans, as well as the ease of growing soybeans compared to dry beans swaying some growers,” said Dennis Lange, farm production advisor, Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI).

Current price levels are at around $0.40 per pound for white pea beans, navy beans, pinto beans, and black beans, while light red kidney beans bring in an extra 10 cents at around $0.52 per pound.

“The only thing that would keep growers interested in dry beans is if edible bean prices were to increase and remain stable at high levels,” said Lange. “However projections for the 2014 crop are in the $0.34 to $0.36/lb. range for white pea beans and pintos.”

As with any crop, prices may vary, depending on the demand from their end users and on the success of other growing regions worldwide.

For the 2014 growing season in Manitoba, Lange predicts dry edible bean acres will likely range from 100,000 to 150,000, depending on price levels for edible beans and other commodities.

Although key edible bean growers will continue growing the crop as long as it remains profitable, soybeans are moving in, replacing edible beans in the rotation (which has seen some growers step away).

“If producers grow both crops in their rotations, volunteer soybeans and food safety issues may arise, making it more challenging to grow both crops on the same farm,” heeded Lange.

As for yields, the last two years for navy, black, and pinto beans have averaged between 1,800 and 2,000 lbs./acre, with this year’s average looking like it will be closer to 2,000 lbs./acre. This is due, in part, to good growing conditions and edible bean field selection (with growers putting dry beans on their better land to help maximize yields).

GOOD YIELDS, HIGHER ACRES? Roxanne Lewko, executive director, Manitoba Pulse Growers Association (MPGA), has seen prices strong and good yields this fall.

“Given the high yields and prices this fall, we can expect edible beans acres to increase slightly next year, with perhaps a best guess of 100,000 to 120,000 acres,” predicted Lewko. “As long as good, strong contracts are out

there for growers, we’ll see edible beans grown in Manitoba.”

If prices remain strong, farmers wanting edible beans in their rotation should keep in mind it is a “high maintenance” crop to grow, requiring intense management.

It is, in part, due to this that edible bean acres have decreased, taken over by soybeans (a much easier crop to grow). However, a core group of Manitoba farmers will always grow edible beans provided they can make a profit.

“MPGA is very pleased with the increased Manitoba soybean acres, but it’s really unfortunate that some of those acres have come from edible bean acres,”

said Lewko, who anticipates edible bean acres continuing to remain between 100,000 and 150,000 annually in the future.

Over the years, there have been many growers involved with edible dry beans with the majority of them doing very well.

“These growers watch the markets and crop rotations very closely and, therefore, usually keep production fairly level,” said Ben Friesen, commodity purchasing manager, sunflowers, birdseed, and North American edible bean divisions, Legumex Walker Canada Inc. The 2012 crop did well with acres increasing from approximately 58,000 (in 2011) to

128,000. “The 58,000 in 2011 were abnormally low,” said Friesen. “Prices were low while prices for soybean, corn, and canola were very good.”

In 2012, edible dry beans were planted again to a normal level, but with higher prices, due to 2011 leaving a shortage.

“One problem creating the shortage was that many processors didn’t have production contract prices for most of that year, so producers made plans to grow soybeans and corn (which, at the time, had good prices),” explained Friesen. “Growers who did grow dry beans had a very good quality crop and yield.”

Friesen currently sees great

interest in edible dry bean crops, with prices remaining firm and some other commodities dropping in price. “As it’s a small market compared to corn and soybean, it can run short or become flooded by steep up and down swings.

“It’s a very good crop to have in a normal, average rotation,” advised Friesen.

Legumex Walker has merchandisers in the global market year-round, with close ties to the world market. “As they find markets for beans, we’ll be offering contracts for next year,” said Friesen. † Rebeca Kuropatwa is a professional writer in Winnipeg, Man.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features CROP PRODUCTION

DURUM DILEMMA

CROP ADVISOR’S CASEBOOK

BY HEATHER KRAHN

CASEBOOK WINNER

B

ack in mid-August, I got a call from Jim, a grain farmer west of Regina, Sask., who grows canola, durum and lentils. Jim had a problem with his durum wheat crop that appeared to be getting worse with each passing day.

“I’m seeing patches of stunted plants on headlands and field edges, as well as on two ridge lines within the field,” he informed me over the phone. “And it’s spreading every day.”

I told Jim I’d come out and take a look.

When I reached Jim’s field, I was told the stunted growth along the two ridge lines — one running north-south and another in an east-west direction with a power line running along it — had just started appearing the week that Jim called me. The plants in these patches were shorter, had smaller heads, and were lighter green in colour than the rest of the crop, and they looked to be maturing faster than the wheat elsewhere in the field.

Right away, we ruled out differing soil types as a factor; Jim said the soil, which in this area was typically heavy clay, was very similar across the whole field. Extreme weather events, such as hail, were not to blame either, since the stunted plants were not in a pattern that reflected that kind of damage and no blisters or wounds from hailstones could be found.

I knew that drought could not be responsible, since area had not suffered from a lack of rain. We also ruled out exces-

T

his month’s casebook winner is Regan Starling, from Melfort, Sask.

Regan, thanks for sending in your diagnosis! We’ll be renewing your Grainews subscription for a year and sending you a Grainews cap. †

Leeann Minogue

Heather Krahn

Jim was seeing patches of stunted plants on headlands and field edges, as well as on two ridge lines within the field.

Plants in the stunted patches were shorter, had smaller heads and were lighter green in colour than the rest of the crop.

sive flooding conditions, because plants in both high and low areas within the field looked relatively similar, except where the affected crop was growing on high ridge areas that wouldn’t normally be affected by flooding.

I considered whether fertilizer or herbicide applications might

to discuss conditions during seeding and traffic history in the field that the real cause of the trouble began to come to light.

What is behind Jim’s durum wheat dilemma? Send your diagnosis to Grainews, Box 9800, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 3K7; email leeann.minogue@fbcpublishing.

CROP ADVISOR’S SOLUTION

BY VERN HIEBERT

I

n September 2012 Dallas’ canola yields were a disappointment — again! At 30 bushels per acre they were much lower than this producer from Hanley, Sask., expected. He had paid extra attention to his fertility needs in order to boost yields — or so he thought.

“I apply lots of nitrogen every year, but my crops don’t yield up in the end,” he said. “The crop looked great all year, but the yields were poor compared to the stand.”

That fall I examined the stubble in

be to blame, but I was told the entire field had been fertilized the same way and that there hadn’t been any issues with plugged fertilizer runs earlier that spring. Jim also hadn’t noticed any signs of early season damage from herbicide applications.

It was when Jim and I started

com or fax 204-944-5416 c/o Crop Advisor’s Casebook. Best suggestions will be pooled and one winner will be drawn for a chance to win a Grainews cap and a one-year subscription to the magazine. † Heather Krahn is a regional sales agronomist for Richardson Pioneer Ltd. in Corinne, Sask.

BALANCED APPROACH TO FERTILITY PAYS OFF

the field left behind after harvest. It indicated there had been no weed issues and plant establishment and seed quality had been good. Dallas also revealed there had been no insect damage and precipitation had been average for the area that season.

However, it was his fertilizer program that arrested my attention. He had applied fertilizer at a rate of 120-20-0-10.

Soil tests performed that fall indicated deficiencies in phosphorus and potassium. Dallas had been over-applying nitrogen and under-applying phosphorus, potassium and sulphur on his field.

This spring we changed up Dallas’ ferti-

lizer program to an application rate of 10840-15-20 to try and meet his target yield of 40 to 50 bu./acre. Canola uses up large quantities of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur for growth and development — not just nitrogen and sulphur.

Typically, the number of pounds of nutrient required per bushel of canola seed for nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur are 2.0, 1.0, 0.5 and 0.3, respectively. A balanced approach to nutrient application is a must for optimizing yields in all crops.

Having your soil tested to determine nutrient and pH levels, organic matter, cation-exchange capacity values and

base saturation levels will also help increase yields.

In addition, be prepared to alter how nutrients are applied to your fields to ensure seed row safety and nutrient efficiencies.

Products such as ESN, MicroEssentials S15 and SZ, and Agrotain offer alternative ways to manage these issues.

After implementing the changes to his fertilizer program this year, Dallas’ crop looked healthier than it ever had before.

And the 2013 canola yield — 48 bu./acre!

The yield exceeded even Dallas’ expectations. † Vern Hiebert is an area marketing representative for Richardson Pioneer Ltd. in Saskatoon, Sask.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

Features GRAIN MARKETING

Wheat protein down, values up Farmers have seen larger yields, but this year’s wheat protein levels have been lower and more variable across most of the Prairies

BY JULIENNE ISAACS

L

ast year’s hot, dry summer resulted in plentiful protein in wheat across the Canadian prairies.

This year, the picture has been different: a cool stretch in the middle of the summer, coupled with more moisture, meant that Prairie producers have seen large yields and low protein, generally speaking, across the board.

As a result, says David Simonot, manager of pooling strategy and planning with CWB, “we’ve seen a bit less protein this year and the values have gone up to least double to what they were last year, in terms of export response, but historically speaking it’s not that high-level.”

Last year, says Simonot, the grade was 90 per cent for No. 1 and No. 2 wheat; protein averaged about 13.8 per cent.

“There was ample protein last year and buyers didn’t have to pay up at all, because if they got the average it was 13.5 or better,” he says. “This year, it’s still a pretty good grade pattern, probably about 70 per cent for

ones and twos, and the protein is much lower, at about 12.8 or 12.9, less than 13 per cent, which is in the bottom 10 of protein results.”

This is partly due to the fact that yield and protein are inversely related, says Simonot, and this year the yields have been huge. Whereas last year everything was being traded at 13.5 or higher, he says, “This year’s crop is predominately being sold as 13.0 per cent protein and 12.5 per cent — those would be the biggest volume grades.”

In the country, where farmers are working with elevators, this year’s levels have shown a lot more variability than past years. Trent Rude, director of merchandising for Viterra, says that it is difficult to compare protein levels across the Prairie provinces due to the large variances from province to province. “On average the protein content in CWRS wheat is approximately one per cent lower than last year’s CWRS,” he says.

The quality of the wheat pro-

tein appears to be decent, according to Simonot, with good milling and baking qualities.

And premiums, on the whole, have been higher than last year but not remarkable in the larger picture. “We’re not seeing very large premiums, but compared to historical levels I’d say they’re below

“We’ve seen a bit less protein this year.”

— David Simonot

average at most,” says Simonot.

“There’s a lot of 13 and enough 13.5 for those buyers who want it that it’s available. There are some buyers who want 14 and 14.5, but those are few and far between, and that’s hard to find this year.”

Farmers with a mix of proteins will have options in terms of marketing, he says. If next year proves to be a high-protein year, producers who store low-protein grain over the winter may find it pays off to

hold some in reserve. But as always, there’s no clear prescription.

FEED WHEAT Jim Beusekom, president of Lethbridge, Alta.-based Marketplace Commodities, an independently owned and operated merchandising company, says that this year has been an extremely unusual one for the feed market.

Marketplace Commodities trades feed commodities in Western Canada, including feed barley, corn and wheat, and imports feed ingredients. Last year, the company was buying number one milling wheat and selling it as feed.

This year, they’ve had more than the usual number of options.

“We’ve got a situation this year where we’ve got soft wheat, CPS wheat and Hard Red Spring available,” says Beusekom. “So we’ve got these going into the feed market all at various levels this year, which is quite unusual. I don’t know if we’ve ever seen this before.”

Soft wheat is “rather homeless” on the Prairies this year, he says, as the ethanol plants are relatively full and either have enough pur-

chased already or can purchase at will at a reasonable price. Soft wheat is low in protein and highenergy, suitable for the cattle market rather than the poultry and hog markets.

Red wheat is also available, although this year the export market has been aggressive on CPS red wheat and the company has had a hard time buying CPS red wheats for the feed market, says Beusekom. Hard red spring wheat, which because of its higher protein levels is only available to the feed market when it’s downgraded for quality issues, has been available this year as well. “We’re dealing with grade issues on hard red spring such as ergot, which make it unattractive as export, but even as feed the ergot contamination makes it hard to trade even at a discount, or it has to be cleaned first to be used as feed,” he says.

As a result of so many variances in protein levels and grades, the company has had to adapt to the various grades of feed wheat, says Beusekom. † Julienne Isaacs is a Winnipeg-based freelance writer and editor. Contact her at julienne. isaacs@gmail.com.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features FARM PANEL

Pulse crops fit on many different levels The farmers Lee Hart spoke to for this issue of Farmer Panel include pulses in their rotations for several different reasons

BY LEE HART

G

ood for rotation, good for the soil and good for profits — those are three main reasons farmers contacted for the December Farmer Panel say they keep including some type of pulse in their annual cropping plans.

Every year may not bring perfect conditions, but for the most part a pulse crop in rotation hits on at least one or two of those cylinders every year, and often the crop is hitting on all three.

And a pulse, is a pulse, is a pulse.

Well, that may not be quite true, but farmers surveyed have found the best crop that works for them,

although in different parts of the country that can range from field beans and soybeans in Manitoba, to lentils in Saskatchewan and field peas in Alberta. And one producer even used the F-word of the pulse realm — fababeans, which are gaining new attention as new markets emerge.

With crops in the bin (or in some cases piled on the ground) after a good harvest season, here is what western farmers had to say about pulse crops in their rotations.

JASON KEHLER CARMAN, MANITOBA Jason Kehler, in mid-November, was just wrapping up the last day

of harvesting corn on his southern Manitoba farm. All other crops including the soybeans were safely in the bin.

soybeans. “But it seems like their biggest ambition is to die, especially if there are any adverse conditions, so we switched over to soybeans and found they have worked well.

“They may not always have the highest return, especially compared to field beans, but at least they are consistent. The per acre return may not always be the best, but you plant them and at least they stay alive.”

He likes the fact soybeans are a relatively low input crop compared to others in rotation. He applies an inoculant to help soybeans fix nitrogen. “You still have to do things right, but aside from a little phosphate and potash, they

“We switched over to soybeans.”

— Jason Kehler

Kehler, who crops about 4,000 acres along with his father near Carman, Man. has been growing soybeans for about 10 years.

“We did grow edible beans at one time,” says Kehler, who usually seeds about 1,000 acres of

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are much cheaper crop to grow than say canola,” he says.

Kehler says soybeans appear to handle excess moisture — common enough in his area — quite well. And markets have been fairly strong. “With the U.S. struggling last year with its corn and soybean crops, that worked out very well for producers in Canada and kept the price up,” he says. “But even this year with a much improved crop in the U.S., the prices are still fairly decent.”

Kehler says perhaps the one downside to soybeans is they are usually ready to harvest about the same time as their potatoes “so it makes for a very busy couple of weeks, but otherwise they mature well and combine well, and as I say, they produce a very consistent return per acre.”

DON TOEWS WINKLER, MANITOBA

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Don Toews has been growing field beans on his Winkler-area farm in southern Manitoba for the past 20 years. He includes them in a rotation that also includes corn and a few acres of soybeans.

He says while excess moisture can be hard on field beans, their yield and market returns have been fairly good over the years.

“There are a few ups and downs but over all over the past 20 years they have worked out quite well,” he says.

“The edible beans do suffer during wet conditions,” says Toews.

“But we are looking to tile drainage on those fields most adversely affected by moisture and that should help us out in wet years.”

The soybeans have the best fit on some of his poorer land, says Toews. They are seeded into lower lying areas prone to more saline soil conditions. “The soybeans have lower input costs, so we seed them on the poorer ground, which helps to reduce risk,” he says. “We’ve been doing this for the past four years and they work well for that purpose.”

All things being equal, Toews says the field beans — in particular specialty beans — provide a better return per acre.

DREW FOWLER EYEBROW, SASKATCHEWAN Drew Fowler says pulse crops such as lentils probably saved the

BY DAN PIRARO

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Features Saskatchewan agriculture industry during some lean years back in the mid-2000s.

A pulse crop, which is usually lentils, is key part of the wheat, flax, pulse crop rotation on their 4,000 acre family farm near Eyebrow in southern Saskatchewan.

“Lentils have consistently provided the top revenue per acre for at least the past 10 years,” says Fowler who is also a producer services representative at the Gardiner Dam Grain Terminal based at Strongfield, Sask. “If we hadn’t had lentils back in 2004 to 2006 we probably wouldn’t have made it. It was the only crop making money.”

The tide turned a couple years later as lentils jumped to 40 cents per pound (a more average price is in the 18 to 20 cents/pound range), but those record prices really helped the industry to recover. And in the last couple years just about all crops produced a good return. But pulses seem to be the most consistent.

Although the rotation can vary from year to year, Fowler says they aim for a one/third grain, one/ third oilseed and one/third pulse split on seeded acres each year.

They’ve been growing large green lentils the past few years, but as market supply increases and prices drop, they may switch to more red lentils in 2014.

“Farmers do have a lot of options, but at the same time it is important to maintain a proper rotation,” he says. “Just because prices are strong you shouldn’t grow back-to-back lentils or backto-back anything. And I know it happens but there is a price for pushing for rotation. A lot of guys might switch from one type of wheat to another, or one type of pulse to another, but for the most part if farmers find a rotation that works they stick with it and do a good job of it.”

Increasing supplies and changes in world economies, including a devalued Indian Rupee are putting pressure, particularly on green lentil prices. There was a large shift toward red lentils in 2013 and he expects that might continue in 2014.

The Fowlers have grown most pulse crops over the years — chickpeas, field peas and red and green lentils. They had an excellent crop of chickpeas in 2012, but it was a high input crop that required four treatments of fungicide (and they were lucky because other producers applied seven treatments). “We did extremely well with the chickpeas but I didn’t see the market potential continuing so we decided to protect our success record and stopped growing them,” he says. “Lentils are just a good stand-

by crop that does very well in the usually dry conditions that we have and most years they produce as good if not better return per acre than grains and oilseeds.”

DALLAS LEDUC GLENTWORTH, SASK. Pulse crops, including peas and lentils, have worked well in Dallas Leduc’s cereal and oilseed rotation at Glentworth in southern Saskatchewan for the past 10 years.

He’s been seeding about 2,200 acres of the two crops (about 1,800 acres of yellow peas and 400 acres of green lentils) for several years.

“Most years they are providing a good return, and they are good in rotation,” says Leduc. “We’d like to get to a one-third split between cereals, pulses and oilseeds but we haven’t quite made it yet.”

Leduc says pulses are a relatively low-input crop. After they are inoculated to fix nitrogen about all that is needed is a bit of phosphorous placed with the seed.

“They fix nitrogen which helps out the next crop in rotation,” he says. “We usually don’t cut back on nitrogen when we seed wheat after peas, but we can see the yields on the cereals are a bit higher and the protein is higher too. So the pulses do help the subsequent crop.”

He prefers yellow peas because they stand well, making it easier to combine and they are also easier to market. “The yield is higher than with green peas, but the price is a bit lower,” says Leduc.

“But they are much easier to grade and we usually get No. 2 or better.

You can just take them to your local elevator and they are sold.

They are a great off-the-combine crop. And with green peas it is a bit more involved and the grading can be an issue.”

This past year he grew large green lentils, mostly because they stand a bit taller than red lentils. In fact, to improve harvesting ease, he is changing to a different seeding system for pulses in 2014.

While he uses a SeedMaster air drill for the grains and oilseeds, Leduc will be using a disc-type air drill for pulses next year. He likes the SeedMaster but it places seed in a furrow about 1-1/2 inches deep. By switching pulses to the disc drill he can seed shallower and avoid that furrow. “I think with the disc drill the plants are just going to be that extra 1-1/2 inches taller which should make harvesting easier and faster.”

JASON CRAIG DELBURNE, ALTA. Jason Craig has for the past 10 years aimed to have about 800 acres of peas in rotation on his central Alberta farm.

“They are usually quite profitable, they produce a fertilizer savings because you don’t need nitrogen, and overall they are just a lower input crop,” says Craig.

“And the following year I can cut the fertilizer rate of wheat seeded on pea stubble and usually see

even better yields compared to the wheat that seeded with the full fertilizer rate. So there is another savings.”

This coming year he also plans to seed about 320 acres of fababeans for the first time. “We’re starting to see some improved marketing opportunities for faba beans now,” says Craig. “I have an area that is a bit more hilly with a few rocks so it is a pulse crop that will do well there and it stands a bit taller which will make it easier to combine.”

Craig has also heard that faba beans will fix more nitrogen than peas. As he brings in the fababeans, he will cut back on pea acres.

“Even though the pulse crop produces a good return it is also important to follow a proper rotation,” he says. “I think the more crops you can have in rotation, the better.” † Lee Hart is a field editor for Grainews in Calgary, Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features PULSE CROP PRODUCTION

End of the season, start of an era 2013 was Sarah Weigum’s first year growing fababeans. This season, things went so well that fababeans are likely to become a staple on her farm

BY SARAH WEIGUM

A PHOTOS: SARAH WEIGUM

This is a handful of mature fababeans. Ours had just over 10 per cent lygus bug damage.

rainy June and early July 2013 produced a lush fababean crop on my farm at Three Hills, Alta.

So lush, in fact, that going into August I wondered if they would ever ripen. Then, for good or ill, central Alberta experienced a long dry spell, with very little rain from the beginning of August to late-September. I take an ambiguous view of the weather because I think we may have lost a little yield to the dry, dusty days of late summer, but at the same time I really didn’t want to eat my Thanksgiving dinner in the combine while I threshed fababeans

(although I had prepared myself for that possibility).

Compared to some six foot stands and some hailed beans that I saw in my travels around Alberta this summer, our fababeans were a reasonable four feet high in most places. After herbicide applications of Odyssey DLX and Basagran in June we didn’t spend any money on the beans until a Reglone application on September 9.

We did, however, spend a lot of time showing them off to neighbours and passersby who marveled at this very different looking crop. Every week in the summer a few people would stop in the yard and either my dad or I got the chance to talk about

what we were doing with the beans and why we thought they would be a good fit in a rotation.

I got to meet a few of the people I Tweet with regularly, which was an added bonus.

Many potential growers are interested in replacing peas with fababeans, but I talked to a couple of growers who don’t currently grow any pulses and would like to add fabas to their rotation. This is exciting because one of my main objectives in growing fababeans was to showcase a pulse crop that would interest non-pulse growing farmers and help them take advantage of the environmental and agronomic benefits of pulses on their own ground.

