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YOUTH County sees economic value in partnering with ROC 2
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THE PICTON
Gazette
Volume 186, Week 33
THURSDAY
AUGUST 18, 2016
PASSIONATE
Residents share thoughts on climate change with Ellis
PERFORMERS
Mummers rehearse scenes from classic Disney story
Canada’s longest publishing non-daily newspaper, proudly serving Prince Edward County since 1830
Farmers receive much-needed rain early this week Some crops will benefit from precipitation Tuesday, but many are beyond point of relief JASON PARKS STAFF WRITER
BLADES COLLIDE A pair of knights from education and entertainment company Blades of Glory take part in armed combat during
the Hillier recreation committee’s annual park day. The festivities were well received by visitors Saturday. (Chad Ibbotson/Gazette staff)
Hillier denizens cry huzzah for medieval display Recreation committee pleases audience of 300 with theme for annual Park Day CHAD IBBOTSON STAFF WRITER
Visitors had nothing but good things to say about this year's Hillier Park Day. The annual event brought medieval education and entertainment company Blades of Glory to Jack Taylor Park for Medieval Fest. Sword battles,
reptiles, music and costumes filled the park on Saturday afternoon. The event was sponsored by the Hillier recreation committee. Organizer Cynthia Riordon said approximately 300 people attended. “It was pretty successful and I just appreciated the feedback from the people,” Rior-
don said. “They complimented the team and the work the Hiller recreation committee put into organizing the day.” Riordon said it was a good day for everybody to gather and have some fun. It was hot and there was some rain, but she said by no means did the weather put a
damper on the festivities. “It was hot, but people made the best of it and the few little showers we had were refreshing,” she said. Riordon said there was a good concentration of both visitors and locals this year.
See KNIGHTS, page 14
Prince Edward County Farmers finally got the rain they were praying for this week. Of course, those desperate pleas were made in July and, as such, there has been mixed reaction to the first and second county-wide rain storms of the summer. It will be hit and miss for most producers if the soaking rains that came Saturday and Tuesday are going to have any effect on their crops. For some crops (see the grain corn in Hillier that was doubling as pineapple tops as early as July), the rains came far too late. But next door to the corn, the grapes in the western ward were saved by the combined four inches of precipitation that feel and wine growers are excited at the prospect of the 2016 vintage. The county's soybeans will likely be a mixed bag depending on soil type while local pea production was saved thanks to the rain storms. Pastures will likely green up over the coming days, easing concerns of livestock producers who have been tasked
6 WEATHER 7 PUZZLES 9 SPORTS 17 CLASSIFIEDS 18
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Inside this week’s edition of the Gazette... OP/ED
with scrounging for feed and hauling water to shore up drying wells. But to quote one local farmer in Sophiasburgh, “the damage was done” to the corn crop long before the rains came. Clay Byford of Byford Farms on Bethel Road started chopping his corn crop for silage feed for the farm's dairy cattle early last week when it became crystal clear the plants were far too stunted to reach a maturity where they would bear even halfway decent cobs. “Our corn silage yield is at about 50 per cent and we have a lot of stretches of crops with no cobs at all so we are having to supplement the feed we are giving to the cows,” he explained. Chopping corn at this time of year means taking an 80 to 90 per cent loss on the crop but with no rain and no chance of a rebound, it was a decision that had to be made. On the bright side, the rains will likely bring pasture land back for the milking herd and will ease pressures on hay stores.
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