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Volume 41, Number 9 | april 7, 2015

$4.25

PRA C T I C AL PR O D U C T I O N T IP S F O R T H E PRAIRI E F AR M E R

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Moving canola to market We can increase our canola yields, but experts question whether we have the transportation infrastructure to get that extra production to our buyers

By Lisa Guenther

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told delegates. “The discussions among leaders in our countries have shifted from how to develop integrated national or continental grain transportation systems to how to reduce government spending and taxation.”

Leaders have a hard time distinguishing between consumption and investment, Blank said.

Infrastructure is usually grouped into general expenditures, he told delegates.

And when they do spend on infrastructure, they don’t look at the whole network, he added.

Often the focus is on satisfying local taxpayers, and so more money goes to fill potholes than fix big problems, he said.

“The other side of this, is dear God, it’s expensive,” Blank added.

Every four years American Society of Civil Engineers grades U.S. infrastructure and calculates funding gaps. U.S. infrastructure currently rates a D+ overall, according to the civil engineers. To

bring it up to a B by 2020, the U.S. government would need to throw in over $3.6 trillion.

Canada’s situation isn’t any rosier. Canada needs to pony up $66 billion to maintain urban roads and bridges by 2023, Blank told delegates. Those numbers come from the McKinsey Global Institute.

There are no shortages of problems in North America’s transportation infrastructure, Blank said. Railroads are near capacity, he said, and there are only so many miles of track. It takes nearly as long to dray across Chicago, the major railway hub, as to run freight from Winnipeg, he added.

Waterways are “a disaster,” Blank said. “More than a decade ago 50 per cent were declared functionally obsolete.”

Ports have their issues, too.

The port at New Orleans is “enormously vulnerable.” to climate change, Blank said. The port of Los Angeles-Long Beach lives “on a knife-edge” because of growing

citizen reaction to conditions and congestion, he added.

“Infrastructure’s become more contentious in many communities,” Blank said. The not-in-mybackyard attitude towards projects has morphed into BANANA — Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything, he told delegates.

North Americans are clever people, he said, who will “make do and mend.” But if we push off major infrastructure investments for a decade or so, what will that do to our competitive position in the world, he asked.

Three scenarios Blank presented three possible scenarios for how North American governments would tackle infrastructure investment. Blanked described them as images of plausible alternative futures. He cautioned the scenarios aren’t meant

» continued on page 4

photo: thinkstock

r. S t e p h e n B l a n k believes the Canola Council of Canada’s production goal of 52 bushels per acre by 2025 is impressive, he told delegates at the council’s recent conference in Banff, Alta.

“But there’s an 800 pound gorilla in there that we haven’t talked much about,” said Blank, an expert on North American transportation infrastructure.

“That’s moving stuff from supply to demand. The physical infrastructure of grain transportation.”

In the 1980s and early 1990s, North America’s transportation infrastructure met demand, Blank told delegates, because of excess capacity and new technology. A completed interstate system and consolidation in rail and trucking also helped, he added. But the picture is much different for 2015.

“Decades of chronic underinvest-

ment have left our systems incapable of keeping up with routine maintenance, let alone increasing capacity to accommodate forecasted growth,” said Blank.

Today’s transportation infrastructure problems started to show in the 1990s, when congestion increased. New value chains were emerging and there wasn’t any more extra capacity, Blank said.

Over the decades, governments delayed maintenance and put in new environmental restraints. The terrorist attacks on September 11 meant more security measures at borders and ports, Blank added.

Deficit reduction strategies in Canada and Mexico took precedence over infrastructure spending, he said.

The sum of all this is more congestion on North America’s rails, roads, and in waterways and ports.

There’s also been a crucial shift in how Canadian and U.S. governments view infrastructure and spending in general, Blank

In This Issue

Publications Mail Agreement Number 40069240

Wheat & Chaff .................. 2 Features . ........................... 5 Crop Advisor’s Casebook . 8 Columns ............................ 22 Machinery & Shop............. 31 Cattleman’s Corner .......... 39

New faba bean varieties Melanie Epp

page 13

JCB Fastrac updates

scott garvey page 32

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

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Wheat & Chaff STAMPEDE

BY JERRY PALEN Leeann Minogue

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t is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” This opening line of Jane Austen’s 1813 novel, Pride and Prejudice is still relevant today if we replace “single man” with “upand-coming crop,” and “wife” with “industry association.”

As soybean acreage grows, so do the number of people involved in soybean industry organizations.

On June 14, 2014, Statistics Canada reported in The Daily that, “Nationally, soybean area could reach a record high for the sixth consecutive year, rising 23.5 per cent from 2013 to 5.6 million acres.” Soybeans are still “new” here — from 2005, and 2008, there were less than three million acres seeded in Canada each year.

For comparison, keep in mind that Canadian farmers seeded 24.1 million acres of wheat in 2014.

Here in Saskatchewan, farmers grew 300,000 acres of soybeans in 2014. This is remarkable, considering that many of us had never even seen them growing a few years ago.

Provincial organizations In Saskatchewan, the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers (SPG) collect levies when farmers sell soybeans, even though the industry has come to agree that soybeans are not, in fact, pulse crops at all.

The association formerly known as the Manitoba Pulse Growers has a special page on its website to explain the difference. “By definition, soybeans are not a pulse because their seed is not dry (it contains high amounts of oil), and while they are healthy, they are not as nutritious as edible beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas.”

In February, 2015, to reflect the fact that it’s been collecting levies from soybean growers, the Manitoba Pulse Growers changed its name to the Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers. In the press release, executive director Francois Labelle said “While soybeans are not technically a pulse, they have become a large part of our business through increased acres and sales.” They even updated their logo. The new logo, they say, is “representative of a bean seed sprouting, indicative of growth.”

The Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers do a lot of soybean agronomy research.

The list of 2014 research on the group’s website includes a cyst nematode survey, a study of soybean residue management and a look at the effect of lower seeding rates on yields in western Manitoba.

In the last few years, the SPG has also made efforts to include soybean agronomy and bring information to farmers.

At the SPG regional meeting in Regina in 2015, Tom Warkentin, a plant breeder at the Crop Development Centre at the University of Saskatchewan, told farmers “We are doing a little bit of breeding work on soy. Not a lot, but we’ve started a bit.”

They’re partnering with an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada breeding program, and testing genetic material with a shorter growing season. New varieties are being grown in test plots across Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Soy Canada The SPG and the Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers forward a portion of the levies they collect to Pulse Canada in Winnipeg for the promotion of the pulse industry. But now, levies collected from soybean sales are going to Soy Canada instead. (Just to make it a little more complicated, Pulse Canada’s Courtney Hirota explained by email that “Some soybean funds do go to Pulse Canada for specific projects”).

So, if you’re growing soybeans in Manitoba or Saskatchewan, you’re now sending five cents per tonne to Soy Canada. If you didn’t know that, don’t worry, it’s new.

Soy Canada is a new organization, but some of the people at the table will have worked together before. Soy Canada’s executive director Jim Everson explained to me that the former farmer-driven Canadian Soybean Council and the Canadian Soybean Exporter Association “are folding members into Soy Canada.”

Farmers in Quebec and Ontario also pay five cents per tonne to belong to Soy Canada. And farmers aren’t the only paying members: soybean crushers pay two cents per tonne, to a maximum of $20,000. Soybean Exporters and seed companies pay tiered fees, up to $20,000 per year.

“It’s a value-chain organization,” Everson said, meaning that Soy Canada represents the entire Canadian soybean supply chain, from seed suppliers to farmers to exporters and processors. Picture the Pulse Canada business model, but for soybeans.

As Pulse Canada does for lentils, one of the things Soy Canada is doing is promoting Canadian soybeans to the world. “We just finished a trade promotion to Japan,” Everson said.

For now, Soy Canada has just one person in its Ottawa office — Jim Everson. In areas like transportation or sustainability, where other commodity associations have the same goals, Everson said, “we want to partner with those organizations that are leading those efforts.”

If you want to get involved with Soy Canada, your best bet is to become active with your

provincial association. John Bennett is the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers representative to the Soy Canada board. In Manitoba, Ernie Sirski (brother to Grainews columnist Andy Sirski), represents the Manitoba Pulse and Soybean growers.

Manitoba farmers are also represented on the board by member-at-large Edgar Scheurer.

“The key thing for us is that it’s a new structure,” Everson said. By pulling together all of the components of the industry, he said, “the whole is more significant than the sum of the parts.”

While western Canadian farmers make up only a small part of Canada’s national soybean acreage, Jim Everson hopes to represent us well.

With the large increase in western Canadian soybean acres, Everson said, “Where is that product going to go? What export markets are there? What sensitivities are there in terms of market access?”

For western Canadian farmers, Everson said, Soy Canada is “making sure that the product they grow finds markets and that those products are predictable. We hope that the western producer sees a lot of value in it.”

A few other groups Besides these, there are still a few more Canadian associations out there dealing with soy-related issues.

Soybean 20/20 is a “project” more than an organization. It was founded by the University of Guelph, the Grain Farmers of Ontario, and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

For an example of the type of work that Soy 20/20 does, see page 21 of this issue. Soy 20/20 was a major driving force behind Health Canada’s recent acceptance of the claim that consuming soybean foods can lower cholesterol.

Acceptance like this is a major marketing coup for companies involved in selling soy-based foods.

Soy 20/20 is working with Soy Canada, in fact, it’s actually a dues-paying member.

The Canadian Soy Foods Marketing Council bills itself as “an initiative of Soy 20/20.” This Council runs a website (soyforlife. ca), which points out all the health benefits of soy food products. The soyforlife.ca website says it’s a “group of Canadian farmers and suppliers, soy food processors and manufacturers.” There are several other members of the Canadian Soy Food Marketing Council listed — these include Syngenta Seeds Canada, Pioneer Hi-Bred Ltd., Parrish and Heimbecker and Bunge North America.

The brochure on the soyforlife.ca website shows the normal photos of healthy soy products (tofu, edamame beans, cooking oil), but there was also a picture of something that I’m pretty sure is an ice cream sandwich. I’m in. † Leeann​

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

Wheat & Chaff Farm safety

Photo contest

Positive outlook after farm injury

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aul Croken grows 120 acres of carrots, turnips and cabbages on Prince Edward Island, on the farm he’s owned for 30 years. Every year he hires local help for the harvest season and to help with vegetable grading. Perhaps if it wasn’t for all his reliance on his friends, family, and employees, Paul’s farming career may have come to an abrupt end on October 8, 2008.

He had gone out alone with his sprayer in the early morning, just at the beginning of harvest season. While reaching over the sprayer hitch to make a quick adjustment, the drawstring of his coat was caught in the power take-off. “I remember coming to on the other side of the tractor and sprayer, about 15 feet away, and I’d gone between the PTO and the draw-bar,” he says. His wife, Heather, remembers getting a phone call from their neighbour between her morning shower and the time she’d usually start getting ready for work.

“Gordie McKenna found, him and he just said not to worry, that he’d phoned an ambulance and it was coming to get him,” she recalls. The McKenna family knew Paul well enough to consider an unattended tractor odd enough to investigate, but Gordon McKenna didn’t want to worry Heather by what they’d found. Paul’s left arm had been nearly completely severed in the accident and he had lost a lot of blood. When the ambulance arrived, Heather got a second call urging her to bring the kids to the field right away. “They didn’t think that I was going to make it to Halifax, I’d lost so much blood, and I had a lot of internal damage as well,” Paul recalls.

Paul was airlifted from Charlottetown hospital to Halifax the same morning. “They wanted me to go in the helicopter with him, but I didn’t want to leave the kids,” Heather says. “I just kept telling the kids that it was just his arm, no big deal, because I really just did believe that.” In the end, doctors did have to amputate his arm at the shoulder and Paul was also left with a paralyzed diaphragm and just one working lung. He spent four weeks in the hospital, leaving the harvest season in the hands of friends and family.

“I’d pop over when they were at the warehouse, just to give them an update on how he was, but that was it,” she says. “The vegetable growers’ co-op, Brookfield Gardens, and every-

GIVE US YOUR BEST SHOT This photo came from Wolfgang and Claudia Kohler, from Carman, Man. Wolfgang wrote, “Please find attached a picture of our beautiful 10-month-old baby girl, Lea, sitting on winter wheat stubble and enjoying the August sunshine.”

Thanks so much for sharing this. We agree, Lea’s beautiful!

We’re sending you a cheque for $25.

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

Even after his injury, Paul Croken continues to grow beets and other vegetables on his Prince Edward Island farm. body that he knew all came together and they harvested everything without any of our help.”

When Paul first got out of the hospital, he says it wasn’t easy to be optimistic but looking back on it as a family now, both Paul and Heather agree the lasting effects have been nothing but positive. “He wouldn’t slow down before, but now he doesn’t have a choice,” Heather says, “and more people need to learn that.” She sees how much closer he’s become with his family. Paul says he still works on the farm, and although he can’t do everything he used to, now that they’ve expanded the farm, they can afford to have year-round help, so he doesn’t have to. “Believe it or not,” he jokes, “Other people can do things!” Paul says now that he appreciates his own limitations, he can see that his accident was simply the result of one man trying to do the work of three. He’d advise other farmers not to suffer a life-threatening incident before evaluating what’s really important in life and learning to slow down more often. † Amy Petherick, Canadian Agricultural Safety Association, www.casa-acsa.ca.

Agronomy tips… from the field

The 4Rs of wild oat control

Y

Weather Lore

You might be from the Prairies if...

By Carson Demmans and Jason Sylvestre

ou might have heard about the 4Rs of nutrient management: applying the right product at the right rate at the right time and in the right place.

Now, we can take those same concepts and apply them to a wild oat program.

First — the right product. Look at whether you’re dealing with a light or heavy wild oat infestation and then pick a product that’s suited to the task. Consider using a fully serviced product, which gives you technical support and backing for added insurance.

Second — the right rate. Always use the rate that’s listed on the label, even if it means spending a few extra dollars. Stretching or skimping on rates may appear to work at first, but in the background, those wild oats could be developing resistance and multiplying.

Third — the right time. Wild oats can quickly reduce the amount of nitrogen available to your crop. Getting rid of them early reduces inter-crop competition, allowing your crop to intercept sunlight and use more nutrients.

Fourth — the right place. Wild oats’ vertical leaves can make them a really difficult target for herbicide applications. Make sure you’re getting even coverage by using proper water volumes and slowing down your sprayer travel speeds. †

This agronomy tip is brought to you by Chadrick Carley, technical development lead with Syngenta Canada Inc.

CANDLE POWER Candlelight, candlelight; Before a shower, not as bright.

T

he high humidity that occurs before a rain can cause your candles to burn less brightly. The wick, particularly if not treated with wax, will absorb moisture from the air.

Water vapour in air will also decrease the amount of available oxygen. Since oxygen feeds a flame you may notice a weaker light. †

You thought a low-carb diet was a joke book.

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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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Cover Stories Crop production » CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Moving it to market as forecasts or predictions, but as processes that need to be revised.

The first scenario was a make do and mend mindset. Short-term fixes would predominate, Blank said. Governments would fix the most pressing infrastructure problems that provide relieve to the largest number of users, and also create jobs. Governments would keep spending as low as possible.

The danger is that without a broader vision, enormous sums could be spent on local and regional projects without advancing a more integrated national or continental system, he said.

In the second scenario, government would shift responsibility to the private sector. “In this scenario, government deficits are seen as the primary threat to national well-being, not the decaying infrastructure,” said Blank.

Proponents of privatization would put forth three positive effects: 1. Cut costs and eliminate inefficiencies.

2. Introduce services and make investments that are responsive to users’ preferences.

3. Develop new innovations and expedite the implementation of current advances in technology.

The concern with this scenario is that private firms would be able to set excessive prices and cut services because they face no competition, Blank said.

Blank also outlined a third scenario — reconstruction. Leaders would invest in continent-wide efforts to rebuild freight infrastructure, he explained. They would

see national freight systems as elements of a North American freight transportation system for decades to come. Decisions would be more centralized. Research and collaboration would cross borders and be shared by governments.

But this scenario would rest on a substantial shift in leaders’ perceptions around infrastructure, he said. “How could this happen?

Well, perhaps (as) the response to a major catastrophe.”

Canola industry’s role Blank suggested the Canola Council think about how it could influence which scenario will emerge.

“Someone has to say something,” Blank said. The Canola Council of Canada represents “an enormously successful” North American industry, he added.

The industry should be thinking about how it can leverage rising global demand for canola to improve transportation infrastructure, he added.

He asked whether canola growers can push government leaders to look at the economic and budgetary implications of long-term investment in infrastructure. He also posed the question of reaching out to other exporters.

“Is it impossible to think of a North American Commission on Freight Transportation?” Blank asked.

But as he wrapped up his presentation, Blank didn’t seem overly optimistic about the future of North America’s infrastructure.

“I’m worried as hell. I don’t see an easy light at the end of the tunnel.” †

Shippers facing shortfall The Ag Transportation Coalition measures railway performance and releases numbers every week. By mid-February, the numbers were not encouraging.

For Week 28, February 8 to 14, 2015, the Ag Transport Coalition reported that CN and CP supplied only 29 per cent of the 7,304 hopper cars that shippers had ordered. That left shippers short 5,193 cars for the week.

Week 29 was worse. CN and CP supplied only 27 per cent of the 6,861 ordered cars. Shippers were short 5,083 cars.

From the start of this crop year to February 21, the Coalition found that the railways supplied just 43 per cent of customer orders in the week for which the cars were ordered. During that same period, 35 per cent of all bulk grain shipments waited more than 48 hours for pick up by the railways; only 28 per cent were picked up within 24 hours.

From August 1 to February 21, 23,929 of the hopper cars ordered by shippers were not supplied. The report says, “This represents a shortfall equivalent to 11 per cent of shipper demand.”

Find these reports online at www.agtransportationcoalition. com.

Members of the Ag Transportation Coalition are: the Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA), the Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC), Pulse Canada, the Manitoba Pulse Growers Association (MPGA), the Western Grain Elevator Association (WGEA), the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association (COPA), the Inland Terminal Association of Canada (ITAC) and the Canadian Special Crops Association (CSCA). †

PUBLI SH ER

Leeann Minogue

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photo: thinkstock

The Canola Council of Canada has set an ambitious goal, calling for average on-farm yields of 52 bushels per acre arcus Weidler is confident that the canola industry can meet the lofty production goals set out by the Canola Council of Canada. It’s a long way from the 2014 average Canadian canola yield of 34.4 bushels per acre to 52 bu./ac. by 2025.

“Yeah, it’s ambitious,” said Weidler, vice president of seed operations for Bayer Crop Science. “But I have full trust in both the innovations that we can bring to the table as an industry, but also in the ability of the growers to adapt and to really use the full potential of the innovation we bring to the growers in the next couple of years.”

Yields on farms have dramatically increased in the last decade, he said. Canola is now grown in more areas than before. Plus, seed companies are introducing new traits, he added.

Canola breeders and farmers alike still face challenges from the usual suspects, he said — namely disease and pests.

“But at the moment I’m pretty confident that we have all the tools that are required to deal with those challenges,” Weidler said.

The biggest stumbling block canola breed-

Associate Publisher/ Editorial director

Cory Bourdeaud’hui Phone: (204) 954-1414 Fax: (204) 944-5562 Email: cory@fbcpublishing.com

Getting to 52 by 2025 ers face is the same one farmers have struggled with for centuries — unpredictable weather. Western Canada has seen unusually wet weather for the last 10 years, he said. The question now is whether that pattern will persist or fall back to the longterm average, presenting farmers with more drought conditions.

Asked how canola breeders deal with weather unknowns, Weidler said the introduction of hybrids several years ago helped.

Hybrids deal with abiotic stress better, he explained.

The other aspect is a focus on both yield and yield stability.

“How will this product behave under different environmental conditions? Is this product stable enough from the yield perspective,” Weidler said.

For example, if a potential variety yielded 150 per cent under optimum conditions, but only 65 per cent when conditions were a little off, Bayer wouldn’t introduce that product to farmers’ fields, he explained.

Weidler is most excited about the podshattering resistance trait in Bayer’s new variety, L140P. It should enable growers to straight-cut canola and allow them to wait

Lynda Tityk

Sa les Di re ctor

Lisa Guenther is field editor for Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.Guenther@ fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

By Lisa Guenther

1 6 6 6 D u b l i n Av e n u e , W i n n i p e g , MB R 3 H 0 H 1 w w w. g r a i n e w s . c a

and plan harvest operations, he explained, rather than trying to harvest 10,000 acres in two days. Less pod-shattering should also mean fewer volunteers the following year.

Concerns beyond the farmgate But mercurial weather isn’t the only big problem the canola industry faces.

How the industry will get that much grain out of the country is a bit of a conundrum.

Not too many people would be happy with a bumper crop if they can’t get it to key customers, Weidler said.

Regulatory systems in the European Union and China are also a “major question mark,” Weidler said. “It’s a wild card there because you don’t know how long it will take you to get innovation to the marketplace because of this uncertainty.”

Weidler says he doesn’t have a silver bullet for regulatory problems. “But we’ll have to find some way to come back from an emotionally-based regulatory approval to a science and fact-based regulatory approval.” † Lisa Guenther is a field editor with Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.Guenther@fbcpublishing. com or on Twitter @LtoG.

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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.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

5

Features Crop production

Warm winters and winter wheat Don’t panic and start reseeding. Your winter wheat crop might be just fine

By Stephanie Grace

T

he recent warm weather across most of the Prairies has brought concerns for many winter wheat growers. Temperatures of up to 10 C are certainly not optimal.

While areas of the Chinook belt may have a different prognosis, Paul Thoroughgood, speaking on behalf of the Western Winter Wheat Initiative (WWWI), believes there is hope for the 2015 winter wheat crop.

“Potentially, the biggest risk the warm weather presents (aside from the very warm areas such as the Chinook belt) is simply the lack of snow cover leaving plants exposed to winter elements without the insulation of snow,” Thoroughgood said.

“In most parts of the Prairies it did not get warm enough for plants to begin growing. In order for this to occur, the soil temperature would have to reach a minimum of 5 C. Even for those areas that the air temperature did reach 10 C, the soil would have remained much colder.”

In the fall, cold temperatures have less effect on crops because the soil remains warm, while the opposite is true in winter. During winter months, the ground is already frozen, meaning that it takes a longer period of warm weather to increase soil temperatures enough that plants are able to begin growing. Even a small layer of thawed ground is not sufficient to allow wheat crops to begin growing.

such as Kansas that grow winter wheat on a regular basis,” Thoroughgood said. “But all too often, farmers act too quickly and spray a winter wheat crop that would have been very profitable. Especially on a year like this one when spring seeding conditions could be tough with the wet 2014 fall, it is a headstart to already have crops in the ground.”

In the spring, one of the first things to look for is new root growth. “Leaves most often freeze dry during the winter and in many cases, the roots die off as well, so the most important thing to watch for is new, white root growth emerging from the crown tissue. The best timing for

checking this is half way through ing nutrients, but unfortunately, spring seeding. This timing gives by this time the crop may have the ground enough time to warm already cut back on its yield up so that the plants can begin potential because it was starved growing,” said Thoroughgood. for nitrogen early on.

Applying nutrients early in For those who have sustained the spring — regardless of how damage and are considering the crop appears — allows farm- reseeding, it is important to ers to maximize the profitability weigh options carefully. Often, a of winter wheat crops. Winter less-than-hoped-for winter wheat wheat has tremendous tillering crop is more profitable than ability, so the number of plants reseeding if it is getting too late required for winter wheat to in the year for a spring-seeded prove profitable is much lower crop to reach maturity and be than for spring wheat. Don’t be harvested in good conditions. dismayed by a sparser stand early The WWWI advises farmers to on and remember that even if first determine the winter wheat reseeding occurs, the new crop crop potential, then estimate the will utilize the fertilizer. Many probability of growing a profitfarmers opt to wait and see if the able crop. It may be riskier to T:8.125” crop has recovered before apply- try reseeding in some cases than

to leave the winter wheat and maximize potential profitability through applying fertilizer and controlling grassy weeds if crops are slow to recover. The winter wheat crop may not produce what farmers had hoped for, but it may still be better than the alternative if spring seeding is dragging on and the number of frost-free days are counting down.

Farmers with questions can contact the Western Winter Wheat Initiative. General information, tips and contacts can be found on the WWWI webpage at: www.wwwi.org. † Stephanie Grace is a writer and student from B.C.’s Peace River country. For more from Stephanie or to contact her, please visit her website at www.stephaniegrace.org.

It may be riskier to try reseeding T:10”

One area of concern is the issue of standing water or ice encasing plants. Thoroughgood said, “If plants are encased in water and ice, that could be cause for concern.” The recent warmth may have caused this in some areas where runoff conditions led to standing water freezing around plants. If this condition persists over a longer period of time, it could present a problem if plants are oxygen-starved.