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On September 17, eight days after applying Reglone, we rolled into the faba field. The beans tested plenty dry at 11 per cent moisture (16 per cent is considered dry). Fortunately, we did not observe the same amount of cracking that we would normally find if we combined peas that dry. I found the automatic crop setting for fababeans on our Case combine and adjusted my settings from there. My rotor speed ended up at 400 r.p.m. and my fan was at 900 r.p.m. The concave opening was set to 12.6 mm and I opened the pre-sieve to the fifth notch (normally it is in the fourth notch for peas). The sample was very clean and while there were some shelled beans directly behind the header, it did not constitute excessive loss.

The north end of the field held more moisture during the season and was quite a bit greener than the south end when I preharvested it. Even though the Reglone worked well on all the foliage and some of the pods, we still combined some fairly green pods. I am not sure if a few more days would have made a difference, but with the majority of the field being very ripe, I wouldn’t have wanted to wait much longer. Although we had to slow down a bit for the greener pods and stems, we clipped along at a good pace for the rest of the field. The beans combined easily and we pushed it over four miles an hour. We did not heavy harrow after combining the beans, since the residue behind the combine was very fine and well spread.

Other growers had told me that fababeans would yield as good as or better than peas, and true to predictions our beans yielded about 65 bushels per acre right next to peas that yielded 61 bushels per acre. Two neighbours and our agronomist stopped by to ride in the combine, which is a lot of company in 55 acres.

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One visitor, the farm boss at a local Hutterite colony, is interested in growing them to replace soymeal in the colony’s hog rations. I talked to Jan Guertz, director of swine nutrition at

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

11

Features Nutrition Partners in Airdrie. He has recommended low-tannin fababeans to his clients and points to the beans’ good ratio of protein and energy as a reason to consider them in grower and finisher rations for hogs.

“Fabas are very palatable,” said Guertz, adding that even the small pigs, which are the pickiest eaters, have shown high intake of the beans in trials.

Fabas are also easy for feed mills to process.

“With peas you always have some dockage and rocks and that is hard on the mills. With the way fababeans are grown they are very clean when they’re harvested.” For farms like colonies that have both grain and hogs he sees a great benefit to replacing soymeal with fababeans as the pigs get bigger (Small pigs still need higher levels of lysine provided by soymeal.)

“If you can grow your own feed source, you have more control on what you’re producing,” said Guertz. There are also opportunities for grain farmers and hog producers to work together.

He knows of one swine operation that was so pleased with the fababeans purchased from a local producer that the following year the farmer grew more beans to meet the demand.

“If you’ve got the relationship and you know the kind of quality you get that’s important and valuable for the farm too.”

On the human edible side,

both SaskCan Pulse and Parkland Commodities are moving fababeans this fall. Although our beans are intended for seed, we had them graded at Parkland’s Innisfail office to see what price they would bring commercially.

Our sample had 10.7 per cent lygus bug damage. The buyer told me that if the loads came in below 10 per cent damage we would get $8, with a discount to $7.50 if it was over 10 per cent.

Most Alberta fababean growers that I know had their beans in the bin by Thanksgiving or shortly thereafter. Despite the slow start and rainy spring, this was a great year to try fabas. We’ve already penciled in five times as many fababean acres into next year’s crop plan, putting trifluralin down this fall to provide residual weed control. It’s been fun shining the spotlight on a new crop. Thanks for following along as I learned about fababeans this year.

Note: I made an mistake in my previous fababean article saying that the pea inoculant we use is now registered for fababeans. This is incorrect. While Novozymes has a granular inoculant product in the registration process, it is made with a different bacteria than the pea/ lentil inoculant. The Novozymes representative that I talked to in October said this product likely would not be registered by spring 2014. † Sarah Weigum grows pedigreed seed and writes in Three Hills, Alta. Follow her on Twitter: @sweigum.

B:11.5”

Top left: Sarah combined fabas on September 17 after applying Reglone on September 9. Bottom left: The T:11” faba residue chopped up fine and spread evenly behind the combine so there was no need to heavy harrow.

Top right: Most of the pods have three or four beans inside. Bottom right: Fababean plants defoliate as they S:10.25” mature. It’s just the stalk and pods that go through the combine.

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12

/ grainews.ca

DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features EXTENDED OUTLOOK FOR THE PRAIRIES Weather Forecast for the period of December 8, 2013 to January 4, 2014

Southern Alberta

Peace River Region Dec. 8 - 14 Higher windchills but with a chance of Chinooks. Fair overall, but snow on 2 or 3 days, heavy in places.

Dec. 15 - 21 Fair and cold most days with periodic snow, but a couple of milder days bring heavier snow and drifting.

Dec. 22 - 28 Unsettled on a few days in the south with snow and drifting.

Fluctuating temperatures. Fair and cold with flurries in the north.

Dec. 29 - Jan. 4 Often fair and colder with higher windchills on most days.

Scattered snow in many areas.

Very cold in the north.

-19 / -8 Grande Prairie 26.9 mms

Manitoba

Dec. 8 - 14 Higher windchills but with a chance of Chinooks in the southwest. Fair overall, but snow on 2 or 3 days, heavy in places.

Dec. 8 - 14 Fair and seasonal on most days but heavier snow and drifting on a couple of colder, windy days. Cold with flurries in the north.

Dec. 8 - 14 Temperatures vary but end up near normal. Fair, except blustery on a couple of days with heavier snow and blowing.

Dec. 15 - 21 Fair and cold most days with periodic snow, but a couple of milder days bring heavier snow and drifting.

Dec. 15 - 21 Blustery most of the week with higher windchills, drifting and occasional snow, possibly heavy in places.

Dec. 15 - 21 Unsettled on a few days this week with periodic snow, chance of heavy in a few areas. Higher windchills and blowing at times.

Dec. 22 - 28 Unsettled on a few days in the south with snow and drifting.

Fluctuating temperatures. Fair and cold with flurries in the north.

Dec. 22 - 28 Fair, seasonal weather interchanges with colder snowy days. Windy at times with blowing snow in the south. Clear and cold in the north.

Dec. 22 - 28 Fair skies and seasonal temperatures alternate with colder, windy days and occasional snow. Clear and cold in the north.

Dec. 29 - Jan. 4 Often fair and colder with higher windchills on most days.

Scattered snow in many areas.

Dec. 29 - Jan. 4 Several clear and cold days with high windchills. Some snow falls on a couple of occasions, giving blowing snow to the south.

Dec. 29 - Jan. 4 Settled, clear and cold on most days but light snow in the south on a couple of days with drifting and high windchills.

Precipitation Forecast -18 / -9 Edmonton 22.2 mms

BELOW NORMAL

-20 / -10 North Battleford

-14 / -6 Jasper

26.8 mms

-14 / -5

34.6 mms

Banff

-18 / -6 Red Deer 18.8 mms

-14 / -2 Calgary

Forecasts should be 80% accurate, but expect variations by a day or two because of changeable speed of weather systems.

Saskatchewan

13.2 mms

-14 / -3 Medicine Hat 19mms cms Lethbridge 16.2 20.1 mms 26 cms -13 / -1

-22 / -11 Prince Albert 19.1 mms

-24 / -15 The Pas

19.0 mms

-19 / -9 Saskatoon 17.2 mms

-21 / -11 Yorkton

-18 / -8 21.0 mms Regina

-18 / -7 -17 / -6 Moose Jaw 15.9 mms Swift 18.8 mms Current -16 / -7 21.5 mms Weyburn 19.0 mms -16 / -6 Estevan 18.1 mms

Precipitation Outlook For December

22.0 mms

NEAR NORMAL

Much Above Normal Below Much above normal normal below normal normal

-21 / -11 Dauphin

20.5 mms

-22 / -11 Gimli

26.2 mms

-20 / -11 -20 / -10 Portage -19 / -10 Brandon 22.2 mms Winnipeg 18.9 mms

Melita -19 / -7

19.7 mms

18.6 mms

Temperatures are normals for December 15th averaged over 30 years.

Precipitation (water equivalent) normals for Dec. in mms. ©2013 WeatherTec Services www.weathertec.mb.ca

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grainews.ca /

13

Features FARM MANAGEMENT

Five ways to navigate a divorce It’s not something anyone wants to think about, divorce can devastate a farm

BY SHARON ELLIOTT

O

wning a farm operation and going through a divorce is, in one word, complicated. There are so many factors to consider and each situation is unique. Seeking legal counsel is vital. Consider these general tips from a legal perspective, along with thoughts from a fictional male farmer who has gone through a divorce.

1. CO-OPERATE AND COMMUNICATE In Canada, the main law governing divorce is the federal Divorce Act. This Act applies across Canada, but the processes for getting a divorce fall under provincial laws.

The Divorce Act presumes that both partners have contributed to the family property in equal measure upon marriage (or after two years of co-habitation). Assets, then, are (generally) equally divisible.

The challenge, from a legal perspective, is to accurately assess how much the farm operation is worth.

You can assist by being honest and up front with your lawyer. Now is not the time to try and hide assets.

That which might have been a write-off for tax purposes, may now need to be considered when calculating income for child and/or spousal support. At the same time, some aspects of the operation may be exempt.

The goal is to come up with a fair picture of the farm operation’s assets and debts. If possible, work with your spouse to come to an agreement about the value of land, machinery, and equipment. Otherwise, your lawyer will continue to mine the information until they have an accurate a picture as possible of the operation.

I never realized how complicated it was to define the family property or to calculate my income... her income was straight forward since she worked off the farm, but mine was complex. I thought I could keep some things hidden but the lawyer told me that would be a mistake.

Sometimes I got so frustrated, saying “this isn’t fair!” but they said this wasn’t the time to voice whether the process was fair or not. Kept quoting the Divorce Act about equal division of the operation. Hard to take when I think of the farm being in the family for generations.

2. TREAT THE DIVORCE AS A BUSINESS TRANSACTION Farming is a business and needs to be treated as such through a divorce. Ideally, there was a discussion about the farm operation early in the relationship that asked, “What is the plan if this relationship doesn’t work out?”

A pre-nuptial agreement or interspousal contract is helpful especially for those coming into an established farm operation.

Going through a divorce is a financial burden. There is a settlement that needs to be paid out and possible tax consequences when assets are divided.

Involve your accountant in the process. Work with the lending institution(s) as needed.

At the end of day, however, separation and the divorce are

highly stressful and emotionally charged. Going through a divorce is a grieving process. Seek professional support.

The stress of going through a separation then the divorce was unbearable at times. The lawyer was sympathetic but said we needed to treat it as a business transaction. Some days it was all too much. My friends encouraged me to get help. Gave me a list of people to talk to: the farm stress line, a counsellor, clergy... I finally went and saw a counsellor through adult mental health services in town. It helped.

3. RESOLVE TO SETTLE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE Divorces that drag on have the most problems. Make it a goal to come to an agreement early

on. Stay the course of working through the process as amicably as possible. Resolve to pay your share as quickly as you are able.

Our family lawyer encouraged us to come to an agreement sooner than later. Good thing, or it could have cost a lot more. Worse yet would have been going to court. Glad we didn’t have to go that route.

4. BE FLEXIBLE WITH CUSTODY If children are young, consider how you want to be involved in their lives as they grow up. Be flexible when it comes to child support custody. This will help all of you in the long run.

We had to figure out custody with child sharing. Kept being reminded that if we could work this out ami-

cably it would be in everyone’s best interest. I want to stay involved in my children’s lives. Had to think ahead — to their birthdays, graduations, weddings. It was important to give a little so I could have them in my life.

5. RETHINK HOW YOU FARM It may be daunting to continue farming but it can be done. Make decisions how to maintain the operation. It may mean selling land initially with the goal to buy back in the future. For some, starting over may be the best option under the circumstances.

Consider the practical day-to-day farm operation. Farm operators who rely heavily on family members for support and labour may

need to consider hiring help and the cost involved.

I never realized how important the kids and my wife were in helping out on the farm — especially with the dayto-day support. After the divorce, I had to downsize. I had to bring in hired help during seeding and harvest and rely on outside help more than I would have before. It’s an extra cost.

Looking back, it wasn’t easy going through the divorce. It was complicated and stressful. And it was hard financially. I was able to arrange payments that I could manage and still keep farming. The main thing is I survived. You can too. † Sharon Elliott is a freelance writer in Weyburn, Sask. Thanks to Norma Buydens, MA, LLM, JD of NSWB, Weyburn, Sask. and Patricia Farnese, BA, LLB, LLM, Assistant Professor, College of Law, University of Saskatchewan for providing insight and advice.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features SPECIAL CROPS

New camelina variety released Farmers from southern Saskatchewan to the Peace have one more oilseed to add to their rotations JBY LISA GUENTHER

L

innaeus Plant Sciences released a new camelina variety, Midas, in 2013. “What is really new about this variety is that it has partial resistance to downy mildew. And downy mildew is the most important disease in camelina production,” says Christina Eynck, plant breeder with Linnaeus.

In 2011 and 2012, at over 14 locations in Western Canada, Midas averaged over 35 bushels per acre. The oil content is 41 to 42 per cent. Fungicides are available to treat downy mildew, but Eynck says spraying isn’t usually necessary. The plant is also resistant to blackleg and flea beetles.

Eynck says the oilseed’s drought tolerance makes it an ideal fit for ligh0t soils or marginal land, especially in southwestern Saskatchewan. But camelina grown in the Peace area had the highest yields, topping 50 bushels per acre. “It can really take advantage of the long days,” she says.

Camelina doesn’t like to get its feet wet, but it can recoup from a deluge under the right circumstances. This past June, Linnaeus’ camelina nursery was under water. “We thought we would lose two-thirds of it. But then it dried up. Then because we continuously had rain, and it didn’t just dry up, the plants recovered really nicely.”

Linnaeus’ plant breeding program is funded in part by a $3.7 million federal government investment. Eynck is working on other varieties and thinks she will have a herbicide-tolerant line available in two or three years. “That’s one of the major challenges with camelina right now. There are no post-emergent broadleaf weed control options.”

GROWING CAMELINA Farmers can use Assure II to control grassy herbicides as well as Roundup Weathermax. Eynck says they are also working on registering Edge under the minor use program as a pre-emergent herbicide. Farmers should start with a clean field, Eynck says.

Seedlings are very frost tolerant, so early spring seeding is one way to get a jump on weeds.

“And what is really unique for an oilseed here in Saskatchewan is that camelina, although it’s a spring crop, can also be seeded in the fall. And then the seeds germinate and the plants overwinter.”

Farmers can also broadcast seed in late October. Seeds will stay dormant over the winter, and germinate early in the spring, Eynck says. “That also helps to make the crop more competitive against the spring germinated weeds.”

Experienced camelina growers

in Saskatchewan have successfully broadcasted seed in the fall with a Valmar spreader. They then harrowed and rolled the field, according to a Saskatchewan Agriculture fact sheet. Farmers using air seeders should seed as shallow as possible — Eynck says no deeper than a half inch.

The oilseed matures within 85 to 100 days of seeding, so farmers dealing with a very wet spring can seed later, Eynck says.

Camelina can follow any crop

in a rotation, but fits well before winter cereals. “One of the major challenges with a winter cereal is to get the previous crop off early enough to seed the winter cereal.

But because camelina matures so early, it’s actually a perfect fit for something like winter wheat.”

It can also be grown instead of summerfallowing a field, because of its drought tolerance, she adds.

Farmers can swath or straight cut camelina, which is more shatter resistant than canola, accord-

Farmers can swath or straight cut camelina.

PHOTO: CHRISTINA EYNCK

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

15

Features ing to Saskatchewan Agriculture.

The crop should be swathed when 75 per cent of it has turned yellow. Farmers should thresh at eight per cent seed moisture content, and they should also adjust combine sieves and wind flow to avoid seed loss.

Camelina has been used in double cropping trials in the northern United States, Eynck says. Farmers seed camelina in the fall, harvest it early in the summer, then grow a shortseason soybean or sunflower.

Intercropping, or growing camelina with another crop such as peas or lentils, might be an attractive option for organic farmers, she adds.

CAMELINA MARKETS

PHOTO: LISA GUENTHER

PHOTO: CHRISTINA EYNCK

Camelina matures within 85 to 100 days of seeding. The crop should be swathed when 75 per cent of it has turned yellow. There is no open market for camelina. Farmers need to contract their production.

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Camelina oil is sold into the U.S. biofuel market and the meal is sold as cattle and chicken feed in the U.S. Linnaeus Plant Sciences is also working on developing lines with different fatty acid profiles, which would be used as petroleum replacements in lubricants, hydraulic fluids and polymers.

Right now there is no open camelina market, so farmers need to contract their production.

Linnaeus is looking to contract 5,000 acres next year. At the time of the interview, October 2013, Linnaeus was paying $0.20 per pound, or $10 per bushel, “which might not really excite everybody. But in the end it comes down to the profit. And because camelina is a really low input crop… it’s absolutely possible to profit about $100 per acre,” says Eynck. Linnaeus pays $0.32 per pounds, or $16 per bushel for organic production.

Chaplin Grain Corporation, an elevator at Chaplin, Sask, is handling all of Linnaeus’ seed. Eynck says they are focusing on expanding acres in the Chaplin area.

The elevator offers both conventional and organic versions of Midas. Seed costs run at $3 per pound. The seeding rate for conventional production is five pounds per acre, costing farmers $15 per acre.

Researchers are also working to turn camelina straw from a waste product into a viable biofuel source. Dr. Tim Dumonceaux of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has found that treating the straw with white rot fungus allows it to be compressed into pellets more easily, making it easier to transport.

The fungus breaks down lignins in the plant, which needs to be done before the straw can be used for biofuel. Farmers may be able to store the straw in silos, add the fungus and then let it sit for six to eight weeks.

Right now other treatment options are expensive and eat plenty of energy. The fungus treatment could save money in processing and transportation. It could also boost the fuel content in the straw and create another product stream for the lignin fragments. The same process may work on other crop residue, such as canola, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s website.

Farmers interested in growing camelina in 2014 can contact Christina Eynck at 306-381-6818, or email Christina.eynck@linnaeus.net. † Lisa Guenther is a field editor with Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.

Guenther@fbcpublishing.com.

16

/ grainews.ca

DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features Farm management

Correction lines, correctly We drive down them, live near them and talk about them all the time.

Here a refresher course on how correction lines came to be

By Danell van Staveren

“

C

orrection lines have to do with the curvature on the earth,” I explained to my friend in a university geography class. My explanation was met with a blank stare of incomprehension.

She had never heard of “correction lines.” Being a farm girl, I thought everyone knew what a correction line was. They were the reason the Talmage, Saskatchewan, road came to a dead end six miles north of town.

Farmers, and others who make their living in the rural West, are very familiar with correction lines, and all that is attached to them However, at a recent coffee row discussion, a few questions went unanswered. Although correction lines do have to do with the curvature of the earth, they are a little more complicated.

Surveying the west Understanding correction lines begins with understanding how Western Canada was surveyed. As of July 15, 1870, the newly formed Dominion of Canada acquired some 310,000 square miles (800,000 square kilometres) of land relinquished by the Hudson’s Bay Company, and formerly known as Rupert’s Land. It became known as the North West Territories, and would shortly become the world’s largest survey grid installed in a single integrated system. This land encompassed roughly one twelfth of the earth’s surface.

The Dominion Land Survey (DLS) was the method used to divide the West into one mile by one mile square blocks, which would be used to encourage settlement and discourage annexation by the United States. Fashioned after, but significantly different from, the Public Land Survey in the U.S., the DLS was complicated, and required a skilled survey crew.

There was no GPS. Survey crews had the stars to measure from, and a selection of antiquated instruments to measure with. Although errors in measuring did occur, the DLS was, overall, accurate, and produced one of the most efficient land titles systems in the world. The amount of paperwork needed to record the DLS would fill over 200 rail cars. Surveying began in 1871, and the DLS is still used by surveyors today. It ushered in a new era for the new Canadian West, however, it marked the end of the nomadic way of life of the First Nations people.

In order to create the survey grid, an initial meridian was required. This was established in 1869 at 97° 27 feet 28.4 inches west longitude just west of Winnipeg, and became known as the Prime, First or Winnipeg meridian.

Five more meridians were established across Western Canada: the second at 102°, the third at 106°, the fourth at 110°, the fifth at 114°, the sixth at 118° and a seventh and eighth in British Columbia. It should be noted that the DLS ran east, as well as west of the Winnipeg meridian, ending at Manitoba’s eastern border. The basic grid consists of the intersection of township lines running east and west, and range lines running north and south. The object of the intersecting township and range lines was to create parcels of land that were approximately square and equal.

Townships and ranges Townships, in this context, are strips of land running east and west beginning at, and parallel to, the 49th parallel. Township 1 begins at the 49th parallel, and ends six miles north of the 49th parallel. Township 2 begins where Township 1 ends, and extends six miles further north from Township 1. In this way, townships continue north consecutively to the 60th parallel.

A range is a six mile strip of land run-

ning north and south like the meridians. Ranges are numbered consecutively from one to 30 between meridians.

With each succeeding meridian, they begin again at one. For example, Range 1 is found beginning at, and extending to, six miles west of the first meridian.

Range 1 will be found again beginning at, and extending to, six miles west of the second meridian and every subsequent meridian.

As you travel down many rural roads, you will find signs displaying the coordinates of township and range roads.

A township road will read as follows: TWP RD 142. The first number is the actual township number — in this case, the 14 th township north of the 49 th parallel. Sometimes separated with spaces or dashes, the second number — in this case, 2 — is the number of the road within the 14th township.

Range road signs will display three numbers, also sometimes separated by spaces or dashes, sometimes not. For example, the afore mentioned Talmage road is written RGE RD 2-13-1. The first number indicates the meridian. The second indicates the range within the meridian. The third indicates the road number within the range.

The package of land created by the intersection of township and range lines is also known as a township. A township, in this context, is a six mile by six mile square, and then divided by the DLS into smaller units of land, such as sections, and quarter sections.

The correction line The problem: the object of the Dominion Land Survey was to create parcels of land that were approximately the same size, however, due to the convergence of the meridians, and therefore the ranges, each township beginning at the 49th parallel, and continuing north, would decrease slightly in size. The solution: the correction line.

The first correction line was estab-

lished on the second township line north of the 49th parallel, and every fourth township line north thereafter.

In other words, a correction line occurs every 24 miles.

At each correction line the range line is displaced a certain distance westward to compensate for convergence.

This displacement of the range line is called a jog. Jogs immediately west of meridians are quite small, but grow cumulatively with each range. At each meridian, jogs begin over at a small value, and increase as the correction line proceeds west. The first jog west of a meridian equals 225 feet (68.5m).

Because jogs are cumulative, the second jog should equal 450 feet (137.2m), and each jog thereafter, from Ranges 3 to 30, should be 225 feet (68.5m) greater than the one before it. However, it is not possible to calculate the exact distance of each jog, because of measurement errors, and thus, corrections in the survey. Mathematics alone are not enough to determine the length of a particular jog, instead, one would need to view a sufficiently detailed map, consult a registered land surveyor, or go out to the jog and measure.

It is also interesting to note, that as each range line pursues its northerly course, it will eventually converge with, and disappear into, the meridian to the west. When this happens, the affected parcels of land are no longer square, and their acres are reduced.

The Dominion Land Survey was designed to divide Western Canada into one mile squares of land that would be primarily used for settlement.

Correction lines were the method used to keep the one mile squares square — as much as possible. Perhaps this is the explanation I should have given my friend. Oddly enough though, if she asked me today to explain what a correction line was, I would probably begin with, “It has to do with the curvature of the earth.” † Danell van Staveren farms and writes near Griffin, Sask.

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grainews.ca /

17

Features Crop production

Goodbye to green-seed Resistant canola varieties are in development

A

University of Calgary research project has discovered a gene network in a weed from the Brassica family that may help plant breeders develop canola varieties better able to overcome frost-related green seed.

Researcher Marcus Samuel, in the faculty of science at the University of Calgary, led a research team that has identified the ABI3 gene network or model organism in a strain of Arabidopsis, a common weed in Europe closely related to cabbage and mustard. The gene network helps the weed seed maturing process withstand frost.

Since Arabidopsis and canola are so closely related, the idea now is to find and enhance the same gene network in canola.

Samuel has already demonstrated in laboratory tests that canola genes work the same way as those found in the weed.

“This ABI3 gene network is important for removing seed chlorophyll and enables the seed to de-green,” says Samuel. “A light frost usually doesn’t kill canola but it fixes the green color in the seeds. Non-lethal — even two to three degrees — of frost can result in up to 20 per cent green seeds as opposed to mature brown or black seeds in mature canola.”

The presence of chlorophyll (pigment that imparts green color to plants) in mature seeds affects the oil quality, produces unpleasant flavors and odours and reduces the oil’s shelf life.

“The annual loss in North America canola crops due to green seed alone is estimated at close to $150 million,” says Samuel, assistant professor and chair of the plant biology program.

The research team that involved Samuel as well as

By Dan Piraro

Bizarro

researchers from the University of Toronto and University of Bourdeaux in France, found in the fiveyear research project, the ABI3 gene regulation network is the pathway for seed development and removal of unwanted chlorophyll during seed maturation. A higher expression of the ABI3 led to seeds that were able to degreen normally to produce mature brown-black seeds despite cold conditions.

“Given the similarity of Arabidopsis and canola it would be easy to isolate the same genes in canola and use transgenic tech-

nology to create varieties that could withstand freezing conditions, yet produce mature brown-black seed, says Samuel. “The genes are already present in canola we just have to use technology to manipulate the system and enhance its expression.”

The University of Calgary is now working with Siniazo Biotech an Ottawa-based biotechnology firm to apply for a patent and they hope to market the technology to transgenic canola seed companies. † Lee Hart is a field editor for Grainews in Calgary. Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com.

University of Calgary researcher Marcus Samuel hopes to market green-seed reduction technology to canola breeders.

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18

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features CROP PRODUCTION

Cold stress and soybeans Cold can be a problem for soybean growers in a number of areas during the growing season. Find out how cold is too cold, and why

BY REBECA KUROPATWA

C

old weather in late spring can impact soybeans’ ability to germinate and emerge.

“Cold water that goes in at the start of seed hydration (part of the germination process) could cause problems,” says Elroy Cober, soybean breeder with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada at the Eastern Cereal and Oilseed Research Centre in Ottawa.

When a dry seed becomes hydrated with cold water, it disrupts seed membranes, which Cober views as the No. 1 problem with planting in cold soil. He recommends waiting until soil is at least 10 degrees before planting.

Typically, issues with cold occur at the start and the end of the season. “For those, it’s simply a matter of finding varieties adapted to the frost-free/growing period and that mature early enough — a variety that will address a freak early or late frost.”

peratures and have, so far, found some plants that set pods at that low night temperature,” said Cober.

The next step in Cober and team’s research is to see if they can get this same result in a field. “We haven’t yet had low enough night temperatures to seed the barren pods in the cold sensitive lines, but we did see an about 80 per cent yield difference — a higher yield with the cold tolerant (as opposed to cold sensitive) lines,” he said.

This research began in the 1990s when lines brought in from warmer places had problems with cold weather.

“Instead of breeding in cold tolerance, we’ve been breeding out

cold sensitivity,” said Cober. “Once this is bred out, the remainder is made cold tolerant.”

Cober advised producers buying seed speak with their dealer, ensuring it has been tested.

‘We must look at possibilities for low night temperatures as we push further with soybeans north and west — just do some investigating,” said Cober. “And if they’re even lower, like eight degrees, we may need to do more testing with even lower temperatures to ensure everything holds up.”

Breeders are continuing to develop new varieties, but it takes about 10 years to create a new variety.

HARVEST IMPACTS Another aspect cold soil brings into the mix is plant stature and how it affects harvest, according to Bruce Brolley, manager, of Manitoba Agriculture, Food, and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) agri-industry development and advancement division at Carman.

“In early spring, prolonged cold air temperatures exacerbated by excessive straw residue can result in short internodes between the cotyledon and unifoliates; the unifoliates and the first true leaf; the first true leaf and the second leaf; and the second leaf and the third leaf,” said Brolley.

“This results in the lowest pod set on the plant being so low to the ground that it makes combining difficult without leaving a significant amount of beans in the field — either on the remaining standing plant stubble or as individual beans scattered over the ground when the knife cuts through the pod.”

There is a strong relationship between a later maturing variety and yield. Generally, the later your variety matures, the higher the yield. It may be tempting to choose a later and later maturing variety for its higher yield, but there is a trade-off between the risk of maturing that variety and the yield it gives.

“When you’re starting out, don’t take those risks,” advised Brolley. “Choose an early maturing variety likely to mature in your area, don’t plant too early, and ensure your soil has warmed up first.” † Rebeca Kuropatwa is a professional writer in Winnipeg, Man.

NODULE FORMATION Another potential problem with cold soil occurs when the plants need to form nodules for the nitrogen fixation process. “This starts with soybean roots sending out signals to find bacteria that make nodulation possible,” says Cober.

“Once signals are sent, bacteria needs to head toward the root to initiate nodulation.”

Soil temperatures below 17 C impair this signalling process, slowing nodulation (nodulation usually begins a month after seeding).

By time of flowering (about five to six weeks after planting), the plants should be fully engaged. “As they find each other, they develop a little nodule and bacteria in the nodule begins fixing nitrogen,” says Cober.

If the soil lacks nitrogen, it can fix its own. All the nitrogen can be applied with fertilizer, but that would be costly.

“Keep in mind if you give too much nitrogen, soybeans won’t fixate,” warns Cober. “So, instead of applying too much nitrogen fertilizer, allow them to scavenge leftover nitrogen from previous crops to boost themselves. Then nitrogen fixation kicks in to supply the rest.”

Cober researches cold night temperatures as they affect soybeans during flowering. “Cool temperatures — below 10 degrees — can cause fewer seeds per pod or, in a severe case, a bunch of barren nodes.”

Cober says there are still many unknowns when it comes to cold affects on soybeans. “It may impair photosynthesis or sugar transports,” he said. “Why those seeds fail to develop we’re trying to determine. What we do know is that cold causes reduced seed sets and, in some cases, total pod loss.”

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

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19

Features OUTSTANDING YOUNG FARMERS

Alberta and Atlantic Canada earn OYF honours Farmers from Alberta and Nova Scotia win Outstanding Young Farmer awards in Regina

BY LEE HART

R

egional nominees from Alberta and Atlantic Canada were named winners November 15 at the national awards program for Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers, held in Regina, Sask.

Grain and oilseed producers Michael Kalisvaart and his wife Karen Jansen from Gibbons, Alberta and dairy farmers James and Amanda Kinsman of Berwick, Nova Scotia were selected from a field of seven regional nominees to receive the 33rd annual award.

Kalisvaart and Jansen, along

with family members, operate the 10,000 grain and oilseed Kalco Farms which has grown steadily since it was started in the mid1990s, just northeast of Edmonton.

The Kinsmans along with their two young children, operate a 190 head purebred Holstein dairy and produce forages and cash crops on about 1,800 acres as Windcrest Farms in the Annapolis Valley.

Other 2013 regional nominees include Luc Gervais and his wife Kim Brunelle, dairy farmers from Herouxville, Quebec; Dana and Adam Thatcher, who operate a mixed livestock and country meat market near Guelph, Ontario; Tyler

and Dorelle Fulton, who operate a cow-calf beef and backgrounding operation at Birtle, Man.; Chad and Darlene Krikau, grain and oilseed producers near Waldheim, Sask.; and Troy and Sara Harker, who operate an organic fruit and vegetable operation and fruit winery at Cawston, B.C. OYF recognizes farmers for their business management, farm management, environmental stewardship and leadership skills. Sponsors are Bayer Crop Science, John Deere, Agriculture Canada and CIBC. † Lee Hart is a field editor for Grainews in Calgary, Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com.

DestineD for greatness

The 2013 national winners of Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers Program were, from left, Alberta farmers Michael Kalisvaart and his wife Karen Jansen, and from Atlantic Canada, Amanda and James Kinsman of Berwick N.S.

The three couples in this photo were Outstanding Young Farmers in 1993. From left to right they are Bonnie and Garry Meier, from Ridgedale, Sask., Shawn and Mark Murphy, from Allison, Ont. and Bertha and Vernon Campbell, from Kensingonton, P.E.I.

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wenty years ago three couples were chosen as Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers. This year, all three of these 1993 winners met up in Regina in November, at Agribition.

“It’s kind of a minireunion for the people in our year,” said Vernon Campbell. Vernon and his wife Bertha were the Atlantic nominees for Outstanding Young Farmer in 1993. This fall they travelled to Regina from their Prince Edward Island farm to visit friends and see Agribition.

Since their 1993 win, the Campbells have visited back and forth with several other Outstanding Young Farmer nominees across the country. They’ve had a chance to tour all types of farms and hosted several visitors to their own potato and grain farm.

OYF encompasses all types of farmers, from grape growers to ranchers, but the Campbells find common concerns and passions when they meet with other nominees. “We made some great friends,” Bertha says.

Despite the differences, it’s been easy for the Campbells to find similarities. “They’re all wired the same; they’re enthusiastic about production food for their fellow man,” Vernon says.

“They’re all the same style of people. In my opinion they’re the salt of the earth.”

Vernon and Bertha operate a dairy, beef and potato farm near Kensington, P.E.I., called Mull Na Beinnie Farms Ltd. (Gaelic for “pretty little farm on the hill”). †

Leeann Minogue is the editor of Grainews.

20

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Features Farm management

Widows during the harvest Many farmers say harvest is their favourite time of year. But some farm wives dread the season

By Marianne Stamm

T

he Prairie grain harvest is a hectic season.

Production from thousands of acres should flow into the bins in only a few short weeks. Farmers and their crews run from early morning until late at night. Harvest consumes their lives, and the lives of their families.

We often hear of the farmwives that are an intricate part of harvest, out there operating combines or trucks. But there’s another group. Many women and children, especially the families of farmhands, suffer from feelings of loneliness and abandonment during this season. The men often come home

past midnight, and wake up to stumble back to work. As long as the sun shines, it’s six or seven days a week until the crop is off.

It’s not always just the employee’s families that feel resentment or frustration. The families of the farmers themselves are not immune. How do they make it through the season?

Wife versus farmwife Terryl Koch’s husband Loren is a grain farmer in the Westlock, Alta., area. Koch is a part-time nurse, mother of three grown children and a grandmother. “I’m the wife, not the farmwife,” she says of her role in the farm.

Although she’s been doing this many years, harvest for her is still

an overwhelming, often frustrating time. Her nursing job doesn’t stop for the season. “I can’t wait for it to be done,” she says of harvest. “I calculate the acres left every day!” Koch doesn’t operate the machinery. Her job is to prepare meals, run for parts and “pray that they have a good day.”

She thinks it might be easier if she was more involved. As it is, she feels the pressure and stress her husband is under. There’s the weather, the machinery breakdowns, the help or lack of it.

“You feel their frustration, but you can’t do anything about it, have no control,” she says.

Koch has learned to appreciate the other things about the season that are so beautiful. The smell of the grain, the beauty of the leaves,

those things that aren’t necessarily a part of harvest. She decides to be thankful for the grain that is coming off. “Try to be present,” she says, adding that it takes a purposeful decision to do so. She has learned to delegate some things.

One of the farmhands’ wives often brings supper to the field now.

Fighting loneliness Jessica Seatter’s husband Luke farms in Dapp, Alberta with his father. Their children are 2-1/2 years and 10 months. Seatter fights feelings of abandonment and resentment at the beginning of the harvest season. “I feel completely alone,” she says. “He takes off, I’m left with the mess... it’s just an exhausting season.” She

anticipates harvest coming, but still gets caught off her feet. At first she feels, “I can’t take care of two little kids, the house, the lawn, the vehicle.” But then she decides, “Yes, we’ll do this, somehow!”

“It’s easy to buy into the thought, ‘everything is about what he’s doing,’” Seatter says. She determined to be a unified front, even if they are doing different things. “It’s a choice to love or not to love.”

Seatter asked herself, “What can I take advantage of in this season that I can’t do in others?” Now she concentrates on having fun with the kids, taking them out to the combine for a ride, taking supper to the field. She tries not to stress about things. “You have to cut out all the distractions,” Seatter says.

She doesn’t worry about trying to

Coping takes effort

C

oping with harvest takes a little effort, but it’s worth it.

Here are some tips that have worked for other farm wives.

• A short text can make a big difference to a relationship. Autosteer combines make it easier to use the phone to stay connected.

• Have the kids call their parent to say goodnight.

Keep the parent away in the loop about what’s happening in the kids’ lives.

• Ride the equipment with your spouse. You can even make it a date! Knowing what your spouse is doing helps you to understand what they are talking about.

• This could be the time of year to pick up extra shifts at work, instead of being lonely at home.

• Decide to enjoy the beauty of the season; to have fun with the kids, even if he’s not there.

• Be thankful for the good things in your life.

• Delegate work, like making meals or going for parts.

• Let others help you. You don’t have to do everything yourself.

• For those out in the field: tell your spouse you appreciate that hot meal she worked hard to make! †

Bred in Canada to feed the world.

Marianne Stamm

By Dan Piraro

Bizarro

Visit SyngentaFarm.ca or contact our Customer Resource Centre at 1-87-SYNGENTA (1-877-964-3682).

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21

Features go everywhere. She’s also learned to ask for help versus feeling she has to do it all alone.

“I try to stay connected,” Seatter says of her husband. “There’s power in a little cell phone text.”

She’s learned a person can even make a date night on the combine.

Her mother was able to watch the children and the couple got some much needed alone time together.

Keeping in touch

When Terryl Koch takes supper to the field, everyone sits down to enjoy it and spend a little time together.

photo: terryl koch

Cereal seed from Syngenta helps you harvest opportunities wherever they are. We’ve been breeding wheat in Canada for four decades, setting unprecedented standards for yield, quality and sustainability. The world depends on Canadian grain, and Canadian growers count on Syngenta.

Joyce Nederhoed’s husband works full-time for the neighbour, who is a larger grain farmer.

She herself is a casual nurse at the local care home. Harvest is always a difficult period for her.

Her husband has most Sundays off, but she’s often working then.

She finds it hard to be alone so much. “I just work lots,” she says.

She picks up as many evening shifts as she can. If she’s lucky, her husband will be home soon after.

“Somehow you just have to keep on going.” Nederhoed doesn’t feel comfortable riding along on the machinery with her husband. She feels it is his job, and she would be intruding. “I’m always glad when it’s done,” she says.

This is the first year as a ‘harvest widow’ for Anita Moes, whose husband is a full-time farmhand too. It doesn’t bother her, she says, but she makes a point of riding the equipment with her husband as much as she can. It helps her to be able to understand what he is talking about when he does come home. She makes good use of the cell phones.

“We keep in touch lots,” she says.

For one farmwife and mother of four young children, the most important thing during harvest is keeping their children connected to their Daddy. If at all possible, the kids phone their Dad at bedtime to say goodnight. If one of the kids has a test in school, she tells her husband to make sure to ask them about it. Those things count for the kids. She takes time to bring them to see their Dad on the field.

The preschoolers can ride on the machinery with him during the day. “We’re out there for supper,” she says. Suppers together are a regular. She also makes sure her husband looks after himself. If she finds he is not taking time to eat anymore, she’ll go out with the kids and the meal. “I’m not going to leave until you sit down and eat!”

Thankfully, harvest always ends, one way or the other. Life resumes its normal pattern, until the next season — seeding — appears, and it’s time to pull out those coping mechanisms again. † Marianne Stamm Marianne Stamm sometimes writes from the farm in Jarvie, Alta., but spends most of her time in Switzerland now, where her grandchildren live.

By Dan Piraro

Bizarro

13-09-10 1:45 PM JOB ID: 5906-1 H

CLIENT: SYNGENTA CANADA

PUBLICATION: GRAINEWS

CLIENT SERVICE: __________________

22

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Columns SOILS AND CROPS

Aladdin houses Were you raised in an Aladdin house? These catalogue houses were a popular alternative LES HENRY

M

y interest in Catalogue Houses came from the large 2-1/2 story house I was raised in at Milden, Sask. It was built with $28/bushel wheat in 1917 and boasted hot and cold running water, electric lights, a flush toilet and central hot water heating.

Any discussion of “catalogue houses” in Western Canada assumes that they came from the Eaton’s Catalogue. But there were many other actors in the business and the main one was Aladdin.

In June of 1985 Carl Stone of Claresholm, Alta., wrote, “There were a lot more Aladdin Homes around than Eaton’s. I can spot them easily, don’t need to ask — they are Aladdin. If you collect the story on them, there are lots around and still very good. They advertised heavily with beautiful books and glossy pictures in colour.”

The Aladdin Company was a classic free enterprise story started by brothers William and Otto Sovereign in Bay City, Michigan.

They had offices all over the U.S., and the Canadian Aladdin Co. Ltd. was all over Canada. They were much bigger in the Mail Order House business than Eaton’s.

Aladdin Homes were offered in the U.S from 1906 to 1981.

Canadian Aladdin offered homes from the early 1900s to 1952.

Eaton’s did house business only in the West —from Winnipeg, from 1910 to1932.

Aladdin had dozens of designs: small one story to large 2-1/2 story square houses, but the Craftsman style bungalow is the most common in the Canadian Prairies. Aladdin produced dozens of houses for Spanish River Pulp and Paper Mills Ltd. in Espanola, Ontario.

ALADDIN HOMES The Aladdin Holmwood is an attractive one and a half story house. The area under the high pitched roof shown in the catalogue picture accommodated three bedrooms and a bathroom. There were variations of that house with only two bedrooms upstairs.

My book, Catalogue Houses: Eaton’s and Others describes the Urwin farm home at Beechy, Sask., built in 1926, purchased by the Ringrose family in 1959 and moved to Wisteon, Sask., by Gord Nickason a few years ago.

We know of other Holmwoods in Rosetown, Sask., Calgary, Alta., and Druid, Sask. The Rosetown Holmwood was built on a farm near Glamis in 1918 (this home was described in the Saskatchewan magazine Prairies North in the Fall, 2010 issue.)

The Aladdin Windsor was 1-1/2 stories with two bedrooms upstairs. It also came in a single story version with five different floor plans in four different sizes.

The unique cross-gable verandah/entry makes the Windsor easy to identify from the road at 100 km/hour.

My book describes the Allan and Shirley Smith home at Lac Vert, Sask. We know of other examples at Rapid View, Humboldt, Yellow Grass, Foam Lake and Prairie River — all in Saskatchewan.

The Ron and Linda Barclay home near Souris, Man., is a beautiful and well maintained example of an Aladdin Pomona. The 1921 Aladdin Homes (Canada) catalogue showed a floor plan with three bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, dining room and living room on the main floor and two bedrooms upstairs.

Ron Barclay has original correspondence from Aladdin with testimonials of other Aladdin homes of Robert Cobbe of Baldur, Man., Cleveland Walrath of Edgerton, Alta., Arthur Lakes of Nelson, B.C., and Noel Slack of Delmead, Alta.

Other Aladdin Pomona homes we know of are at Conquest, Gull Lake and Langham, Sask.

There are at least hundreds of Aladdin Homes near Grainews readers.

The dirty 30s put a halt to any new homes but there are many 1940s and even early 50s Aladdin

Aladdin Homes, Made in Canada, Catalogue #17, 1921.

Aladdin Homes (Canada): Catalogue #32, 1932. homes. They were mostly one and a half story Gable roof houses.

Eaton’s was out of the house business in 1932. Many “Eaton’s” houses were actually made by Aladdin. Eaton’s is to the catalogue house business as Kleenex is to facial tissue.

Aladdin could provide the mirror image for the same price.

Many homes had different floor plans and size of the same basic house design. They were solid houses made of lumber not available today. Many are approaching their Centennial — 100 years of service to families — almost all on farms.

If you think you have an Aladdin you can check out the following website of the Clarke Historical Library of Central Michigan University: https:// www.cmich.edu/library/clarke/

Trait Stewardship Responsibilities Notice to Farmers

ResearchResources/Michigan_ Material_Local/Bay_City_Aladdin_ Co/Pages/default.aspx.

But, do beware — those are the US Aladdin catalogues — except for 1920 which is Canadian Aladdin.

Many houses were the same in US and Canada — but with different names. I am happy to help identify a house. Email me the photos of at least two sides and a sketch or description of the original floor plan and I will help if I can — no charge. The only thing I sell is the book (see below). Pssst — it makes a great Christmas gift! † J.L.(Les) Henry is a former professor and extension specialist at the University of Saskatchewan. He farms at Dundurn, Sask. He recently finished a third printing of “Catalogue Houses: Eatons and Others.” Les will cover the shipping and GST for Grainews readers. Simply send a cheque for $45 to Henry Perspectives, 143 Tucker Cres, Saskatoon, Sask., S7H 3H7, and he will dispatch a signed book.