What to do in the spring Avoid making any hasty spring decisions. In many places, crops could be slower to recover in 2015, but wait until other crops are in the ground before making a decision to reseed winter wheat fields. Many producers do not apply a grassy weed herbicide on winter wheat fields in the spring, but when plants are slow to recover, this is a good way to allow crops the chance to recover without competition. It is never a bad idea to be prepared by arranging fertilizer and seed for another crop.

“Average winter kill for winter wheat is actually very low at approximately nine per cent.

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6

/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Crop production

What to do with that flax straw Many farmers think flax looks good this year. The downside? All that straw

By Dilia Narduzzi

I

f you’re already growing flax as a part of your rotation, or you’re thinking of starting to include flax at your farm, you might already know that the flax seed market is good. But, the question always comes up: what can be done with the straw?

Often flax straw is seen as a waste product that is burned after harvest, but there are some markets for it, especially if it is good quality. Here’s what you need to know if you want to grow flax and sell the straw.

“Just like any other crop,” says Wayne Thompson, executive director of the Saskatchewan Flax Development Commission (SaskFlax), “flax should be planted earlier to give the crop more time to produce yields, and get seeds set and matured before the first frost.” On the plus side for flax, it has a strong straw and therefore you have some flexibility when harvesting it, says Thompson. The straw doesn’t rot as quickly or as easily as wheat, barley, or even canola, so you have a longer window come harvest time. If you can’t harvest flax right away, you can come back to it a few weeks after your other crops and it’ll still be standing.

Roughly 800,000 tonnes of flax was produced in Western Canada in 2014. The current flax seed market is strong, even with increased production over the last couple of years. “Prices for seed are remaining good and reasonable, there’s significant demand on the industrial and feed sides, in pet food, and the human consumption side is growing as well,” says Thompson.

Though there are many uses for processed flax straw — in Europe, for example, they grow flax mostly for the straw and use the processed fibre in woven materials, paper, and so on — it is a still a bit of a struggle on the straw side of the flax market here. Part of this has to do with transportation costs if processing plants aren’t close to farmers. But there are companies in Western Canada that buy flax straw — SWM in Winkler, Man., for example, has bought the most flax straw over the past couple of years, volume-wise, says Thompson. They use almost all of the processed fibre for cigarette paper. SWM didn’t buy much flax straw in 2014, but that was because they had enough supply from the previous two autumns.

New uses for flax straw There are other companies researching how to further develop the flax straw market here. For example, mats (made of natural material like flax straw) have been proposed as a form of natural erosion control for use in ditches at the sides of roads. Flax straw can also be used for animal bedding and duck nesting, straw-bale buildings, insulation and so on.

As it stands now, if you’re already growing flax for the seed market, the money you make from the straw will likely just be that little bit of extra income, provided you can secure a buyer (more likely if

you’re closer to a processing plant) and, importantly, if you take the extra steps to ensure that your straw is good quality.

Biolin Processing, a small flax straw processing plant outside of Saskatoon whose mission “is to utilize 100 per cent of the flax straw for commercial end uses so that the straw, traditionally burned or chopped in the fields by farmers, becomes a viable and profitable product, completing the natural recycle circle,” is headed

by Alvin Ulrich.

Ulrich has several suggestions for keeping flax straw high quality. “For all end uses, people don’t want weedy straw,” says Ulrich, “that’s the single biggest thing to consider. For specialty end uses, like cigarette paper, they don’t want any plastics (i.e. twine), or any litter. Stony fields can be a problem because stones can end up in the processing machines.”

Certain processing plants have specific requirements. For Biolin’s purposes, they want taller straw, straw that’s not been damaged too much through a combine (or straw hasn’t gone through a combine at all), as well as straw that has been retted. Biolin hasn’t bought much straw to date because they started as a research facility for higher end uses, but this coming fall they might buy 5,000 to 10,000 tonnes, which they will process and sell to buyers who want good quality fibre. At this point, Biolin is trying to scale up so they can provide fibre to interested parties.

Some companies they are connected with are looking to using flax fibre to replace the fiberglass used in plastics, says Ulrich, others are looking to use it in mats, as mentioned above, or even replacing some of the plastic-based mats used in cars.

“If you’re far from the plant, good luck” “Think long beforehand,” says Ulrich, if you want to do something with your flax straw, and make sure you know what markets are close to your farm that might be interested in your straw, what kind of flax straw they are looking for, and whether you’re able to provide it. Don’t look for a use after harvest, emphasizes Ulrich, start looking for uses now.

For example, maybe there is someone who would buy little square bales of flax straw — but you need to know that in advance so you can find someone with a little square baler to bale it. Or, if you contact potential buyers in the spring, they could provide you with more information and ask questions like, “Could you harvest the straw in a different way? Could you hire someone to cut it or rake it?” This kind of conversation can be fruitful for both parties. “If you call me in October, and there’s going to be snow next week, nothing much is going to happen.”

Putting a dollar amount on flax straw is very difficult too, says Thompson, because right now, “it’s up to the buyer to determine the price, because they know what they’re looking for, they know what their market is. There isn’t a general market for straw in Western Canada right now. If you’re close to the plant, then yes they’ll pay you; if you’re far from the plant, good luck.”

It’s safe to say that the flax straw market is still only emerging in Western Canada, though Thompson emphasizes that there is lots of research going on behind the scenes to develop the market and there is potential.

“In the future we will probably have people planting flax just for fibre — that could be quite viable,” agrees Ulrich, but “you’d have to think about it as a fibre crop. And you have to think ahead of time.” † Dilia Narduzzi is a freelance writer in Dundas, Ont.

photo: leeann minogue

If you want to sell your flax straw, look for buyers close to your farm, and find out early in the season exactly what kind of flax straw they’re looking for.

YOU WON’T FIND

BETTER VALUE OR A GRASSY WEED.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

7

Features Grain marketing

Higher demand, higher prices Global equity investor says world food demand for food is likely on the rise

By Lisa Guenther

W

hen it comes to global food consumption, there’s one trend Vikram Mansharamani is willing to bank on.

“As the world gets more money in its pocket, it’s putting more meat in its mouth,” Mansharamani told attendees at the Canola Council of Canada’s conference in Banff last March. Mansharamani is a global equity investor and Yale lecturer.

Global protein consumption has been rising steadily — 450 per cent over the last 50 years, he told delegates. Meat consumption per capita generally stays flat until it hits a tipping point, Mansharamani said. “And that tipping point is somewhere around $5,000 GDP per capita.”

More than half the world’s population is nearing that tipping point, with population-weighted gross domestic product (GDP) of $4,100

per capita as of 2013, Mansharamani said. That population resides in a group of countries he tagged the “Future 15”: Pakistan, India, Nigeria, Vietnam, the Philippines, Egypt, Indonesia, Ukraine, Algeria, Thailand, Iran, China, Peru, Columbia and South Africa.

People wondering what will happen when the Future 15 hit their tipping point only need look at their recent predecessors.

China is one.

“It shouldn’t surprise any of us that they acquired Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork processor,” said Mansharamani of China’s growth. The fact that canola seed exports to China are “going through the roof” is part of this story of China reaching the tipping point, he added.

Implications of more demand Mansharamani believes rising meat consumption will push

food prices higher. “The transmission mechanism is feed.”

High food prices hit hardest in regions where workers spend a big chunk of their wages on food because they simply can’t afford the price jump, he explained.

Once the UN Food Price Index stays at 210 or above, people riot virtually every time, he said.

Meat consumption will push food prices higher In 2013, the index averaged 209.9 for the year, and unrest bubbled up in Pakistan, Thailand and other regions. “We were on the edge,” he said.

“It gets scary when food prices go up. Social systems break down.

Political systems can break down,” said Mansharamani.

Political unrest isn’t the only potential consequence of a growing global population. As farmers grow more grain, they’ll need to source fertilizer for those crops.

Morocco and the Western Sahara have nearly three-quarters of proven phosphate rock reserves, Mansharamani told delegates.

“That is scary because that means in the land of food and fertilizer, Morocco will have more power than OPEC had in the land of oil.”

Although some countries consider Morocco and the Western Sahara one nation, the regions are ensnared in a territorial dispute that has spanned decades.

“This is not geopolitically-stable terrain. Yet it may hold the key to supporting plant growth in the long run,” Mansharamani said.

He ventured that countries might start developing strategic fertilizer reserves, much like strategic petroleum reserves.

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One of Mansharamani’s favourite indicators of economic bubbles is skyscrapers.

Historically, skyscrapers have popped up in regions right before a financial crisis.

Why would an ambitious skyscraper precede financial doom? Mansharamani listed three reasons: 1. They indicate easy money conditions. Banks are happy to lend money to ambitious projects.

2. Developers are willing to take a big risk by building them and then seeing if tenants are attracted.

3. They’re a manifestation of hubris and overconfidence. “This is chestthumping. There’s no other way to describe it. It’s not rational to build buildings this tall anymore. It’s crazy.”

Dubai’s Burj Khalifa holds the title of tallest skyscraper in the world. Mansharamani has visited the tower. Commuting from the top floor to the street outside can take 45 minutes if the elevators are mistimed perfectly, Mansharamani said.

Architects, art historians, and skyscraper enthusiasts visit Skyscraperpage.com to track building projects.

“But very few people in the business world go to it. And I think you should.

I think this will tell you a lot about forward demand, even for canola,” said Mansharamani.

Today, the site shows there are mile-high skyscrapers being proposed in Saudi Arabia.

“Might that mean the end of the energy boom for the Saudi’s? Don’t know. It’s worth thinking about what these implications are.” † Lisa Guenther

“Might the mere act of starting to acquire those reserves create a hoarding mentality that generates the price action that reserves are supposed to avoid?”

Mansharamani also told delegates that demographers’ assumptions about Africa’s population could be off-base. Most demographers assume that a higher income means a lower birth rate.

But as incomes rise in Africa, birth rates have held steady.

Child mortality rates, which cover children under the age of 18, are assumed to hold steady as incomes rise. But child mortality rates in Africa have dropped as incomes have increased.

“So mortality rates are falling and birth rates are staying high.

The average woman in Africa today will have 4.2 children. You need 2.1 to sustain a population,” said Mansharamani. The end result could be even more people on the planet than expected.

Signs that he’s dead wrong Mansharamani believes the world is on a road to higher food prices, but acknowledged that he could be “dead wrong.”

One of Mansharamani’s assumptions is that the GDP of the Future 15 will hit $5,000.

“But what if it doesn’t,” he asked. Business confidence is likely low in Ukraine right now, he said. Thailand has had riots in the streets and farmers blocking its roads. Iran is currently in the home stretch of lengthy nuclear talks with the U.S. The question is whether Iran will enter the world economy as a responsible actor, Mansharamani said.

Changing demographic policies could throw a wrench in Mansharamani’s predictions. China is now relaxing its one-child policy because of skewed demographics.

“China will soon have more retirees than new entrants into the labour force. That has big economic implications,” he said.

Other regions might see the imposition of social policies to limit population growth, he added.

Mansharamani is also banking on rising meat consumption among the Future 15. But 1.3 billion of those people live in India, a society with historical norms and cultural biases against eating meat, he said. Two states in India have tightened bans on beef sales, a move that’s not sitting well with non-Hindus, Channel NewsAsia reported in mid-March.

But Mansharamani thinks people in India will eat meat, although it’s not clear how much.

He pointed out India has the thirdlargest Muslim population in the world. Channel NewsAsia noted the country has one of the world’s largest cattle populations and is a major exporter of everything from beef to leather.

If Indians do eat more meat, it will move the needle, Mansharamani said.

“So watch what happens in the news flow relating to Indian meat consumption.” † Lisa Guenther is field editor for Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.Guenther@ fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Crop Advisor’s casebook

Crop trouble follows a pattern

By Rachelle Farrell

I

t was back at harvest time the previous year when I received my first SOS about a particular field problem from Joe, who grows canola, wheat and barley on his farm at Morinville, Alta. The performance of his barley crop just wasn’t up to snuff — yield was way down as a result of numerous irregular spots in the field where the heads of the barley had failed to fill.

I went to Joe’s farm to have a look, but I wasn’t able to analyze any plants as there was only straw left in the field at that point. We sent a number of soil samples in for testing but that didn’t reveal anything of much use, either.

That was likely because the areas in the field where the samples were taken from were at best rough estimates.

All this meant Joe and I would need to keep a very close eye on the next crop to go in that field, to see if the problem reappeared.

Wheat was planted in the field the following growing season, and by summer there were no apparent issues. I’d gone out to the farm in early July and the crop looked great all around. To be on the safe side, we had a few tissue tests performed but there was nothing out of ordinary that foretold trouble in Joe’s wheat field.

But within a matter of a week or so, that changed.

A clearly frustrated Joe called in midJuly to inform me the problem was

back, and that his wheat was starting to turn white. As was the case with the barley crop, the affected wheat was appearing in an irregular pattern, and the patches in the field were even more pronounced than they had been the year before.

When I arrived at Joe’s farm to see for myself, the affected spots in the wheat field were clearly evident. A closer look at the plants revealed white heads and dried-up flag leaves.

Something was causing the wheat to turn white, but what? Joe had been following a fertilizer plan we’d laid out earlier in the season, so the nutrients were there for the crop. There were no signs of insect damage, and while there had been a little bit of rain recently, it wasn’t enough to have affected the crop this way. Something wasn’t adding up.

Do you think you know what’s going on in Joe’s wheat field? If you do, send your diagnosis to Grainews, Box 9800, Winnipeg, Man. R3C 3K7; email leeann.minogue@fbcpublish ing.com or fax 204-944-5416 c/o Crop Advisor’s Casebook. The 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. The answer, along with the reasoning that solved the mystery, will appear in the next Crop Advisor’s Solution File. † Rachelle Farrell is a crop inputs manager with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Morinville, Alta.

Rachelle Farrell is a crop inputs manager with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Morinville, Alta.

Casebook winner

T

his issue’s Casebook winner is George Waldner from new Elm Farming Co. Ltd. at Magrath, Alta. George, thanks for being a regular casebook reader and thanks for entering!

We’re renewing your Grainews subscription for a year and sending you a Grainews cap. †

Leeann Minogue

In affected spots in the wheat field, the plants had white heads and dried-up flag leaves. Something was causing the wheat to turn white, but what?

Crop advisor’s solution

Insufficient sulphur and phosphorus harms canola

By Spencer McArthur

D

wane, a grain farmer at Davin, Sask., called me in early July to tell me about an issue with his canola. His canola crop was progressing exceptionally well in terms of plant condition and vigour, with one exception — one field had strips of unhealthy canola plants starting to appear.

“I measured out an isolated strip and it was 80 feet wide, the exact width of my drills,” Dwane explained. He thought something must have happened at seeding time, but he couldn’t figure out exactly what went wrong.

I went to the field to have a look for myself, and the strip pattern was evident right away. Canola in the unaffected areas looked great — the plants had cabbaged and covered the ground, and the foliage had a dark blue-green tinge to it.

Plants in the affected strips, on the other hand, had noticeably smaller and thinner leaves, and the colour had

Tundra

changed to a lighter shade of green. The newest formed leaves coming out of the growing point were small, slightly cupped, and beginning to yellow.

After ruling out seeding depth and seed quality, our attention turned to fertilizer, or a lack thereof. Dwane had applied a strong fertility program to his canola at seeding, with seed-placed nutrients to match phosphorus and sulphur needs and a side-banding application to meeting nitrogen requirements. The fertilizer rates seemed adequate for meeting Dwane’s yield target, and they were same in all of the canola fields on the farm.

The symptoms I observed in the affected plants were a clear sign of nutrient deficiency. The strip pattern in the problem field led me to believe that the seed-placed fertilizer had not been metering on the drill at planting, causing the plants to be low in phosphorus and deficient in sulphur. Fortunately for Dwane, the seedplaced fertilizer must have started to metre correctly again so that the whole field was not affected.

Sulphur has low mobility in canola plants; therefore, deficiency symptoms usually show up in the younger leaves and stems. Phosphorus deficiency symptoms in canola are not as definitive and are more difficult to diagnose.

Phosphorus is mobile within the plant and deficiency symptoms appear first in older tissues as the plant transfers reserves to newer growth. Because the tissue test samples were taken from the newest formed leaves, the lab results confirmed the sulfur deficiency but there were no definitive conclusions on plant phosphorus content.

However, from past soil sampling I knew that the phosphorus levels on this field were generally lower, so it wasn’t surprising to see stunted plants that were lagging in maturity in those areas where no phosphorus fertilizer had been applied. Past soil sampling had also revealed that soil in this area was quite sandy, and that due to its lighter texture it was generally more susceptible to nutrient leaching. As a water mobile nutrient,

Tundra

sulphur was more than likely washed out of the rooting zone during one of the many heavy rainfall events we had experienced in June.

Rescue treatments of sulphur have been shown to be quite effective in reducing or correcting sulfur deficiency symptoms, especially if the application is made prior to flowering. Foliar sprays generally can’t provide enough sulfur to correct a severe deficiency, so I recommended that Dwane apply a top dressing of a granular product such as ammonium sulfate over the affected strips. I felt this would be his best management strategy for salvaging as much yield as possible from his crop in the problem field.

For phosphorus, top-dressing to correct a deficiency is usually not as effective.

Phosphorus is utilized most effectively when it is placed near the rooting zone for uptake; due to its relative immobility in the soil, it is a poor candidate for a topdressing rescue treatment. † Spencer McArthur is a sales agronomist with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Balgonie, Sask.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

9

Features Farm management

Niche crops can pay well Future crop prices are anyone’s guess; contracts can give you pricing security

By Brie Vany

“

W

hat should I grow?

What is going to make me money?

These are common question this time of year.

If only grain brokers had a crystal ball to answer that question with assurance! But at the end of the day the professional experts and even the coffee shop geniuses are really only taking a stab in the dark.

There are so many different cropping options, how do you know which makes the most sense for your farm? The best place to start is talking to your local elevators, processing plants and brokers and getting their thoughts. They will provide you with the best information they have at hand because in the long run they want to earn your business. However, in the end it is your decision and it comes down to agronomics, marketing and what works best at your farm.

Growing “niche” crops Depending on your region and growing conditions there are a number of niche crops that many farmers may not necessarily know about. If you are looking for a pulse option there are limited acres on something like a marrowfat pea. The beauty of these is that they grow extremely similar to any other pea and typically yield you more money at the end of the day. Buyers of these peas would offer you a full production contract, so there is literally no risk to your farm if there happens to be an “Act of God” and you don’t get a crop.

Marrowfats offer a pretty healthy premium over a yellow or green pea. So what’s the downside? Most contracts for marrowfats are full crop year, meaning delivery timelines can go from off the combine to June of the following year. This is a small market crop and “limited acres available” from buyers generally means they don’t take on more than they can handle, so overproduction is a risk.

Although not “niche” per say I think flax and mustard are commodities that too many people disregard as the “poor man’s crops.” On our Rayglen 24-crop projections calculator these two crops are in the upper echelon of

return per acre. The cost of production is lower than many other crops and they don’t have the extreme disease susceptibility that some of the other oilseeds, cereals and pulses do. Contracts with Act of God are offered on both flax and mustard so growers can pencil in a profit while not carrying production risks.

Unlike a lot of other crops mustard demand is pretty much inelastic so if there is a production failure prices will shoot up. Flax, on the other hand is gaining momentum, as China becomes what appears at this time to an unquenchable beast the flax industry is pretty confident in their future. There are some very strong production contracts available for both flax and mustard.

Another big topic of conversation of late is faba beans. I have to be honest, we are fairly new to marketing these beans but already we have learned that the end buyers are quite particular about the variety of fabas that they purchase with both size and tannin content being considered.

The highest premiums, pricewise, are going to come from the largest seed type available.

These seeds are so big that they tend to cause issues with seeding and so far that is why growers have tended to shy away from these larger ones until the market develops more.

What we have managed to do in the meantime, is secure some small programs with a few buyers

in the $6 to $7 range with an Act of God clause. These programs will give growers an opportunity to iron out any seeding and agronomic issues of growing a new variety on your farm, while still knowing they have a home in the fall for their production.

Fababeans have the potential to be a great addition to many crop rotations in Western Canada, especially in the wetter zones of the Prairies. It’s another option that is starting to look promising.

At the end of the day the markets change so rapidly that by the time you’re done reading this article, chances are something has happened in the world market that impacts us here in Western Canada.

There are a variety of different crops that we can grow here so you need to grow something that is going to provide you a profit.

Even if you aren’t comfortable with venturing out into a niche crop market why not look at the contracts available for crop you already grow? For example, for those in red lentil growing areas, we have been trading new crop contracts in the mid 20’s with an Act of God picked up in your yard. At an average yield of say, 1,500 lbs./acre, this is grossing your farm $375 an acre. How do you go wrong in taking some risk off the table and locking in a profit? † Brie Vany is a grain merchant with Rayglen commodities. Contact her at 306-249-9671.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Crop production

Growing alfalfa hay for export Alfalfa looks attractive for Prairie farmers. Here are three areas to consider

By Michael Flood

A

number of factors are coming together to make hay production attractive for farmers on the Canadian Prairies these past five years. Increasing demand for beef in developing markets like China has led to intensified ranching and feedlot activity in the United States and Eastern Canada. At the same time, continuing dry weather and droughts in the major hay growing regions of the American Midwest have driven the cost up even further than the naturally growing demand from ranchers and feedlot operators. Rates for trucking have also been lower because of the huge number of rigs hauling up machinery to Alberta’s oil industry; to avoid running empty transportation companies are looking for good hauls to back to the United States.

Below are some tips for growing, bundling, and shipping hay to help you take advantage of this lucrative crop.

dry, then turning it over once to ensure thorough drying. After that, it can be bundled.

2. Bundling it Unless you’re going to be bundling hay regularly it may not be economical to purchase your own baler. Renting the equipment, either from a professional dealer or a neighbouring farm, may be your best bet. There may be lots of competition at harvest time, however, so you should see whether it is possible to reserve a baler in advance.

This may require paying a small up front fee, but will be worth it to avoid scrambling to find one once you’ve harvested the alfalfa.

Forages like alfalfa can be bun-

dled after curing in a number of different ways, in square and round bales of different sizes and widths. For shipping and storage purposes large square bales (of around 35" x 47") are preferred — they can be packed most efficiently on a truck bed, allowing packing up to the maximum weight, they are very dense, and they have reduced wind resistance compared to round bales, an important factor that makes them preferred by trucking companies who have to think in terms of fuel use per mile. Most significantly, they can be packed to a width on the truckbed of less than eight feet, which means they do not require special wide load permits to ship on American

highways and roads. The square bales are also easy to handle, load, and unload.

3. Selling and shipping it After you’re done growing it and baling it, you’re going to need to find someone to ship it Given competition for freight and the need to find a good price, you’ll want to have a shipper and a buyer lined up before the crop is grown.

There are multiple markets into which you can sell hay, and they purchase hay of different qualities. It’s unlikely you’ll have an entire field of high quality forage, so it is vital to identify different customers for different qualities.

Low-quality forage is of use for

beef and dairy ranching, while high-quality feed is preferred for pregnant heifers.

Hay is not sold through a regular market like corn or soybeans so it can be difficult to determine prices and find buyers. You can sell through hay brokers, but you must be able to meet their high quality requirements and (often) sell exclusively to them. They will save you significant time and hassle.

Whether you’re selling direct to your customer or using a broker, alfalfa hay could be a valuable rotation option for your farm — both for the land and for your wallet. † Michael Flood (www.michael-flood.com) is a business writer and columnist. You can reach him at michael@michael-flood.com.

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1. Growing it Alfalfa is the highest-demand forage for livestock production.

It is high in protein and both dries and ships well. It makes an ideal rotation to restore nitrogen to your soil after growing cereal grains like wheat.

Alfalfa hay could be a valuable rotation option While alfalfa is well-adapted to growing in a wide range of conditions it grows best in firm, moist soil that has been well pulverized.

Choose a good pre-plant herbicide for the beginning of the growing season as it will prevents weed from competing with the emerging alfalfa sprouts, ensuring they get maximum use of the soil water and nutrients. Alfalfa is particularly vulnerable to insect pests like lygus bugs, pea aphids, alfalfa weevils and grasshoppers so regular surveillance of fields is necessary to spot infestations before they get out of control.

Alfalfa is harvested by first mowing it then leaving it to By jonny hawkins

Country Chuckles

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“Emily Chickenson” FS:8.45” F:8.7”

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

11

Features Weed management

Killing weeds with rotary hoes Looking for fresh weed control options for pulses? Try old-style rotary hoes

By Melanie Epp

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ulse crop growers may have a new tool to manage weeds. Perhaps, though, “new” isn’t the right word. While rotary hoes have been around for decades, they have fallen out of use. They could be making a comeback, though. Two researchers — Steve Shirtliffe, a plant sciences professor from the University of Saskatchewan and Eric Johnson, a weed biologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) — have evaluated its use in pulse crops and found it to be a valuable weed management tool.

Rotary hoes probably had their peak in the mid-twentieth cen-

tury, says Shirtliffe. “They’re certainly not a common tool today,” he continues. “But we started to be interested in them to try to find an in-crop, mechanical weed control method that had reasonable crop tolerance.”

Farmers fighting herbicideresistant weeds may ultimately need to turn to mechanical control to get rid of determined weeds.

Johnson was first to try the tool in the field. Not long after, Shirtliffe located a second rotary hoe and began testing it in the field too. Although what they have found isn’t necessarily new information — more like, “lost information,” says Shirtliffe — it is likely that it is new to grow-

ers who are more accustomed to the weed management tools of today.

“What we found is that they will work well to control small, shallowly-emerging weeds quite early,” says Shirtliffe.

Pulse crops have quite good tolerance to rotary hoeing. The hoes also work well in conditions where there is a lot of crop residue. As most growers know, if there’s a lot of trash in the field, harrows will plug up and, as a result, won’t work well. Rotary hoes may not work that well on stony land either.

“The Achilles heel of this method,” says Shirtliffe, “is that you do need good conditions.”

First, he says, soil should be

dry, and not too compacted. “If it’s too packed, they won’t sink in enough,” he says.

Soil must not only be dry before hoeing, but should remain dry afterwards as well. Be sure to check the weather forecast before beginning, advises Shirtliffe.

Without a doubt, the most important condition, though, is that weeds must be very small in order for the method to work, says Shirtliffe. In fact, it’s a point he says he cannot emphasize enough.

“They have to be essentially just emerging,” he says. “So the timing is absolutely, utterly critical.”

Weeds should be at what’s called the “white thread” stage,

where the cotyledons are just opening up. “If you wait too long — even a couple of days after that — what happens is that the roots get too anchored and the plant can’t be flipped out of the ground,” he says.

Rotary hoes are best used to manage small, hard-seeded broadleaf weeds, like Lamb’s quarters, redroot pigweed, koshia, or small-seeded grass weeds, like green foxtail. Basically, says Shirtliffe, the seed should germinate from shallow depths and have a small seed, so that it doesn’t grow too quickly.

“We haven’t had good luck in controlling wild oat, though” he notes. “I think part of the issue is that it’s such a large seed. When it does germinate it can germinate from deeper, and its roots grow quite quickly, so it can’t be uprooted.”

Wild mustard, if you get it at the right time, can also be controlled with a rotary hoe.

Keep in mind, though, that it grows quite quickly. If it’s past the cotyledon stage it can be quite difficult to flick out of the ground, says Shirtliffe.

They’re not as expensive as a cultivator

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Growers worried about time management need not worry at all. In fact, the faster you go, the better the tool works.

“Fifteen kilometres an hour isn’t too fast,” says Shirtliffe. “So you can cover a lot of land in a hurry with them.”

While the rotary hoe is mostly considered a tool of the past, there are a few manufacturers that still make them. What’s even better is that they’re not as expensive as a cultivator, says Shirtliffe.

So, is the rotary a hoe a good option for growers? Johnson and Shirtliffe think it could be.

“Will it work every year?” asks Shirtliffe. “No. Will it work well in some years? Yes.” “Some organic farmers have been using them with success,” he adds. “Even when a rotary hoe works best, though, it still doesn’t work as well as herbicides.”

While Shirtliffe and Johnson looked at using a rotary hoe in combination with other techniques to help farmers manage for herbicide resistance, their results were mixed. “We didn’t see as good as results as we were hoping for,” says Shirtliffe. “But it did help controlling it.”

“But as soon as you compare it to any herbicide, it’s not going to work as well as a good herbicide,” he continues. “But then again, you’re not selecting for herbicide resistance then either.”

To see one of these machines in action, go to youtube.com, and search for “rotary hoe weed control.” †

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Melanie Epp is a freelance farm writer based in Guelph, Ont.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Crop protection

Six steps to curb resistance Help keep herbicide resistant weeds off of your farm with these six tips

By Michael Flood

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o a standing room only audience at this year’s F a r m Te c h s h o w i n Edmonton Dr. Linda Hall, a weed scientist at the University of Alberta, gave a stark warning to Canada’s farmers: herbicide resistance in common weeds is on the rise. Already endemic in the United States, where strains of Russian thistle, wild oat and kochia resistant to all known herbicides are increasingly common, new strains of herbicide resistant weeds have begun to spread to Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

In particular, Hall drew attention to spreading glyphosate

resistance in kochia in Alberta.

This is particularly alarming as glyphosate is the most commonly used and, until recently, one of the most effective weed killers.

Glyphosate resistance, she said, is different than ordinary resistance to herbicides; rather than outright resistance (where the plant is simply unaffected by the chemical) glyphosate-resistant kochia is exhibiting what she calls a “creeping” resistance. That is, each new generation of kochia that survives burndowns and incrop sprayings is marginally more immune to glyphosate than the generation before it, having more of the the amino acids the chemical is designed to inhibit.

This creeping resistance

requires higher and higher rates of glyphosate spraying, but this is compounding the problem.

Overreliance on glyphosate is what led us into this situation.

end of chemically assisted agriculture. With careful use, she emphasized, glyphosate can remain an effective part of a farmer’s arsenal for decades to come.

1. S pray when weeds are young

Resistance cannot be stopped Too many farmers, Hall said, have relied on glyphosate as a cure-all, a one-size-fits-all weed killer. Unlike some weed scientists, however, she is not all doom and gloom; Hall’s not prophesying that this is the

Weeds are most vulnerable to herbicides during their primary growth phase after emerging from the soil. Even strongly resistant kochia are vulnerable during this time.

2. Exercise zero tolerance Every kochia plant needs to be presumed glyphosate-resistant and destroyed. Every one that sur-

vives a round of spraying will pass on its resistance to its descendants, and come back to bother you next year. The survivors will also pollinate each other, producing even stronger strains. Hall admitted this may require manually removing the last few plants but she insisted the effort will be more than worth it.

3. Use full rates of glyphosate Because glyphosate has been so effective many farmers have felt they can use less than the recommended amount per acre.

After all, spraying at less than full concentrations kills most weeds, enough to prevent major nutrient losses in crops, so lighter spraying has seemed to be effective while also saving money. Luckily immunity to glyphosate is still only partial, a tolerance rather than a true (total) resistance, so it can be overwhelmed by a sufficiently strong spraying. This means you need to use the full recommended rate (and possibly more if there are resistant weeds in your field).

4. End nozzle rate reduction Late in a session of spraying, particularly as you reach the edges of your field, your tanks will be running low and the pressure coming out of the nozzle will be reduced.

This means, Hall said, each plant in those areas gets less glyphosate.

It will be time consuming to go back to the shed and top up the tanks with more herbicide, but Hall says it will save aggravation in years to come.

5. Spray field edges Glyphosate-resistant kochia can live around the borders of a field, and drifting spray can increase these border dwellers resistance each generation. These kochia plants, being outside of your regular spray path, can then plant their seeds back on your field. Hall recommends spraying the borders of your field when you lay down each herbicide application to stamp out these protected zones.

6. Use tank mixes

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Hall repeatedly emphasized that too many farmers are spraying only glyphosate on their fields rather than using tank mixes. This saves money, but at the cost of boosting glyphosate resistance.

She called upon all farmers to make weed surveys of their field, identifying what is growing and picking secondary herbicides to mix with their glyphosate that target those weeds specifically.

These practices will not only help combat the spread of glyphosate-resistant kochia, they will also help to stop the creeping resistance in a number of other weeds Hall and her colleagues are watching, including wild oat, green foxtail, cleavers and annual sowthistle. † Michael Flood (www.michael-flood.com) is a business writer and columnist. You can reach him at michael@michael-flood.com.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

13

Features Crop varieties

New fababean varieties coming New varieties of fababeans are being evaluated in AARD variety tests

By Melanie Epp

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Variety trials After being suspended for five years due to a lack of mar-

per cent lower than the check Snowbird (three year summary 2009 to 2011) and 15 per cent lower in the 2013 Regional Variety Trials (one year data).

“Farmers may grow any one of those varieties dependent on end use or market, so suggesting one over another showing more or less promise isn’t something one can do,” says Olson. “You have to let the buyers decide.”

At present, Snowbird makes up close to 80 per cent of the market. While there are new varieties in the pipeline, Olson says they’re not ready yet. The seed multiplication process, he says, does take some time. †

photo: mark olson

In 2013 and 2014, Regional Variety Trials (RVTs) were conducted for Melanie Epp is a freelance farm writer based Trim: 8.125” fababean in Alberta. This photo was taken at Morinville, Alta., in 2014. in Guelph, Ont.

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lberta Agriculture and Rural Development (AARD) has AARD has a unique business model — they work with breeders from both private and government organizations in Canada and overseas. Now, they’re evaluating fababean varieties to see which ones have the best fit under Alberta’s conditions.

Mark Olson, unit head, pulse crops, has been working closely with collaborators, like professor Bert Vandenberg of the University of Saskatchewan Crop Development Centre. “While Bert is a partner in our screening of germplasm research, our project is unique in that we are working with multiple breeders,” says Olson.

Breeders are primarily looking for high yield and early maturity.

“Large seed size, as well as the tannin types, are generally preferred, especially for the human consumption market, although, low tannin have been making their way into this market as well,” says Olson.

Since 2004, annual insured acreage of fababean in Alberta has increased from 2,757 acres to an estimated 20,669 acres. Why are fababeans making a return now? “Fababean is the highest nitrogen fixing annual grain legume globally, fixing upwards of 90 per cent of its own nitrogen fertilizer requirements,” explains Olson. “This lowers the carbon footprint not only in the year in which producers grow the fababean crop, but also of the entire cropping system.”

Older varieties are less desirable, since they mature too late, making them suitable only for biomass or silage. The seed would also suffer frost damage, which is also undesirable. On top of that, Olson says that markets two to three years ago were unsuitable. That’s all changed now, though.

“The markets for tannin types are Middle Eastern countries such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates,” says Olson. “As well, a large amount of low tannin fababean is going into the domestic feed markets for hogs as a replacement for both soybean and field pea.”

New varieties are bred using traditional or classical breeding techniques, which starts with crossing two parents with desirable traits and selecting progeny that displays trade traits uniformly over a number of generations.

“Like all true pulse crops in Canada, excluding soybean, which is considered an oilseed, fababean is non-GMO,” says Olson.

Once developed, the new varieties need to be tested under field conditions. Before that, though, there’s a lengthy process of selecting varieties with the desired attributes. It could be as long as 10 to 12 years before farmers have the varieties for use, says Olson.

kets and a lack of new varieties being registered, Regional Variety Trials (RVTs) were conducted for fababean in Alberta in 2013 and 2014. These are post-registration, commercialization trials, says Olson. RVTs look at the adaptability of the varieties in different areas of the province. Yield, maturity, seed size and the presence or absence of tannin in the seed coat are the characteristics listed in the RVT results.

So far, only a few varieties have been tested, including Snowdrop and Tabasco.

Snowdrop (FB 34-2), a white flowered, zero tannin fababean, was developed by Vandenberg.

In 2013, yield in co-ops was 10

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Farm management

Get to successful succession These five habits could help your family through the farm succession minefield

By Michael Flood

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r. John Fast, a business planning consultant, bills himself as “The Family Business Doctor.” Judging from the size of the crowd at his talk at this year’s FarmTech Exhibition in Edmonton, lots of farmers are seeking his prescriptions.

His presentation, “The Ultimate Management Challenge: Succeeding At Succession,” addressed one of the most difficult parts of running a family farm: planning to transition ownership. While 99.9 per cent of farm businesses in Canada are family owned only 30 per cent of are passed down to the second

generation, 15 per cent make it to the third, and only five per cent make it to the fourth.

The issues are not legal or financial. The real issues, he said, are relationships. Unresolved conflicts destroy family businesses.

To make transitions easier Fast recommended five habits for families to cultivate.

1. Define a common vision of success The first thing Fast asks his clients to do is to come up with a common vision of what a successful transition looks like. It doesn’t need to be anything grand like the vision statement

of a corporation. What it has to be is common: everyone has to be on board for it to succeed.

One family he helped had their vision of success defined by their mother: “Everyone is happy to come for Christmas dinner every year.” That is, a succession where everyone is still on speaking terms. He recommended making a habit of discussing and refining the common vision, ideally years before the retirement of the owners.

2. Avoid role confusion Family businesses, Fast said, face a lot of complexity. On a family farm where multiple siblings work along with the par-

ents you often have situations where someone is both a father and a manager, or where one sibling can be the de facto boss of another. This can lead to hurt feelings because impersonal business decisions can feel like personal snubs.

Fast gave the example of a family where the father decided that the fourth son of six would be head of the family farm, which was shocking news to the eldest.

That painful situation, Fast said, could have been avoided if the father had come to his sons as a father to discuss what he felt was best for the farm before making a pronouncement as a manager, rather than confusing everyone by mingling the two roles.

3. Respect people’s choices One major roadblock in succession planning, Fast said, is failure to respect each others choices. This is one of the key sources of resentment in families, particularly towards siblings who left the farm and now when succession is being discussed, expect a part of the business. The failure of respect is mutual — the sibling who left does not appreciate that they made a decision that involves a sacrifice, and the others do not appreciate that the sibling is still family and, while not necessarily entitled to a share, needs to be part of the discussions about succession. These conversations, like all the others, have to start early.

4. Prepare your founder for transition

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A founder’s inability to let go is a problem in every type of business, Fast said, but it’s a huge problem on family farms.

Retirement means giving up control and that can be very hard for someone who has worked their entire life building a successful business. They can worry that their children will screw things up. Worse, they can fear that their children will be more successful than they were.

Start making a habit, right now To successfully transition the founder to retirement, Fast recommends encouraging them to cultivate hobbies outside of work long before retirement. He also recommends preserving an office for them to give them some place to go, to feel that they’re not completely out of the loop.

Finally, he says that they need to be encouraged to see their children’s success as their own: it’s proof that you raised them well.

5. Build trust through communication

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Ultimately, Fast said, good relationships come down to good communication. The ultimate habit, he said, the one that embraces all the other four, is making a habit of communicating with your family what you believe and feel.

It is not conflict, he said, that kills people or makes them ill with stress — it is suppressing conflict from fear. This means that conflicts can be buried so long that they will blow up and hurt everyone when they come out when they could have been successfully addressed years before. All members of the family need to start making a habit, right now, of being open with one another about how they feel and what they think about the farm and about succession before it becomes an issue. † Michael Flood (www.michael-flood.com) is a business writer and columnist. You can reach him at michael@michael-flood.com.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

15

Features Crop production

Fender XTender keeps mud down This bolt-on addition to tractor fenders keeps mud off wide sprayer tires

By Michael Flood

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Michael Flood (www.michael-flood.com) is a business writer and columnist. You can reach him at michael@michael-flood.com.

B:8.125” T:8.125” S:8.125”

photos: eric gray

Fender XTender is a bolt-on addition to sprayer fenders that covers the wider tires and stops the mud from being kicked up. Gray is proud of how local this company is.

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ud can be a huge problem on farm equipment.

In spraying season, mud can be especially problematic: it damages sprayer nozzles, contributes to corrosion and rust and requires a lot of downtime for washing equipment. Mud can also be dangerous to your crop — pathogens like clubroot can spread from field to field in a glob of mud.

To get sprayers into wet fields, you need wider tires. Those wider tires kick up a lot more mud even at slow speeds.

This wouldn’t be so bad if the sprayer fenders weren’t made only for the slim (dry weather) size of tire, allowing a gap where mud flies free and can collect.

You can buy wide fenders, but they’re expensive, and it takes a long time to install them and remove them.

Where an average farmer sees only a problem an enterprising farmer sees an opportunity.

One of those enterprising farmers is Eric Gray of Indian Head, Saskatchewan. Eric manufactures the FenderXTender (www.fenderxtender.ca), a bolt-on addition to sprayer fenders that covers the wider tires and stops the mud from being kicked up. They are made of durable polyurethane they do not rust, and can be stacked easily when they aren’t needed. Gray has also made sure they install easily; you won’t need to modify the fenders provided by your manufacturer.

They not only install easily, but uninstall just as easily when you switch back to narrow sprayer tires. This means you don’t need to worry about the wide fenders knocking the tops off of your growing crop.

Gray came up with the idea after a few particularly frustrating days spraying his fields. With the heavy rain they had been experiencing, maintenance and cleaning was taking up more and more of his time. “It was getting to the point where I had to clean off my sprayer with a shovel every day,” he says. He searched the Internet looking for a wide fender solution but could not find one.

Realizing that no convenient solution existed Gray decided to create his own. “I called my Dad about this idea I had and he said, ‘Yeah, I think you’re on to something.’”

Working with his father, Gray came up with a prototype FenderXTender close to the current design. After testing it on his field they were both impressed by how well it worked and how much it shortened cleaning time and decided to take it to market.

They sold the first few units to neighbours and, after a year testing prototypes, officially launched it at the Farm Progress Show in Regina, winning Runner-Up in the New Invention Category. They have been taking it around to farm shows all winter and now dealers have started to come to them asking to carry it.

Gray is proud of how local the company is: the FenderXTender’s plastic parts are made in Saskatoon, the metal pieces are laser cut in

Regina, and a welder in Indian Head assembles the final units. It’s also a family company: “My Mom is a retired school teacher and I recruited her to help out at the farm shows and my Dad comes to help out with the engineering.

And I have an aunt that is the chief financial officer for the company.”

You can catch Gray at major agriculture technology exhibitions this year. With wet weather likely to be common for the foreseeable future, and clubroot a growing concern across the Prairies, Gray and his FenderXTender are likely to find a lot of business for years to come. †

16

/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Features Farm management

New tool measures sustainability Demand for “field print” calculations is on the rise

By Rebecca Hannam

tool that is focused on output data and sustainability metrics n e r g y c o n s u m p t i o n , that are quantitative in nature,” land use, erosion and says Tremorin, who has been climate impact are key working on development for the to environmental man- last four years. agement. Consumers and food He says producers in Manitoba, retailers are now demanding this Saskatchewan and Alberta have type of information. But how do successfully piloted the tool in you measure your efficiency? A 500 fields covering over 80,000 new calculator can help. acres and are continuing to Denis Tremorin, director of expand the project. sustainability at Pulse Canada, D’Arcy Hilgartner, a grain, is the driving force behind the oilseed and pulse producer from Canadian Field Print Calculator Camrose, Alberta is a participant project and says the tool is simi- and says that he is proud of lar to household resources that how sustainable his operation is would measure a family’s carbon but is seeing increased demand footprint. from buyers and consumers to “We’ve FBC-JuniorAds.pdf made the calculator an prove it.

1 09/02/2015 12:44:44 PM easy-to-use Microsoft Excel-based “Just saying that we are doing

E

a good job isn’t cutting it and that’s where projects like this come in,” he says. “The calculator highlighted areas of our operation where we are doing well such as soil heath, water and biodiversity.

Tremorin says there is growing market demand for findings like Hilgartner’s as many retailers announce new policies about sourcing sustainable products.

Kellogg Company, for example, recently published a commitment to responsibly source their top 10 ingredients and materials by 2020. The company’s list of priorities for agricultural suppliers — resilience to climate change, optimization of fertilizer inputs, improvement of soil health and

more — closely match the metrics provided by the tool.

“General Mills, Inc. has seen the calculator and is interested in an in-depth pilot project with oat growers who they purchase from so we will be working together with them in Western Canada,” says Tremorin.

Using the tool Calculator users need to complete an initial data input of equipment used, farm locations and field details such as soil type, tillage practices and drainage.

The majority of the input is then required as practices like seeding, fertilizer and pesticide application and harvest are completed.

“When growers provide their records of each activity, equipment used and hours operated to our consultant, they receive individual field performance reports based on five indicators — land use efficiency, soil erosion risk, energy use, climate impact and soil carbon release,” explains Tremorin.

The functions of the tool are closely based on another resource available in the United States through Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture. Tremorin says this group is working successfully with Unilever and other large companies to share data.

Hilgartner says that he did not find the data collection process to be too onerous, which is key for more growers to participate.

Tremorin notes that the pilot project has allowed for refining of the tool which could lead to partnerships with farm management companies to combine the calculator with existing software farmers may be using.

Farmers need to have a set of measurements

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The output reports allow users to monitor improvements and compare management scenarios on their own farms but also compare their sustainability scores to regional averages.

Tremorin sees the output report as a way for growers to know their environmental impact and share information in support of their production methods. “We are realizing that food companies want to understand the agricultural production side and we are working with impact metrics because we want to change the discussion along the food supply chain.”

Hilgartner, a director of the Alberta Pulse Growers, says that if the market is looking to know how products are being produced, farmers need to have a set of measurements to back up their position.

“I have a fear that multiple markets will develop individual sustainability programs with different criteria, different reporting and little producer benefit,” he explains. “We need to stay at the forefront of the creation of these programs to develop one common practice which requires information that is already being collected.”

Tremorin agrees and says he is focusing on the data to reduce overall impact scores through the innovation of farmers, as opposed to purchasers demanding what specific practices are used in the field.

“The goal now is to get the word out and increase distribution,” says Tremorin. Interested farmers are encouraged to contact Pulse Canada or visit www. serecon.ca/calculator. † Rebecca Hannam is a freelance agricultural writer based in Fergus, Ont. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccahannam.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

17

Features Crop protection

Mulch-based weed control Using mulch as a weed control strategy isn’t just for organic growers anymore

By Julienne Isaacs

A

s conventional farmers search for a wider variety of tools to control hard-to-kill weeds, a Manitoba research has found that mulches may help.

Martin Entz, a researcher at the University of Manitoba’s Plant Sciences Department, has led or participated in several recent studies of weed control through the use of mulch.

“One of the first things farmers need to ask themselves is, ‘How am I going to achieve my mulch?’ Do you grow a plant specifically to create a suppressive mulch? Do you use straw?

Do you use chaff? What are the possibilities there? It’s a new idea for farmers,” Entz says.

“The two main ways we’ve thought of is to grow a cover crop that suppresses the weeds after the main crop is harvested, or to use the economic crop residue to create the mulch, or to use a combination of the two.”

One study, led by PhD student Caroline Halde, looked at the use of hairy vetch and barley to create mulch in organic no-till systems. In the first year, hairy vetch and barley were grown as green manure. In the second year, flax or spring wheat was seeded directly into the mulch.

“Cover crop mulches with hairy vetch were effective at reducing weeds biomass by 50 per cent to 90 per cent in the no-till spring wheat, in 2011 and 2012, compared to other mulches,” the study found.

But cover cropping is not a onesize-fits-all strategy for weed control, Entz warns.

One study he participated in calculated the availability of late season heat and water resources across 21 sites in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta for relay and double cropping with winter wheat.

“If you look at Lacombe in our data, there are some limitations there in terms of whether you’re going to get much late season harvest,” he says. “If you look at Swift Current, Lethbridge or the southern prairies — there you’ve got way more potential.”

In short growing season regions, growers need to carefully select the most effective cover crop.

Cereal straw residue mulch Entz and his team have also looked at cereal straw residue mulch. “The idea with that project was to use a stripper header that strips the oats while leaving the straw standing,” Entz explains.

“Our idea was to use the existing plant as the mulch, and seed some cover crops into that wheat to supplement the biomass.”

Stripper-header straw results in 30 to 80 per cent more straw biomass in late fall compared to chopped straw, according to the study.

Entz says this method does not allow growers to eliminate herbicide use, but “buys growers time” by reducing the growth of weeds

in the fall and reducing new weed infestation over time.

Another benefit of the mulch is that it conserves water, he says, pointing to a body of research conducted at Agriculture Canada’s Semiarid Prairie Agricultural Research Centre in Swift Current, Sask. Herb Cutforth, an agrometerologist and soil physicist at the Centre, published a study in 2011 analyzing the effects of extra-tall stubble on crop yield.

“Generally, compared with cultivated stubble, extra-tall stubble increased yield by about 17 per cent,” write the authors. They conclude, “Crop yield and the overall average water use efficiency increased linearly as stubble height increased to 45 cm.”

One downside of using the stripper-header, Entz says, is that crop residues were pushed down when the researchers used a blade roller, which resulted in insulated soil temperatures to the point where crop development slowed the following year. Entz says recent research in Switzerland and France indicates that the mulch is just as effective when the material is left standing.

Residue managers are commercially available that can remove mulch where growers are seeding, so that the field warms in a more typical fashion and plant emergence is rapid. † Julienne Isaacs is a Winnipeg-based freelance writer and editor. Contact her at julienne. isaacs@gmail.com.

It reduces weeds, which reduces reliance on herbicides Entz says the team is still perfecting the hairy vetch system, but many farmers have adopted this method with good results. “What we’ve established with the hairy vetch system is that it’s possible to grow one or two no-till crops without using herbicides, if you take a year off,” Entz says.

Another study has looked at fall-seeded cover cropping, or post-harvest cover cropping. “If you get cover crops planted after your barley, winter wheat or even canola crop, they’re very helpful for weed control,” Entz says.

“Again, it doesn’t eliminate the need for herbicides, but it reduces weeds, which reduces reliance on herbicides.”