BY DAN PIRARO

Bizarro

Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. This product has been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems.

Any crop or material produced from this product can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for this product. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Excellence Through Stewardship.

ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® crops contain genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides. Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. Acceleron® seed treatment technology for corn is a combination of four separate individuallyregistered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, and clothianidin. Acceleron® seed treatment technology for canola is a combination of two separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients difenoconazole, metalaxyl (M and S isomers), fludioxonil, thiamethoxam, and bacillus subtilis. Acceleron and Design®, Acceleron®, DEKALB and Design®, DEKALB®, Genuity and Design®, Genuity Icons, Genuity®, RIB Complete and Design®, RIB Complete®, Roundup Ready 2 Technology and Design®, Roundup Ready 2 Yield®, Roundup Ready®, Roundup Transorb®, Roundup WeatherMAX®, Roundup®, SmartStax and Design®, SmartStax®, Transorb®, VT Double PRO®, YieldGard VT Rootworm/RR2®, YieldGard Corn Borer and Design and YieldGard VT Triple® are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. Used under license. LibertyLink® and the Water Droplet Design are trademarks of Bayer. Used under license. Herculex® is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Used under license. Respect the Refuge and Design is a registered trademark of the Canadian Seed Trade Association. Used under license. ©2013 Monsanto Canada Inc.

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23

Columns

Make a house a home

I

“

t takes a lot of living just to make a house a home” is a common refrain. It is that part that interests me and led to the book. Many folks seek my advice about renovations. Sorry folks,but I barely know which end of the hammer to pick up. It is the people, not the architecture, that turns my crank.

Stories like the Meshka Eatons Earlsfield home near Craik, Sask.

In 1915 Mike Meshka seeded early. Late seeders were frozen out. So, Mike sold them seed and the extra money built the house.

Or, the large oat crop that allowed Cyrian and Marie Puech to build an Eatons Eardsley on their farm at St. Walburg, Sask. in 1919.

But a recent email trumps

them all. Just this September I received an email from Linda Stack-Hawkley — all the way from the Adelaide Hills of South Australia. In 1915 her greatgrandfather built an Eatons Eastcourt (#661) house as a wedding present for her grandparents. It was near Summerberry, Sask. Her grandmother hated the pantry and wanted it removed before she moved in.

“She was five foot nothing, but she knew how to get her own way” said Linda.

And she did. Linda remembers the house sans pantry, but wanted the original house plan to prove it did exist. Her email to me was a desperate plea for help.

When she received the original T. Eaton Catalogue page from 1916 she was jumping with joy. I

The T. Eaton Co. Ltd. House #661 at Summerberry, Sask. The house no longer exists but Linda’s memories of it are still vivid.

could feel the hug — all the way from Adelaide to Saskatoon.

Stories like that keep the interest going. About a week ago, I received an email asking for help.

Not all are as exciting as Linda’s, but all enquiries get a serious look and any help I can give. †

The Ron and Linda Barclay home near Souris, Man.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Columns GUARDING WEALTH

American woes The U.S. Treasury is alive and well after the truce declared on October 16, but the war is not over

BY ANDREW ALLENTUCK

C

all it October madness. The rush to the cliff of default, gone for now but not really gone, pushed the world to the brink of an American financial collapse. U.S. Treasury bonds, which make up two-thirds of the reserves of central banks around the world, and an even larger share of the capital of global megabanks, are traded every business day. Banks holding the bonds sell them when they need money to lend and buy them when they have cash rattling around that can earn a little money overnight. Had the Treasury been unable to pay bonds when they were due on October 17, global liquidity would have started to run dry.

Had the Treasury defaulted, banks would have run out of money to lend. Their capital would have vanished and they would have had to call loans.

All this because a small rump of members of the U.S. Congress who are beholden to the Tea Party decided to imperil the full faith and credit of the United States over their dissatisfaction with President Obama’s medical and hospital cost insurance plan. The plan itself is a sort of eBay for health insurance complete with some knots. It may raise labour mobility, for workers will not have to stick with jobs just because they have good health insurance. It may cause some employers to put full time employees on part time just to avoid paying health insurance costs.

The move by the radical right to push the United States to the brink of default, which was 10 hours away when the President and the Congress signed their deal to postpone the day of reckoning, amounts to sabotage of the American economy and damage to world security, says Hubert Marleau, economist and co-founder of Palos Investment Funds in Montreal. “To seek potential catastrophe as a source of bargaining power in a game of extortion is evil,” he wrote in his weekly memorandum.

The consequences of default, which will return as an issue before February 7, 2014, when the present debt ceiling runs out, are to finance what a hydrogen bomb would be to land and people. It used to be reasonable to assume that the U.S. would never default. Yet in American history there are several episodes of actual default and virtual default. Two bonds issued by France to finance the colonists in their war of independence from Britain were dishonoured by the United States in 1789.

King Louis XVI then called the Estates General for the first time in 150 years. A peasant revolt followed, the palace at Versailles was attacked, the king fled later to be executed and the French

Revolution was up and running.

The bond default was merely a trigger. Class hatred was the fuel of the revolution.

President Andrew Jackson refused to renew the charter of the Second Bank of the United States in 1836. It was a central bank which, when running, supported the credit of the fairly new federal government.

With no central bank, the U.S., then a developing nation, lost standing as a borrower in global finance. Until the creation of the Federal Reserve in 1913, the U.S. had to pay higher interest rates than it would have had to pay had there be a central bank such as the Bank of England to act as a lender of last resort in liquidity crises.

far right forces lined up against President Obama and his medical care bill. The far right has shown its power, so it is possible that the Tea Party will use its muscle against other foes.

In a climate of what amounts to financial self-destruction by a party that appears to think global

trade tens of billions of dollars without budging the price.

However, judicious investments in top U.S. corporate debt which could become a proxy for Treasuries, in British gilts or in Canadian dollar denominated bonds issued by government backed state banks in Germany such as KfW (Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau — the Bank for Reconstruction) are solid and reasonable. In the next crisis, they could flourish. Investing to beat a band of financial masochists may seem farfetched, but given the condition of the United States Congress, it is merely reasonable.

The larger question is what happens to stocks and commodities.

cycle until consumers, perhaps wanting for paycheques, curtailed spending. Construction, aerospace, and electronics — industries which work on established lines of credit — might run a few weeks before shutting their doors.

The safest bet would be financial instruments that must be paid, that is, bonds. Investment grade corporate bonds, federal Canadian bonds, provincial bonds and foreign government guaranteed corporate debt would be bought up eagerly by investors. Ditto the gilts and bunds, bonds from the governments of the Scandinavian countries, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand and Asian triple A credits like Singapore and Japan.

These bonds are issued in vari-

T:12.9167

Crises are by definition temporary CANADIAN INVESTORS For Canadian investors, the brinksmanship forced on the Treasury by the Congressional nail biter is an opportunity to make wise fixed income investments. A default or another serious threat of default would drive pension funds, large banks and insurance companies to buy alternative bonds.

That would make British sovereign bonds called gilts rise in price, ditto for German sovereign bonds called Bunds, also for the sovereign bonds of the Scandinavian countries, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

Around the world, there would also be a move to top grade corporate bonds. In the U.S., there are only four non-financial companies that have AAA credit ratings: Exxon Mobil Corp., Microsoft Corp., Automatic Data Processing Inc. and Johnson & Johnson.

Exxon Mobile bonds with fiveyear terms have been bought up to the point that their yield is now within a quarter of a per cent of five-year U.S. Treasuries.

There are also global bond exchange traded funds that provide excellent credits with no direct U.S. Treasury bond risk. For example, the iShares Aaa-rated Corporate Bond ETF (QLTA-NYSE) has top American corporate bonds and a very low annual management fee of 15/100ths of one per cent. The iShares Intermediate Treasury Bond Ex-US ETF has no direct U.S. Treasury exposure. Each of these funds has a measure of immunity from worries over U.S. Treasury debt.

Default risk will plague U.S. Treasury bonds until there is some end to the blackmail of the American government by the

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FS:6.0833”

financial Armageddon would be a good idea, there is no absolute defense. Survivalists could rush to their bomb shelters, top up their hoards of gold coins and canned soup and wait for the rebirth of a global economy. That seems idiotic, for without liquidity, the world would be reduced to barter.

It probably won’t come to that. Yet the U.S. dollar may be diluted as a global reserve currency to be replaced in part by gilts, bunds, Australian dollars and perhaps Swiss francs. None of those currencies and markets have the depth of the U.S. Treasuries market where one can

ous currencies. The best of the lot In a liquidity crisis, F:6.4583”companies would have trouble paying their would be in their own currencies. bills and getting paid. One would The worst would be those issued in have to assume that there would be U.S. dollars.

Crises are by definition tema drop in sales and earnings. That SBC13130.Perform and any default by the is what happened in the shutdown 11-4-2013 9:28porary AM U.S. would be temporary.

The Yellow, of the U.S. government which CALMCL-DMX7993 Cyan, Magenta, U.S. would return to paying its ended October 16. When compaMarsha Walters though reputanies report quarterly earnings, the bonds, ORIGINALLY the GENERATED: Oli NoneevenSPEC 100% 12.9167”tion x 8” of the Treasury and U.S. extent of the losses will become SAFETY: None TRIM: 12.916 would evident. The effects of a future financial markets Helvetica Neue LT Stdbe (65 Medium, 75 Bo liquidity crisis would depend on stained for many years. Markets its length, of course. Even with- remember. That is something out that information, it is possible that the Tea Party activists who to suggest what stocks would be endangered the credit of the hurt most. Top of the list: banks United States forgot. † and other financial institutions. Andrew Allentuck’s latest book, When Can I The retail economy could exist on Retire? Planning Your Financial Life After Work, credit cards for part of a billing was published in 2011 by Penguin Canada.

12.9167”

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

25

Columns OFF-FARM INVESTMENTS

Selling weekly covered calls Andy Sirski has found that selling weekly covered calls can boost his profits and reduce his risk ANDY SIRSKI

F

or the past month I’ve been selling weekly covered calls on some favourite American stocks and I love it. The money comes in faster, it reduces my risk and it

liked the idea. It caught on, and now a few hundred stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) offer weekly covered calls.

I ignored weekly calls because I was busy doing covered calls on Canadian stocks, which generally do not have weekly calls unless they are interlisted on U.S. exchanges. When I finally got the idea one night I looked at Disney (DIS) monthly and weekly covered calls.

8, 2013, strike price $69, and collected $1.10 per share, or US$852.

That was a 1.4 per cent return in one week. I was convinced.

This helped me see selling covered calls in a whole new light.

STOP LOSING MONEY Back in June 2013 I decided to stop losing money with my stocks. Now if I’m wrong on a stock and it turns against me,

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can improve total returns. But, As an example, F:6.4584” in late October/ I do have to think more. Still, early November I had 400 shares making a return of 0.8 to 1.4 per of DIS and had sold calls for strike cent a week can sure improve price $70 for January and picked cash flow. up $1.75 per share in early October.

SBC13130.Performance.7 erformance.7.indd To make a long story short, I Grainews On October 30, the premium for that call strike price $70 Date: January Dec 2 llow, Black was setting up a list of U.S. stocksInsertion that have weekly call options that Bayerwas $1.66 — that was for a life of Crop Science IPAGE: could use to do bull put (bullish) about 10 na weeks. The weekly call for 1 bear call (bearish) spreads. strike price $70 was around $1.00 a M: 12.9167” x 8” and Bleed: None Along theOpenType) way it dawned on me share for one week. m, 75 Bold, 87 Heavy Condensed; that I could use the same stocks There was an obvious difference. to sell covered calls week by week. So on November 2, 2013 I bought Production Contact Numbers: back the January strike $70 calls, 403 261 7161 403 261 7152 sold some Canadian shares to raise WEEKLY COVERED CALLS more cash and bought another 400 Weekly covered calls were started DIS shares at a cost of around $69 by the industry in 2010, more or per share. less as a test to see how investors Then I sold a call for November

O-66-09/13-BCS12149-E

I am not wrong for long. I sell while the loss is small.

This fall I pondered not losing money on stocks and decided to go one more step, and go where the money was. My Bombardier shares had just dropped to my cost so I was making somewhere around two per cent for half a year. My Davis + Henderson (DH) shares were up about $5 in total.

My Auto Canada (ACQ) shares were up about a buck a share in two or three months. That sure did not match collecting a buck a share on Disney for one week.

I was ready to change strategies.

On November 4, in another account, I sold DH, Facebook

T:8”

More smiles per acre.

(FB) and another stock so I had enough money to buy another 1,000 shares in that account. Then I sold a call for November 8 and collected $0.94 or US$957 for five days. On an average cost of $69 per share that comes to 1.3 per cent in five days.

I don’t expect I can make that kind of return every week on every stock but hey, even half that would be just fine.

Next I bought 500 shares of Mosaic (M)S) for US$46.53 per share and sold a call for strike price $47 and collected $0.85 per share or $428 for five days. I sold this one a bit above the price of the day since it looked a little bullish. Mosaic had just bought some very rich phosphorous property in Florida and this looked like a good move.

My thinking is that on these weekly calls if the shares are above my strike price on the expiry day I likely will let the calls get exercised and just buy the shares back on the following Monday. If the shares are just pennies above my strike price, odds are the premium on the call will have depreciated enough that I might choose to buy the call back and sell another weekly call for the following week.

If the shares do not get above my strike price I will keep the whole premium and sell another weekly call the following week.

I have bought calls back before but from what I see on the weeklies, it might make more sense to let the shares get exercised and buy them back or move onto another stock.

GAME CHANGES In my opinion selling weekly calls instead of calls one, two or three months out will be a game changer. By selling weekly calls I can likely manage the risk a lot better since most stocks don’t move big bucks in one week.

With weekly calls, if it looks like the shares are going up, I can sell calls a bit above the price of the day to capture the premium plus some capital gain.

If the shares look like they might drop, I can sell calls below the price of the day and collect more cash up front, protecting my portfolio from the price drop.

Regardless, one week later I can choose another strike price — higher or lower than the strike price we chose the week before.

I are doing weekly spreads on Tesla (TSLA), Caterpillar (CAT), Disney (DIS), Mosaic (MOS), Green Mountain (GMCR), Apple (AAPL), and Bristol- Myers Squibb (BMY) and monthly calls on Toyota (TM) and Deere (DE).

If I stay cautious, most of the time I keep the whole premium.

With weeklies there seems to be so much money there that I do not have to take chances. If I am wrong on the direction, I don’t need to be wrong for long. I can close that contract and just watch or open another one.

A SPREAD ON NETFLIX With Netflix (NFLX) I had a bear

call spread, thinking the shares would not go up to my strike price.

But the share price kept going up, so I closed that contract for a loss of $890. I did some damage control — another spread at a higher strike price — and collected $485 for a net loss of $405 on that spread.

But since I had already taken in something close to $2,000 from doing covered calls and spreads I was still ahead. I could have closed that contract while the spread was losing $100 or $200 but the eternal optimist in me never figured the NFLX shares would go up that much that quickly. I could have actually come out ahead on cash if I also did a bull put on those shares.

DRAWBACKS AND OPPORTUNITIES The big drawback of weekly covered calls and spreads is that I have to think more. I don’t think anyone with a full time job or busy life could do more than one or two weekly spreads and/or weekly covered calls per week. It could still bring in $500 a week or so which would be a nice part time business.

I try to do a couple spreads the Thursday or Friday before the weekend for the next week so that I have already banked some cash for the next week, giving me some free time. Then I do one or two on the Monday and maybe one or two on Tuesday.

By Thursday or Friday I’m working on the following week.

Generally I feel that a call or spread will still be there the next day if I don’t get it done today.

As I’ve written, I’m getting more and more convinced that I should “go where the money is.” As the days go by I plan to examine every stock I own and try to figure out the odds that the shares will have some capital gain soon. I will sell those that likely won’t, freeing up some buying power to purchase stocks that let me do weekly covered calls.

I even sold some of my shares in Bombardier. The company pays a dividend of 2-1/5 per cent per year, but that pales against one per cent per month.

I sold calls on the shares, but again the return pales compared to my grains from weekly calls.

In farm talk, I have decided that I’m not in this business to test my patience and try to get milk out of a dry cow. There are a good number of active stocks with weekly options that will give me as many opportunities as my accounts and brain can handle.

There are lots of opportunities to make a good buck. But you might have to learn a few pointers and you might have to get impatient with stocks you own now. I’m developing a list of stocks with weekly options. It will be free to readers with paid up subscriptions to StocksTalk.

Happy investing. † Andy Sirski is mostly retired. In between naps, playing with granddaughters, gardening and travelling, Andy publishes a stocks newsletter.

To read StocksTalk free for a month, email Anday at sirski@mts.net.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Columns Understanding market bulls and bears

Pre-pricing next year’s crop It’s already time to start planning pricing and risk management strategies for your 2014 crop

By Brian Wittal

N

ow that you’ve had a brief moment to relax after harvest, it’s time for the next marketing adventure! Let’s look at doing some pre-pricing of next year’s crop!

Why so early, you might ask?

Let’s look at what has happened over the last two years, production-wise, and see where that leads us.

Two years ago world production was down due to numerous weather related crop production issues. This put world stocks of most grains at extremely tight levels and pushed prices to historic highs.

This year we have a better than average world grain crop which has helped to rebuild world stocks back to very comfortable levels. This in turn is being reflected in lower futures prices over the past six months.

So looking to next year’s crop, if we end up with even an average overall world crop, world supplies will still be at comfortable levels. If there is another above average crop like this year, world supplies will build even more and prices will slide lower.

The reality is that for prices

to improve next year we will need to see a major reduction in world commodity production somewhere.

In the U.S., drought conditions have vastly improved from last year. Rains this fall have helped replenish needed soil moisture, which is very good for the winter wheat crop that is already in the ground. Rains in India, Brazil and South America have also been timely, and will help improve the potential for higher production in those countries as well.

That brings us to where we are today.

Current situation Current prices are definitely lower than last year, but they are still profitable and that is the name of the game: ensuring profits on your farm.

World fertilizer prices continue to slump from last year’s highs and should continue to decline slowly, depending on what grain prices do between now and spring.

If you are working out your production cost estimates for next year, they should be down over last year due to this reduction in fertilizer costs. Now if you take the new crop grain values and calcu-

late out your potential income you will see that there is still a decent profit there that you can secure by locking in some new crop tonnes at these values.

World markets are coming off of record high prices last year, production this year was very good and the production potential for next year is looking even better due to better moisture levels in key growing regions of the world.

Locking in a profit this early in the game for some of your production is a smart business move to protect you going forward.

Income protection strategies You need to decide what kind of pricing strategy you’re going to use, and how much you want to protect yourself.

You don’t want to make too big a commitment locking in forward delivery contracts this early — the risk of not being able to deliver is huge. Locking in 10 to 25 per cent of your potential production is probably about as far as you would want to go.

When locking in a forward contract you need to review the basis the company is offering so you can decide if you should lock in the basis now or leave it

unpriced, with the expectation that it will narrow in over the next few months, allowing you to lock in a better basis later.

Another strategy you can use is buying futures or options contracts to establish a floor price for yourself. Your opinion of what markets are going to do over the next eight to 12 months, how aggressive you want to be and how much money you want to spend purchasing these contracts will dictate how far you can go in establishing your pricing protection strategy.

You may want to do a blended strategy by pre-selling 10 to 25 per cent of your potential production, then buying futures or options that would cover another 10 to 100 per cent of your anticipated production — again, depending on the factors mentioned earlier.

Again, there are only a few grains (canola, wheat and oats) that you can use futures or options contracts with as part of your price protection strategy, as these are the only grains that have actively trading futures contracts.

For other grains, your only choice will be to lock in forward delivery contracts with a handling company. For some commodities such as peas, if the

companies don’t have any potential sales for the coming year on the books yet they may not offer you a price for new crop.

You need to balance your overall pricing risk between all of your grains and use the pricing protection strategies that are available for those grains that it makes the most sense for.

What grains are at the greatest risk of going down based on current market intelligence? If you can use futures or options, you could protect yourself more on those grains to offset the risk from the other grains that don’t allow as much protection.

At the end of the day it comes down to total farm profitability.

If you can only price protect your profit on certain grains, use those grains to protect your total farm profits overall, offsetting some of the risks from the other grains until you can start to forward sell some of those other grains to lock in profits there.

In the next issue we’ll look at using futures and options contracts as part of your farm’s pricing protection strategy. † Brian Wittal has 30 years of grain industry experience, and currently offers market planning and marketing advice to farmers through his company Pro Com Marketing Ltd. (www.procommarketingltd.com).

SPECIAL EDITION Manitoba Ag Days Taking place Jan. 21, 22 & 23 2014 at the Brandon Keystone Centre

The Manitoba Co-operator is presenting a great opportunity for you to feature your business, products or booth at Manitoba Ag Days in the Jan. 9th edition.

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SEE YOU AT THE SHOW!

RISKS AND REWARDS OF FALL

GREAT GORP PROJECT Triathlete creates home-grown energy bar » PAGE 44

The pros and cons of applying in dry soil » PAGE 17

OCTOBER 11, 2012

Communications breakdown added to emergency Firefighting made more dangerous without communications

By Lorraine Stevenson CO-OPERATOR STAFF

V

olunteer firefighters racing to reach fire-threatened Vita last week passed hundreds of vehicles headed the other direction and wondered what they were headed into, said veteran firefighter Alain Nadeau.

“I’ve been doing this for 33 years and this was the scariest I’ve seen,” said the weary La Broquerie fire chief on Friday after an exhausting week.

The air was so smoke filled around the southeastern village “we could barely breathe,” he said.

SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | VOL. 70, NO. 41

GOT SEED?

By Daniel Winters CO-OPERATOR STAFF / MELITA

R

ising corn acres and severe drought in the Midwestern United States may crimp supplies of popular corn seed varieties for the com-

ing year.

“It’s really short,” said Ron Rabe, a Dekalb agronomist, who gave a brief talk on corn production in Manitoba at a recent WADO field tour.