A research team led by University of Manitoba PhD candidate Harun Cicek looked at the productivity and nitrogen benefits of late-season legume cover crops in organic wheat. The crops were grown alongside or after the cash crop in the same growing season.

“We conclude that late-season cover crops enhance the following wheat yield and facilitate reduced tillage in organic crop production,” write the authors.

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Features Farm management

Young Peace farmer This 26-year old woman is growing her herd in B.C.

By Stephanie Grace

T

o Brittany Enns, a 26-year old Peace Country farmer, the hard work, dedication and attention to detail that come with an agricultural lifestyle are nothing new. Farming is in her blood on both sides of her family.

Moving from Carrot River, Saskatchewan to B.C.’s Peace Country in 1986, Brittany’s parents Walter and Dolores Enns started Creek Bank Farms and have grown their business into a diverse farming operation that encompasses grains, oilseeds, pulses, turf grass seed, forage seed, silage and hay as well as a herd of bison.

Today, Creek Bank Farms is a familyrun operation that consists of Walter and Dolores, Charissa (and her daughter Maddie), Brittany and twins, Jeffrey and Bailey as well as one full-time employee and seasonal workers. In 2010, Brittany Enns started her own herd of beef cattle (together with her sister, Bailey). Enns felt the need to have something of her own. She says, “I really do love working with cattle and I saw an opportunity to start a herd.” The family has since scaled back the bison herd and it appears as if the cattle may begin to play a larger part in the future.

Enns says her favourite part of being involved in agriculture is the diversity she can experience on a daily basis. After receiving her agricultural business diploma from Olds College in 2009, Enns returned to the family farm and became more involved than ever.

She says, “While going through college, my plan was to continue with buffalo. I believe there are major opportunities in the bison industry, even more so than beef. I am still very involved with the buffalo, but the beef are easier for me to handle and man-

age. There is less risk [with cattle], but also less opportunity for market development.”

Enns has also become very involved in all aspects of the family farm: GPS programming, operating the drill during seeding, running harvesting equipment and everything in between.

Starting the herd Enns started her herd by choosing the best heifers from two local producers and has grown the herd (together with Bailey and their mom, Dolores) to approximately 100 head of young, quality commercial cattle.

The herd mainly consists of Black Angus cows that are crossed with black Simmental bulls to get a little extra growth without sacrificing efficiency. On heifers, they use Angus bulls for calving ease.

Last year, Enns used artificial insemination (A.I.) to breed a handful of their best cows, performing this task herself after a brief refresher from a local producer. Enns says, “I believe A.I. is a fantastic, economical way of improving a cowherd. Besides not having the risk of a bull going lame during breeding season and the cost of feed, it provides access to genetics that I otherwise could only dream of owning. Synchronizing can also help shorten a calving season to a few weeks, rather than a month and a half.” In the future, Enns plans to A.I. most, if not all of her herd.

Farm life can get busy, especially in spring when both the bison and cattle are calving and seeding is happening. Bison are unlikely to have problems calving, but cattle can be a different story. Bailey (who finished high school in 2014) is largely responsible for the cows during calving as Brittany Enns and Jeff operate the drill, so one of the main focuses in developing the herd is, “maintaining troublefree calving. This means calves need to be

born on their own, get up and suck without any help. Calving ease, especially in heifers, good udders and longevity are all essential.”

After the calves are weaned, they are typically backgrounded before being sold sometime around February or March, depending on market trends. Typically, feed is stockpiled in order to keep options open. By having excess feed on hand, Enns is able to hold her animals back if the market is suddenly lower than expected, or sell earlier if an opportunity arises.

Calves are fed a ration of silage, grain and dry hay until they are sold, which gives an opportunity to find the most efficient animals. Enns firmly believes in the value of keeping accurate records in order to determine feed efficiency and average daily gains in their livestock. Enns says, “In the end, more pounds means extra money in the bank, so the more feed efficient an animal is, the better. With record high cattle prices, I believe one of the main focuses on a lot of farms will be to have more pounds to sell when it comes time to market, so feed conversions and efficiency is a major factor we consider when selecting breeding stock in both the bison and cattle.”

Enns raises a handful of her best bull calves to market to local producers, but in the future, she plans to begin raising purebred black Simmental cattle and has considered embryo transplant as a means of herd improvement.

She says, “This would allow me to begin with the best available genetics and build my purebred herd from there. One issue with this is how far away from a major market I am.”

Owning and finishing bison has taught Enns a number of lessons. She says, “Cattle and buffalo are stressed in the same ways.

With beef, it’s just not as noticeable. For example, when feeding buffalo in the feedlot, we would move and divide a group

Brittany Enns into two separate pens and just the stress of sorting and moving into a new pen caused them to cut back on feed to half their normal ration for a week. Experiences like this have shown me how much stress actually affects profits. Every time animals are stressed, you are losing money, whether that stress causes them to back off feed, not gain as well or get sick.”

From her father, Enns has learned to keep her options open and consider everything with an open mind. She is not shy about “talking to other producers about their management practices or doing research and some experimenting to find out what works for our operation.” Seeking to understand, learn and improve is a way of life for Enns, a value she is not likely to abandon in the future.

Author’s note: Although I write under the pen name Stephanie Grace, I am in fact the Charissa Enns mentioned in this article, sister to Brittany Enns. † Stephanie Grace is a writer and student from B.C.’s Peace River country. For more from Stephanie or to contact her, please visit her website at www.stephaniegrace.org.

Crop research

Genome mapping done faster Faster gene mapping will help wheat breeders develop new wheat varieties more quickly

By Leeann Minogue

T

he Israeli research company NRGene has broken new ground when it comes to speed in mapping maize genomes.

It used to take months, or even years to map a complete genome. Now, NRGene has mapped five maize genomes in just five weeks.

Guy Kol is one of the company’s founders, and its vice-pres-

ident of research and development. He describes the process they use as “transforming the information from a molecule to computer text.”

“Imagine a 3.3-billion letter book that has been given to you,” he explained, trying to simplify the process for a nonscientist. “We build the book; we make it readable.”

For farmers, this means that wheat breeders now have faster access to much better informa-

tion. Breeding wheat, Kol says, “or any other crop for that matter, involves actually combining wheat varieties together.”

Breeders use genomic data to decide which varieties to cross.

“It takes a long time and a lot of money,” to try different options.

Now, breeders can select specific parts of the genome from the “mother” plant and other parts from the “father,” with better information about what traits these parts might bring.

“Wheat’s genome is very big, and hexapolid,” Kol says. “That makes it very difficult to follow and understand.” Because of this, wheat breeding is slow, and prone to errors. Better information about the genome, he says, will “make breeding faster and more accurate.” This should ultimately mean better wheat varieties at the farm level.

This genetic information is not necessarily associated with genetic modification, Kol says.

“As long as you’re crossing lines from the same organism,” in this case, types of wheat, “that’s called breeding.”

NRGene sells the service of genomic mapping and/or its software to academics as well as large seed breeding companies. Kol is excited about his job, and his company’s ability to use sophisticated technology and “turn it into something very, very useful to humanity.” † Leeann Minogue is the editor of Grainews.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

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Features Crop protection

Fighting myths about ag chemicals The ag conversation includes many misunderstandings and dangerous myths

By Michael Flood

D

r. Joe Schwarz, director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society (OSS) is a chemist by training and a science popularizer by profession.

The OSS works to promote scientific literacy among the general public and combat dangerous myths and misunderstandings.

This year Dr. Schwarz brought his message to the attendees at FarmTech 2015 in Edmonton, warning them about the deep misperceptions about agricultural chemicals that are being spread by the media, organic food promoters and “experts” with no credentials.

The major problem, Schwarz said, is that the public conversation about food, health and agriculture has become dominated by quacks — people purveying pseudoscientific nonsense to scare the public.

Farmers, governments, and agriculture companies have become complacent, he said, trusting that the public thought well of them and could sort out nonsense from sense, science from pseudoscience. Regrettably, this is not the case. Not only is misinformation about science becoming more widespread it is growing so widespread it could have a serious impact on how farmers grow their food by promoting legislation for regulating industry that is not sciencebased, with long-term impacts on both farm viability and consumer nutrition.

The word “chemical”

we do not know. Long-term effects are very difficult to study.

What we are able to determine is that the chemicals we use have not led to any notable increases

The media are no help

scaremongers are asking science to do the impossible: to prove that harmful effects absolutely cannot happen. This cannot be done — it is always possible, in principle, for any scientific finding to be overturned. It will be tricky, Schwarz said, but we need to educate the public about how scientists and regulators judge risks against benefits.

The need for in human mortality, and have chemical agriculture in fact been introduced at a time One important thing to remind when human life expectancy continues to grow year after year. consumers, Schwarz said, is that If they do have a negative effect, the adoption of fertilizers, pestiit is one cancelled out by the cides, fungicides, and herbicides B:8.125” was not a purely profit seeking benefits of having access to plenactivity. It was necessary. To grow tiful nutritious food year round.T:8.125” Effectively the quacks and enough food to feed the world’s S:8.125”

growing population requires continuously increasing crop yields.

That is not possible without agricultural chemicals to improve plant nutrition and prevent losses from fungi, weeds and insects.

Schwarz concluded by reminding his audience (and asking them to remind others) that “chemicals are to be neither worshipped nor feared; they are to be understood.” Through a sustained effort by every part of the agricultural industry, from large companies down to small farmers, we can begin to change the tide of public opinion away from the quacks and towards sound science. † Michael Flood (www.michael-flood.com) is a business writer and columnist. You can reach him at michael@michael-flood.com.

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In Schwarz’s opinion the most damaging effects of this misinformation has been the demonization of the word “chemical.”

He showed slide after slide of organic food stands and advertisements advertising “chemical free” produce. The media are no help: they prefer “man bites dog” stories where people were harmed by chemicals over the countless stories of food made safer and more nutritious with chemical inputs like fertilizers and pesticides.

Numerous online bloggers, lacking any scientific credentials at all, have frightened many consumers into the belief that “if you can’t pronounce it, it’s not food.” Schwarz showed the silliness of this by presenting a list of the chemical compounds present in organic apples, which included acetone, formaldehyde and isopropanol (rubbing alcohol). That might sound scary, he said, but asked the audience to always keep in mind the saying of Paracelsus, the 16th century alchemist and one of the founders of modern chemistry: “only the dose makes the poison.” Tiny amounts of chemicals that are lethal in large amounts have no known effects on human health.

All the chemicals in common use in agriculture, from herbicides and pesticides to preservatives and ripeness promoters, have been approved by Health

Canada and other regulatory agencies; they have been extensively tested to ensure they are safe for human consumption.

They are safe at levels far above the trace amounts that make it onto the average Canadian’s dinner plate.

The quacks and misinformed citizens respond to these facts (when they don’t claim all the research is biased towards the agrichemical companies) by demanding to know about the long term effects of those trace amounts. A few micrograms here or there of glyphosate may be harmless, they say, but what about a few micrograms per day over a lifetime? Couldn’t that cause cancer or other illnesses?

The fact, Schwarz said, is that

20

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Features Farm management

Farm couple creates agro-tourism John Coté and Barb Stefanyshyn-Coté sold their farm and moved into flowers

By Edna Manning

their market and are now supplying some florists and wholesalers.

W

hen John Coté and Barb StefanyshynCoté sold their 3,000 acre grain farm near Leask, Sask., four years ago, they had several prerequisites in mind for their next endeavor.

“First, we wanted to do something that would get us working directly with the customer. We enjoy that interaction with people.

Secondarily, no matter what we did, it had to be fun,” says Barb.

They had options. John and Barb are both professional agrologists.

Barb received the Outstanding Young Agrologist award from the Saskatchewan and Canadian Institute of Agrologists. She and John were Saskatchewan and Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers in 2001.

Early in 2010 they sold the farm and in August of that year purchased 80 acres along Valley Road southwest of Saskatoon. The Valley Road area already had a number of established businesses, which were drawing traffic. And they would be close to markets and family in the city.

The first couple of years the Cotés tried growing corn. “In 2012, we planted five acres of corn

the challenges

Now John Coté and Barb Stefanyshyn-Coté are constructing a distillery. and got hit with corn borer which made it unsalable. We ended up mowing it down and turning it back into the soil,” says Barb.

The idea for a flower farm dawned on her during the winter.

“I started thinking about the fact that there were very few cut flower growers in the province. I knew of only one other grower and they live 40 miles away.”

“Who doesn’t love flowers?” she says.

In the spring, Barb went to a local seed shop and purchased every package of flower seed that would produce flowers taller than 12 inches. “That was all I knew

about the cut flower industry — they like long stems.”

The transition from grain to flowers has been a steep learning curve. “When we were grain farming, we had five varieties — wheat, barley, canola, peas, oats and maybe flax. And if you needed help, there’s information that’s been accumulated for years and it’s readily available.

“In the flower industry, I’m now growing close to 200 varieties, and they’re all different.”

The Cotés grow annual and perennial flowers, bulbs, and ornamental grains and grasses on about five acres. They’re building

They have faced several challenges. “Much of it was knowledge — learning what works, what doesn’t, such as choosing which varieties are best suited to our climate. Time to experiment was another challenge.

“Locating markets has also been interesting. Florists have their established markets and supply chains.

Am I going to be consistent?

Consistency is a tough thing for this sort of business because we’re working with Mother Nature.”

Two orchards with approximately 6,000 raspberry and 4,000 haskap bushes will come into production in 2015. The fruit will also be sold fresh directly to consumers with the remainder to be used for liqueurs.

The construction of a distillery (Black Fox Spirits) began in late 2012 and will be open and in production in spring 2015. It will be the third in the province and the only on-farm distillery.

The Cotés will be growing the majority of what goes into producing their whisky, gin, vodka, and liqueurs. They also want to

experiment with different fruits, including pumpkins.

“We’re trying to establish an agro-tourism location. We want people to come out and see what it’s like to be out on the farm. With our distillery, we’d love to have people come and help us with the whole process — planting, taking care of the crop, harvesting, help us put the fruit in the mash tanks and bottling it off. Then they’ve had a hand in the entire process and can call it their own,” Barb says.

The couple’s four children have all been involved in the building of Tierra Del Sol. Their oldest, Joshua, is now studying agriculture engineering; Erin is studying agri-business. Morgan and Lyndon are in high school. “The children have been a huge help.”

The Cotés appreciate the support they’ve received from the community, including the Valley Road Association, a group of businesses that recently began working together to promote the area. “We see Valley Road as a destination for people from the city to come and spend some time checking out a variety of attractions.”

For more information about Tierra Del Sol, visit www.tdsfarms. biz or call 306-955-4645. † Edna Manning writes from Saskatoon, Sask.

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APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

21

Features Crop marketing

Soybeans lower cholesterol

By Leeann Minogue

choices,” says Soy 20/20’s CEO Jeff Schmalz in a press release. n March 18 Heath Canada “This decision by Health Canada opens approved the claim that con- up tremendous opportunity for growth in suming at least 25 grams of soy the Canadian soybean and soy food indusprotein per day helps lower tries, both domestically and internationcholesterol levels. ally,” he added. “The versatility of soy — “Soy has long been considered tofu, yogurts, cheeses, textured proteins, a healthy food option, but Health edamame — ends itself to endless uses for Canada’s acceptance of the science every lifestyle.” means that we can now include this This endorsement is the result of years information directly on packaging to of effort by Soy 20/20 and Agriculture and B:10.25” help consumers make healthy food Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on behalf of the

O photo: leeann minogue

Consuming at least 25 grams of soy protein per day helps lower cholesterol levels.

soy industry. Guelph-based Nutrasource, a contract research organization and consulting firm specializing in regulatory and scientific affairs, was also involved.

Nutrasource reviewed the scientific literature and prepared the food health claim submission for Health Canada.

“Health Canada’s process for accepting new therapeutic and disease risk reduction health claims for foods is among the most extensive and rigorous in the world,” said Nutrasource president and CEO, William Rowe. “The acceptance of this health claim is a testament to the strength of the scientific evidence supporting the cholesterol-lowering effect of soy.” † Leeann Minogue is the editor of Grainews.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Columns Soils and crops

Phosphorus: capital account We’ve greatly increased the spending from our capital accounts of phosphorus les henry

our spending rate (crop removal) on the capital account (total soil P).

“Spending” P from the soil account

I

n my March 10 column, we established that phosphorus fertilization comes down to simple arithmetic: If we haul more phosphorus off to the elevator than we put on in fertilizer or manure, the phosphorus (P) soil test will go down and with it the crop yield potential.

If we add more P than we haul away, over time, the soil test P will go up along with the crop yield potential.

Now we will look at the effect of

For crop removal (what we haul to the elevator) I will use the following rates: Wheat: 0.6 lbs. P2O5/bu.

Canola: 1.0 lbs. P2O5/bu.

Peas: 0.7 lbs. P2O5/bu.

Soybeans: 0.85 lbs. P2O5/bu.

Fababeans 1.1 lbs. P2O5/bu.

I am using a 12-year period to accommodate three cycles of a four-year rotation.

Numbers will be rounded — these are approximate numbers, and I don’t want to leave an impression of precision that is not there.

In the good old days, when the first phosphorus fertilizer recommendations were made, wheat was the crop, half summerfallow was common and yields were low.

A 30-bushel fallow wheat crop was considered great back on Brunswick farm at Milden, Sask., in the 1950s.

Using 0.6 lbs. P2O5/bu., a 30-bushel wheat crop would remove 18 bushels of P2O5 per acre.

With a wheat/summerfallow rotation, over 12 years there would be six crops, for a total of about 108 lbs. P2O5 per acre over the 12-year period, or about 10 lbs./acre/year.

T:11.5” But, fast forward to now. As an S:10.25” example, let’s take a four-year rotation: wheat, peas, wheat, canola.

In 12 years we will have six

wheat crops, three pea crops and three canola crops.

For yields we will use: wheat 50 bu./ac.; peas 50 bu./ac.; canola 40 bu./acre.

Many of you beat those yields often, so the number we come up with will be low for some areas and farms.

This scenario would remove about 405 lbs. of P2O5/acre or about 35 lbs. P2O5/acre/year.

Plug in higher yields that many now achieve and the “spending” can go higher.

In the early days I can remember being asked about the total P2O5 in soils and we gave a very general answer. “It is 2,500 lbs./ ac. in six inches, or more, and when we are taking off only a few

pounds per acre per year it is not an issue.” Not to be worried about for a few hundred years!

The capital account: what’s the total When we started to realize the much larger amounts of P being hauled off to the elevator I went looking for total soil P data. We have recently learned that in the long run fertilizer P use efficiency is high and in dry areas nitrogen can be more than 100 per cent.

At Scott, Sask., in the dark brown soil zone, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has a wheat field that has been in continuous wheat production for over 100 years with no input of manure or

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APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

23

Columns fertilizer. The field is still producing 15 or so bu./ac. of wheat each year. Now, we know that some nitrogen comes from rain and lightning and a bit of fixation by soil organisms all by themselves.

That explains the nitrogen. But what about P? In organic farming, nitrogen can be handled by including legumes in the rotation and some green manure crops. Green manuring is also a phosphorus fertilizer, but the P still all comes from the soil. Most organic farms rely on livestock and manure to maintain P in the long term. So the question arises as to how long the soil will continue to supply P. At the low yields of continuous wheat the removal is low but with legumes supplying nitrogen and better yields how long will the P last?

In conventional farming large nitrogen rates and other good agronomy has lead to much larger nutrient removal.

In looking for the answer about total soil phosphorus we soon realized: we really do not have a good database of total P data for soils of Western Canada.

When soil fertility work began it was soon learned that the total amount of a nutrient in a soil was not a predictor of the need for that nutrient in any given year. Some early soil survey reports had a table of data including total P for a good cross section of soils. It turns out that total P is a messy and time-consuming lab procedure so no total P data is in any modern soil survey report. Alberta soil survey reports have total soil P data up to the late 1950s, Saskatchewan to the 1950s. Early Manitoba soil reports did not have total P data.

But, the library is a great place and many journals are now available with a few mouse clicks so I have assembled my estimate of total P data for Canadian Prairie soils (see the table).

It is still all too common to see

Mind your Ps and Ks

upper subsoil can be much less than the topsoil.

We will be pushing for somebody at Scott to get a measure of the total P in the soil of that 100+ year wheat field.

I hope this little piece stirs up enough interest to encourage some work to get a better set of numbers than that provided here.

Stumbling around in the scientific literature from before even this old fossil was born is a bit sobering. There is a lot of U.S. literature from the 1940s and earlier that shows clearly that large P fertilizer rates lead to significant residual effects. In Eastern Seaboard states, a 1945 paper shows the balance between P fertilizer and crop removal by potatoes. Even then they were porking on as much three times crop removal — and it showed up in the soil tests of the day.

Now that so much of the older literature is so easily available there is no reason not to know about it.

APPROXIMATE TOTAL P In this table, total P is expressed as approximate pounds of P2O5 per acre per six inches of Canadian Prairie soil.

Soil

S:10”

Les Henry

Total lbs. P2O5/ac./six inches

Sandy brown/dark brown

1,600

Medium/heavy brown/dark brown

2,300

Medium texture black

3,400

Thick black clay (e.g. melfort)

4,100

Grey wooded

1,200

Parting Note: Manure In feedlot alley in Alberta there are quarter sections with 2,200 lbs. P 2O 5/ac. of available soil test P in the top six inches of soil. Who knows what the total is, but the soil test P is higher on those heavily manured soils than the total in similar soils without manure.

Once again I say: we need to find ways to make use of that excess P to the benefit of much

larger acreages. In 100 years folks will look back and wonder why such a valuable resource was not better utilized. † 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 second printing of “Henry’s Handbook of Soil and Water,” a book that mixes the basics and practical aspects of soil, fertilizer and farming.

Les will cover the shipping and GST for “Grainews” readers. Simply send a cheque for $50 to Henry Perspectives, 143 Tucker Cres., Saskatoon, Sask., S7H 3H7, and he will dispatch a signed book.

ENFORCER.

T:10.75”

P x 2.29 = P2O5 K x 1.21 = K2O It is becoming all too common to see slippage in the correct use of P versus P2O5 and K versus K2O. I have seen too many presentations lately stating that a farmer used 20 lbs./ac. of P, when I suspect s/he actually used 20 lbs. P2O5 per acre.

If 20 lbs. P/ac. are used that is: 20 x 2.29 = 45.8 lbs. P2O5/ acre — a very large error.

Most soil test labs report P as ppm and they mean P. To convert that to lbs./acre P it is multiplied by two; to convert to lbs./ac. P2O5 it is again multiplied by 2.29.

With K: the factor to convert K to K2O is only 1.21 so the error is not as big.

Be sure to know the units when calculating P fertilizer use.

If you want the complete explanation see page 32 of Henry’s Handbook of Soil and Water. It is a dumb confusing system that should have been changed decades ago. †

P and P2O5mixed up in various publications. Almost all field work on residual P gives the application rates in kilograms of P per hectare.

Many studies had rates up to 400 kg P/ha applied, which is equivalent to 1,568 lbs. of 11-52-0/acre. That is 356 lbs. P/acre, which equals 815 lbs. P2O5/acre. This is equivalent to 1,568 lbs. of 11-52-0/acre.

If the above numbers are divided by 10 — to go back to the “good old days” it is easy to see why we paid no attention to total P in the soil. But, if we divide the numbers by 30 or 40 some of the “weaker” soils would be a cause for concern.

In soil development the P ends up being moved by plants from the subsoil to the topsoil, so topsoil usually has higher levels.

The upper subsoil is somewhat depleted. In thick black soils like those at Melfort, Sask., there is almost as much P in the six- to 12-inch depth as in the zero- to six-inch depth, so supply is large there. But in “weaker” soils the

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24

/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Columns Kelly’s AgExpert Tips and Hints

AgExpert transaction entry Speed up AgExpert entry time: memorize transactions, print cheques, add notes Kelly Airey

W

e all look forward to getting our bookkeeping caught up so we can head outdoors when the snow melts! The key to keeping caught up is making data entry fast and simple.

Memorizing a transaction Memorizing a transaction is a great feature to use for recurring transactions such as monthly loan payments, bill payments or

bank charges. Adding a memorized transaction will create a template of the information in the transaction entry screen.

Once the template is created, then the next month you can simply load the transaction you memorized.

Every part of the transaction including transaction type, bank account, descriptions, and posting accounts are populated based on the template you saved. Be sure to change certain details if necessary such as the date, amount and reference number.

Hint: I recommend “memorizing” complex transactions such as deposits for grain sales with deductions. Since these transactions include numerous

lines for deductions, it can be very helpful to save a template to speed up data entry. You can also memorize a transaction that only happens once or twice a year, helpful if you’re worried about forgetting how you’ve done it before.

To add a memorized transaction: 1. Open the transaction entry screen, complete the screen as you normally would and make sure the transaction is balanced.

2. Before you record the transaction, on the bottom left side of screen, select the icon with the page and green plus symbol on it to open the add memorized transaction box.