Derek Erb, who farms near Oak Bluff and sells Pioneer Hi-Bred corn

|

$1.75

MANITOBACOOPERATOR.CA

Corn seed might be tight next spring Rising demand and dismal growing conditions in the drought-stricken United States may limit supplies seed, said farmers looking to secure seed for next spring should act quickly to secure their supplies, even if it means placing orders earlier than usual.

Pioneer Hi-Bred’s top varieties, which include D95 and D97, account for roughly half the acres seeded in the province. Erb said that with the harvest and quality testing still underway in some areas, it’s difficult to estimate how much corn seed will be available for next year.

One thing’s for sure, waiting until Ag Days in January to secure supplies will

be too late. “I would pretty much bank on that,” said Erb. Dry conditions throughout the province have seen the corn harvest arriving about a month earlier than usual, and seed orders have started coming in sooner than usual too.

Even with the possibility of a shortage of corn seed, Erb doesn’t expect the price of Pioneer’s supplies to rise much more than it has in recent years.

Rob Park, of RJP Seeds in Carman, who deals in Hyland seed varieties, See CORN SEED on page 6 »

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

27

Columns CAN’T TAKE THE FARM FROM THE BOY

Mid-range phosphate levels Even an experienced farmer can be surprised to find a phosphate deficiency at the root of yield issues. It’s always a good idea to soil test TOBAN DYCK

G

et tested. We did. Our phosphate levels were low enough for us to act. It’s better to be safe than sorry; better to know than not know. This is a first in a long time our farm has gotten its soil tested. We didn’t expect any surprises, but the mid-level phosphate levels caught us off guard.

The outfit administering the test said mid-range is fine for the soybeans we plan on planting there next year. But, a deficiency is a deficiency, so we got some phosphate custom applied. My father knows his farm’s soil very well; like the back of his hand. And I bet I could say the same of most farmers. They generally have an intimate understanding of their soil, and what it needs for food after a season of soybeans, wheat, canola, corn, etc.

Maximizing yield potential guides most decisions we make There were clues, signs, leading to the test. Our domain wheat didn’t do well enough to be counted among that amazing crop media outlets keep saying Western Canada had. It did okay. “We put too much nitrogen down in 2012,” was a unanimous observation. But there may have been more at play, a suspicion that ultimately resulted in the soil tests, but during harvest had us stumped. The stand was thick. Too thick. But we thought, from the road, and after a few walk-ins, that the crop would still fully develop.

We yielded in the 60s, which, for the area, seemed shy of average, at least this year. It’s unclear whether the slight phosphate deficit was a contributing factor, or if it all stemmed from early lodging. But we wanted to find out.

Maximizing yield potential guides most decisions we make on the farm, as I’m sure it does for you. And this is a crop variety consideration, as much as it is a multitude of other factors, like, soil health. We only grew two crops on our farm this year: Soybeans and wheat. This is new to our farm, putting all eggs in two baskets. I can name other farmers who did the same for the first time this year, as well.

And with all new things, there’s a learning curve.

What will growing only wheat and soybeans do to my land over time? The question should resonate with some relevance to more

than a couple farmers, especially after CWB weather and crop specialist Bruce Burnett’s prediction that in five years, Manitoba will plant more soybeans than canola.

This is a trend that is tracking west across Canada, largely due to the reduced fertilizer costs associated with growing soybeans contrasted to a crop that does not produce its own nitrogen, and is known to be more sensitive.

SOIL SURPRISES I’m green, and some of these agronomic pearls may seem obvious, but our soil surprised us this year. That is to say, our soil sur-

prised my father. We knew which areas would produce good soybeans on our fields, and we knew where we could expect less. The opposite happened on this field, and the others: The soys came up strong and healthy in incredibly heavy soil. And visibly less dense in the lighter areas. The spring was cool, very cool, and the theory around here is the seed didn’t nest as deep in the heavier areas as it did in the sandier soil. But that’s just a theory. Decades-old wisdom can’t catch everything, and I’ve only just learned to put on coveralls by myself.

The low-producing areas on a section may be fixable. We have

small saline areas that no longer stand out. They are part of the furniture. But there may be solutions.

There may be fields that routinely yield a few bushels less than others. Just because you’ve never had to do it, is no reason not to now.

I don’t have decades of experience to rely on. I feel relief knowing the farm has been put to bed healthy and ready for spring. We tested what we thought needed it, and we’re happy we did. There’s a good chance more acres will get the same treatment next year. Get tested. † Toban Dyck is a freelance writer and a new farmer on an old farm. Follow him on Twitter @tobandyck or email tobandyck@gmail.com.

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28

/ grainews.ca

DECEMBER 2, 2013

Machinery & Shop A EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE

U.K. farmer adopts no-till with Canadian technology Peter Alderslade of England thinks an air drill developed on the Canadian prairie is a good match for his farming needs

BY SCOTT GARVEY

“

T

here was one year it was really dry, and I went by this farmer’s place and wondered, why is this place so green?” said Peter Alderslade, who farmers in Northeastern England. “He was direct drilling.” After seeing those no-till fields, Alderslade decided there might be some value in converting his farm away from the intensive cultivation practices common in that country.

That was six years ago and he is now using a no-till drill developed by pairie seeding equipment manufacturer, Seed Hawk, on most of his farm fields. But Alderslade is still among the tiny minority of farmers in the U.K. who’ve adopted no-till practices.

Ironically, he is also a competitive ploughman, competing in ploughing matches all around the world; and he was in Canada this past summer to take part in

the international event held in Olds, Alberta.

IMPROVING SOIL STRUCTURE “What we’re trying to do is improve the soil structure (using no till), even though I’m a ploughman,” he says, acknowledging the apparent contradiction which didn’t go unnoticed by his neighbours. “When we first got it (a no-till drill), they thought we were crackers.”

But once some of them see exactly what benefits no till has to offer, they tend to take another view. “We had one guy who came out to the field last year,”Alderslade adds. “I said what do you think, John? He said, ‘I quite like it.’ It’s just the attitude of, ‘oh, that won’t work.’”

Alderslade acknowledges there is a steep learning curve when abandoning intensive cultivation for no till, something many prairie farmers can attest to as well. And he isn’t ready to give up tillage

PHOTO: SCOTT GARVEY

Peter Alderslade is one of the few producers in Northeastern England who’ve adopted no-till technology.

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grainews.ca /

29

Machinery & Shop

PHOTOS: PETER ALDERSLADE

Peter Alderslade uses this Väderstad-brand no-till drill that uses Seed Hawk technology and design in most of his fields. entirely. Some of his fields remain under cultivation due to problems with weed control. “This year it (the farm) will be three-quarters no till,” he says. “We have a big problem with grassy weeds.”

Alderslade realized intensive tillage was creating some problems in his fields. “We were doing precision application of fertilizer, and it really struck home when we saw the Google Earth maps. We could see all the compaction on the headlands,” he says.

Initially, he purchased a no-till drill from a small U.K. manufacturer. But he wasn’t happy with its design. “When I got that, the Seed Hawk wasn’t available, he says.

“The first drill was the biggest mistake. It used big sweep tines. In our soils that didn’t work. The soil is quite heavy.”

Eventually, he tried a Väderstadbrand drill, which incorporates Seed Hawk no-till technology and design. “It’s a six metre that was built in Sweden through Väderstad,” Alderslade explains. “It’s quite a big drill for the U.K. We felt the Seed Hawk (Väderstad) had better placement of the seed.” Väderstad distributes versions of Seed Hawk’s no-till drills globally under its brand name.

Alderslade says he has since seen a variety of improvements to his fields after adopting no till; one of them is improved water infiltration. “Our rape crop last year was absolutely tremendous,” he says. “We have a lot of problems with mine subsidence (creating low spots). When we were ploughing and cultivating, a pond would stay there for a month (after a rain).

Now it’s gone in three or four days.

We found we can travel better and quicker in the spring because the field is firmer. We’re getting into the field when we otherwise wouldn’t be able to get on.”

Making accurate yield comparisons since purchasing the Seed Hawk drill three years ago has been difficult due to severe weather. “It didn’t matter what drill we had this year. It (the weather) was just horrendous,” he says.

But Alderslade says after learning to work under no-till conditions, he has seen some yield benefits resulting from his trial and error. “We did see a yield improvement when we got it right,” he says. †

6230 Tandem Disc Harrow ®

Cut your heaviest residue down to size while eliminating ruts.

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Producers who are pushing the envelope on yields with Bt hybrids and other excessive residue producing crops, all have the same issue: “What to do with all of the heavy crop residue after harvest?” Research shows that sizing and incorporating residue into the top few inches of soil speeds up the breakdown. The Landoll 6230 Disc Harrow is the ideal tool to manage residue, clean up ruts from the previous season and economically control weeds.

The Tandem Disc Harrow is equipped with an aggressive 20° front gang angle and standard concavity blades with approximately 210 lbs. of weight per blade. This engineered advantage enables the unit to penetrate tough ground conditions, size and mix heavy residue while still doing an excellent job of finish discing. Each of the seven models features a full 3-year warranty and is available in working widths that range from 20’7” through 35’10”. And it’s only available from Landoll…

The Company Who Knows You Best.

Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at scott.garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

Land-131G.indd 1

7/10/13 3:36 PM

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Machinery & Shop COMBINE PRODUCTION

AGCO modernizes its combine plant All combines rolling out of the Hesston, Kansas, assembly plant will now get more powder coating and must pass a stricter testing regime THE NEW PROCESS

he main goal of AGCO is to be the industry leader in providing top quality hay and harvesting products to farmers,” said Bill Hurley, vicepresident of field sales at AGCO. He was addressing a crowd assembled for the ribbon cutting ceremony at the updated paint facility inside the company’s Hesston, Kansas, manufacturing plant, which builds all of AGCO’s North American combines and most of its haying equipment. “The Hesston facility plays a significant, significant role in that,” he added.

The plant’s painting area was just given a U.S.$45.6 million upgrade, which has turned it into one of the most sate-of-theart facilties in any ag equipment factory anywhere, according to AGCO management.

The now ultra-modern painting area in the Hesston plant is enormous, with over 200,000 square feet devoted to it. All combines (including Gleaner, Massey Ferguson and Challenger brands) and some of AGCO’s haying equipment will get their colour coats there, using what the company says is the most modern application technique in the industry.

The new process requires components to cycle through 17 dip tanks, each large enough to hold a standard-sized pickup truck. The first 16 contain chemicals that just clean the components preparing them for their top coat. The 17th is for an E-coating of primer, which uses an electro-static charge to ensure all the component surfaces are adquately covered.

“This paint centre is a major building block for AGCO,” said Hans-Bernd Veltmaat, senior vicepresident. “With this paint centre we are in the same league as Daimler, BMW, Lexus and so on.”

For the colour coat, AGCO will now apply powder coating to virtually all components rather than standard liquid paint, which significantly improves the durability of their finishes. Only sections that are too large to fit into the curing oven (which is required for the powder coating process) are given standard liquid paint coatings.

That’s now just a small percentage of the overall machine, a reversal of the traditional paint-to-powder coat ratio on new machines.

“For the first time in the combine industry we do not apply a liquid coat (of paint),” explained

T

PHOTOS: SCOTT GARVEY

The last of the S7 Series Gleaners make their way down the Hesston, Kansas, assembly line before the S8 Series begins production.

“ HARVEST IS JUST DOWN-RIGHT FUN WITH THE M SERIES WINDROWER.” WINDROWER. Jeff Armitage, Kinsella, AB

Another reason why more top producers and custom harvesters trust MacDon with their harvest. Learn more at MacDon.com MF22912-0913

“

BY SCOTT GARVEY

22912 MacDon Testimonials Fall 2013 CA GrNe Jeff Armitage.indd 1

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MacDon Jeff Armitage Testimonial CA

2013-09-19 2:48 PM

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

31

Machinery & Shop

Left: After a 100-point inspection, all combines rolling off the line must pass a simulated harvesting test in this special, remotely-controlled dyno room. Top right: A combine main frame is lowered into one of 17 large dip tanks to clean and prime it before it gets a final powder coat. Bottom right: A plant worker applies powder coat colour to a combine frame. Rather than a spray of atomized liquid, as is used when applying standard paint, the colour is in blown on in powder form and is electrically attracted to the component. After curing in an oven at temperatures around 400 F, the powder forms a very hard, smooth coating.

Veltmaat. “We apply to almost all parts, a powder coat. So we can say this paint shop is the most modern in all of the United States. And we’re proud of that.”

The combine assembly line has also implemented a new testing regimen, requiring all combines to pass a 100-point inspection and a simulated harvesting test in a dyno room before moving out the door. “There is no combine leaving this factory, which has not passed this test,” said Vetmaat.

“We do not apply a liquid coat.”

— Hans-Bernd Veltmaat The upgrades to the plant are part of AGCO’s long-term goal of making all its machines No. 1 in perceived quality. Martin Richenhagen, AGCO’s chairman and CEO, first revealed that strategy to the media at the grand reopening of the company’s Jackson, Minnesota, tractor assembly plant in 2012.

“We have to become (at AGCO) a culture of total quality,” said Robert Crain, senior vice president and general manager for North America at the paint shop grand opening ceremony. “That’s our next great stride as a company.

That’s the reason we made this investment. Our plan right now is to develop innovative, marketleading — not just competitive — market-leading products.” †

Track Star All-New John Deere Track Combines

Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

BY DAN PIRARO

Bizarro

Normally you wouldn’t harvest in these conditions. Normally.

Introducing the new track feature for John Deere S-Series Combines.

Ready to run on your time, not on nature’s.

The new 36-inch tracks provide reduced ground pressure, allowing you to manage Ơotation and compaction during less than ideal harvest conditions … while still offering the superior performance and uptime that only S-Series Combines can give you. And in perfect harvesting conditions? The S-Series delivers the Ơexibility to work with tires or tracks.

Don’t put off ‘til tomorrow what you can harvest today. Visit your John Deere dealer to learn more on how the new tracks option lets you hit wet, muddy ground running. Nothing Runs Like a Deere.

JohnDeere.ca/Combines

57425-2_8.125X10.indd 1

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Machinery & Shop 2014 NEW MODEL INTRODUCTIONS

AGCO unveils MT400D Series Challenger and 6600 Series MF tractors New Challenger and MF utility tractors debut at U.S. farm show

BY SCOTT GARVEY

A

PHOTOS: AGCO

Left: The five Challenger models range from 90 to 135 PTO horsepower, while three Masseys go from 100 to 125. Right: This Premium cab interior is one of three option packages available in both tractor lines. Each package includes a variety of specification upgrades, including front axle and cab suspensions and hydraulic capacities.

The Leader in Overlap Control SeedMaster now offers Auto Zone Command™ & FLIP™ (Full Last Implement Pass) as standard features on its on-board and tow-behind tanks.

Auto Zone Command prevents costly input overlap by instantly stopping product flow in up to 10 metering zones.

The more zones you control, the more money you will save.

FLIP received the coveted 2013 Gold Innovation Award at Canada’s Farm Progress Show

FLIP is SeedMaster’s patented mapping software that activates Auto Zone Command and halts product flow the first time openers pass through an overlap area. Product is then applied on the last pass, preventing double seed and fertilizer from being applied, and avoiding any seedbed disturbance.

The Big Payback – Savings using a 10 zone, 80 ft. drill Year

Acres

Overlap%No Zone Command

Overlap%Auto Zone Command

Savings per Acre

Cost Savings/ Total Acres

1

5,000

7.30%

1.20%

$6.38

$31,903

FIRST SEEDED PASS FLIP VIRTUAL PASS - LAST SEEDED PASS NO OVERLAP CONTROL

10 ZONES OF OVERLAP CONTROL

3200 sq. ft.

320 sq. ft.

GCO rolled out two new tractor lines at the U.S. Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Illinois, in late August. The 90 to 125 PTO horsepower MT400D Challengers and their close cousins the 100 to 125 PTO horsepower Massey Ferguson 6600s are available with a wide range of features.

All tractors get an AGCO Power 4.9 litre, four-cylinder diesel under the hood, but there are three available transmission options to deliver that power.

The 6600 Series Masseys offer the 16 X 16 Dyna-4, which has four gears and four ranges.

Operators can shift through all gears and ranges while rolling, electronically with the push or pull of a hand lever. The lefthand, three-function power control lever allows the operator to change direction, upshift and downshift, and clutch with just fingertip movement.

Option No. 2, the Dyna-6 transmission, has more working speeds, with 24 forward and 24 reverse, each is available without using the clutch pedal. Third, there is the Dyna-VT, CVT. The Challengers get three identical transmission options: the 16 X 16 AutoPower IV, the AutoPower VI which jumps the number of gears to 24 X 24. And finally, the TechStarTM CVT. The Challenger line however, offers five tractor models, compared to just three in the Massey Ferguson Series.

There are also three basic option packages. The base-level Classic offers front-wheel assist with a standard hydraulic package. The Deluxe package includes a suspended cab and front axle along with electronic hydraulic controls and adjustable-rate steering that is auto guidance compatible. Finally, the Premium Edition offers active cab suspension and built-in auto guidance.

Hydraulic capacity increases with each of those option packages. The base specification includes two separate pumps providing a total of 26 g.p.m. The Twin Flow system can combine flow from both pumps to push out 26 g.p.m. at the rear remotes. And at the top end, a flow rate of 29 g.p.m. is available. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

$6.38 Cost Savings/Acre/Year x 5000 Acres Based on $104.60 /Acre Average Input Cost = $31,903 Input Savings/Year 4

5,000

7.30%

1.20%

$6.38

$31,903

5

5,000

7.30%

1.20%

$6.38

$31,903

TOTAL 5 YEAR SAVINGS = $159,515

For more information on SeedMaster’s Auto Zone Command or FLIP contact your local SeedMaster dealer or call 1.888.721.3001.

The diagram illustrates how SeedMaster’s Auto Zone Command turns off seed and fertilizer to each zone during headland passes. Without Auto Zone Command, the large area in red would receive double inputs, wasting considerable dollars.

The Leader. By Design.

™

1.888.721.3001

™



www.seedmaster.ca

New utility tractors from AGCO debut in both Challenger and MF colours.

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

33

Machinery & Shop 2014 MODEL INTRODUCTIONS

AGCO celebrates 90 years of Gleaner The combine brand marks a milestone in production with a community celebration

PHOTO: SCOTT GARVEY

A classic model C Gleaner rides on a trailer in the 90-year-celebration parade from Nickerson through the Kansas countryside to the current Hesston manufacturing plant.

BY SCOTT GARVEY

A

t the official unveiling in August of S8 Series combines, the newest to wear the Gleaner name, Kevin Bien, brand marketing manager, stood in front of a crowd in a Wichita, Kansas, arena and read a letter from a satisfied Gleaner owner. But that letter arrived at the corporate offices of the Baldwin Brothers, inventors of the Gleaner combine, in 1925.

“The machine is simple, reliable and a joy to operate,” Bien read aloud as he stood on stage.

“What’s remarkable to me is the role we played to farmers then, and the role we play now,” he commented.

www.farm-king.com

Crucial details connecting your combine to the market

90 YEARS 2013 marks the 90th year of uninterrupted Gleaner combine production, which the Baldwins began in 1923. AGCO, the company behind the Gleaner brand now, celebrated that milestone in conjunction with the Kansas launch.

Drawing a connection between those early Baldwin machines and the qualities they embodied, Bien says those values of simplicity, reliability and ease of operation are still the mantra of AGCO’s combine engineers today.

In the past 90 years, Gleaners have, of course, undergone a lot of changes and are unique in the industry today, with their transverse rotor design.

The group of dealers and customers attending the launch of the S8 Series machines, had an opportunity to attend simultaneous anniversary celebration events, which, among other things, included a Gleaner combine parade stretching from Nickerson, Kansas, original home of Gleaner production, to nearby Hesston, its current manufacturing site.

Famers with older Gleaners from all across North America were invited to attend and put their machine into the parade. Some machines were towed on trailers while others marched under their own power along the extended parade route.

“In the 90 years since Gleaner began, so much remains and so much has changed,” said Bien philosophically. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at scott.garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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Higher input costs and tighter margins require a complete grain management system to make your operation as profitable as possible. The complete line of Farm King grain handling equipment ensures you get top dollar for your crop.

With decades of grain handling experience, Farm King offers everything you need to get your grain to market after it leaves the combine.

Visit www.farm-king.com to find a dealer near you.

©2013 Buhler Trading Inc. | info@buhler.com | www.farm-king.com

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Machinery & Shop 2014 NEW MODEL INTRODUCTIONS

AGCO introduces a Class 8 Gleaner combine The transverse rotary Gleaner grows to its largest size ever

BY SCOTT GARVEY

I

n my more than 35 years in this business, I’ve seen more than my share of product introductions,” said Bob Crain, AGCO’s vice president and general manager for North America, as he spoke to the crowd at a Gleaner combine introduction in Wichita, Kansas, in August. “But this one is different. We’re going to show you a product like no other out there.”

“

ROTARY GLEANER COMBINE That “product” was the new, largest-ever, transverse rotary Gleaner combine. It’s the first time, AGCO has offered a Gleaner with Class 8 capacity. And because of the unique design of Gleaner’s transverse threshing system, there is some truth in Crain’s assertion that it’s a product like no other.

Dealers and customers alike, along with members of the farm media, were invited to the Hesston manufacturing plant that builds them for a detailed demonstration of what the selfdescribed “Great Silver Fleet” now has to offer.

“The dynamics of harvesting are always changing,” said Kevin Bien, brand marketing manager for Gleaner, when addressing a group of farm writers at the Hesston assembly plant. “What you saw with the (previous) S7 Series, we made some pretty radical changes to the machine. When we talk

about all the major functional areas of the combine we reacted to (on the S7 Series), now the S8 takes that to a new level.”

The S8 Series machines are, by and large, the product of customer feedback, according to the company. “We’ve gone to our customer group and asked them, ‘what do you want in these combines,’” explained Mike Nelms, product specialist. And by far the answer they heard most was farmers simply wanted a combine that consistently puts a good, clean grain sample in the tank. “The number one response was grain quality,” added David Hennessey, another product specialist.

Offering a very large cleaning area and the unique transverse rotor design, product reps say they delivered on that demand with the S8 Series, which uses what they call the Optimum Harvesting Performance platform. “We have the largest separating area for this class,” said Bein. “We couldn’t attain what we’ve achieved here with this combine without this design.”