3. Enter a name for the trans-

action, for example, “Monthly Phone Bill.”

4. Click “Save” to create a template, then click “Record.”

Next month, when you want to load the memorized transaction for the phone bill: 1. Open the transaction entry screen.

2. On the bottom left corner of the screen, click the icon with two pages it. This will open the memorized transaction box.

3. Select the transaction template you would like to load.

4. All the information loads into the transaction entry screen. Make the necessary changes such as date, reference number and amount.

5. Click record.

Calling all farmers We need your help to tell a story that directly affects your livelihood.

As farmers we need all of the tools in our tool box, be they aspects of conventional, or organic production. The use of GMO technology is one of those tools and we need your help to protect it.

KNOW GMO the MOVIE will be “an uplifting discussion about food” and is going to be a world-class, science-based documentary designed to show consumers what the words genetically modified actually mean. It will demonstrate how biotechnology is contributing to global food security, decreasing disease and conserving land, all in a sustainable manner. Filming across North America has already begun.

If you care about how the story of agriculture is being told, we need your support to make this movie a reality. Please go to www.knowGMOtheMovie.com to learn more and to donate.

Robert Saik PAg, CAC Executive Producer

“Fear sells and is easy to believe.

We made a mistake in not telling agriculture’s story.

We assumed people understood what farmers did” lorie farrell

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Donations are tax deductible through the Farm & Food Care Foundation (KNOW GMO MOVIE)

We need the help of farmers to tell the story. Please visit

www.knowGMOtheMovie.com to learn more and to donate.

Printing cheques Printing cheques from AgExpert allows you to pay bills and record the transaction at the same time.

To enable the option to print cheques: 1. Setup > Preferences > Optional Features Tab > Place a check mark in the “Print Cheques” box.

2. Click Save 3. Setup > Preferences > Cheques Tab 4. Select Printer. Here you can choose whether or not you’d like to print cheques right away or save them to print in a batch later.

5. Cheque designer: Click Add to add a new template and customize your cheques. When you’re done, click the “Print Test” button at bottom right side of screen to see how they look.

6. To purchase cheques, click on the blue link that will take you to the online community for suggested companies that supply compatible computerized cheques.

Printing Cheques immediately upon recording a transaction: 1. Setup > Preferences > Cheques > Place check in the box to “print Cheques immediately upon recording transaction.” Click Save.

2. In the transaction entry screen, enter your expense details.

The program will populate information into the top right corner of your screen that will be printed on the cheque. Under “memo,” type in anything you would normally write on a cheque. The cheque will print immediately.

Tip: If the cheque didn’t print for any reason, maybe the paper jammed, or you forgot to put the cheques in the paper tray (which I’ve done!), go to Transactions > Print Queue > Cheques, then place a check mark in the box at bottom left of screen to include items already printed. Select the cheque you want to re-print and click Print.

Hint” If you are entering an expense that you don’t need a cheque for, in the transaction entry screen, uncheck the box that says “Print Cheque For.” To place cheques in a queue for printing later: 1. Setup > Preferences > Cheques > Deselect the box to “Print Cheques immediately upon recording transaction.” Click Save.

2. Follow the steps above.

When you’re ready to print: go to Transactions > Print Queue > Cheques.

3. Place a check mark next to the cheques you want to print > Click Print.

Adding transaction notes To add more details about a transaction than the memo line can hold, click on the notes icon on the bottom left corner of screen with a page and pencil symbol.

Type your notes, click ok, then record the transaction. These notes can be viewed in the table view of the transaction report.

Reports > Reports Console > Transaction/Account Information > Transactions > Table View. † Kelly Airey is a producer and ag consultant in Western Manitoba. She offers software setups & training, and discounts on software purchases.

Contact Kelly at kelly.agconsulting@gmail.com or (204) 365-0136.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

25

Columns Reporter’s notebook

Cost cutting with technology Technology is moving at a pace we couldn’t have imagined. Can it help you?

By Lisa Guenther

I

f you’ve ever wondered what the future will be like, Jack Uldrich has the answer. It will feel like you’re sitting in a driverless car for the first time as the vehicle careens around pylons and executes high-speed turns.

In other words, a little nervewracking.

Uldrich, a futurist and author, showed us a video clip of an alarmed woman in a driverless car during his presentation at the Canola Council of Canada’s conference in Banff in early March.

As he outlined how technology is set to reshape our lives, the message seemed to be that, like it or not, things are changing.

Understanding the implications of new technology is crucial to thriving in the coming decades.

The pace of change over the last century has been incredible.

A while back, someone was telling me about fence phones in southwestern Saskatchewan. What’s a fence phone, you ask? Why, it’s a home-made phone line strung along a barbed-wired fence, in lieu of a fancy government phone line.

That was about 50 or 60 years ago.

When I was a kid, we had a party line. We had our own ring — I think it was two long and one short. I imagine party lines were great technology for people who liked to eavesdrop on their neighbours.

form carbon dioxide into either ethanol or biodiesel.

“I don’t know if this will necessarily scale, but if it does, it’s a game-changer because essentially carbon becomes a closed-loop system,” Uldrich said.

I used to write for Genome Alberta’s Livestock News and Views blog, so I know there’s no shortage of promising genetic research on everything from disease susceptibility to feed efficiency.

But don’t fall into the trap of thinking genomics always offer quick, easy solutions. When it comes to viral diseases, for example, an animal’s genetic vulnerability is rarely due to one region of the genome. Finding a chromosome that accounts for 10 per cent

of that susceptibility is a signifi- access to that data to manipulate markets and land values. cant discovery.

The same article mentioned The research is worth doing, but it still takes time and work to that Monsanto, John Deere and DuPont Pioneer had met with figure this stuff out.

Technology often offers both farm groups in the U.S. Together, benefits and risks. For example, they’ve set down principles stating agricultural companies ranging that farmers own their data, farmfrom John Deere to Monsanto ers should be told who the data is have purchased satellite and data shared with and how it’s used, and analytics companies. They’ll col- farmers should be able to get their lect and analyze data in their cus- data back and opt out of services.

The same conversation needs to tomers’ fields, and use that data to help farmers bump yields, cut happen in Canada. If it is happencosts, or otherwise improve pro- ing, and I’m out of the loop, send duction. me an email or tweet.

But some farmers are underUldrich suggested we all rememstandably skittish about this ber that what served us well in the idea. A Reuter’s story from last past might not work in the future.

November cited concerns about Producers should stay informed T:8.125” traders and land brokers getting about technology and reflect on

how it might affect their business, he told us. He suggested the free e-newsletters from MIT Technology Review. You can sign up at http://newsletters.technologyreview.com.

I’d also suggest thinking about what you want from all these gadgets. Do you want technology like Google’s driverless car, which will make all the driving decisions for you? Or do you want technology that gives you the tools to make better decisions yourself?

What are you willing to give up for these new tools and what’s too important to relinquish? † Lisa Guenther is a field editor with Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.Guenther@fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

Technology often offers both benefits and risks

T:10”

That was less than 30 years ago.

A century ago farmers were still using heavy horses to work fields.

When comparing the technology used on farms today, the contrast is staggering. And the pace of change isn’t slowing.

Most of you have probably heard of 3-D printers — handy little machines that allow you to create everything from plastic shoes to guns from the comfort of your home. But did you know a Minnesota company is using them to “print” combine parts?

It’s always hard to know exactly how this technology will roll out. Uldrich suggested farmers might be printing their own replacement parts. Maybe. Or maybe your local parts place or dealership will be able to print your parts on the spot, rather than ordering them in. Or maybe some farmers will use 3-D printers to customize their equipment or help launch their own machinery lines.

University of Georgia researchers are “tweaking” canola genes, Uldrich said, to turn it into a winter crop. And other researchers are sequencing bacteria genomes.

The idea is to stick the bacteria in a bioreactor that contains carbon dioxide from coal plants.

Depending on how their genes are tweaked, the bacteria would trans-

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26

/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Columns Open field

Taking on a new initiative Farming’s never stress free, but this new crop insurance program could help sarah weigum

A

lberta farmers: are your dreams of growing coriander stymied by the perils of farming without

insurance coverage? Would you try your luck with fields of clover if only there was a backstop in case of a drought or grasshopper invasion? Then the new crop insurance initiative (NCII) from Alberta’s Agricultural Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) is for you.

In all seriousness, coriander production probably wasn’t the driving force behind this new

program, but it will be eligible for coverage along with soybeans, dryland hemp seed, caraway, borage and several varieties of perennial seed, including brome grasses, wheat grass and common alfalfa and timothy.

Many of the crops covered under NCII are grown on small acreage and have access to straight hail insurance, but not multi-peril

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coverage. This program is AFSC’s answer to farmers who want to try growing new crops but also mitigate the risk involved.

Because AFSC lacks data yield data on these crops, coverage will be based on an average cost of production (includes: seed, seed treatment, herbicide, fertilizer, insecticide, fungicide and fuel) combined with a land opportunity cost.

Ken Handford, product development analyst with AFSC, describes the land opportunity cost as “analogous to a cash rent.”

“We look at the value of the land if [producers] were using it for another commodity,” explained B:17.7083” Handford. The land cost is based T:17.4583” on provincial data, not necessarily S:17.0833” what you’re paying for cash rent in a given year. Most crops covered

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

27

Columns

by NCII will also be eligible for the hail endorsement which is a significantly cheaper product than straight hail.

Where applicable, dryland and irrigated premiums and coverage will be determined separately to account for different management costs. For example, dryland soybeans will be eligible for up to $225 per acre with a premium of $8.89 and irrigated soybeans will be covered for $310 per acre at a cost of $5.36 per acre.

For producers to be eligible for NCII they need to have an active crop insurance contract on annual crops. NCII payouts will be based on the average loss producers have on all other annual crops covered by

traditional insurance. So if you grow wheat, barley, canola and soybeans and average 30 per cent loss on your wheat, barley and canola, you’re eligible for $67.50 per acre on your soybeans (30 per cent of $225).

Handford noted that coverage areas are limited for some crops.

For example, dryland soybeans are currently eligible for coverage in Township 50 and south (west of the fourth meridian only) and in the southern Peace region in risk areas 17, 18, and 19. Irrigated soybeans are covered in risk areas 2, 3, 4, 5 and 9.

Farmers must elect coverage under NCII by the usual AFSC deadline of April 30. Handford encouraged producers to speak to

their local branch office about the options and if the crop you want to grow isn’t on the list, don’t assume the door is closed.

“We will definitely take a good hard look at other commodities that producers are growing and if it makes sense to offer coverage then we will,” said Handford.

“From AFSCS’s point of view it gives us an avenue to get data on crops that we don’t have a lot of information on.”

As a producer accumulates farm data on a particular crop she will eventually be able to transition from provincial numbers to her individual records. If AFSC gathers enough information from across the risk areas, they may be able to

move a crop from NCII to traditional crop insurance.

“Irrigated hemp seed is one of the commodities that we are bringing into regular production insurance in 2015,” said Handford, explaining that some crops may never be grown widely enough to be given multi-peril insurance, while others may move into the mainstream coverage quite rapidly.

It is with some personal interest that I explored this new program.

We grow intermediate wheatgrass for seed and have not been eligible for crop insurance. I’m checking the details with my local branch.

John Kowalchuk farms near Rumsey, Alta. and plans to plant his first crop of soybeans in 2015.

He said he would have grown soybeans regardless of coverage, but appreciates the peace of mind that comes with the program.

“I think the biggest thing for me is shared risk,” said Kowalchuk.

“In the past the farmer took all the risk to test the viability of crops in new areas.”

Risk and reward: farmers need a balance of each. While insurance doesn’t add any weight to the reward side, it can reduce the burden on the risk side of the beam. Good on farmers and AFSC for working towards an equilibrium fitting of 21st century farming practices. † Sarah Weigum grows pedigreed seed and writes at Three Hills, Alta. Follow her on Twitter: @sweigum.

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S:11.4286”

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C-52-03/15-10287626-E

On July 20, 2014, Grainews columnist Les Henry’s grandchildren Olivia and Thomas Haidl took a good look at their grandfather’s crops on his farm near Dundurn, Saskatchewan.

28

/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Columns Understanding market bulls and bears

Understanding today’s basis It’s not always simple to calculate the true basis these days. Here’s an example Brian wittal

I

n my previous article I was remiss in detailing the fact that there are costs for freight, elevation and handling that must be accounted for within the wheat basis that the grain companies post.

To clarify a few things I am going to do a complete calculation of price, costs and basis levels starting with the price the grain is sold for at port, less all deductions back to the elevator net to the producer and see what we come up with.

The numbers For a port price I have gone to the Government of Canada website where I find the weekly price summary for grains sold at the West coast. On Feb. 20, 2015 the indicator price for No. 1 CWRS 13.5 per cent at the West Coast FOB (free on board the vessel) was $336.93/tonne ($9.16/bu.).

Now we must determine the costs involved for getting the wheat from the producer in to the elevator, then to the terminal and finally onto the vessel.

Next we go to the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) website where we can find the elevation and handling charges for all port and inland grain terminals and elevators. The most recent numbers are from December, 2014.

Between the various terminals at the Port of Vancouver the charges for receiving, elevation and loading out ranged from $9.50/t to $10.45/t. For easy math we will use an average of $10.00/t.

Cleaning costs ranged from $5.80 to $5.89/t so we will use an average of $5.85/t. CGC outward official inspection fees are $1.63/t. All total the costs at port to get the wheat unloaded from the railcars, cleaned inspected and reloaded onto the vessel are averaging $17.48/t. There are a number of other fees for special services depending on what may be required before the grain is loaded on a vessel but for this exercise we will assume no other costs are needed.

Next we need to determine the costs to get the wheat from the country elevator to the Port terminal — the basis the grain companies offer you. These costs would be freight, elevation and handling fees at the country elevator. Again, the fees charged vary among grain companies so I am going to use $53/t as an average of all the costs based on a facility at Lethbridge.

From all of this my math tells me that the costs to get wheat shipped from the country elevator to the port terminal and onto the vessel is $17.48/t + $53.00/t = $70.48/t total.

Now if we take the February FOB price of $336.93 and subtract $70.48 we end up with a price of $266.45/t ($7.25/b). This price should be a true market price at the country elevator because

we have accounted for all of the freight elevation and handling charges needed to get the grain from the country elevator onto the vessels at port.

The only thing we have not accounted for is any additional risk coverage or profit the grain companies may wish to take in this transaction. Those costs would have to be deducted from the $7.25/bu. price we had previously calculated.

Now, you could argue that the grain companies have already taken a profit in their handling fees so why should they take more profit? The answer: because they can. To be fair there are market risks and unforeseen risks such as demurrage and currency fluctuation that they could encounter from day to day and this is a way for them to help protect their business from the potential loss of profit they could face from those risks. So let’s figure out the rest of this equation.

Now we will take the elevator posted bid price that I used in my previous article —$6.15/by on Feb. 24, 2015, and subtract it from $7.25/bu. We have a difference of $1.10/bu. So in addition to getting paid to handle the grain, grain companies are taking an additional $1.10/bu. (15 per cent) for other risks and or pure profit.

Do they want to be competitive?

Now in comparison, the posted quote for No. 1 CWRS 14 per cent delivered to Sweetgrass, Montana, was the Minneapolis futures at US$5.68 plus a $0.15/bu. basis for a net delivered price of US$5.83/ bu. Multiply by 1.24 to convert to Canadian dollars and you have a price of $7.23/bu. Now we must adjust the price lower to be equal to a 13.5 per cent protein bid so let’s deduct $0.15/bu. for the additional half a per cent of protein which would bring the price to $7.08/bu., so we can compare apples to apples.

The costs to move grain from Lethbridge to the port of Vancouver ($53/t) are close to By jonny hawkins

Country Chuckles

“He brings home the bacon.”

what the costs would be to move grain from Sweetgrass to the ports of Portland ($44/t) so the net price offered to producers for delivery to those facilities should reflect only that difference between the costs at those two facilities. So now if we take the $10/t ($0.27/bu.) difference in costs and subtract that from the Sweetgrass bid price it should give us a more true price comparison. So: $7.08 - $0.27= $6.81/b.

Now we have a price delivered to Lethbridge that is $6.15/b and a price delivered to Sweetgrass that is $6.81/b. The difference is $0.66/bu. or $24.25/t.

Why?

What’s the difference?

Market demand, sales, logistical issues, freight, currency risk, profit. All are factors as to why there is a difference in price between these two delivery points.

What I am trying to show is that the Prairie grain companies have room in their pricing model to be a little more competitive with prices in the U.S. if they want to be. Do they want to be competitive or not?

If not why?

Do they not have grain sales on the books?

Have these major world players shifted their focus towards greener pastures as far as sourcing and selling grain in other countries where the opportunity for future growth and expansion are far greater for their shareholders? In Canada, they know the market is mature and they have it locked up — they don’t have to worry about losing the grain. They can let it sit until they need it to fill sales.

Like it or not, the Canadian Wheat Board was 100 per cent focused on selling Canadian wheat into world markets and they tried to sell the maximum

amount of wheat they could every year. Now we have grain companies that look at things from a global perspective and will buy and sell wheat all over the world based on where they can make the highest net return for the organization.

I am afraid that this means Canadian grain will be treated as a secondary supplier to world markets because our costs make us uncompetitive at times. If this continues to happen what does that mean for Western Canadian producers? It means we need to find more localized markets for our products. The most logical place to find these markets is in the U.S., to get away from being at the mercy of the players in the world export markets. † 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).

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

29

Columns Financial Markets: The Basics

The fundamentals of funds This look inside mutual funds and exchange traded funds shows how each of these investment types work, and how each of them handle risk

By Andrew Allentuck

H

ow do mutual funds really work? At the ground level, they are diversified collections of assets, usually stocks or bonds — sometimes both — in balanced funds, picked for their ability to generate income and/or capital gains. The key word is “diversified,” for that is their distinctive advantage. They are usually actively managed to seize cheap assets on the way up and to dump overvalued assets on the way down. Good managers are opportunists, buying when markets are panicking and ducking by reducing vulnerable holdings when they see storms ahead. That, at least, is the theory.

But what do investors really get for the money? Does active management pay, compared to passive or non-actively managed index

funds or exchange traded funds?

And what do investors really get when they sign up for a bunch of stocks or bonds?

Here comes the reality check.

There are two broad kinds of investment funds. The first are those that have large capitalization stocks like chartered banks and pipelines, big railroads and giant integrated oil companies. In Canada, those collections makes up the top 60 stocks listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, the TSX 60. In the U.S. it’s the megacap stocks of the S&P 500 or the gigacaps of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The second kind of investment fund is the hunter-gatherer small to mid-cap fund whose manager is tasked to find and buy promising companies on the way up. This is a much harder job than buying the already successful stocks that populate the TSX 60 and the S&P/Dow.

Mutual funds that buy the large cap TSX 60 shares wind up most of the time as so-called closet indexers. They have to have some bank shares, so they pick and choose among the big six (TD, Scotiabank, Royal Bank, CIBC, Bank of Montreal and National Bank) making small variations of maybe a little less BMO and a little more TD than the index. Then they pick at telcos with a little more BCE Inc. or a little less Telus or vice versa.

They wind up as shadows of their indexes, loaded with winners at the top and losers and also-rans at the bottom. This is pretty neutral stock picking, but it can go very wrong. Recall the disaster of Nortel Networks, once a third of the TSX by value of its shares compared to all those on the exchange. Mutual fund rules tend to limit exposure of any one stock to 10 per cent of the fund. But naked funds tasked

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to replicate the TSX index were slaughtered when Nortel collapsed, ultimately in bankruptcy.

Bond funds If you want to buy into a big Government of Canada bond fund, the only thing the manager will contribute is his potentially wise decisions on where to weight his bonds from short maturities of five years or less, if he fears rates are rising, to long maturities of 10 to 30 years if he thinks rates will stay down or not rise much.

Bond investing used to be an occupation practiced in mornings at the office before an afternoon of golf. It’s harder now, but beating the broad Canadian bond index or its specialized long and short components is still tough.

Few managers get it perfect. You can buy a bond index for the entire Canadian market or the broad U.S. market as an exchange traded fund. It will have fees of 30 basis points (there are 100 basis points in one per cent) or less or you can go for the managed fund with fees of several times that — say 1.5 per cent.

The more tightly defined the fund, say Government of Canada bonds with terms of 10 years and over or Swiss pharmaceuticals, the less input the manager can contribute. After all, you have already decided when he or she should buy. Paying a manager a lot to do a little makes no sense. You are better off to buy a low fee ETF focused on your sector or asset class. Moreover, focused funds have higher fees, perhaps because when they thrive, more investors pile in (usually after the party has ended). If you want to pre-select a market or sector, go cheap and save fees.

When you get into small and mid-cap stocks that populate the Russell 2000 index in the U.S. and the TSX Venture exchange in Canada, you are in a different game in which there are thousands of listed companies, some destined to thrive, others to fail. Managers earn their keep in this arena for they must do a lot of research. Just rebalancing holdings off the indices is meaningless. It’s the same for junk bond funds in which the vast market of non-investment grade or unrated corporate debt varies in By jonny hawkins

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quality from pretty good and just below investment grade to crap close to bankruptcy.

Managers of funds of outliers such as little companies that are solid but unable to grow and bonds of companies that never paid to have them rated (issuers pay for ratings — another problem for another time) need to do a lot of legwork. They also need to diversify a lot so that one or two bad picks do not ruin their portfolios.

Scandals abound in the small to mid-cap arena because vigilance by the community of stock analysts and the press is light. Most analysts have better things to do than to follow Chinese gold miners listed on the TSX or yet another software startup on the Russell 2000.

The time to do research is before you buy The problem for small to midcap fund managers is to keep up with their holdings, which have to be numerous to spread risk if a few fail. The agnostic approach to mid-cap stock investing is to forget about beating the market and just buy a relevant index.

For example, the iShares S&P/TSX Small Cap Index ETF has a 60 basis point management expense ratio, a fourth of a typical mutual fund management fee, and gives access to 227 small cap Canadian companies. By comparison, the large cap iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index has management expense ratio of just 17 basis points. It is automatically hooked up to the index and has very little to manage.

The idea that a manager worth his pay will forage to find good companies is appealing, but there are many hunters in the small cap forest. In this forest, managers meet at the same dog and pony shows companies put on to peddle their stock and suffer from herd instinct. Managers gang up on a small stock, buy it enthusiastically and run up the price. Then they can abandon it and watch the price collapse. Worse, some small cap blowouts have been the result of crooks and gullible fund managers. Among the worst: the gold mine with no gold called Bre-X Minerals Corp.; the Russian mafia-dominated bicycle and magnet maker YBM Magnex; and gun merchant Adnan Kashoggi’s pitch to gullible investors to sell stock in a venture to dig up gold in King Solomon’s Mines. You get a sense of what nonsense the markets offer The time is to do research is before you buy. “You don’t know who’s been swimming naked until the tide goes out,” said the great investor Warren Buffett. Profit beats remorse every time. † Andrew Allentuck is author of When Can I Retire? Planning Your Financial Future After Work (Penguin, 2011).

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Columns Off-farm income

A bullish look at oil prices As more storage is built, oil prices may continue to fall in near future ANDY SIRSKI

O

ver the past weeks, the surplus of oil going into storage was over a million barrels per day. According to some figures, on March 12 there were about 140 million barrels of free storage in North America out of an estimated 600 million barrels. About 14 per cent of that 600 mb is at Cushing, Oklahoma, and it is 70 per cent full. More storage is being built.

With 140 mb of open storage, if the industry pumps one million barrels of surplus oil every day, it would take four to five months to fill it. Then there is no way of knowing how low the price of oil would go.

However, if the surplus drops to half a million barrels and shrinks from there, it would take an estimated 300 days or close to a year to fill that storage. I think there is a good chance the surplus oil number will drop and drop as the industry drills fewer

wells, a lot of shale wells deplete and oil consumption goes up two per cent per year. So if surplus oil drops and consumption is flat to a little better, the buildup of oil could slow down to a point where there is no daily surplus.

That is about a 180-degree turn from how I thought even a month or two ago and there is no guarantee that I will be right. I will let the price tell me when to buy good oil stocks. These days the price of oil drops with bad news (higher surplus or lower consumption) but the price usually jumps if or when we hear the opposite.

We need to look for the time when the price of oil has higher and higher lows and higher and higher highs. I really would not expect that for some time to come but again I will let prices tell me when to buy oil. For now I do not hold any oil or natural gas stocks.

In a month or so a lot of refineries will be back at work as shutdown maintenance is completed, strikes are settled and the refineries start to produce summer fuel. Plus, if the price of oil does drop a bit more odds are some companies will shut down wells and then the supply of oil will drop in a hurry.

But there is a lot of floating oil and we could have 600 million barrels of oil in land storage and of course those capped wells could be turned on quite easily. Any ups and downs in the price of oil will come mostly from speculators for some time to come.