Because the threshing rotor is mounted transversely (sideways), no beater is required to accelerate the crop mat into it. The rotor threshes through a full 360 degrees of rotation, which shortens the time grain is in the rotor and minimizes the risk of kernel damage. That also allows for the combine’s compact design.

“When we went to this new rotor and new processor on the S7 Series, we increased throughput capacity by 48 per cent,”

PHOTOS: SCOTT GARVEY

A new S88 Gleaner on display at the Hesston, Kansas, manufacturing plant wears a special “stealth” grey paint job. says Bien. “We’re just now learning how to get even more capacity out of it.”

LIGHT WEIGHT The Gleaner puts that enhanced capability into what product reps proudly pointed out is the lightest machine on the market by as much as six tons compared to other brands, reaping all the other performance benefits that go along with

that. Moving that much less bulk through the field drops horsepower requirements by 24 to 30 notches, depending on field conditions.

“If it’s real wet and your combine is real heavy, what is that going to do to your horsepower requirements (just to move it through the field)?” Bien asked.

“It’s going to go up. And you’re going to leave ruts.”

That affect is minimized with a Gleaner because of its lighter weight. And because the Gleaners are smaller compared to comparable axial rotary models, they’re able to squeeze into smaller farm shops.

“The Natural Flow design gives us the ability, right now, to have the largest threshing and separating area of anybody, and yet take a look at the compact package,” says Bien. “Everybody else’s solution is making the combine’s physical size bigger, increasing the weight and complexity. And there’s this thing out there called (soil) compaction.”

To prove the Gleaner’s light footprint, AGCO put one on scales in factory parking lot to show it weighed less when matched with comparable fuel loads to manufacturers’ specifications from other brands.

To deliver power from the engine, nearly all drive systems

BY DAN PIRARO

Bizarro

on the S8 Series were improved or strengthened compared to the S7’s design. The rotor driveline gets a significant boost in strength, engineers upped its rating by 119 horsepower for the S88. And there are no 90-degree gearboxes to eat power, because the engine is aligned with the thresher drive mechanism for a straight shot of power transfer.

The Smart Cooling variable pitch cooling fan minimizes parasitic power less there as well. That means the 8.4 or 9.8 litre AGCO Power diesels (depending which Gleaner you buy) don’t need to drink as much fuel.

“We’re now looking at a very different combine here, in lot of respects (compared to the S7 Series),” says Bien.

The S8 models use an XR (extended range) transmission that offers four gears in each of two ranges. The AGCO Power engines have improved torque curves, which product reps demonstrated at the factory by hooking an S88 to a dyno and turning up the load. At an output grossly beyond the rated power of the 9.8 litre diesel, the engine kept its r.p.m. and torque numbers up. The dyno demonstration was very impressive, to say the least.

That ability to maintain high torque output is important for a combine engine, because it keeps the thresher speed up when the amount of material feeding through it increases, ensuring peak harvesting performance even in heavy going.

“People out there says it’s all about horsepower,” explains Bien. “It’s not. It’s all about being able to sustain torque to be able to get through those tough conditions.”

The S8 models won’t boost your fuel bill to deliver those performance data, claims Bien.

“In some cases we end up with even better fuel consumption numbers than we had on the S7,” he says. “We’re giving the customer what he wants.” † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

35

Machinery & Shop

Top left: Operators get a choice of four gear options in two ranges to help the S8 Series machines power through difficult field conditions. Bottom right: Known to members of the farm media as “Mr. Gleaner”, Kevin Bien, brand marketing manager for Gleaner, explains the features of the new combines at the Kansas factory. Top left: The Natural Flow design used on all Gleaner combines includes one of the largest separating areas in the industry when compared to similar-capacity models, according to the company. AGCO image. Bottom right: The transverse (sideways) mounted rotor threshes through 360 degrees of rotation.

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36

/ grainews.ca

DECEMBER 2, 2013

Machinery & Shop Canada’s Farm Progress Show

Stop Sensor Tripod-mounted device simplifies loading and unloading

By Lee Hart

I

f you’re tired of getting in and out of a truck or tractor cab half a dozen times trying to get equipment lined up for loading or unloading grain, fertilizer or seed, a former North Dakota farmer has come up with a durable, reliable signaling device that can save time, money and a lot of effort.

The Stop Sensor Stop Sensor is a tripodmounted device developed

by Larry Mosbrucker of New Salem, North Dakota, which

eliminates the need for having a spotter on the ground, if, for example you are trying to line up a B-train with a loading auger.

“It took a lot of design and development, but it is a relatively simple concept,” says Mosbrucker who designed Stop Sensor after he was seriously injured in a farm accident. “You position the sensor on its tripod under the auger if you’re a loading a tractor-trailer unit, for example. A small reflector is mounted on the side of the box of the grain trailer. When that reflector comes into line with the sensor that is mounted on the tripod standing next to the

photo: larry mosbrucker

The Stop Sensor tripod is positioned beside the auger and will read the red reflector strip mounted on the side of the grain truck box, signaling the driver when to stop. auger, a red light flashes which you can see in your side mirrors, and you stop.”

It is a fully portable system that operates on 12 volt and/ or 110 household power sources, and is accurate to within one

half inch. “It has so many applications around the farm,” says Mosbrucker. “It works for any application where you have to drive in next to something with a truck or combine or grain cart for loading or unloading and you

need to know where to stop for proper positioning for the loading and unloading.”

When the equipment is first used, the farmer has to get the truck or grain cart or whatever in the proper position and then apply the reflector strip so it lines up with the tripod-mounted sensor. Then every trip after that the sensor will flash when it reads the reflector. The inexpensive reflector strips are supplied either with a magnetic backing to attach to steel surfaces or adhesive tape to attach to aluminum or non-metal surfaces.

Learning from experience Mosbrucker, who has worked in a number of industries, was seriously injured a few years ago when he fell off a haystack and shattered both heels. “I developed this out of necessity because after the accident it became difficult and painful to be getting into and out of a truck or tractor,” he says. “I used to farm myself so when I was developing this I looked to make it as practical and durable as possible with a wide range of applications.”

If it is being used to load trucks in a bin-row, for example, the sensor comes with a bracket so it can be mounted directly on the auger. Once the truck or grain trailer has reflectors where they are wanted, you can keep moving the auger and the sensor will flash each time the truck is in line for the correct position.

Along with the tripod and mounting bracket the Stop Sensor also comes with extension lights.

“If for some reason the sensor is mounted where you can’t see it through the side mirrors, hook up the extension lights so they can be extended further out for easy viewing. The sensor also comes with its own spot light for easier viewing of the work area during nighttime operation.

“Farmers have told me that they see 101 uses for Stop Sensor,” says Mosbrucker, who named one of the Innovations of the Year at Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina in 2013. “They plan to use it for loading and unloading grain trucks, for lining up a truck for the air seeding system, for lining up grain carts for loading or unloading. It just makes the job easier, faster and much safer especially when you are tired, or sore, or in a hurry and sometimes all three.”

A complete unit, including tripod, retails for $1,195. For more information visit the Stop Sensor webside at www.stopsenor.com or phone 701-425-2774. †

INSPIRED BY FARMERS, ENGINEERED BY MORRIS Achieving the perfect balance of reliability and precision, the Morris 9 Series Air Cart comes with a bushel of next generation innovations. Improvements that include Input Control Technology, dynamic tank design, a left-side auger for easier access and a redesigned tank stairway. Plus, the leading edge Topcon X30 Controller system.

To learn more about the farmer-inspired 9 Series, talk to your Morris dealer.

morris-industries.com

morristechtalk.ca

MOR-153_9 Series Ad_2014_Grainews.indd 1

Lee Hart is a field editor for Grainews in Calgary. Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com.

13-11-13 2:33 PM

DECEMBER 2, 2013

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37

Cattleman’s Corner BEEF MARKETS

B.C. producers looking at “natural beef” market

BY LEE HART

T

he B.C Cattlemen’s Association (BCCA), working with a major B.C. food retailer, is embracing the concept of producing natural, hormone-free beef.

It isn’t a statement that natural is any better than commodity or conventional beef, says Kevin Boon, BCCA general manager, it is simply recognizing if the market is there, B.C. ranchers can produce it.

The BCCA has just announced its Beef Industry Alliance Program and it is creating a lot of buzz among B.C. cowcalf producers. It is a program that will encourage a percentage of B.C. ranchers to produce a “natural” beef product, which may mean no-added hormone and antibiotic-free beef, for a specific branded retail market.

The details of the protocol have not been confirmed.

The proposed protocol at this point is looking for cattle that are B.C.-born and raised and grain-finished (they might be finished somewhere else, but they got their start in B.C.), were produced without antibiotics, received no added hormones, were not supplied beta-agonist feed additives, were produced on farms and ranches certified under the national Verified Beef Program (VBP) and are cattle registered with the Beef Information XChange System (BIXS). (BIXS is a voluntary national program where individual producers register their farms and enroll their beef herd in a system that allows them to track individual animals through the production system.

Basic production information for

PHOTO: FILE

B..C. born and raised beef calves such as these may next year find their way into a new natural beef program with a provincial food retailer. each animal is included in the record keeping system as animals go through the production chain. Some of the basic values of BIXS is to allow beef producers to receive information on how cattle performed and graded, and it also allows others in the chain to help source cattle that meet specific feeding or marketing requirements.)

STILL DEMAND FOR COMMODITY The alliance program is not going to change the face of beef production in B.C., says Boon, noting the majority of cattle will still be commodity or conventional beef. But

there will be opportunity for any and all producers to participate in the program if they meet the proposed criteria.

BCCA, like many other provincial associations, winced a bit when a national fast-food restaurant chain recently announced it was switching to all-natural beef products. The idea wasn’t bad, but the insinuation, which raised some hackles, was that natural beef was somehow better or safer than commodity beef.

“I have been eating commodity beef all my life without any ill affects,” says Boon. “And there is no scientific evidence that suggests there is anything in our conventionally produced beef that is harmful… it is some of the finest and

safest meat products in the world.”

So Boon is clear on the point, the alliance program itself and any advertising that goes with it isn’t suggesting there is anything wrong with or bad about commodity beef — natural beef is just produced… well, naturally.

“Consumers are becoming more demanding and more are asking for certain types of products,” he says.

“Retailers are sensing that demand and simply going back to the producers to see if it can be supplied.”

VALUE OF BIXS When the BIXS program was launched a couple years ago, BCCA asked retailers then if they

wanted to use BIXS simply to identify B.C.-raised beef sort of in a buy-local program. That didn’t attract much interest, but now a major retailer has come back to BCCA to see if a branded natural beef program can be established.

“And that was one of the objectives of BIXS — to help establish a record-keeping and tracking system, so animals produced with certain genetics and certain production practices can be identified in the system,” says Boon.

While BCCA is making producers aware of plans for the alliance and the natural beef program, the actual details of sourcing and supplying natural beef to the retailer will be handled by a third party.

“We see it is an opportunity where the system and programs we have in place will add value for those producers wishing to participate,” says Boon.

“Consumer trends are changing, we have a retailer who has identified a market, and we have a system which allows us to produce and source the animals to meet that market need.”

While details of the alliance are still being worked out, Boon says the target is to have branded natural B.C. beef in the retailer meat counter by early next summer of early fall 2014 at the latest. Boon notes too, as this natural beef program gets rolling it may tie in very nicely with whatever future opportunities might come along in supplying more beef to the European Union. † Lee Hart is editor of Cattleman’s Corner based in Calgary. Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com

ANIMAL HEALTH

Strawberry footrot is on the increase in feedlots An infection previously mostly found in dairy cattle is showing up in some Western feedlots ROY LEWIS ANIMAL HEALTH

I

t has come to my attention that “strawberry footrot” or “hairy heel wart” or “Montellaros disease,” which was once considered a dairy disease is now making its way into feedlots in Eastern Canada. The disease is potentially caused by a treponema bacteria. The infection starts at the back of the hoof on or near the bulbs of the foot and works its way down. It causes a reddened, raised war-like lesion surrounded by long hair, hence the descriptive names.

It can be confused by the true footrot, which starts between the toes at the front of the hoof. Both conditions make cattle very sore but with strawberry footrot the first cases go unnoticed because there is not much swelling evident at first.

Cattle generally contract this disease from constant exposure to moisture which is why some dairies have a high incidence of it. Feedlots can have outbreaks, especially when moist and cattle need to move through sloppy manure to get to feed bunks. The excessive moisture combined with those cattle immunosuppressed and abrasions to the feet will result in strawberry footrot.

It is important to be recognized early, as the organism is sensitive to a fairly broad range of antibiotics. Tetracyclines are one of the families of antibiotics that are effective. They are injectable early, or wrapping the area in gauze soaked with tetracycline has also proven beneficial. Some dairy practitioners have even gone to spraying especially the backs of the feet with a tetracycline liquid.

Treatments of topical low-strength iodine, chlorhexidine or peroxide have also at times been effective.

The cattle are extremely sore with this condition and often it

affects both hind feet. Affected calves just want to lay around so subsequent weight gain is severely affected. In some feedlot calves the condition becomes so severe that shipping (once antibiotics are withdrawn) or humane euthanasia are the only solutions, so it is important to recognize it early.

If any foot trimming or hoof care is attempted on these cases, thoroughly disinfect and clean the instruments, Also clean yourself, as it may be zoonotic (transferrable to humans) and lead to infections of the hands and arms.

PREVENTION The most effective preventative in the dairies has been first to maintain good hoof care and keeping the nutrition sound. Trace minerals such as zinc, calcium, phosphorus as well as vitamins A, D and E have been associated with good feet integrity. There is a vaccine in the U.S. against it which is

somewhat effective apparently but it is not available in Canada yet.

The other preventatives in dairies and that may need to be adapted for feedlots are footbaths with various products in them to routinely keep the treponema and other organisms at bay. Products such as formaldehyde (one gallon 37 per cent in 19 gallons of water), copper sulphate (five lbs. in nine gallons of water) or even dry footbaths of lime with tetracycline powder have been tried.

With footbaths it is critical that two long footbaths be strung together so the first one simply washes off organic material and the second is the treatment footbath. Footbaths must be long enough and wide and deep enough so the affected area is treated. Copper sulphate does not do well in organic material that is why the pre-wash is critical.

Ideally it is best to have a space between water baths to allow the organic material to run off and upon exiting the waterbath best to have the cattle in a dry pen for 15-30 minutes but I know that might be hard to implement. It’s best if the footbaths are in the nine- to 15-feet long range, three feet wide and six inches (13 cm) deep. This way the entire foot is exposed and this may be repeated daily or some do it twice weekly.

I have personally seen a few Ontario feedlots where the footbaths were easily rigged up in

the processing alley and the cattle could almost be trained to run through it after a couple of times. This seems to be keeping the organism at bay. Treatment rates vary from daily to a couple times a week until clinical signs subside. Going aggressively after the bad ones early with the tetracycline wraps is also worth the effort and the individual care will pull these through.

Dairy producers under the advice of their veterinarians are also spraying the bulbs of the feet with Lincospectin and avoiding the water baths but this may not be practical in a feedlot, though could be done to the clinical cases. Strawberry footrot is also emerging as a significant disease in some feedlots out West, similar to the emerging sporadic condition necrosis of P3 documented recently.

We need to work on prevention by controlling wet conditions and communicate with each other advancements in either prevention or treatment of this very painful contagious and production limiting disease. Talk to your veterinarian and be ready to implement their best management practices to minimize the incidence of hairy heel wart in your feedlot or dairy. † Roy Lewis is a Westock, Alberta-based veterinarian specializing in large-animal practice. He is also a part-time technical services vet for Merck Animal Health.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Keepers & Culls Good things come in speckled packages LEE HART

S

cott and Darla Sauter may not be the biggest purebred operation in Canada, but they are committed to a breed they believe delivers one of the best performance packages for the commercial cattle producer.

The Sauters, who operate Second Chance Speckle Park at Fairlight, Sask. went down the purebred road with Simmental cattle many years ago, but after returning to the southeast Saskatchewan farm in 2006, opted for the more moderatesized, Saskatchewan-developed Speckle Park cattle.

“We first liked the fact that it was a breed developed right here in Saskatchewan,” says Darla, pointing out the three-way cross of White Devon, Black Angus and Shorthorn was pioneered by Mary Lindsay at Lloydminster in 1953. Breed development was furthered by Bill and Eileen Lamont of Maidstone, Sask. In 1993 the Canadian Speckle Park Association was incorporated and in 2006 Speckle Park was granted distinct breed status.

And on the production and quality side Scott says the midsize 1,400-pound cows do an excellent job of producing calves with excellent carcass

traits. “They are docile cattle, with moderate frame, excellent feed efficiency, and easy calvers,” says Scott. Since both he and Darla also work off farm, they wanted a breed that performed well, but didn’t needed to be babysat.

Scott says 65- to 70-pound calves born in March consistently wean in the 550- to 600pound range off their pastures at Fairlight in late September.

Scott says Speckle Park works well in any crossbreeding program, especially where the goal is a combination of performance and calving ease.

On the finishing side the quality is there. For the third time in the last four years, the Quality Beef Competition winner at the Calgary Stampede was from the Speckle Park breed in a competition held at Cargill Foods in High River. The winning steer, owned by Chase High of Airdrie, Alta., had AAA20 marbling, a rib eye of 89 square centimetres, a Sterling Silver score of 77 and a carcass weight of 720 pounds. The Reserve Champion animal was also a Speckle Park.

Owned by Ashley Shewchuk of High River, it had AAA20 marbling, a rib eye of 82 square centimetres, a Sterling Silver score of 74 and a carcass weight of 737 pounds.

The Sauters started with one Speckle Park heifer they bought at Western Canadian Agribition in 2007 and now they have a small breeding herd of 16 females. They market a few bulls each year, but their focus is to

keep building their own herd.

Scott hopes to see numbers double over the next few years.

While Speckle Park is gaining ground in Canada, it has also caught the attention of beef producers in other parts of the world and is a very popular breed among Australian ranchers producing grass-finished cattle.

For more on the breed talk to the Sauters at (306) 646-2090 or contact the association office in Crossfield, Alberta at (403) 9464635 or visit the breed website at: www.canadianspecklepark.ca.

OH, YUMMY!!!

A tour bus driver out of Morris, Manitoba is driving with a busload of seniors down Highway 75 for a shopping day in Grand Forks, North Dakota, when he is tapped on the shoulder by a little old lady.

She offers him a handful of peanuts, which he gratefully munches up. After about 15 minutes, she taps him on his shoulder again and she hands him another handful of peanuts.

She repeats this gesture about five more times. When she is about to hand him another batch, he asks the little old lady, “Why don’t you eat the peanuts yourself?”

“I can’t chew them because I’ve got no teeth,” she replies.

The puzzled driver asks, “Why do you buy them then?”

“I just love the chocolate around them.”

» CONTINUED ON PAGE 42

Scott and Darla Sauter with some of their bred Speckled Park heifers at the Western Canadian Agribition in Regina in November.

CONTACT US

Write, E-mail or Fax Contact Cattleman’s Corner with comments, ideas or suggestions for and on stories by mail, e-mail, phone or fax.

Phone Lee Hart at 403-592-1964 Fax to 403-288-3162 Email lee@fbcpublishing.com Write to CATTLEMAN’S CORNER, PO Box 71141 Silver Springs RPO, Calgary, Alta. T3B 5K2

THE MARKETS

Cattle complex percolates higher JERRY KLASSEN MARKET UPDATE

T

he fed cattle market has been percolating higher over the past month for three main reasons. Lower cattle-on-feed inventories and a year-over-year decline in beef production from October through December has enhanced packing margins and fed cattle values.

Secondly, U.S. wholesale choice beef prices have traded near 52-week highs as retailers gear up for the holiday season. Finally, consumer spending appears to be increasing after a lacklustre third quarter.

Stronger fed cattle values have spilled over into the feeder market as feeding margins improve in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Burdensome feed grain supplies have lowered the risk on feeding cattle and enhanced overall demand for replacements.

April live cattle futures have been trending higher are factoring favourable margins for the spring. Feeder cattle supplies are coming on the market in full steam limiting the upside but the market appears to be well supported. Feeder cattle exports to the U.S. are running sharply

higher than last year, which will continue to support domestic values. The U.S. feeder complex continues to trade at al-time record highs so there appears to be a natural flow of calves south of the border. The U.S. policy of COOL is also favouring feeder cattle exports over fed cattle resulting in the price discrepancy between Canada and the U.S. Looking forward, there are number of factors to consider which will influence cattle prices.

A LOOK AT THE NUMBERS U.S. cattle on feed as of Oct. 1 were estimated at 10.1 million head, down about eight per cent from Oct. 1 of 2012. Fed cattle marketings in September were up six per cent while cattle placements also showed a year-overyear increase of one per cent.

The accompanying table shows the estimates of U.S. quarterly beef production. Notice that 2013 third-quarter beef production was actually above the same period of 2012. However, the USDA is anticipating a sharp drop in the third quarter and this trend is expected to continue throughout 2014. For 2014, overall beef production is projected to be down nearly 1.5 billion pounds in comparison to 2013. One caveat to the projection estimates is carcass

weights. Lower corn values could cause carcass weights to increase as the industry has experienced this past year.

Feedlot inventories in Alberta and Saskatchewan as of Oct. 1 were 723,000 head, up eight per cent from last year. For the first nine months of the year, feedlot inventories were down from 2012 so this is a reversal in a trend. Canadian beef production and slaughter levels for 2013 are very similar to 2012 and a minor increase is projected for 2014.

THE COMPETITION The demand equation is quite uncertain for 2014. Unlike past years, the price of substitute meats will have a larger influence on beef consumption. U.S. poultry production will reach record levels in 2013 and again in 2014. While beef supplies are decreasing, poultry production is increasing which will influence from fast food, higher-end restaurants and of course retail movement. Consumers are constrained by limited disposable income and while other inflationary factors have increased, the poultry market in the U.S will function to encourage demand.

On the contrary, beef is functioning to ration or curb demand through higher prices. First- and second-quarter U.S. pork produc-

U.S. Quarterly Beef Production (million pounds) Quarter

2010

2011

2012

Est 2013

Est 2014

1

6251

6411

6283

6172

5870

2

6547

6559

6475

6517

6135

3

6768

6737

6584

6608

6175

4

6741

6492

6571

6295

5910

Total

26307

26199

25913

25592

24090

Source: USDA

tion for 2014 will be marginally higher in comparison to 2013.