High U.S. Dollar Central banks around the world are cutting interest rates to fight off the threat of deflation and sagging economies. This has helped push the U.S. dollar to higher and higher highs. This has also helped depress the price of some commodities such as gold and copper and might even help push down the price of oil.

The high U.S. dollar also hurts the profit picture for some U.S. companies such as Microsoft.

Here’s why: as they or if they bring dollars earned overseas back to the U.S. they face the exchange rate plus taxes on those repatriated dollars.

This is one reason companies like Apple are borrowing money at these low rates to pay dividends and buy back shares. They

are betting the U.S. dollar will eventually drop.

In the meantime we could see how the price of shares of Microsoft has sagged to around $41 per share. Microsoft earns a lot of money offshore.

Compare that to shares of, say, Home Depot which earns most of its money in U.S. dollars on U.S. soil. That stock is hitting new highs.

Apple might see its shares hurt by the U.S. dollar too, especially if they sell a lot of watches in China.

By the way, Apple could be buying a lot of gold, up to 30 per cent of the yearly world production. So far it looks like seasonality and the higher U.S. dollar is holding the price of gold down but that could change after June.

About 2,000 tonnes of gold is mined per year around the world — Apple could buy about 740 tonnes to meet demand from its new expensive watches.

The company was going to sell those drugs are some very high and profitable prices but competition kicked in and healthcare insurance companies and countries started to negotiate lower prices. That will hurt Gilead’s earnings and shares have sort of lost their bloom.

As I looked around for a pharmacare stock I came across TEVA, which I have followed for years. It waits for drugs to come off patent and then often starts to manufacture and sell generic drugs. The company is based in Israel but most of its business is outside that country.

Another pharma is Merck (MRK) which seems to be less volatile but apparently had a good pipeline of new drugs.

As always, if I own these stocks and the price drops through the 10-day moving average I look seriously at selling the shares or selling calls in the money. †

Porfolio

Andy is mostly retired. He plays with granddaughters, does taxes, manages his family’s investments and publishes an electronic newsletter called StocksTalk. To read it free for a month send an email to sirski@mymts.net.

Recall I owned shares in Gilead over the past few months as it developed some new drugs.

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APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

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Machinery & Shop New equipment

AGCO updates its RG700 RoGator photo: agco

The RoGator RG700 will be rereleased in the spring of 2015 as the updated RG700B.

The RG700 sprayer gets enhanced features, and becomes the RG700B

By Scott Garvey

A

GCO says it’s giving its RG700 self-propelled sprayer an update for model year 2015, with a simplified drive system to improve performance and make for easier operation. The RG700 is the junior model in AGCO’s RoGator line. With a 700-gallon-tank, it debuted last season as the newest and smallest member of the RoGator family.

The plan is to have the redesigned model ready for introduction in late spring 2015. It will then wear the new model number designation RG700B. In addition to having a Tier 4 Final engine, the RoGator’s AWD (all-wheel drive) Smart Drive System will enable some components to operate automatically without operator input, according to Craig Miller, sales and marketing specialist for AGCO Application Equipment.

“The drive system will offer presets for both transport and field conditions,” he says. “Within the field range, the RPM floor setting remains adjustable, although with a higher limit to ensure peak performance.”

AGCO’s own AWD Smart Drive System is designed to provide consistent field speed without shifting and improved traction keeping all four wheels on the ground. The result should be a smoother ride, less wear and tear on the booms and more precise product application, even under variable field conditions.

All of the RG700’s other features will carry over to the 2015 RG700B, including the 165-horsepower engine, adjustable track widths, boom control, steering systems, cab and the option to order it ready for Raven’s Slingshot digital technology right from the factory. †

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Everything about a John Deere Mower Conditioner has been designed to raise performance to all new levels, while greatly reducing the chances of downtime. And should your MoCo ever need service, it’s good to know that there’s a local John Deere dealer standing behind you who will get you back up and running – fast.

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Model/item may not be exactly as shown.

Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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Machinery & Shop JCB field day

JCB Fastrac updates meant to appeal to North American farmers Grainews test drove the 4000 Series Fastrac tractor at JCB’s Georgia facility

By Scott Garvey

I

t’s been about 24 years since U.K-based JCB introduced the ag industry’s first highspeed tractor, the Fastrac.

That was back in 1991. This past January, the company debuted a reengineered version of that tractor, the new 4000 Series, at an event in Quebec. The new tractor also made an appearance at the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky, in February.

In early March, members of the farm media were invited to JCB’s Savannah, Georgia, facility to see all the brand’s new equipment, including the 4000 Series Fastrac.

“It was the world’s first fully suspended tractor,” said Tim Burnhope, JCB’s chief innovation and growth officer, during a formal presentation at the company’s Savannah assembly plant. “It’s still the only fully suspended tractor on the market.”

With the 4000’s equal-wheel design, full suspension, central cab, air brake connections and rear platform capable of carrying a load of up to 4,000 kilograms (8,800 pounds), it remains unique in the Canadian ag equipment marketplace. And company executives are hoping the design changes built into this series will make it even more appealing to North American farmers.

The 4000 Series addresses what Dan Schmidt, JCB’s vice president of ag equipment in North America, says were criticisms of the previous generation. Most notably, that the Fastrac couldn’t be configured to work in row-crop fields.

“The issue has always been for the U.S. and Canada, yeah, I like your tractor, but can it row crop,” he said. “Until now, we haven’t had that. So now, with narrower tires, which are 65 kp/h rated, we can set this up for traditional row crops. We went to a new chassis design. This chassis is a unibody style, but it’s also narrower.”

The narrow chassis also gives the 4000 Series what Schmidt says is a “best-in-class turning radius” of just over 10 metres. (Although other than maybe the Claas Xerion, it’s hard to imagine what other tractors you could consider to be in the same class as the Fastrac.) To further improve manoeuvrability, buyers can opt for standard front axle steering only or an optional feature that includes five different steering modes by incorporating rear axle steering. Also with the Fast Steer option, steering wheel sensitivity can be increased to only two full turns lock-to-lock to make the tractor easier to handle in tight spaces.

Another thing engineers addressed in the new tractors that put off potential buyers on the previous 2000 Series was that it wasn’t ready for a front-end loader.

“For the first time ever, more specifically for North America, the 4000 Series is loader ready,” Schmidt continued. “We think this will be a great opportunity in this 160 to 220 horsepower class. On the Fastrac, I think mate-

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rial handling with loader work is going to be a big deal for us.

Because we have a loader, you can lock, or make the suspension rigid, on the front.”

Listening to the users According to Schmidt, these improvements were the direct result of feedback from North American farmers.

“We built this tractor around key elements that the traditional ag customers appreciated most,” he explained. “The Fastrac customers always knew it was fast.

The fully integrated suspension; we had to maintain that. It had to

have powerful braking; if you’re going to go fast you have to be able to stop the load. And finally, they really appreciated the deluxe, centre-mount cab. We had to take those features and incorporate them into a new platform and a new package.”

“We’ve tested it for thousands of hours and had it with a huge number of customers,” added Burnhope.

To spin the tires, which are now available in a variety of sizes, all three Fastrac models will use AGCO’s 6.6 litre, six-cylinder diesel mated to a CVT transmission.

In the hydraulics department, a 144 l.p.m. (38 g.p.m.), flow-on-

demand, closed centre, piston pump delivers oil flow to implements while a separate gear pump keeps fluid supplied to the tractor steering system.

Brand executives believe Fastrac’s high speed, along with its standard rear air brake connections, which allow it to pull a heavy truck trailer, will give the tractor unique appeal to farmers who need to move equipment like sprayer nurse tenders, round bale wagons or grain carts back and forth to the field in record time. And it can couple that ability with the kind of traction offered only by a four-wheel drive tractor.

“With North American farms getting larger and larger, faster cycle times really help improve the materials handling process,” said Schmidt.

And the unique rear deck behind the Fastrac’s cab can handle a large tank. Fitting a sprayer boom kit to the tractor effectively turns it into a high-speed field sprayer, eliminating the need to invest in a dedicated SP sprayer that is only capable of doing one function.

“In Europe they do a lot of spraying (with a Fastrac),” he added. “This deck can hold 8,800 pounds.” † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

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Machinery & Shop 5

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1. The three 160 to 220 horsepower models in the new 4000 Series Fastrac offer a 65 km/h road speed, full four-wheel suspension and are now loader ready. 2. The “combine-sized” cab includes more space and glass area than the previous 2000 Series, and the driver’s sear, with its attached control arm, pivots 50 degrees right and 20 degrees left. 3 The new design for the 4000 Series includes a sloping front hood for improved visibility when doing loader work. 4. Air brake trailer connections and a three-point hitch with an 8,045 kilogram (17,700 pound) lift capacity are standard. 5. A front-mounted three-point hitch is available. 6. A feature offering five different steering modes is available as an option.

About JCB

About JCB

IT PAYS TO LISTEN FOR BLOCKAGE.

A

lthough JCB has been doing business in North America for over four decades, many in Canadian agriculture may not know much about the company or its origins. So here’s the lowdown.

JCB, whose name is the initials of its founder, Joseph Cyril Bamford, began by manufacturing agricultural end-dump trailers in a oneman operation in Uttoxetter, England, after the Second World War. Bamford was one of several European entrepreneurs in that era to use surplus military equipment to manufacture products for peace time needs.

Since 1945, the business, which is still privately owned, expanded to one that now employs roughly 11,000 workers worldwide and sells its products through about 750 dealers, globally.

The firm builds light construction and ag equipment on four continents. It has also built modified construction machines for the British and U.S. military, including the Hemi, an armoured backhoe capable of travelling 100 kilometres per hour.

Skid-steers, compact loaders, backhoes and telehandlers bound for the North American market are assembled at its plant in Savannah, Georgia.

JCB’s world headquarters is in England, and its current chairman, Joseph’s son, Lord Anthony Bamford, also farms. †

The Wireless Blockage and Flow Monitor from Intelligent Ag uses patent-pending acoustic sensors to instantly detect blockages or reduced flow, anywhere in your air seeder, fertilizer applicator or box drill. Easy to install and simple to use, this system utilizes Wi-Fi technology and robust rubber tubing to take wire problems out of play, and your iPad functions as its versatile in-cab monitor.

Keep your ears open, and never turn a blind eye to a blocked implement. You’ll put more in the ground, and get more profit out of it.

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306-546-2497 (S. SK, MB, ON)

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Machinery & Shop forage production

Loader tractor or telehandler?

JCB executives believe once North American farmers get used to telescopic handlers, they’ll never go back to a conventional ag tractor and loader

By Scott Garvey

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uropean farmers have been buying telehandlers in pretty large numbers for decades, but here in North America, onfarm materials handling has been pretty much the domain of the ag tractor equipped with a front-end loader. Telehandler sales numbers here have been relatively small — so far.

Executives at JCB think a large number of farmers who use loader tractors would be much better served with one of the brand’s purpose-built “Agri” telescopic handlers.

JCB, originally founded in the United Kingdom, is one of the originators of the telehandler concept. The brand introduced its first Loadall model about 38 years ago. Today, the firm considers itself a leader in on-farm materials handling, because it offers a range of equipment, such as telehandlers, skid-steers and wheel loaders, specifically equipped for farmers.

“The telehandler market in North America is still in its very early stages,” said Ray Bingley, JCB’s North American product and sales manager, during a media event at the company’s Savannah, Georgia, plant in March. “The market is still small, but we know we are headed in the right direction, because we talk to customers all the time.

The guys that buy them will tell us they don’t know how they managed their farm without it.”

“We have a range of 10 machines, starting with the 52560,” he added.

The 74 horsepower, low profile Loadall 525-60 Agri is designed to get into the smallest build-

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photo: scott garvey

1. Product and sales manager Ray Bingley explains the features of JCB’s smallest telehandler, the 525-60 Agri, at a company event in Savannah, Georgia, in March. 2. The extended reach of the articulated telescopic loader gives an operator greater flexibility when handling loads like large round bales. 3. Telescopic handlers can lift loads to much greater heights than a standard ag tractor with front-end loader. 4. The TM220 is one of two articulated telescopic loader models in JCB’s equipment line that combine the articulated configuration of a wheel loader with the extendable reach of a telehandler.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

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Machinery & Shop » CONTINUED FROM Previous PAGE ings with a maximum height of only 6 feet, 3 inches and a width of 6 feet. The company makes versions of this model available with features designed to appeal directly to poultry and hog producers.

The 525-60 Agri can lift 1,360 kilgrams (3,000 pounds) up to a maximum height of 6.09 metres (20 ft.). These specs are something a standard ag tractor that could fit through a doorway as small as one the 525-60 can slip through just can’t match.

At the top end of the agricultural Loadall range is the 560-80 Agri Super, which can hold 3,000 kilograms (6,613 lbs.) at the top of its boom lift, 7.9 m (25 ft., 9 in.) in the air.

The Loadall range includes features like end dampening when retracting the boom or lowering lift cylinders. That helps take the shock out of quick hydraulic adjustments. And the Smooth Ride Suspension system can help stabilize the machine when carrying loads.

The larger Loadalls get a 6-speed powershift transmission with lock-up torque converter and a regenerative hydraulic system that recoups energy when the boom is retracted or lowered, which also allows for more rapid cylinder retraction.

“There is now a new automated bucket control system to rapidly vibrate the bucket when tipping muck and other sticky materials,” said Tim Burnhope, JCB chief innovation and growth officer.

JCB offers “one can” SCR engine emissions solution

J

CB’s new Ecomax Tier 4 Final engines, are being installed in some North American Loadall models for the first time in 2015. These diesels have ratings of 109, 125 and 145 horsepower. According to Alan Tolley, director of engine programs, even though these diesels meet Tier 4 Final emissions standards, they remain compact enough to fit into the existing chassis.

The reason for that is the “one can” emissions system that doesn’t require a diesel particulate filter or diesel oxidation catalyst.

“The SCR unit is so compact, that in many cases it replaces the existing exhaust,” says Tolley. “A two to three per cent ratio of additive (diesel exhaust fluid) to fuel is all we need to reach the NOx targets, depending on the duty cycle. We believe this could be the lowest in the industry.”

And the new engines offer a five per cent improvement in fuel consumption over the previous generation.

The new TM220 articulated telescopic handler uses a 74 horsepower, 2.5 litre JCB by Kohler diesel, the same engine used in some of the brand’s skid-steer loaders. Peak output occurs at just 1,500 r.p.m. and almost 90 per cent of that is still available all the way down at 1,000 r.p.m. according to Tolley. The JCB by Kohler engine uses a combination of technologies from both brands, which were developed into the current diesel by engine manufacturer Kohler. † Scott Garvey

photo: scott garvey

JCB Loadalls and Telemasters use the brand’s own Ecomax diesels or JCB by Kohler engines.

ALL NEW PRECISION

Auto Steer Solutions

The Telemaster But now there is another machine in JCB’s equipment stable that may appeal to Canadian farmers even more than the Loadall range of Agri telehandlers.

That is the Telemaster TM Series, which is a blend of an articulated wheel loader and a telehandler.

“Our Telemaster range has been developed exclusively for farmers,” said Burnhope. “It’s a new concept in ag materials handling in North America, but it’s one that is gathering some momentum quickly.”

With a configuration that more closely resembles a wheel loader, the operator sits in a central cab, mounted higher on the chassis. But instead of standard lift arms, it uses a telescopic boom.

JCB now offers two models of Telemaster, the TM320 and the brand new, smaller TM220.

“Sales to farmers in the U.S. and Canada (of the TM320) have exceeded our expectations, and we expect sales of the TM220 will be just as high,” added Burnhope.

“The TM220 will lift to a maximum height of 15 ft. (4.57 m) and when extended it will support 2,535 lbs. (1,152 kg) at full forward reach to off-load a trailer or place a hay bale over a fence or into a feeder.”

“The articulated chasis steering means that manoeuvrability is very neat and predictable,” he added. “Furthermore, operators can tweak the position of a grab or bucket sideways while stationary for precise placement of materials. JCB Telemasters are the perfect solution for operators who want to drive like a wheel loader but want the benefits of a telescopic boom.” †

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Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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Machinery & Shop John Deere

Deere adds large square balers The brand introduces two models with all-new, in-house engineering to its equipment line

By Scott Garvey

W

hen it introduced its new 2015 product line at an event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in August, John Deere significantly beefed up its hay and forage implement offerings.

Arguably the most notable additions to that segment were the two L Series balers that will be market ready for the upcoming season.

“This is one we’ve been waiting to come to the market with for quite a while,” says Jeremy Unruh, product line manager for hay and forage. “We’re excited about it. I think this is a big one for us.”

The L330 and L340 will make 3x3 foot and 3x4 foot bales, respectively. In 2011, Deere purchased authorization to use European haying equipment manufacturer Kuhn’s basic baler design in the development of the L Series. And although the Kuhn baler formed the basis for Deere engineers to build on, extensive redesign and more than a little in-house engineering makes these uniquely John Deere.

“This is a John Deere designed and manufactured product,” Unruh continues. “We’ve actually started a new line at the factory. We have over 2,100 parts on this baler, and we’ve designed 85 per cent of them. We took that design (from Kuhn) and it helped us get started out of the gate.

We changed 85 per cent of that baler, or maybe a little bit more, to make sure it fit our needs in the North American market.

What we bought was a single-tie machine that was manufactured in Europe and what we are producing is a double-tie machine manufactured in Ottumwa, Iowa.”

The double-tie knotters reduce the number of misses compared to single-tie versions, say Deere’s product marketing reps. The knotters use a replaceable billhook and wiper plate, making repairs a little easier. The balers also use hydraulically-driven cleaning fans to keep debris out of the knotters.

“On this system if there is a problem with the knotter, you can take it apart without having to pull out the entire shaft,” says Louis Fernandez, senior marketing rep.

And to keep all the key components properly timed, the L Series models use direct drives rather than chains. “Our timed components are gear and shaft drive,” Fernandez adds. “Some of our competition uses chain drives. Over time chains will stretch, and we have a lot of moving parts in here that all need to be in correct time.”

Buyers have a choice of a standard feeder system or one that pre-cuts the crop feeding in, which research has shown helps improve feed utilization.

“They come in two configurations,” says Unruh. “The first is a standard rotor. The second configuration is a pre-cutter. A precutter helps you size the material, which allows a cow, sheep or horse to better digest it. We call it theoretical cut (length), because it’s not going to be perfect, but we can get from six inches down to about an inch and a half.”

Although the L Series balers are designed to mate seamlessly with Deere’s own GreenStar monitor, they are ISOBus compatible, so they can be controlled by a virtual terminal from any tractor.

“If a customer has a different coloured tractor, using ISOBus, we utilize it that way as well, but we see optimization with a greenon-green solution,” Unruh adds.

And although the balers aren’t available with moisture sensors at the moment, Unruh says that feature is currently in development and will likely be an option in the future.

“Based on our test performance and field tests the factory has completed, our bale shape, our size and the ability to stack a truck or fill up a barn is going to be right on par or a little bit better than those (competing brands of balers) on the market today,” he continues. “We’re looking at getting these machines to our dealers in time for the 2015 hay season.” †

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Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

ACCESS YOUR FIELDS

AT ALL TIMES photo: scott garvey

4

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1. John Deere is introducing two large square baler models for the 2015 haying season. 2. Deere’s Frontier equipment line includes a bale spear designed for large, square bales, which handle up to three at a time.

Frontier will also offer a squeeze-type grapple attachment. 3. Easy-toopen panels that offer good access along with simple service procedures were two of the key points marketing reps wanted to emphasize about the L Series balers. 4. Louis Rodriguez points out the features of the Deere-designed, double-tie knotter.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

37

Machinery & Shop Equipment accessories

Blue lights improve night spraying

photos: comatra

Left: Illumination from blue LED lights improves the visual contrast at night and allows operators to more easily sprayer nozzle patterns, according to the manufacturer. Right: The Comatra kit includes two LED lights and wiring harnesses. Each light can illuminate about 18 metres (about 60 feet) of boom.

LED light kits designed to better illuminate sprayer booms

By Scott Garvey

N

ight spraying can offer advantages, such as reduced wind speeds to minimize drift and slower rates of evaporation. But defective nozzle spray patterns can be much more difficult to see in the dark, even with boom lighting.

The Belgian company Comatra Safety Systems is offering Canadian farmers what it thinks is an ideal solution to that problem. The firm’s CMTXV10 blue LED light kits offer improved visual contrast over white light, allowing an operator to more easily see the spray patterns along the boom.

The LED lights draw 16.2 amps at 12 volts, have die-cast aluminium bodies along with stainless steel mounting brackets to resist corrosion and a vibration resistance rating of 8.6 Gs. Although Comatra doesn’t yet have a Canadian distributor (they are apparently looking for one), it will ship lighting kits directly to producers from Europe via FedEx, and the cost of shipping is included in the U.S.$344.00 purchase price. The kit, which includes two LED lights and wiring leads, will illuminate a 36-metre (118 foot) boom.

For more information visit their website at www.comatra. eu or email them directly at info@comatra.be. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

Visit grainews.ca to sign up for enews.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Machinery & Shop New machinery

New 6-Family JD tractors New and updated models in the brand’s utility and mid-range tractor categories

By Scott Garvey

A

t its dealer convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, last August, John Deere unveiled three new models in its 6R Series tractor line.

It beefed up the previous 6170R, 6190R and 6210R models and rereleased them as the 6175R, 6195R and 6215R, each with five more rated horsepower. But they actually get 10 more maximum horsepower through the Intelligent Power Management System, which provides a boost when the load on the tractor gets heavy.

“The three models we’re introducing here in Milwaukee are the top three models in our 6R lineup: the 175, 195, and 215,” said Brad Tolbert, marketing manager for 6-Family tractors. “One key thing, we added five horsepower but also added 10 horsepower to Intelligent Power Management.

One way to think of it (IPM) is when I hit a slug and need a little more power to move that through the baler or I’m pulling a grain cart down the road and have to go up a hill and I’m maxing out my power, that extra 40 horsepower is there when you need it.”

In November, Deere added another three tractors to 6R line, with the introduction of three all new, small-framed versions: the 6110R, 6120R and 6130R, which fall into the 110 to 130 engine horsepower bracket.

The new small-frame 6R tractors are designed with many of the hydraulic, control and com-

fort features of the larger models, but with a more compact size that offers customers the manoeuvrability many want to more easily handle a wide variety of chores, according to Kory Ross, product manager for mid-tractors.

And of those new features Ross was referring to, it was hydraulic improvements that figured most prominently in Deere’s redesign of the larger-framed 6Rs, which according to Tolbert, was driven by customer feedback. “We asked customers in a focus group what they liked best about what we did with the 6Rs, and they said it’s the hydraulic update,” he explained.

The rear SCVs have been more conveniently placed and up to six are now available. They use the same rear coupler design found on the larger 7R and 8R tractors. And maximum hydraulic pump capacity has been bumped up to 41 gallons (155 litres) per minute.

Inside the 6R cabs, things look a little different this year. The 6R operator’s seat now swivels 30 degrees to the right to avoid neck strain when watching a trailed implement. These tractors get the same CommandArm control arrangement their big brothers, the 7Rs, 8Rs and 9Rs, use. And buyers can opt for either a seveninch or 10-inch display screen.

Deere’s thinking is those who want to use their 6R for a loader tractor will opt for the smaller monitor so they have better visibility. Anyone who plans on

photos: scott garvey

The three largest 6R tractor models get more horsepower and improved hydraulic performance for 2015. They are also joined by three new, small-frame models in the 110 to 130 horsepower range. using the tractor primarily for field use will get better use out of the larger version.

“We see the 6R as that transition from the utility tractor to the row-crop tractor,” added Tolbert.

“Our dealers have the ability to customize these tractors to meet the application profile that their customers need. We know our customers at these horsepower levels do more varied applications with these tractors than any other horsepower levels.”

Under the hoods, 6Rs will still

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use Deere’s own PowerTech diesel, but it is now Tier 4 Final emissions compliant.

“We’re still using our John Deere PowerTech, really the only thing that’s changed from a customer perspective is you’re putting two fluids in it (diesel and DEF),” said Tolbert. “We’ve changed our oil change intervals to 750 hours.”

The 6D Series For producers who don’t need all the high-end features the 6Rs offer but still want a dependable tractor that tops out the utility segment and nudges the midrange category, Deere has a less expensive option for them: the 6D Series. These tractors are a little lower spec, and they don’t carry the same engine management, digital capacity and cab arrangements. But they can still drag a baler, mower conditioner or even tillage implement around a field pretty efficiently.

“The 6D is our price finder, it’s a value-spec tractor,” said Jason Thomas, product manager, Waterloo. “It offers all the functionality (some buyers) need at the right price point.”

Don’t look for the CommandArm or swivel seat in these cabs, but you will find two new PowrReverser transmission options for 2015,

which makes them much more efficient in the field and allows for clutch-less reversing when doing loader work.

“It seems like a small change, but really it’s a big change,” said Tolbert. “In the 6D Series we’ve introduced two new transmissions, these are replacing our current 9x9s. The 12x12 doubled the number of gears we have in the working range (5 to 13 m.p.h.).