Consumer spending generally slows in January and February and then surges in March.

To provide an idea of the trend, 2013 third-quarter consumer spending slowed to 1.5 per cent on an annual rate, down from 1.8 per cent in the second quarter. Analysts are projecting a modest increase in the fourth quarter but there is a major concern for the first quarter of 2014.

Consumer behaviour can be unpredictable and with retail beef prices at record high levels, it is difficult to justify a sustained year-over-year increase on beef spending.

VOLATILE FED MARKET I think feedlot operators have to be cautious moving forward with Alberta fed cattle trading at $124/cwt. The fed market can be extremely volatile at the higher levels while we could see higher prices due to lower U.S. beef production, the upside is likely limited.

The feeder market remains

firm in the short term due to abundant feed grains and anticipation of stronger fed prices for March April period. However, fed cattle will likely trend lower from May through July and this will temper the upside for feeder cattle in late winter and early spring. Year-to-date Canadian feeder cattle exports to the U.S. for the week ending Oct. 26 were 235,000 head, up a whopping 92 per cent over last year. Larger volume of exports has contributed to lower feedlot inventories earlier in 2013. I feel this trend in exports will remain strong through 2014. Cow-calf operators are encouraged to sharpen their pencil this year due to lower feed grain costs. The current feeder market appears to favour backgrounding and preconditioning calves to 750 through 800 pounds. † Gerald Klassen analyzes cattle and hog markets in Winnipeg and also maintains an interest in the family feedlot in Southern Alberta. For comments or speaking engagements, he can be reached at gklassen7@hotmail.com or call 204 899 8268.

BUILDING TRUST IN CANADIAN BEEF

The inside producer view on a VBP audit Manitoba’s Van Damme family is now an audit ambassador

Near Baldur, Man. Hilary and Blaine Van Damme run a 300 cow mixed farm.

They grow their own feed, background 250 head, finish 50 to 75 head a year and raise their own replacement heifers.

All that adds up to exactly the kind of operation Canada’s Verified Beef Production (VBP) program was set up to support.

But the path to VBP participation was not direct for the Van Dammes. The first time they looked into the program it seemed like a lot of recordkeeping, a lot of rules, all a little daunting in fact.

Then in 2012 they took another look. Their province had an incentive program for some handling equipment and it all seemed like a fit.

“The second time it was just so simple, it was common sense,” she says.

They completed the workshop, then took up the option of a VBP audit.

The audit experience

Not many people look forward to an audit. That was certainly true for Hilary and Blaine.

“None of us liked the thought of an audit. It’s a scary word and I definitely had some reservations. But our VBP provincial staff was able to field my questions on what would happen, and learning about the process through them made it a whole lot easier.

“I was surprised at how easy the farm audit went, how knowledgeable and practical our auditor was about farm

operations,” says Hilary. “I liked the audit process. It was quick, it was painless and it was relevant.

“It was all common sense details, and there was no hard core regulatory safety issues that you might expect when it comes to being audited under a food safety program.”

Lessons learned

One of the biggest things the audit did was draw attention to drug withdrawal times. “Now nothing ever gets done on our farm or that our vet does without us asking what is the withdrawal time, and when can this animal be sold?

“We also learned about the compendium of veterinary products available on the Internet. That’s a very

powerful resource, very easy to use.

We can look up all of the products we ever use on our farm, and have all the information on usage of medications and withdrawals.”

Food safety champions

Today Hilary is a strong ambassador for the Verified Beef program, even organizing a course for her local holistic resource management group.

“I’d tell any producer just go and do VBP. We care about these animals, we take care of them and we do our best.

Verified Beef does nothing more than to give you the paperwork that I am doing this and I am doing it right.”

“In my opinion that’s where the consumer end of things is going.”

Beef production is a family effort for the Van Dammes of Baldur, Man. who say VBP can address consumer expectations.

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Merck Animal Health, operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK is a trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright © 2011 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

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13-06-13 16:26

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Cattleman’s Corner BETTER BUNKS AND PASTURES

Beef cows don’t take winter vacations PETER VITTI

M

ost geese fly south to avoid a good oldfashioned Canadian winter. Prairie beef cows are not so lucky. They spend most winters outside and at times under frigid conditions.

Such exposure to cold weather triggers a need for higher levels of energy in the diet, so good health, growth and optimum body condition in the cow herd is maintained for the upcoming calving season.

The need for more dietary energy for overwintering beef cows starts in a subtle way. When temperatures hover around 0 C, it marks the lower comfort zone temperature for beef cattle. Up to this point, they don’t spend much physical or metabolic energy to remain warm, yet are able to maintain their current body condition, vital functions and keep a constant body core temperature of 38 C. Even when temperatures drop a few degrees below freezing, beef cows can survive with a good layer of insulating body fat and a thick hair coat.

These mild weather activities disappear rather quickly, when

outside temperatures go into an arctic free-fall and along the way; almost immediately elevate the beef cows’ total energy requirements. University and extension environmental studies on beef cattle has come up with a linear cold weather rule of thumb: for every 1 C drop in temperature below 0 C, the beef cows’ TDN energy maintenance requirements are increased by about two per cent. This means that if an early morning temperature is -25 C, there is an increase of about 50 per cent in the cows’ basic dietary energy needs.

This is only an estimate of cold weather energy needs for beef cows and is based upon effective air temperatures. Producers can also utilize windchill temperatures without adjustment when setting up their winter cow feeding program. That’s because beef cows like humans, suffer the same heat loss effects of winter stress as measured by windchill (a combination of temperature and direct wind speed). It’s roughly a measure on how quickly heat energy is drawn away from a cow’s body and the amount of energy that needs to be replaced in order to help them stay warm.

Relative humidity also plays a key role in windchill, because water conducts heat away from the human or cow’s body 25 times faster than dry air.

By using the windchill information, simply feeding beef cows more of what they are already consuming during the coldest weather often does not achieve their respective winter energy requirements. When the thermometer drops, metabolic triggers in the cow stimulates her feed intake, but they will only increase dry matter consumption at the very most by 30 per cent, often limited by physical constraints of the rumen and a reversal in feed digestibility.

Since beef cows can eat only so much feed during very cold weather, the only viable option is to increase the energy density of their rations by using some high-energy and lower-fibre feed ingredients.

This means that rather than feed cold-stressed cows more bulky feed such as more hay or more silage, it is sometimes better to substitute part of these forages with high-energy screening pellets or starch-enriched grains, such as barley or corn.

University of Nebraska (2001) researchers found out that coldstressed feedlot cattle derived more of a performance benefit by increasing the energy density of their ration with grain versus taking advantage of the extra heat increment (given off during rumen forage digestion) by feeding more forage.

Temperature C

Extra TDN (lbs.)

Extra hay (lbs.)

Extra grain (lbs.)

0

0

0

0

-10

2.2

4.5

3.0

-20

4.4

9.0

6.0

-30

6.6

—

9.0

Based on the assumption that hay costs about 5 c/lb. and grain (barley) costs 8 c/lb., the cost of feeding a herd of 300 beef cows for one month of -20 C temperatures (including windchill) costs approximately a few hundred dollars more to feed extra barley instead of feeding extra hay.

Increasing the energy density of the beef cow ration might be as easy and convenient as feeding some grain during the coldest parts of the winter, but it is still more costly than feeding roughages. To help determine when extra grain should be fed instead of extra forage, the accompanying table outlines a sample feeding guide dependent upon the weather conditions that might be used.

Based on the assumption that hay costs about 5 c/lb. and grain (barley) costs 8 c/lb., the cost of feeding a herd of 300 beef cows for one month of -20 C temperatures (including windchill) costs approximately a few hundred dollars more to feed extra barley instead of feeding extra hay.

Whether choosing barley or hay, the sole objective becomes a mat-

ter of maintaining or achieving a Body Condition Score (BCS) of 2.5-2.75 (thin = 1, and 5 = obese) by calving time, while replacement heifers should calve out a little better BCS of three. Furthermore, optimum BCS should parallel 150180 lbs. of fetus and fetal membrane weight gain.

Cows that successfully can get through the coldest winter months with an optimum BCS at calving have FEWER calving problems, fewer days returning to estrus, and ultimately have higher conception rates. It is always a good idea to periodically review the BCS of the cows, and determine that any reformulated diets for higher energy intake are working. † Peter Vitti is an independent livestock nutritionist and consultant based in Winnipeg. To reach him call 204-254-7497 or by email at vitti@mts.net.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

41

The Dairy Corner

Follow directions when mixing milk replacer

BY PETER VITTI

I

t may sound like an obvious reminder, but good mixing and feeding directions found on most commercial calf milk replacer bags should be followed. A final batch of milk replacer properly mixed into water should be a homogenous solution, similar to the look and smell of natural whole milk; white and creamy and is ready for feeding hungry calves.

Whether dairy producers are mixing a pail or batch of milk replacer for one or many calves, the correct concentration of milk powder in water is assured by following a single rule, which should be written (preferably in bold lettering) on all milk replacer feed label mixing instructions: Directions for use: Weigh out milk replacer being fed to calves on a tared weigh-scale and measure out the final volume of water to be used…

Follow these directions for the first usage of any commercial milk replacer and afterwards might be modified. The amount of milk replacer powder is initially weighed out in a container or scoop and the level marked with a permanent black pen.

That amount should be used in subsequent single or multiple feedings. Similarly, containers

for water should clearly indicate how much added water and/ or the final mixed solution that they can hold (i.e. 20-litre plastic pail) respectively. The important part of this process is to actually weigh the product to ensure you have the correct amount.

Most milk replacer recommendations are based on the premise the customer should add 125 to 150 grams of milk replacer powder to each final litre of warm water (38 C, 100 F) to make a 12.5 to 15 per cent final solution (the former concentration is similar to dry matter content of whole cow’s milk).

For a one-calf example: weigh out a morning-feeding allotment of 150 grams per litre (2 x 150 g) of milk replacer powder for one newborn calf, then add it into a two litre calf-feeding bottle. Next, add the water to fill the bottle.

Once thoroughly mixed (in this case, vigorously shaking the bottle), cap it with the rubber nipple and allow the individual calf to nurse the entire mixture.

DON’T TRUST THE CUPS Whether, feeding one calf or mixing up more milk replacer into a 20-litre pail to feed several calves, producers should avoid using the plastic cups supplied in many commercial milk replacer

bags. Nobody will debate the convenience and time saved by scooping out one or two cups of milk replacer powder and without weighing it; mix the allotment into a pail of water and feed it to baby calves.

However, such expedience often leads to large errors in mixing milk replacer solution of the proper concentration. This mistake may be compounded when two or more peoples’ job is to feed pre-weaned calves on the farm. One person’s idea of a “fullcup” often differs from another person as well as errors in adding exactly 125 to 150 grams of milk powder per litre of water in the first place.

In actual mixing practice, it is also best to avoid starting with the final volume of water and adding in your pre-weighed amount of milk replacer. One might run out of room and end up with a higher dilution of milk replacer to water compared to the desired final solution of 12.5 to 15.0 per cent consumed by baby calves. This common error is not particularly significant when feeding one or two calves, but could compromise the daily amount of milk replacer intake of pre-weaned calves fed in larger groups.

In order to avoid such common mistakes and others, an easy-to-

mix procedure for mixing milk replacer solution for more than one calf is illustrated as follows: 1. Weigh out (first time) or scoop (with measured ink-markings for subsequent times) — the desired amount of milk replacer powder.

2. Fill the pail (with known volume) with about half allotment of water.

3. Add measured amount of milk replacer powder to half volume of water.

4. Vigorously and thoroughly stir milk replacer powder into this half water allotment.

5. Add more water to the final volume needed.

6. Again, vigorously stir into a homogenous white and creamy solution.

Once a person has measured the correct amount of milk replacer in step No. 1, a good mix should become a matter of spending a few minutes to complete steps No. 2 to No. 6.

Regardless of the technique used in completing these mixing steps (using a whisk or paint mixer on a high-speed drill), dairy producers should always make sure any milk replacer lumps in the water are thoroughly broken down. As mentioned above, the final mixture should look like cow’s milk.

Now, we are ready to feed this reconstituted milk replacer

to pre-weaned dairy calves as part of a well-balanced feeding program, which includes: (1) the first colostrum feeding is given within a couple of hours of birth and again at six hours; (2) our properly mixed milk replacer is fed from day four of life to about six to eight weeks of age; and (3) a high-quality calf starter is introduced at two weeks of age. Pre-weaned calves should always have access to clean fresh water, and once they are about six to eight weeks of age and are consuming about a kilogram of calf starter, it is time to wean them from milk replacer mixtures.

Despite that feeding milk replacer is only part of any such successful pre-weaned calf feeding programs, it underlies getting newborn calves off to a good start, once colostrum feeding is completed and before calf starter consumption by calves really takes-off. As a result, most pre-weaned dairy calves that receive a consistent and nutritious liquid-milk replacer meal, which contains a measured and correct amount of milk replacer powder at each morning- and night-feedings should thrive. † Peter Vitti is an independent livestock nutritionist and consultant based in Winnipeg.

To reach him call 204-254-7497 or by email at vitti@mts.net.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Cattleman’s Corner report from Australia

Autumn is bull sale season “Down Under”

BY KIM NIELSEN

W

e are well into autumn, as fall is called down here in Victoria, and the leaves from poplar, elms and plane trees are changing to a golden colour much the same as in the northern hemisphere despite daytime highs occasionally still entering the high 20s.

I wonder where the notion came from that overnight frost brings the colour change along, definitely not in these parts. On an agricultural topic of annual occurrence, the glossy sales catalogues are out again appearing in the mail and farm magazines with impressive centrefolds of bulls from every breed announcing upcoming sale days. The bull sales unfold with much the same anticipation and excitement to that of a Canadian event, perhaps also happening up your way as we speak.

Australia’s cattle herd has grown beyond anyone’s imagination since the last couple of high rainfall years and good prices. This has also resulted in an expansion of purebred operators or beef studs as they are called. The plentiful rains have eased and it has actually been very dry the last few months pushing feed prices sky high. Along with a softening cattle market this has created a bit of a buyers’ market in some bull sales this year with a common occurrence of not all bulls selling.

COMPETITIVE BREEDING INDUSTRY It has become a very competitive market across Australia with about

» CONTINUED FROM PAGE 38

keepers & culls NEW NAME IN ONTARIO If you wonder where the Ontario Cattleman’s Association went to, it has been renamed and rebranded as the Beef Farmers of Ontario.

The name change was first proposed as an amendment to the group’s constitution at its annual general meeting in February in Toronto, where it was approved by a majority of delegates.

The Guelph-based association says the change is meant “to address the changing industry environment and to not only build on but to also enhance (BFO’s) visibility and strength with valued stakeholders.”

“We strongly believe the change in name is a natural evolution and a name that our membership can be proud of and stand behind with confidence for years to come,” said BFO president Dan Darling, a cow-calf producer at Cramahe, Ont. BFO formed in 1962 as the Ontario Beef Improvement Association (OBIA) and was renamed the Ontario Cattlemen’s Association in 1976, with the goal of becoming “a stronger lobby organization with government and to align its name with the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association.” You can learn more at www.ontariobeef.com.

photo: kim nielsen

Left: Buyers and spectators watch a large screen with bulls up for offer at Victoria bull sale. Right: Ten sons of the well known Temania Berkley B-1 Angus bull fetched an average of $12,000 at the 2013 Victoria sale.

50 recognized breeds among 7,000 studs. The number of dormant studs, which might have a stud registration but not registering animals or participating in sales, fluctuates with the market and demands for purebred cattle. I suspect this number is on the rise. It costs $25 to register an animal, and breed society memberships run from $160$350. There is a total of 196,307 animals registered across Australia.

Angus lists as No. 1 with 51,723 head (26.4 per cent) from 1,100 studs across the nation. We drop to almost half of that to find the No. 2 spot, belonging to Hereford with 27,556 registrations. In the tropical north with its expansive cattle stations we find the heat-tolerant Brahman breed coming in third with 21,025 animals.

There are other breeds represented among Australia’s cattle producers as well. The 2013 Weekly Times Stud Beef magazine advertises 40 breeders across Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania.

Another 10 breeds are dispersed across the rest of Australia but the less popular breeds are very small

CATTLE HAULERS CAN BE CERTIFIED If you are planning to haul cattle there is a new certification program that can help you get every head to its destination safely and humanely.

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in comparison. The British breeds are dominant and below Angus and Hereford (including poll Hereford) you will find Shorthorn, Murray Grey, Red Angus and Red Poll in that order.

Some of the studs are very large relative to what I have come across in Canada and I had the pleasure of visiting one of the larger Angus studs, Temania Angus (www.temania.com.au) just north of Mortlake, Victoria about 70 kms south of us.

I took in a Farm Plan 21 course (somewhat similar to the Alberta Environmental Farm Plan) and one of the six weekly course modules was a farm visit to Temaina to look at their grazing management, shelterbelts, water systems etc. A very impressive layout.

Looking at their breed development and Angus cattle marketing I have concluded it is a top notch and very “switched-on operation,” to phrase it as an Aussie would.

They run 1,600 purebred cows on 6,000 acres with an elaborate pressurized pasture pipeline system fed from dugouts and lakes with water troughs placed centrally for most

parts on 150 spoke wheel-style paddocks. With very rapid grass growth during the normally wet spring in the Western District of Victoria but then followed by a long dry season the principle of moving stock fast during fast growth and slow during slow growth is perhaps even more of a science in this part of the world than back up on 4-Clover Ranch, Rocky Mountain House, Alberta where I will graze some cattle in a few weeks.

GREAT JOB, TOUGH CONDITIONS Here in Victoria, knowing that the summer will be hot and very dry, estimating paddock yields and calculating paddock grazing days is a fine art that the staff at Temania is doing a remarkable job of. They wean early at four months of age and restrict feeding to the calves, while the cows and bulls graze stockpiled grass for the rest of the year.

Some paddocks are set aside for silage and fed to the young stock but seeing the performance of cows

EARL

and bulls under this type of yearround grazing speaks volumes for how they will perform elsewhere under similar conditions. I suspect herein lies the secret why Temania bulls have sold so well despite a lot of bulls going through sales throughout Victoria. Cattle producers are keen to get their hands on bulls that have the easy-keeping genetics that allow them to do well on year-round grazing scenarios.

Their impressive Temania Berkley B-1 is a well-known bull, rated Angus Breed Top Trait Leader 10 times for performances such as calving ease, fertility, growth and carcass weight. Previous sales of his sons have gone to a top of $91,000.

The 2013 sale sold 10 of his sons at an average of $12,300 with a top of $19,000. Top selling bull for this year was Temania Gothernburg G950 at $24,000.

It was a very hot day of 35 C in the sales room earlier this year where bulls and their Breed Plan data were shown on a projector screen to prospective buyers from across Australia as well as from Russia, Switzerland and Thailand.

I guess I could have bought a bull and put Canada on the map!

Kazakhstan-based Sever Agro was the top 2013 international bulk buyer with 13 bulls at a $9,154 average. The high individual figures are always where the discussion focuses but I think a real testament to a good sale is the average.

For the 113 Temania bulls sold this year the average was $8,663, the highest on record. † Kim Juul Nielsen, retired Manager of Agricultural Service, Clearwater County, Alta. is a summer resident of Alcheringa, Dunkeld, Victoria, Australia and is Canadian summer time grazier of 4-Clover Ranch, Rocky Mountain House Alberta

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Complete program details will be made available at www.livestocktransport.ca. More information on CAHC is available at www.animalhealth.ca.

ANGUS CHAMPIONS The Canadian Angus Association on behalf of the Canadian Angus

Foundation welcomes home Canadian Angus youth who were awarded champion and reserve champion world titles at the 2013 PGG Wrightson World Angus Forum in New Zealand.

Canada sponsored three teams of four individuals (totalling 12) to compete at the prestigious inaugural event in New Zealand.

The Canucks with team members Jared Hunter, Didsbury, Alberta (captain); Patrick Holland, Montague, Prince Edward Island; Melissa McRae, Brandon, Manitoba; and Michael Hargrave, Maxwell, Ontario, brought home the world champion title along with $10,000 NZ prize money!

“I am so honoured to have been selected to represent Canada on this prestigious trip and win-

ning it is truly unbelievable!” said Melissa McRae, winning team member. “I want to thank all the sponsors, organizers and volunteers for making this my best trip ever! Also to congratulate all the other competitors for welcoming us Canadians and for all for their hard work!”

The reserve champion world title was also awarded to a Canadian team, Team B-squarED, consisting of captain Erika Easton, Wawota, Saskatchewan; Ty Dietrich, Forestburg, Alberta; K a i t l y n n B o l d u c , S t a v e l y, Alberta and Matthew Bates, Cameron, Ontario. Bates was also announced the high individual for the entire contest, scoring highest in the most challenges as an individual. †

DECEMBER 2, 2013

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43

Cattleman’s Corner RANCHER’S DIARY

Successful hunt, but it was a lot of work HEATHER SMITH THOMAS

NOVEMBER 1

W

e moved the cows to the big field and hillside by Andrea’s house and hope it will last several weeks. Andrea and I continue to ride Sprout and Dottie most days, getting more training rides on Dottie. Some days we meet up with Carolyn and young Heather who is riding a horse she’s been training.

Last Friday when the kids weren’t in school (they only go four days a week, so we try to ride on Fridays whenever possible) Dani and Sam rode with Andrea and me. Sam is doing very well now riding Breezy. Old Veggie at age 27 is retired for the winter.

Saturday our Amish neighbours invited Lynn to come up the creek where they were getting out winter firewood with their draft horses, dragging the trees down the hill to the road. They filled our pickup and some other neighbours’ pickups with firewood. We took the wood up to Andrea’s house because she doesn’t have any wood yet for winter, and the kids helped unload and stack it next to the house.

NOVEMBER 7 Sunday it snowed and we didn’t ride. Our vet stopped by on his way home from preg-checking at one of the neighbour’s places, to check two of our heifers again.

They were both pregnant but will calve later than the others. They probably got bred just before we took the bull out of the herd. That afternoon we went to town for Dani’s birthday party at the pizza place. She’s nine years old!

We skipped our training rides for a couple days of stormy weather then rode with Carolyn and Heather. The hillsides were frozen and slippery. Andrea and I rode again yesterday over the low range, and came around a hill and nearly ran into a herd of about 50 elk. We hurried home, and then Andrea and Lynn drove our pickup to the end of the jeep road. Lynn drew an elk permit but hadn’t tried to hunt yet. Knowing where this herd was, he decided to try, so he and Andrea hiked a couple of miles, tracked the elk, then saw the herd a mile farther away. The 50 had been joined by another group and there were more than 100. These are elk that have been traveling down into a neighbour’s alfalfa field at night and up into the mountains during the day.

Lynn and Andrea had to crawl about a mile, so the elk wouldn’t see them. It was nearly dark by the time they got close enough

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to shoot. Lynn missed the first time, which spooked the elk, but also confused them because they weren’t sure which direction to run. They milled around, and he got a better shot and killed a young dry cow.

Andrea field dressed the elk with Lynn holding a cell phone for light (they hadn’t taken flashlights). Then they had to hike three miles home in the dark. It took them more than three hours to get home and they were exhausted. Lynn and Andrea did a lot of hunting together, before her burn accident 13 years ago, but Lynn hasn’t hunted since. It was a major effort for him now, at age 70.

The next challenge was getting the meat home. The elk was on a hillside much closer to our neighbour’s place than ours, so we got permission from him to go up through his place to get out there.

Andrea and Lynn and a couple

friends drove over there and hiked a mile up to the elk to skin and cut it for packing, and Carolyn and Heather hauled horses over there to pack the meat. They were relieved to see that the wolves hadn’t found it — just ravens, eating the gut pile (they hadn’t started on the carcass).

Carolyn and Heather made two trips up the hill with a packhorse to retrieve the meat.

NOVEMBER 16 Andrea spent several days cutting meat. We rode briefly every day until Andrea started helping friends with a roofing project. I want to keep riding Dottie because she’s still a bit goofy and I don’t want to give her a lot of time off just yet.

Thursday we moved the weaned bull calves to the main corral for winter; they ran out of grass in my horse pasture. That afternoon

PHOTO: BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS

Granddaughter Heather leads a horse packing Lynn’s elk down to the road.

Carolyn and Heather rounded up the two two-year-old bulls they borrowed from us this summer, and hauled them home. They rounded up their cows and calves to leave in the corral overnight, and fed them hay.

Yesterday morning they sent

their calves to the sale at Butte, Montana. Then they vaccinated the cows they plan to keep. They will be sending the others to a bred cow sale on Monday. † Heather Smith Thomas ranches with her husband Lynn near Salmon, Idaho. Contact her at 208-756-2841.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Home Quarter Farm Life SEEDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

When silent nights don’t bring peace to your farm ELAINE FROESE

W

hen I was a very small farm girl, dressed in my homemade red velvet jumper, I looked forward to “Edie” Christmas on Boxing Day with my cousins. I recall my great-grandmother singing “Silent Night” to us in German.

Little did I know then that I would marry into a family whose first language was German. I don’t know how to sing “Stille Nacht” but I do know that the approach of Christmas brings

good memories for some farm families, and fear for others.

“Silent night, Holy night, all is calm, all is bright.” Not for those who are longing for emotional peace on their farms.

These folks have just recovered from the long intense harvest of 2013, yet they still feel wiped out. They are “walking on eggshells” with their families since they rarely converse.

Silence is a form of communication manipulation. It can be good or bad.

For some people who are given very little air time, silence is an opportunity for them to gather their thoughts, and then they can speak. Silence, according to author Susan Scott in Fierce Conversations is the way to “do

the heavy lifting” in courageous conversations.

Silence is bad when used as a form of revenge, inflicting purposeful hurt, and stopping the flow of talking and listening.

Silence should not be a form of violence. As a coach, I tell my farm families that the silence needs to be broken or I will not work with them. People shut up for many reasons. To open them up, you need to ask questions about their “why” and come from curiosity.

“I am curious why you cannot tell me what is bothering you.”

“What would you like me to do differently in order to reboot our conversations?”

“I am sorry for the hurt I have caused you. Let me know now what

I need to do to make amends, and have meaningful talks with you.”

I once sat in a family meeting where the father was notorious for “shutting down” and cutting himself off from the communication of the family. He was refusing to be part of the coaching process, so I stopped and said: “Your sons are trying to be part of the legacy of this farm. Today is the day for action. If you choose to continue to block this process you are going to lose your family and your farm.

Choose now.

Longtime readers will appreciate my love for books. The best book for ending the silence and violence on your farm is Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler.

The authors encourage us to “start with the heart, stay focused on what you really want.”

What do you want for Christmas?

“Elaine, I want a happy fam-

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ily. I don’t care what this farm is worth, I just want everyone to come home to share turkey and make great memories.”

“I want my in-laws to understand that I don’t feel accepted in this family. I have shut down because I am so tired of trying to have my voice heard.”

“I just want my folks to quit changing their minds about the future. We need some firm written agreements, and no more empty promises for change.”

There is hope for your farm ahead. All can be calm and bright.

1. Stop your all-or-nothing thinking. These are polarities, issues that need to be managed.

Start saying, “This is why I want this, AND for me this would be the solution. What do you think?”

2. Make it safe to share in your presence. Buy or find a soft toy to use as a talking stick.

Write out some guidelines for your family code of conduct.

“In this family we use respectful tones, don’t swear, and stay in the conversation.”

3. Hire an outside facilitator or coach to navigate the tension, teach you how to use a flip chart, and help you learn to paraphrase what you are really saying. Some folks find it helpful to do the meeting in a neutral space like a hotel meeting room. See www. cafanet.com to find an ag coach near you.

4. Pray about how you are going to apologize for past hurt. The message of Christmas is that the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ was born to reconcile man to God. If you are not a Christian, you still operate with a model of forgiveness.

5. Share your intentions.

The classic slide I share in almost every presentation is I N T E N T > A C T I O N > E F F E C T. Why are you doing what you are doing? What actions and words are causing hurt? Do you know what effect your words or silence are having on the rest of your farm team? ASK! Your actions are given meaning by others, and sometimes that is the result of observations mixed with assumptions. Find out what is being assumed, and talk about your intentions!

6. Share your emotional story briefly. Most farmers I know are very uncomfortable with sharing feelings, but they really get the facts. Your story is important, and you’ll likely get more traction in the dialogue by sharing the facts. “By January 2013 you promised that you would sign the transfer agreements. We are about to enter 2014, and nothing has been signed, that’s why I am so distraught Dad!” 7. Agree on the points that you can agree on and then build from there. Some folks I coach are so angry with the family, that they are not willing to even talk about family issues until the business conflicts and agreements are solved first.

8. Celebrate Christmas and Boxing Day. Schedule a family meeting after the 25th, not on Christmas Day. Find the words to “Silent Night” “Stille Nacht” on YouTube.com and sing it together! † Elaine Froese, CAFA, CHICoach loves to sing. Elaine is a catalyst for courageous conversations. She farms in southwestern Manitoba and speaks across North America.

Like “Farm Family Coach” on Facebook. Visit www.elainefroese.com/contact to share your story. Buy, Do the Tough Things Right… how to prevent communication disasters, to end the silence on your farm. Cherish your family, and look for Elaine’s new book, Farming’s In-Law Factor, in 2014.

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

45

Home Quarter Farm Life POSTCARDS FROM THE PRAIRIES

Merry Christmas, friends!

JANITA VAN DE VELDE

T

here are so many things wrong with this, I’m not entirely certain where to start. The last time I was home visiting my parents in Manitoba, my mom asked me to shimmy down into the crawl space to retrieve some Tupperware bins that she’s been meaning to sort through. For years. Fifty-three years.

From the dusty archives of the Van de Velde home, I bring you the following relic — a handmade Christmas card. Let it be said that no one wants to take credit for this chestnut. There was a date scrawled on the back of it... you could just make out the year — 1981. That would have put me at the ripe old age of seven. I told Mom there’s no way I was that morbid at the age of seven. After an admittedly hasty handwriting analysis, she deemed that it had to be me.

After all, she said, my handwriting has always been “terribly messy,” hence the rather deliberate printing. This comment coming from the woman who agreed with my elementary school teachers that I should skip Grade 4. That’s likely the exact year all the other kids my age tackled their grasp of cursive writing. Just my luck.

I present you with the most gloomy and morose Christmas card ever created, on two pages of stapled foolscap no less... clearly a piece of fancy red construction paper was deemed inappropriate and over the top for such a festive message: 1. The recipient was so overcome by this festive greeting, they had to put down their cup of coffee midway through reading the opening page in their attempt to absorb the message.

2. At some point, the creator of the card was overcome with guilt for decorating her festive card with images of presents and flowers; clearly, the message was far too grave and important for such frivolous things. So this seven-year-old did what anyone in possession of an HP pencil with flat-top eraser would have done — she set out to painfully erase all evidence of anything that could be misconstrued as happy.

3. “The warm wishes will come to you soon.” Sounds ominous and foreboding...

4. “I HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY.” boomed the all-cap sentence. This sentence is usually accompanied by an exclamation mark to further reflect the happiness and joy of the sentiment. Not so the case, here. Period.

5. “I will tell you what Christmas means to me. Jesus was born on Christmas when nobody was on earth.” Hey, little seven-year-old Janita, did you miss the part about Caesar issuing a decree that everyone must travel to Bethlehem for the census? No room at the inn ring any bells for you? Of course there were other people on earth.

6. “I think about Jesus when he was nailed on the cross but

he still was alive.” Now that right there is a real pick-me-up line for any festive occasion. Next time though, save that for your Good Friday material.

Merry Christmas, friends. I HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY. The warm wishes will come to you soon. Until such time, enjoy this holiday season with your families, and may 2014 bless you big. — Janita. † Janita Van de Velde grew up on a farm near Mariapolis, Man. She holds a bachelor of science degree in agricultural economics from the University of Manitoba, and has worked for a financial institution since graduating.

She lives in Regina, Sask., with her husband Roddy and their children Jack, Isla and James.

Her first novel, Postcards Never Written, was the recipient of the Saskatchewan Reader’s Choice Award and also listed by CBC as one of the top funny books in 2009. She donates a portion of proceeds from the sale of her book to World Vision to help those less fortunate.

For more information, or to order her book, visit her website at www.janita.ca.

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DECEMBER 2, 2013

Home Quarter Farm Life FROM THE FARM

What’s your learning style?

People have different ways of learning and recognizing that will help communication DEBBIE CHIKOUSKY

W

e decided to homeschool two of our children May 2003 for many reasons, and it is a decision that we have no regrets about other than waiting as long as we did. Recent statistics from the Manitoba government show home-schooling grew by 32.1 per cent over the past year — by 583 children, or more than the growth in public and private schools combined. These numbers tell us that home-schooling has more than doubled in the past

decade, from 1,050 in 2002 to 2,399 on Sept. 30, 2012, when the official head count was taken (www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/finance/ sch_enrol/enrolment_2012.pdf).

We learned so much as a family about lifelong education through the home-school adventure that we hope other families can too.

One of the biggest things is how important communication skills are to learning.

To have good communication is to have a more peaceful home environment. A skill that is very useful is to recognize how the members of the family learn. The three main learning-style categories are visual, auditory and kinesthetic, and most people use all of them to varying degrees.

People who prefer auditory

presentation tend to learn best when they listen to verbal instructions or information presented through lectures, discussions or audio recordings. They don’t need to see pictures to follow a story. Personally, none of my family would be strong on auditory learning. Auditory learners learn amazingly fast through music and rhymes, so a person whose strength is in this style would learn their chore list very quickly if you put it to rhythm.

Visual learners prefer the visual approach to learning. They can recall better what they have observed or read than what they’ve heard. They often close their eyes and can see the page they read something on.

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Kinesthetic learners are those who prefer using whole body movement and real-life experiences. This doesn’t necessarily mean interpretive dance, although for some, acting out a situation is helpful. Kinesthetic learning can be enhanced if you take notes (active learning) while listening to a lecture (a more passive form of learning).

Here’s some examples of how learning to recognize these styles can help the family live more peacefully.

My son and husband were discussing how to build a hay feeder for our buck and ram pen. I was putting away the morning milking and listening. They were having a hard time making one another visualize what they meant as they

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were explaining their idea using the same presentation style over and over again, which in this case was strictly auditory.

The problem was that they are both predominantly visual/ kinesthetic learners. I suggested drawing a sketch but that didn’t work because we couldn’t draw it detailed enough, so we decided it best to build a model, involving both visual and kinesthetic principles. We proceeded to cut a piece of bread into pieces and immediately my husband understood my son’s suggestion. They were then able to tweak the design and finish their discussion. Had we not switched gears from trying to communicate in an auditory learning environment this would have ended with two frustrated individuals and no hay feeder.

A second experience was trying to give directions to another family member about how to get to a new job site. This proved my theory we most definitely are not auditory learners at our house. After a few attempts where oral instruction failed, he jumped up and started walking out the path in our living room to match my instructions. It was a hilarious event akin to charades, but after an unsuccessful time trying to explain how to get to his destination, it was truly amazing that when the same instructions were set to motion it took two minutes and he was on his way with a map firmly drawn in his mind.

Learning is a lifetime adventure.

If you’re unclear what kind of learners your family members are and you’re committed to better communication, take the online test at http://www.learningstyles-online.com/inventory. To enable multiple members of the household to take the test you will have to clean history between people for it to work.

The more effective you are at developing all of the learning styles, the more flexible of a communicator you will become. A big mistake often made is trying to teach a missed concept in exactly the same way over and over. If the student didn’t understand the first time it is unlikely going to work.

Usually the family member has to take a step back and evaluate why the concept is being missed.

Our family is still in the learning process, but every time we stop and realize that the reason we are not accomplishing something is because we are not addressing it in a way that the other person can understand, it gets easier. Our goal for the new year is to be able to do this naturally and by result live a lot more peacefully. † Debbie Chikousky farms at Narcisse, Man.

BY DAN PIRARO

Bizarro

DECEMBER 2, 2013

grainews.ca /

47

Home Quarter Farm Life SINGING GARDENER

Ted’s got parsley on his mind Plus, sharing tips for restless legs syndrome. What works for you?

TED MESEYTON

W

elcome to my final sojourn with you for 2013. Refer to the Christmas cactus picture on this page for short notes about this marvelous plant. Later I’ll meander into some strange and unusual practices for treating restless legs syndrome but first! There’s a song that says, “you were always on my mind.” What follows gives some insight as to where my thoughts are. Is there such a thing as indulging into medical herbalist chatter?

PARSLEY ON MY MIND Hey! Is that calendar correct?

Here it is November. I’m out in the yard picking parsley and there’s no snow. It’s looking really good.

This is one tough plant and even I, Ted, like to refresh myself with the many wonders of this familiar herb and why I sip on parsley tea.

There’s a curious old French poem titled: The Retarding of Death that says parsley (petroselinum sativum) is a cause of longevity.

DID THAT CAUSE EARS TO ‘PERK UP?’ Mine sure did! Although parsley is a biennial it’s generally grown as an annual. It grows the first year and goes to seed the second season. That’s when you can harvest your own parsley seeds; then the plant dies. Parsley can be tricky to germinate, especially if seed is old.

I like to soak parsley seeds in warm water overnight and plant them in early spring or late fall. After soaking, drain off water from seeds and spread them on waxed paper for a while. A pair of tweezers makes for easier handling. One variety known as Xenon parsley lends itself well to pot plant culture. Moss curled parsley with tightly curled leaves is still the most popular type for outdoor gardening. Seeds often take three weeks or more to sprout and soil should be kept evenly moist.

PARSLEY BEARS LOTS OF HISTORY … originating from ancient Greece. It was an esteemed emblem of victory for academic honours and fallen heroes from

Ted Tip:

Sprinkle a thin layer of dry powdered cinnamon on soil surface of indoor house and office plants. Doing so destroys insect pests that burrow into soil, suffocating their eggs.

Cinnamon breaks down after a few waterings and becomes plant food. † the battlefield. Competing athletes consumed parsley in abundance and winners were crowned with parsley wreaths. Charioteers fed horses with parsley to give them speed and stamina. Big bowls of parsley in water were placed on banquet tables in the belief it absorbed inebriating wine aromas and pungent breath to help keep drinkers reasonably sober.

Even today, finer eating places dress dinner plates with a sprig of parsley. It stimulates the flow of saliva, activates appetite and aids digestion. Matter of fact, medical herbalists promoted parsley’s rejuvenating qualities to calm an angry stomach. “When your digestive tract disputes you, lie down and pacify it with cool thoughts and parsley,” is an old standard prescription. Another expert from the annals of herbal history indicated that parsley leaves and/or parsley roots (such as Hamburg rooted parsley) were long used to treat jaundice, fevers, kidney stones and for the prevention of cancer.

There’s more. Parsley tea applied as a hot fomentation to insect stings and bites will stop itch, pain and discomfort in its tracks. (Keep that in mind when mosquitoes and wasps are active next season.)

Chopped parsley or parsley tea when applied as a facial compress cuts down on complexion oiliness and reduces eye strain. How about trying warm parsley tea as a hair rinse to give it a sheen? Internally, parsley tea appears to strengthen digestive organs and the liver’s detoxification phases. As a diuretic it helps kidneys flush out toxins and acids through the urine. But don’t gulp it down in one swoop or you’ll likely get sudden urges to pee due to increased urine flow.

“Gently bently” is the rule. Practise slow, periodic sips while the body adjusts. Large amounts of parsley tea are not appropriate for people with kidney disease, according to medical herbalists.

Christmas is coming — a time when a lot of extra helpings and often heavy foods and endless

PHOTOS: TED MESEYTON

A Christmas cactus in bloom takes on a special glow when December rolls around. Here’s something to be aware of when flower buds fail to appear. It may be due to the soil having been completely dried out for too long. Thoroughly saturate it once with tepid water, allowing all excess moisture to drain out through the bottom. About a week later, don’t be surprised if there’s a flush of buds. By the way! After a thorough watering, do not water a Christmas cactus again until the soil is completely dry or nearly dried out. There are reports of very old and large specimens bearing hundreds of blooms. One of the most famous was a 30-year-old Christmas cactus in England about 1.3 metres (five feet) in diameter. It produced at least 800 blooms in 1983-84 over a span of five months. desserts and snacks are consumed.

Consider placing bowlfuls of fresh parsley in water on the table in a prominent spot. Remind family and guests that parsley is not there just for appearance.

RESTLESS LEGS Call them what you will — spasms, a Charlie horse, leg cramps. These can be downright painful. Here are some simple approaches from various sources to release excruciating discomfort associated with restless legs. Place a stainless steel or silver spoon on your night table. Upon awakening with a leg cramp, press the curved side of the spoon on the cramp and it should release immediately.

Here’s a New Zealander’s preferred home treatment. Keep a wine cork handy near your pillow and grip it whenever a leg cramp occurs.

Alternatively, place a loose cork somewhere in the bed. Nobody knows how this works or why it has to be a wine cork, (real cork, not plastic) but this has been effective for several generations. I, Ted, made a string necklace using a dozen or more corks by drilling a hole through the middle of each cork from top to bottom and stringing ’em up on heavy string.

Place the cork necklace under both

LOVE HEARING FROM YOU Do you have a story about a farm or home-based business?

How about some household management tips? Does someone in the family have a special-diet need? Share some of your meal ideas.

Send them to FarmLife, 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, Man. R3H 0H1. Phone 1-800665-0502 or email susan@ fbcpublishing.com. Please remember we can no longer return photos or material.

— Sue Armstrong

legs at bedtime. Here’s yet another unusual approach. One or two non-perfumed unwrapped bars of soap are placed under the bedsheets with one or both legs resting on top.

This next technique is similar to applying acupressure. Place a finger directly below the nose on the concave fold and press firmly against the upper lip for about 30 seconds. It usually works every time to release severe leg cramps at night and when you first arise in the morning. Sometimes it may be necessary to also massage the acupressure point in a circular motion for this to be effective, but stay with it. Here’s a hilarious one: Put an old pair of shoes upside down under your bed and you will have no more leg cramps. There’s no valid explanation why any of these work. Perhaps the power of suggestion plays a roll.

A 91-year-old friend who enjoys excellent health tells me her remedy for preventing restless legs is to drink three or four ounces of Schweppes tonic water with quinine. It’s the only tonic water brand containing quinine I’m aware of. Personally, I like homeopathic remedy tissue salt #6 (potassium phosphate) and tissue salt #8 (magnesium phosphate). These tiny tablets dissolve immediately in the mouth. Eating a banana sliced into some milk before going to bed also helps. Perhaps some Grainews readers will share their own experiences dealing with restless legs syndrome. Alternative therapies have helped lots of persons but please discuss any remedies and/ or supplements with your family practitioner, naturopathic doctor, chiropractor or other health-care provider of choice, especially when taking prescription medication.

GONE TO THEIR REWARD Baa Baa white lamb: Have you any parsley? Then the bleating lamb replied: It never does grow sparsely. Ted’s in a parsley parlance frame of mind.

Often I read passages of people I’ve never met just to get a glimpse of their life interests. It’s no surprise to learn that many had a love

for music and/or were great gardeners and farmers, living to ripe old ages. Here are brief excerpts of a man and a woman who’ve now gone on to their reward. I can really relate to some of what is said about Harry. “After his duty in the air force, he used his training during his working career and in tending his grain farm. With Dad on guitar, music played a big role in his life. Dad was still yodelling at his 90th birthday celebration.”

Then there’s Annie, also age 90.

“She loved tending to her annual garden of vegetables, beets, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage and garlic. She made the best borscht, perogies, piroshki, cabbage rolls, jams, jellies, pies, sauerkraut and pickles and we all ate the fruits from her labour. Plants and flowers of beautiful colours, shapes and sizes were always part of her home inside and out.”

Well I’ve run out of space so shall skidoo on out of here. Have a slice of Christmas cake for me and I’ll have one for you. Remember — for 12 months of happiness in 2014; eat a dozen pieces of Christmas cake. †

This is Ted Meseyton the Singing Gardener and Grow-It Poet from Portage la Prairie, Man. By having one’s own garden, gosh a feller can’t go wrong. The freezer, bin and jars are full to last all winter long. God’s hand scatters His bounty among gardeners and farmers everywhere in city; country; town. There’s an old legend that says a robin wears a red breast as a symbol of its gift to the Christ Child. Here are words from one of my songs: In the coming New Year may all of its days, Bring good things to you and good things to me. Then let them remain ’til it’s New Year again, With a heart full of love let it be. My email address is singinggardener@mts.net

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