Our 24x12, that’s the next level up, 12 gears in the working range.”

Even without a powershift option, the synchronized gear feature allows operators to manually shift the tractor in the field to compensate for changing conditions. That becomes possible when running a PTO-driven machine, like a baler, that doesn’t put a major load on the drawbar.

“With these new transmissions it’s going to be a lot easier to find the right working speeds, said Thomas.

“We’ve incorporated a new H-shift pattern. To take it a step further, we synchronized C and D ranges. The operator can go from B to C and C to D then back down without ever coming to a stop. In the cab your gear and range levers are on the right-hand side.”

The 6D Series offers four models from 105 to 140 horsepower. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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The CommandArm, previously only available on the 7R, 8R and 9R tractors, is now standard equipment in the 6R line. Two monitor options with seven- or 10-inch screens are available.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

39

Cattleman’s Corner The Markets

Higher feed costs to push calves down Jerry Klassen

I

’ve received many inquiries from cattle producers regarding the barley outlook for the summer and fall. The cost-perpound of gain is an important factor determining feeder cattle prices and there is generally an inverse relationship between feed grain prices and feeder cattle values.

When feed grain prices increase, (as experienced during the U.S. Midwest drought of 2012) feeder cattle prices tend to come under pressure to the extent that margins in the feedlot sector move into negative territory.

Earlier this winter, for example, 840-pound steers were selling for $240/cwt and the Lethbridge delivered barley was $4.35 per bushel resulting in a break even selling price of $184/cwt for the finished animal.

If the price of feed barley increases, the purchase price of 840-pound steer needs to come down in order to keep the break even price constant. Feedlots generally bid up the price of feeder cattle so there is very little margin for finishing cattle.

KEEP EYE ON GRAIN PRODUCTION

Through the growing season, it is prudent that cattle producers keep up with crop conditions and yield prospects because the sharp operators are constantly updating their ideas for barley production and price forecasts, which influences what they can pay for feeder cattle.

The supply and demand table for Canadian barley covers years back to 2011-12 for comparison but the eight-year average is what I use to gauge the price forecast. I use the eight-year average because during the 2006-07 crop year cereal grains moved into a new price range due to growing ethanol and biofuel usage. The eight-year average price delivered to a Lethbridge area feedlot is $187/mt. If the carryout or ending stocks for the crop year is below the eight-year average carryout, prices will trade above the eight-year average price and vice versa. If the carryout is about the same as the eight-year average then analysts look at seasonal tendencies from larger supplies at harvest to the peak demand season, which is April.

We are over half way through the 2014-15 crop year and we have a fairly good handle on the fundamental structure which will result in a carryout of 1.3 million mt.

This is down from the eight-year average of 1.8 million mt so we can expect that feed grain prices will be relatively firm to slightly higher for the remainder of the crop year.

Feedlot operators will likely reign in their buying ideas for feeder cattle in April through July should the price of barley increase by $20/mt to $30/mt as expected.

TIGHT SUPPLIES FORECAST Looking forward to 2015-16 crop year, the grain industry is anticipating a five per cent increase in barley acreage. Barley producers in the non-major feeding regions are expected to plant malt barley on the hopes of malt selection. Malt

barley prices have been in the range of $5.50/bushel to $6/bushel resulting in one of the higher returns per acre compared to other crops.

Using a typical abandonment rate and average yield of 60 bushels per acre, production will finish near 7.2 million mt.

This is 2.2 million mt below the eight-year average production so we are starting with historically low production. Using an estimated barley export program of 800,000 mt (which will be mostly malt barley) and similar demand as this crop year, the carryout for 2015-16 will be extremely tight at 1.0 million mt. This could cause barley prices to strengthen an additional $30/mt to $50/mt next winter, which would cause feeder cattle

SUPPLY AND DISPOSITION OF CANADIAN BARLEY Stats Can

Stats Can

8 year

Est

Est

11-12 6,472 5,843

12-13 7,405 6,797

13-14 7,083 6,554

Ave 8,234 7,344

14-15 5,880 5,279

15-16 6,174 5,495

61.00

54.10

71.70

59

61.90

60.00

1,441

1,195

983

1,931

1,924

1,323

7,755 14 9,210

8,012 19 9,226

10,237 9 11,229

9,433 34 11,398

7,114 20 9,058

7,178 20 8,521

1,200 257

1,250 249

1,587 207

1,522 278

1,100 235

800 235

933

886

1,002

967

900

950

5,625

5,858

6,509

6,863

5,500

5,500

TOTAL USE

8,015

8,243

9,305

9,630

7,735

7,485

TOTAL CARRYOVER

1,195

983

1,924

1,768

1,323

1,036

Acres Seeded Actes Harv.

Yield (bushles pre acre)

prices to come under pressure. As a rule of thumb, a $50 jump in barley prices causes the cost per pound gain (barley and silage only) to increase by $0.20 per pound.

The outlook for feed barley is for higher prices next winter if average yields materialize and seeded acreage increases by five per cent.

Currently, feedlots whave bid up the price of feeder cattle so there is very little margin in finishing animals.

If feed barley prices strengthen and fed cattle prices stay relatively constant, feeder cattle values will soften from current levels. † 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.

Stats Can

(000 TONNES)

SUPPLY Opening Stocks Aug. 1 Production Imports TOTAL SUPPLY USE Exports Seed Human Food/ Industrial \1 Feed-WasteDockage

1/ includes barley processed domestically and then exported as malt.

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Cattleman’s Corner better bunks and pastures

Late spring calving can pack a profit There are management issues, but also several pluses by waiting ’til mid-May calving PETER VITTI

better body condition (to be better prepared for calving). Producers would save money on their overwintering feeding program.

SUBSTANTIAL SAVINGS

I

remember not too long ago, cow-calf operators in Western Canada calved most cows by mid-March. This century-old tradition allowed cows to nurse their calves and put heavy weaning-weight over the course of the summer and then calves were sold to feedlots by the end of October.

This doesn’t seem to be the sole case anymore, since many people have adjusted their calving season to allow cows to give birth on sprouting green pastures in order to take advantage of a friendlier climate and save on winter feeding costs.

Delaying the calving season until May makes sense to me as a beef nutritionist and novice economist. Since mid-gestation cows in the middle of January/February would have lower total nutrient requirements compared to traditional cows in the last trimester of pregnancy/calving.

This would allow producers to overwinter the delayed cow herd on good-quality forages of lower nutrient value as well as provide less energy and protein supplementation. Furthermore, it would also allow better efficiency to increase their plane of nutrition to keep them warm during the coldest winter months. As a result, mid-gestation cows should come out of a typical winter in

Consider the potential money savings for a 250-beef cow operation by replacing all the drylot forages and half of the supplemented barley grain in a drylot lactation ration with one month of grazed May pasture. One might assume that cows were delayed one more month in the fall and that grass pastures in the late-spring contain enough forage volume (dry matter basis) to support the cow herd’s general feed intake and contain early vegetative growth of substantial energy and protein value (note: some barley might still be fed on pasture to assure all energy needs are met).

The pencil calculations for potential savings of a late-spring calving season are as follows: Total feed intake of 15 kg = 600 kg x 2.5 per cent of body weight, 15 kg = 14 kg of mixed hay @ $90/mt + 1 kg of barley @ $185/mt. One month winter feed cost = $ 1.26 + $0.19 or $ 1.45 x 30 days. Total monthly feed cost savings (250 cows) = $ 10,875.

In this example, there is a general feed savings on over-winter feed costs, but at the other end of the scale, there might be dire economic consequences to revenue.

For example, some Canadian references state there is a difference of about 50 kg less live weaned pounds per calf sold during the traditional autumn months.

Some of this loss of revenue

photo: file

Even though calves born in later spring might weigh less at weaning, there are several advantages to be considered by switching to a mid-May calving season. is offset by the marketing of lighter-weight calves at higher prices compared to heavier lowerpriced calves. Some studies by the University of Alberta suggest latespring calves go through a summer period of “catch up” in which they growth faster than winter-born calves, which significantly decreases this disparity. Some producers often retain these light calves and sell them at a later date in later markets or put them into their own background feeding programs.

Aside from the above potential winter-feed savings and general avoidance of calving out the cow herd during arctic-like weather, a late-calving season is not without its natural challenges. Under poor weather conditions calves are at greater risk of pneumonia and diseases such as intestinal scours.

BREEDING SEASON AFFECTED By personal experience, one of the first things that come to my mind when producers switch from midwinter to an early-spring calving season in May means that 80 days later their breeding season tends to fall upon the hottest days of the summer in July/August.

That means heat-stressed cows are more likely to remain open, because they are less likely to ovulate, have irregular estrus cycles, may have poor conception rates, and suffer from a high rate of early embryonic deaths. Furthermore, a period of “dog days” can literary make otherwise-fertile bulls sterile.

A few years ago, I was called out to a late-spring beef producer’s place (200-cow herd) in southern Manitoba on a +30 C July day. The owner was com-

plaining that a mineral feeding program that I had put together for him was not working, because one of his bulls couldn’t settle a segregated group of 18 Angus replacement heifers.

I was confident that my mineral recommendations were sound and once I saw his bull, which was panting and testicles descended to almost ground level; heat stress had temporarily sterilized him.

All of the replacement heifers were laying by the tree-line. In a subsequent visit on a cooler fall day, I discovered the same bull had successfully bred each one of those same heifers with a new calf, which were put in the producers’ fall-calving herd. † 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.

Animal Health

Important points about scrotal circumference Pay attention to minimum measurements for different breeds, but bigger isn’t always better Roy Lewis animal health

A

ll producers buying bulls should understand the meaning of a bull’s scrotal circumference. It is good to review some of the common parameters and also clear up a few misconceptions I’m sure are out there. A tremendous amount of information has been gathered and we should use this when making decisions with regards to our bull selection. Scrotal measurement is one of the best indicators of semen output and hence fertility.

In measuring scrotal circumference the veterinarian pulls down the testicles and measures across the widest part of the scrotum.

The tape is then pulled tight, compressing the scrotal skin.

This measurement (in centimetres) is then a correlation to the testicular mass.

It is very repeatable as measurements made by different veterinarians might only vary by one to two centimetres or so.

One must remember the technique used by U.S. veterinarians is much different than in Canada. In the U.S. they simply lay the tape around, pull it snug, but do not compress the scrotal skin. Often breeders importing U.S. bulls will find their measurements four to five cm larger.

Caution then for anyone buying U.S. bulls looking to increase scrotal size; this very well could be a misnomer by Canadian standards.

Variability between measurements made by veterinarians or producers, however is a concern.

Measuring tapes with spring mechanisms on them standardize the pull on the tape. Previously the Coulter tape was used. Problems in production and breakages have seen this tape removed from the market. The Reliabull Tape, a newer tape invented by a professor in Saskatoon, works off the same principle as the metal tapes with a spring mechanism and also works well. I personally have found this tape very trouble free, repeatable and durable. It definitely standardizes the force on the tape for veterinarians and producers alike.

BREED MINIMUM MEASUREMENTS Beef breeds have established accepted minimum scrotal circumferences in order to sell bulls through sales. These vary from 29 cm for Limousin and Salers to 32 cm for Simmental at one year of age. The breed associations generally have the accepted standard for yearlings and two-year olds. The two-year-old minimum is generally two to four cm over the yearling minimum. The Western Canadian Association of Bovine Practitioners have broken this down further with minimums for 13, 14 and 15 to 20 months. This is because a bull’s scrotum grows quite rapidly in the 10- to 15-month range so a real difference exists when comparing 12-month-old bulls with 15-month olds. A western Canadian survey looked at average scrotal circumference of the breeds and a few were adjusted upwards slightly reflecting the increase in scrotal circumference from selection pressure.

These breed minimums are very important as in most cases none or very little semen is produced from bulls measuring below the breed minimums. These animals should

be culled from breeding programs.

At the very least, breeding capacity would be reduced significantly.

The different breeds definitely have the distinctions. For example, a 30-cm Limousin yearling can produce good semen whereas a 30-cm Simmental, even if we try to get semen, there is virtually a 100 per cent chance it is sterile. Therefore the breed minimums are very much worth noting. With other species such as bison, 26 to 29 cm for two-year olds is quite acceptable. Rams on the other hand often measure around 40 cm. You can see how through evolution different scrotal sizes have occurred for different species.

With all the data that has been collected on bulls over the years, very accurate breed averages have been established. These are constantly being pushed upwards as purebred breeders select for increased scrotal size in their herd sires. Since scrotal size is highly heritable breeders can keep driving up scrotal size. Replacement heifers Heifer will also be earlier maturing, as fertility is definately enhanced by these larger-testicled sires. These yearling averages vary from 30.3 cm for Limousin to 36

cm for Simmental. Some producers only purchase bulls that are at least close to the average for the breed especially if breeding capacity is a concern.

BIGGER NOT always BETTER While larger scrotal sizes are desirable bigger is not always better. Research has shown that anything over 38 cm does not result in any more semen production. I get very nervous when yearlings of any breed have scrotal size much above 42 cm. Invariable problems are encountered with abnormally large scrotal size. Extremely large mature bulls can even develop problems with their suspensory apparatus making temperature regulation difficult.

When selecting your next herd sires, get to know breed minimums, averages, make sure qualified veterinarians have done the measurements and realize the differences between Canada and the U.S. measuring techniques. Your herd’s fertility depends on it. † Roy Lewis is an Alberta-based veterinarian specializing in large-animal practice. He is also a part-time technical services vet for Merck Animal Health.

BUILDING TRUST IN CANADIAN BEEF

Finding new benefits in small beef production Our smallest province understands small producers

The birthplace of Canada’s confederation is home to another nation. Picturesque Prince Edward Island (P.E.I.), with its iconic red soil, is home to a nation of small beef producers.

There are just over 400 herds, most in the fiveto 50-head range. Much of what is produced here is consumed regionally.

In many ways P.E.I. beef producers have had a head start on the importance of issues such as traceability. With fewer producers and natural boundaries of an island culture, it is not hard to trace back animals sold. Everyone knows everyone and cattle sales are often to a relatively small circle.

Amanda Miller has a unique and personal perspective of this beef landscape. As co-ordinator for the Verified Beef Production Program (VBP) for P.E.I., and the three neighbouring Maritime provinces she works daily with them.

That first-hand experience has led to a unique view of how small producers can use VBP to survive and prosper. Here are key points she thinks may apply to smaller producers across the country.

Think bigger. There are management options and benefits available to larger-scale operations.

VBP allows small producers to have many of the management benefits of much larger operations.

And it’s not really costly to achieve.

“Practically every producer who has taken the VBP course tells me they have learned something about their management system,” says Miller.

“Simple things like the fact they need to change how they mark and store medicated feeds. Or if they have the tools to keep better records.

“VBP gives them a management framework that is as effective as the largest operations in the business. We help them think about their management and what they are doing on farm and they can see how to make improvements.”

Think as an industry. One of the biggest benefits of VBP for small producers is to think as an industry.

“Most beef producers I work with understand that the public wants to know that their food is safe. Producers know VBP is a simple way to demonstrate they are doing what’s right for the cattle and for consumers.

“They know the importance of good records to manage drug withdrawals or broken needles.

Thinking as an industry to maintain production

standards provides protection for their markets and for them as individuals.”

Engage government. Building bridges with government is a significant role for Canada’s beef organizations. There is no one formula or approach, but when it works, it is valuable for sustaining a beef industry.

VBP has enjoyed solid support from the PEI Department of Agricultures and Forestry.

Funding and programming available to cattle producers through the Livestock Development Program Beef Project helps them grow their business. Qualifying for that funding requires that producers complete a VBP workshop, either in person or online. aSmall changes, big impact. In so many cases it’s the little things that make a difference in profitability of small beef operations, says Miller.

Each animal lost is so much a bigger factor for small producers. Anything that can be done to prevent that is huge.

“Producers open up in our on-farm workshops. They like the fact this program is not costly and often that it has helped them tweak their management.”

Canada’s small beef producers can play a big role in building customer confidence.

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/ grainews.ca APRIL 7, 2015

Cattleman’s Corner Anyone can start farming

Stall cleaning experience A homemade schloop is one option for hauling manure to the field in winter on it. It doesn’t fit into the barn though so he has to fill one wheelbarrow full at a time, but it is closer to perfect than the old flat stoneboat. Now we can make compost on any field and easily spread it when ready without moving manure one bucketful at a time.

Debbie Chikousky

E

ver since we first wintered calves in our barn it’s been challenging to keep up with cleaning in the winter. All kinds of advice has been offered, but by far the best came from our neighbour lady whom passed away earlier this year. The best thing is she would be very happy to be remembered by my children as the “Grandma” that was the most awesome barn cleaner.

One day on her way home from town, about 15 years ago, she popped in for a cup of tea and found the children and me struggling away with cleaning part of the barn where the bedding had frozen to the floor.

Cows being cows, they had spilled water pails in their calving pens and it froze. We wanted it cleaned down to the cement because later it would melt and make the fresh bedding dirty faster, but we were not getting anywhere.

She asked for a pitchfork and proceeded to show our boys the proper way to break this frozen bedding and get it out in minutes.

She then voiced a valid opinion: if we were better at keeping up with this mess it wouldn’t have

Care with an old tank

photo: debbie chikousky

This fuel tank cut in half makes an excellent schloop for hauling manure away from the barn until it can be spread on the field. gotten so far ahead of us. But winters were hard. You cannot spread manure due to environmental regulations. And the fact is that our little Case VA tractor will not start in winter weather. What do you do? You cannot just pile right out the door forever. Then she told us we needed a schloop.

We city slickers had no idea what a schloop was.

She said it was a big piece of metal, like a trough, which we could park in the barn, load it, then drag it out and make a compost pile wherever we wanted.

To dump the schlooop as it was pulled across a field, stick a rod into the ground and the schloop would flip and dump. To my then

eight-year-old son this sounded amazing. But it took us a while to find the proper material for the schloop.

A few years ago we were at an auction sale and found a stoneboat which was the closest we could come to a schloop. It worked OK but wasn’t an ideal solution.

The other thing this neighbour lady taught us was to never pitch manure twice if possible.

Moving manure piles from one place to another is a waste of fuel and time. So, our son set about making a schloop out of an old cleaned-out heating fuel tank.

The tank schloop had sides so more manure could be piled

When making this version of a schloop, the first step was to make sure there was no risk an explosion due to any fuel vapours in the old tank when he started cutting it with a cutting wheel. Our welding expert said to make sure it is empty and that the big plugs are open. The tank had open plugs and had been sitting for years open so we were safe. If you’re unsure it is best to ask a welding expert for advice.

Using a chalkline he marked a cutting line on the tank. Then he proceeded to cut the shape of the opening with a cutting wheel on the angle grinder. He used nine of the cheap generic cutting blades. The DeWalt wheels had a lot more cutting life in them.

If he had a choice he would have used a cutting torch, which would have sped up the work.

After the tank was cut, he attached a cable to the front of the tank so it could be pulled. He used a pointy drift and punched small holes near the bottom of

the front. Then he ran a steel cable through the holes to make a loop. He ran the cable through small pipes on the inside along the front to ensure the cable didn’t tear through the tank. Two steel cable clamps were used to secure the ends of the cable. To dump the loaded schloop, he uses the bale fork on the tractor frontend loader — puts them under the cable and lifts the tank.

Of course, he has changes he would like to make to improve this design, such as using a chain to pull the schloop rather than a cable.

This repurposed tank would have met our neighbour lady’s approval. It holds lots of manure and we can pitch right into it.

Barn cleaning advice wasn’t the only lesson our children learned from the neighbour lady that day. She told us lots of stories about when her children were home and they pitched out the barn together. Apparently we weren’t the only ones that bonded over manure.

As we all move through calving season and welcome all the new lives into this world may we all feel this togetherness with our own families as a blessing and pass that spirit onto the next generation of young people. † Debbie Chikousky farms with her family at Narcisse, Manitoba. Visitors are always welcome. Contact Debbie at debbie@ chikouskyfarms.com.

Rancher’s Diary

Everyone is working to stay/get healthy Activities changing around the ranch as spring moves closer heather smith thomas

FEBRUARY 20 eggie, our 29-year-old horse, is not so lame and stiff now, so I cut back on the amount of bute (Phenylbutazone) I give him (one pill daily instead of two) and that seems to be enough. Bute can be hard on the stomach, like aspirin. I don’t want him to get ulcers.

Wednesday Andrea took Sam and Dani to the doctor — Dani for medication to ease her terrible cough, and Sam for an x-ray of her hip bone. She got hit with a puck at hockey practice. It was just badly bruised, however, and not broken. It’s probably a good thing hockey season is about over!

V

FEBRUARY 26 This past weekend was Emily’s state hockey tournament in Boise.

Her team won their first game 7 to 0, with Em making one of the goals and assisting with another.

Sunday afternoon some folks from northern Alberta stopped by on their way south to see the

Grand Canyon. They have a ranch on the Fraser River, near Yukon Territory. They’ve been reading my Rancher’s Diary column in Grainews for 20 years.

Dani’s respiratory problems took a turn for the worse again and she had a fever and stayed home from school. Her fever was very high Tuesday evening and Andrea took her to the ER, where the doctor gave her an injection of antibiotic.

On a brighter note, granddaughter Heather’s first book is accepted for publication, by the same editor who published my book Horse Tales (which came out last October. Her book discusses safety when handling horses, and will be published in April.)

MARCH 4, 2015 Andrea and Charlie left Thursday evening to drive part way to Salt Lake for his appointment Friday with the doctor who has been overseeing the bowel problem he’s had since he was a baby. The doctor changed some of his medications and wants to see him again in a year.

Friday afternoon Lynn visited with one of our neighbours who is having a lot of problems this year with calf scours. Lynn came home and got some of the medication we use, and took it to John to try.

Early Monday morning Lynn went to the hospital for blood tests his doctor ordered. While he was there he also went to the ER to have a doctor check out the severe pain in his upper leg and thigh.

An x-ray showed arthritis and bursitis in that hip joint, along with degenerative spine disease. The doctor put him on medication to help reduce the inflammation.

MARCH 11 Dani stayed home from school two weeks and did her work at home. Andrea took her in some days for short periods, so she could take her tests.

Today Lynn went to his doctor for results of his blood tests. She didn’t like the looks of some of the readings, which indicate kidney problems. She took him off blood pressure medication as well as one of the anti-inflammatory/ pain medications he’s been on for several years, since they may be causing kidney damage. So now he hopes he can get by without the blood pressure medication that he’s been on for more than 20 years.

MARCH 19 Young Heather is back from Canada (where she was visiting friends) and training horses again,

getting several ready for the big horse sale in April. She bought five dump truck loads of sand, delivered to her outdoor arena, and Michael borrowed our old disc to work it up and make a nice, smooth surface.

The old disc had two flat tires, and we had to get some other tires before he could take it two miles up the road to their place.

Dani is finally well enough to go back to school. She got over the respiratory problems and now just has to be careful to not over-exert, so she can get over the mononucleosis.

When I helped Lynn feed the cows Monday morning, Twinkle Twinkle (one of the two-year-old pregnant heifers) didn’t come to the feed. She was dull, and not interested in eating when I herded her to the hay. After windy weather, we thought she might have pneumonia. Lynn and I brought that group down to the barnyard so we could sort her off, with a couple other young cows to keep her company so she wouldn’t be so stressed, and took the rest back to the field.

Andrea came and helped us put her in the headcatch by the calving barn. I took her temperature and it was 105, which is very high for a cow. We gave her injections of antibiotic and Banamine (the latter to help reduce fever and inflammation). When we let her

photo: heather smith thomas

A listless heifer making progress after being treated with antibiotics.

out of the headcatch she squirted bloody diarrhea. We called our vet and he said it would be hard to tell whether the diarrhea was caused by the high fever or the fever was caused by some kind of acute intestinal infection.

By afternoon the Banamine was working to reduce her fever. She was chewing her cud again, even though she didn’t want to eat. She was licking salt, needing some after losing so much body fluid and electrolytes through diarrhea. The next morning she was eating a little hay. Then it rained hard during the night. Yesterday she was still dull, with fever of 104, so we gave her more Banamine and antibiotics.

She’s eating a little better, and we hope she won’t abort her calf. † Heather Smith Thomas ranches with her husband Lynn near Salmon, Idaho. Contact her at 208-756-2841.

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

43

Cattleman’s Corner The environment

Checking the ecological account Monitoring the ecological state of and changes in your farmland is of value to demonstate proper land stewardship

BY SEAN MCGRATH

arms and ranches rely heavily on nature and ecological processes to produce food and to support our own families. Nature is quite an amazing entity and for the most part will try to do everything she can to protect us from our own mismanagement. In other words nature is resilient and covers a lot of our management mistakes.

the public but it is also beneficial for our own businesses. In many cases the public is actually willing to pay us for some of these ecological goods and services provided from well-managed ranches, but they want verification that they are receiving what they pay for.

This is one of the primary reasons why tracking our ecological bank account is so important.

Hopefully we can see the why, but the how can be overwhelming.

THE ECOLOGICAL ACCOUNT

MONITORING PROGRAM

Just as it is important to track our financial position, it is also important to measure and track our ecological position. A lot of times Mother Nature covers our managerial butts with a very good line of credit, but we can’t run a sustainable business while growing an ecological debt. We want a positive balance in our account with Mother Nature’s bank, not bounced cheques.

As the public concerns over natural resource use grows, it is becoming increasingly important to demonstrate a positive and hopefully growing ecological balance that is occurring under our leadership. This is beneficial for

The first step in establishing any monitoring program is determining where and what to measure.

Our operation uses a standardized process developed by Land EKG in which we measure rainfall, soil cover, plant growth, species composition and biodiversity. This sounds complicated, but in truth a reading takes very little time and provides a lot of useful feedback.

Ideally measurement locations should be representative of the entire pasture, or in some cases may represent fragile or damaged areas. They also need to be accessible, as the sites will be read on a regular (annual) basis. Recording rainfall, at least in Western Canada

F

Figure 1. Sample Photopoint comparison. Photos were taken from the same location. Pasture was grazed early in 2014, and beavers pulled out a dam during mid-spring. is also important, as it is the limiting factor in grass growth and many ecological processes. We also use site specific tools such as riparian health assessments for areas along creeks and wetlands.

Once the locations are set, the next step is to establish a baseline reading. This is an objective measure of where things are at right now. This is extremely important as it is the “opening balance” and lets us know if our management decisions are making ecological deposits or withdrawals.

We use two basic types of readings in our operation. The first is a transect, where we establish a line in the pasture along which we take a series of standardized readings and photographs. The second is a

photopoint in which we return to the same spot each year and take a series of documentation photographs in a complete circle.

By returning to the same sites and comparing the data and the photos year over year and comparing it with our management and rainfall we get a very clear idea of the impact of our management decisions and whether we are making withdrawals or deposits to our account with nature.

DOCUMENTATION IMPORTANT I know many very good range managers that assess conditions as part of their nature, but documented, repeatable measures of our ecological impacts are becom-

ing more important as we face continued pressure from the public to explain our actions as producers, challenges from issues such as endangered species legislation and profit margins that may be under pressure from rising land and input costs.

If you would like more information on Land EKG monitoring please visit www.ekgcan.com. For wetland and riparian tools take a look at www.cowsandfish.org. If you are interested in learning more about ecological goods and services have a look at www.alus.ca. † Sean McGrath is a rancher and consultant from Vermilion, Alta. He can be reached at sean@ranchingsystems.com or (780)853-9673.

For additional information visit www.ranchingsystems.com.

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Home Quarter Farm Life SEEDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

The Elaine Froese (phrase) that pays Elaine Froese

O

ne snowy day at a beautiful ranch home in southern Alberta around the expansive kitchen table, the farm team said, “Elaine you should make a list of your top phrases that you use in coaching.”

“OK,” I said, knowing that many of the best projects are started by attentive practical ranchers and farmers who call it like they see it.

• It is your farm. Your family.

Your choice. This is my essential message as a coach. I want farm folks to build new scenarios for the new chapters in their lives, that suit their values and goals. Many folks who feel “stuck” have not stopped to talk with themselves about what they really want in their life, their family and their farm business. Are you sensing a new chapter coming up for your life? What choices do you have to make before some new experiences happen?

• You get the behaviour you accept. So why are you putting up with bad behaviour? Folks — you do not have to allow abuse, profanity, or nasty behaviour on

your farm. Stand up for what you believe is right. Find support beyond your farm gate.

• That was then and this is now. (Attributed to my motheri n - l a w, M a r g a r e t F r o e s e . ) Meaning that things change and you might need to make a new decision for the present and the future. Some founders make promises to successors that have to be broken when the financial reality dictates that the founders need more money for their reinvention years. Plans can change, but the basic trust doesn’t need to be harmed if the parties can all be honest, transparent, and agree to talk about their disappointment.

• A farm is not a piece of pie.

This means the critical mass of assets needs to stay with the farm owner or shareholders. Create another wealth bubble for your non-business heirs or have great agreements that allow access to the land for the farm operation. Parents are not responsible to ensure that all of their adult children are economically equal.

Many adult children have wealth creation goals that don’t demand large gifts from hard-working founders. Perhaps if you sat down with your children you’d discover that their main desire is for you to have some rewards now to be able to enjoy the fruit of your labour.

• Change is inevitable, growth is optional. Change is going to happen, but are you ready to embrace it and work through the necessary steps to achieve your goals in a timely fashion and meet the needs of your team?

The Hudson Institute gave me a great map called the “cycle of renewal” that helps families navigate change and make minitransitions to get aligned again with their vision and goals. Life is not a straight line, and we are more resilient to the bumps in the road when we take a “learner” approach.

• You are good enough. This is a take on Brene Brown’s work where she says, “You are enough.” Many young farmers feel that no matter how hard they work it is never “good enough.” All of our farms could use more intentional affirmation. Lately I have been asked to speak about “encouraging the heart of your farm.” We all need more affirmation and appreciation on our farm teams.

• Divorce on farms does not have to happen. This saying provoked a profane outburst at one of my seminars, but I meant it.

Love and respect for all players and spouses on your farm will go a long way to avoiding the divorce courts. Sometimes I think people don’t ask for professional help soon enough, and then the

pain and wounds are far too deep to be healed.

• When is it her turn to get what she needs? This is the uncomfortable question posed to the aging founder who has been married for over 45 years and still cannot see what his wife is longing for in a new chapter of life beyond the farm. She wants to move away from the main yard (Grand Central Station) and spend more time with her hobbies and friends in town. She is tired. She knows her husband still wants a role on the farm, but now it needs to be different, as the next generation becomes the main manager.

• A conversation is not a contract. My friend Jolene Brown likely coined this term first, and she is right. Many promises as conversations will not hold up when challenged. Families in business are wise to write things down in agreements that keep a record of what was decided and promised.

• Love does not read minds. I think I was told this as a young bride by our minister, and I used this phrase recently in a coaching call. It was powerful when I saw the young farmer’s binder page with the quote in BOLD block letters. He is planning to make it into a wooden plaque for his kitchen.

• You have options, you can leave. A young frustrated farm

woman asked me in a seminar Q&A what to do with a father-inlaw who was not treating her with respect. I quickly said, “Just leave.”

She did not leave, but the notion that she did have the option to choose a different path gave her the freedom to make her current situation different. She now blogs about agriculture and we had the pleasure of reuniting a few months ago. I had no idea of the power of the phrase until she told me her story. You can find out more about “necessary endings” in our book Farming’s In-Law Factor. Chapter 10 talks about what to do when things don’t work out.

• Conflict resolution is a business risk management strategy.

Discuss the “undiscussabull.”

I believe that conflict avoidance is one of the huge boulders holding agriculture back. Many founders have a fear of conflict, so they procrastinate and do not have courageous conversations.

Attack an issue without attacking the person, and get resolution.

Don’t waste emotional energy on “drama.” Learn to focus on solving problems with effective focused management. † Elaine Froese is a certified farm family coach and farm partner. Seek her out at www. elainefroese.com or call 1-866-848-8311. Buy her books for your mom. Share your stories of how these phrases have impacted you. Elaine wants to hear from you on Facebook at “farm family coach” or Twitter @elainefroese.

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45

Home Quarter Farm Life

Long legacy of lentils A favourite food of ancient Greece finds new flavours in Canada Amy Jo Ehman

T

here’s an old adage in Greece about not adding “myrrh to the lentil soup” because myrrh is too fancy for a humble bowl of lentils. A culinary overkill.

Ancient Greeks preferred more simple flavourings such as vinegar and sumac (which grew wild) or olive oil and salt.

They boiled the lentils until they were soft and thick for a soup called phakes (or fakes), a dish the Romans called puls, from which we get the botanical word pulse to describe legumes such as lentils, chickpeas and peas.

The Romans believed lentils were restorative and good for your health. Their famous physician, Hippocrates, prescribed a lentil diet as a tonic for liver

fatigue and, amazingly, modern science has backed this up.

The oldest archeological evidence of lentils for dinner was found on the coast of Greece at a place known as the Franchthi Cave, circa 13,000 years ago.

These were wild lentils. The cave was home to a group of hunter-gatherers but over time they moved out of the cave into a small village by the Mediterranean Sea and took up farming. By 6500 BC they were growing wheat, barley and lentils — the same domesticated grains that have been farmed in the Middle East for 10,000 years.

Eventually, due to global warming, the sea level rose until it covered their village and fields, which were discovered by archeologists exploring the cave in the 1960s.

With the spread of farming westward from the Middle East, those three grains — wheat, barley and lentils — spread together. Lentils were late coming to Western Canada

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 1-800-665-0502 Email susan@fbcpublishing.com Please remember we can no longer return photos or material. – Sue

photo: amy jo ehman

Lentil cookies — more than a century after wheat and barley.

What was once the breadbasket of the world is now the lentil basket of the world.

No nation produces more lentils, of more varieties, than Canada. However, as Canadian lentil production was rising, Greek farmers were growing fewer lentils, preferring instead to plant other crops that qualify for agricultural subsidies from the European Union. According to an online source, farmers in Greece grew 12,700 tonnes of lentils in 1961 and just 2,000 tonnes in 2011. Now they buy lentils from Canada.

Maybe I was eating Canadian lentils the other day when I ordered a bowl of lentil soup in a restaurant in Athens. It was rich and fragrant, seasoned with tomato, carrots and parsley. Simple and delicious, the perfect restorative after a long day of travel and airport food.

As much a part of Greek history as the Acropolis.

Despite its ancient pedigree, new varieties of lentils are still being developed. The small black lentil is a Canadian invention, according to Bert Vandenberg, a plant scientist at the Crop Development Centre at the University of Saskatchewan. He says it was bred at the research farm at Indian Head, Sask.

Some enterprising chefs noted that it resembled the black caviar of the Beluga sturgeon and, voila, black Beluga lentils began appearing on trendy menus.

While I’m a big fan of oldfashioned lentil soup, I also like a new food trend. This cookie recipe fits that bill — a delicious new way to enjoy the ancient legacy of the lentil.

CHOCOLATE LENTIL COOKIES Small black or brown lentils look deceptively like chocolate chips in these delicious cookies.

1/2 c. soft butter 1 c. sugar 1 c. cooked small black or brown lentils 1 egg 1 tsp. vanilla 1 tbsp. milk 1 c. flour 1/3 c. cocoa powder 1 tsp. baking powder 1 c. quick oats Cream the butter, sugar and lentils. Some of the lentils will purée and some will remain whole. Mix in the egg, vanilla and milk. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda, adding to the batter with the oats until well blended. Drop by the spoonful onto cookie sheets.

Bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes. Allow cookies to cool slightly then remove them to a cooling rack. Makes about 30 cookies. † Amy Jo Ehman is the author of Prairie Feast: A Writer’s Journey Home for Dinner, and, Out of Old Saskatchewan Kitchens. She hails from Craik, Saskatchewan.

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Home Quarter Farm Life

Ghostwind Appaloosa Ranch Couple committed to preserving Nez Perce Appaloosa line

BY CHRISTALEE FROESE

T

he deal was sealed with a handshake.

When Bill and Joanne Greenwood left the ranch of Washington Appaloosa breeder Gerry Messer and his son Kelly in 2007, their future had been determined by one sincere grasp.

Messer was dying of cancer and he had one wish — to keep the bloodline of a particular family of Appaloosa horses alive. He had spent a lifetime preserving the genetic line that led directly back to the Nez Perce tribe who lived in the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S. Nez Perce people and their Appaloosas were systematically slaughtered by the American Army in the Nez Perce War. One of the tribe’s most famous leaders, Chief Joseph, surrendered to the U.S. Calvary in 1877. By that time most of the Nez Perce Appaloosa line, known for its speed, endurance and unique colouring, had been wiped out. Messer, along with a handful of North American breeders, sought to keep the intelligent and majestic line of horses alive.

The Greenwoods travelled to Messer’s ranch to pick up a young filly in order to begin their retirement project as novice Appaloosa breeders, and after a week at the ranch, they decided to follow in the Washington breeder’s footsteps.

In 2010 they got a call that Messer was gravely ill and that the breeder had decided to give the Greenwoods his prized herd of Appaloosas.

“At that time we made an agreement — it wasn’t a contract, but it was a handshake between friends that I would look after his horses and make sure that the breed didn’t disappear,” said Bill.

Bill and Joanne, both retired educators who had grown up in Canada, bought a farm in Odessa, Saskatchewan so they could house their growing herd. They built a stateof-the-art birthing barn with 24-hour monitors at their Ghostwind Appaloosa Ranch and proceeded to breed the purest form of Nez Perce horses possible.

They became part of “The Appaloosa Project,” a worldwide initiative by American and Canadian researchers, to investigate the nature of Appaloosa genet-

ics, and have one of the largest foundation Appaloosa herds in North America.

The Greenwoods retain a small number of foundation colts to enhance their breeding program, and hand-select where their colts will go, choosing people who will not only take care of their horses but will continue to breed them as pure Appaloosas.

“It’s not a question of money for us, it’s that the right horse has the right home which is exactly what Gerry would have done,” said Bill.

The Greenwoods have had horses go as far as Switzerland, Slovakia and throughout the U.S. with prices ranging from hundreds of dollars to thousands.

“We want to pass the legacy on to the younger passionate breeders, the ones who will take this on and continue the Nez Perce Appaloosa breed into the future.”

While Bill and Joanne’s early horse experience involved recreational riding with quarter-horses, the Appaloosa breed has become their sole passion.

“There’s just something about them that is truly majestic. They are very smart and if we don’t take care of them they will disap-

photos: christalee froese

Bill Greenwood

pear because they’ll be seen as a commodity rather than what they are, which is the backbone of what we have become in North America,” said Joanne.

Bill considers it his personal responsibility to protect and preserve them. “These horses were the foundation of North American civilization for thousands of years and unless we look after this historical horse, it’s going to disappear.” † Christalee Froese writes from Montmartre, Sask.

Appaloosa mares out for a run at Ghostwind Appaloosa Ranch near Odessa, Saskatchewan.

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EXTENDED OUTLOOK FOR THE PRAIRIES Weather Forecast for the period of April 12 to May 9, 2015

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Saskatchewan

April 12 - 18 Blustery days usher in a few mild, sunny days followed by cooler, wet conditions. Snow/frost is expected in a few areas.

April 12 - 18 Highs in the teens most days under sunshine, but cooler windy intrusions bring some rain and a chance of snow on 2 or 3 days.

April 19 - 25 Fluctuating temperatures are expected. On cooler, windy days there will be some rain and a possibility of scattered snow.

April 19 - 25 Fluctuating temperatures with highs near 20 in the southwest.

On cooler, windy days expect rain and a slight risk of snow.

April 26 - May 2 Pleasant under sunshine and milder temperatures, although rain with a risk of snow/frost is expected on 2 or 3 occasions.

April 26 - May 2 Pleasant under sunshine and milder temperatures, although rain with a risk of snow/frost is expected on 2 or 3 occasions.

April 19 - 25 Pleasant, mild days are interrupted by cooler, blustery weather with scattered rain.

Scattered snow in central and northern areas.

May 3 - 9 Variable weather as warm, dry days interchange with cooler, wet days and some frost. Chance of snow. Blustery.

May 3 - 9 Variable weather as warm, dry days interchange with cooler, wet days and some frost. Slight chance of snow. Blustery.

-3 / 9 Grande Prairie 19.8 mms

-3 / 10 Edmonton

-3 / 10 Jasper

21.2 mms

-3 / 9

32.4 mms

Banff

-2 / 11 Calgary

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

Manitoba April 12 - 18 Mild and sunny days are followed by cooler, wet days.

Windy at times. Frosty nights.

Periodic heavier snow in the north.

April 19 - 25 Sunny with a few milder days in the teens in the south. Scattered rain and gusty on 2 or 3 days.

Some snow in the north.

April 26 - May 2 Mostly sunny aside from rain on a couple of days with a chance of snow in places. Frost most nights.

Often windy.

April 26 - May 2 Sunny, windy with variable temperatures. Some highs hit 20s in the south, but frost on many nights. Scattered rain.

May 3 - 9 Seasonal and at times cool with nighttime frost. Sunny skies alternate with showers or rain.

Windy. Risk of snow.

May 3 - 9 Seasonal to cool with occasional frost. Sunny apart from showers on a couple of occasions.

Chance of snow. Blustery.

Precipitation Forecast 22.1 mms

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Southern Alberta

Peace River Region April 12 - 18 Blustery days usher in a few mild, sunny days followed by cooler, wet conditions.

Snow/frost in several areas.

25.1 mms

NEAR NORMAL

-2 / 9 North Battleford -3 / 10 Red Deer 22.9 mms

0 / 13 Medicine Hat 26.0 19mms cms Lethbridge 35.9 mms 26 cms -1 / 12

-5 / 6 The Pas

-4 / 8 Prince Albert 22.2 mms

NEAR NORMAL

21.7 mms

-3 / 9 Saskatoon 19.7 mms

27.4 mms

-3 / 9 Yorkton

-4 / 9 Dauphin

-4 / 7 -2 / 11 20.3 mms 31.7 mms -2 / 11 Gimli Regina 39.2 mms -2 / 10 Moose Jaw 20.4 mms Swift 24.3 mms -2 / 10 -3 / 9 Current Portage -2 / 10 -2 / 11 Brandon 40.4 mms Winnipeg 24.7 mms Weyburn 35.4 mms 35.9 mms 28.9 mms -2 / 11 Estevan Melita -4 / 10 33.3 mms

33.5 mms

Precipitation Outlook For April Much Above Normal Below Much above normal normal below normal normal

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

Precipitation (water equivalent) normals for April in mms. ©2015 WeatherTec Services www.weathertec.mb.ca

APRIL 7, 2015 grainews.ca /

47

Home Quarter Farm Life SINGING GARDENER

A tough rose for a good cause Plus, Ted shares some readers’ comments Tumbler tomato

ted meseyton

F

rom a falling star to a rising star! Do you remember a 1959 song recorded by Perry Como titled: “Catch a Falling Star?” It garnered him a Grammy Award for best vocal performance by a male that year.

Read on and I, Ted, shall tell you about a really hardy Canadian garden and patio compact rose that’s destined to become a rising star in its own right in 2015.

I’ve also got my eye on planting Tumbler tomato seeds and potatoes. (Speaking to myself) Ted — it’s time to tip your Singing Gardener hat and bid everyone welcome. photo: courtesy never alone foundation

Superbly beautiful “Never Alone” compact rose is 100 per cent developed in Canada. It has excellent disease resistance and survives harsh Canadian winters. Ted tells why it’s important gardeners support purchases of this rose.

IT’S A TOUGH ROSE — FOR A GREAT CAUSE ROCKING ALONE IN AN OLD ROCKING CHAIR I easily relate to real-life stories put to music. Many were often referred to as tearjerkers. The “Never Alone” rose reminds me of a song that was often requested by listeners who wrote in to the radio station back in the days when I was a DJ. Here are some of the lyrics as best I recall from memory.

Rocking alone in an old rocking chair, I saw an old mother with silvery hair, She seemed so neglected by those who should care, Rocking alone in an old rocking chair.

Her hands were calloused, wrinkled and old, A life of hard work was the story they told, And I thought of angels as I saw her there, Rocking alone in an old rocking chair.

Bless her dear heart do you think she’d complain, Though life has been bitter she’d live it again, And carry the cross that is more than her share, Rocking alone in an old rocking chair.

It wouldn’t take much to gladden her heart, Just some small remembrance on somebody’s part, A visit would brighten her empty life there, Rocking alone in an old rocking chair.

I look at her and I think what a shame, The ones who forgot her she loves just the same, Yes, I think of angels as I see her there, Rocking alone in an old rocking chair.

“Together we can do so much.” Let’s join the Never Alone Foundation and shout out loud the name of their new rose introduction “Never Alone.” Over 65,000 of these roses are available now at many nurseries and garden centres across our nation and there are many reasons to buy one or several.

“Never Alone” rose was selected from over 2,000 different rose seedlings that were planted at a three-acre research plot on the southern outskirts of Portage la Prairie for the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA). I visited the area last summer with friends and a local water dowser where some potential water sites were staked out nearby.

The Never Alone Foundation is a national registered charity partnered with CFL Alumni Association and CNLA that seeks to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. “Never Alone” rose is being marketed to raise funds for this worthy cause.

What an exciting and startling rose it is. Here are some attributes of this beautiful, compact and 100 per cent Canadian rose introduction. New leaves begin with a red tint, maturing to a deep glossy green with sawtoothed edges. As a continuous bloomer, “Never Alone” looks fresh and attractive throughout the season and will not disappoint with its display of rich crimson-edged petals, fading to white at the base. There can be as many as 30 blooms and more on a single plant at one time. Disease resistance is high and “Never Alone” is proven to survive harsh Prairie winters in Zone 3 up to -30 C with very little evidence of damage.

It’s perfect for landscaping in an outdoor rose garden and then left to overwinter as is with some snow cover. Another option is to feature “Never Alone” as a container rose that’s placed on the patio or deck. However, dur-

ing winter the root system of a potted rose would not likely survive once exposed to a constant temperature colder than -20 C. Here’s one overwintering strategy to consider.

Water the rose and allow the roots to freeze in the pot as though in a block of ice that remains consistently frozen. Place the container holding the rose inside a large cardboard box or in a large jute bag and stuff the bottom, sides and tops with flax straw. In a pinch, dried leaves and some crumpled newspaper can be considered for insulation. Close the top and store in a shelter at a consistent temperature that remains below freezing.

Remember, by purchasing this rose, gardeners help ensure cancer patients and their families are NEVER ALONE in their journey.

For more information contact Anne Bowering, the communications co-ordinator, at toll free 1-888-446-3499, extension 8690.

READERS AND THEIR LETTERS Now that my tomato seed draws have concluded, I’ve begun reading through all the entries received; a few at a time. Many of you included a sentence or two and others wrote a full page and more.

I expect to share some of your comments. However, it would take many Singing Gardener columns to include everyone, so please do know whether your name gets mentioned or not; every one is truly appreciated. Thanks for those 381 entries.

From a heritage tomato seed winner Dateline: Feb. 28, 2015 Prince George, B.C. Hello Singing Gardener Ted, “I was very happy to be one of the lucky winners of your 2015 heritage tomato seed draws. I received my tomato seeds Feb. 24.

Thank you so much. I’m looking forward to planting and harvesting them. I try hard each spring,

weather does not always co-operate. Sometimes the seasons seem shorter than others. Hope you continue to spread the good news.

A week of sunshine has brightened up the winter blues or cabin fever as people say. Hope you and your family have a wonderful Easter and summer.”

— Yours truly, Richard & Margaret Arnett and family

MIX UP YOUR GARDEN THIS YEAR … with mixed bags of seed potato. Eagle Creek Seed Potatoes has a neat little potato guide for 2015 that you can request by phoning 1-877-224-3939; write to Box 70, Bowden, Alta. T0M 0K0; email: seeds@seedpotatoes. ca or go to www.seedpotatoes. ca. This year besides many early, fingerling, mid-season and late selections, they’re featuring four different variety packs — Mixed Season, Gardeners Favourites, Heritage Variety and New Variety — designed for those with small gardens or who want to try a variety of some new potatoes. †

This is Ted Meseyton the Singing Gardener and Grow-It Poet from Portage la Prairie, Man. Plant a rising star and grow it in your garden. In your rose garden that is. Plant “Never Alone,” a rose reaching stardom.

This hardy rose is helping others live. It’s been proven that gardening offers amazing benefits to one’s health by teaching how to relieve stress, get more exercise, eat better and stay healthier and happier well into old age. Got me to wondering: What’s the age of our eldest Grainews gardener who still gardens? Don’t be shy now if you think you qualify! Send your name, age and location with a bit of your gardening insight to singinggardener@mts.net.

Elizabeth (Betty) Larsen writes from Russell, Manitoba. Let me paraphrase part of what she says: “I have been growing Tumbler tomatoes for maybe 20 years or more.

My Tumblers are 48 days to maturity when weather cooperates. When we lived in Alberta, I got my seeds from Holes in St. Albert.

Last year I got Tumbler seeds from Early’s. Their Tumblers are the real thing and seeds worth every cent. I always plant them in the black plastic cell packs, one seed in each cell. Plants have produced well over 100 ripened tomatoes on the vine. If you lived closer, I would like to start a Tumbler tomato plant for you.

When we went to Alberta, I took extra Tumblers to my sister, nieces and my daughter east of Innisfail.

Always enjoy your page in Grainews.”

Ted responds: Thank you so very much Betty for your hand-printed, five-page letter that also contains a wealth of other information including your experiences for dealing with leg cramps and witching for water.

Here are two sources for gardeners wishing to buy hanging basket Tumbler tomato seeds. They are: West Coast Seeds, 392564th Street, Delta, B.C. V4K 3N2; email: orderdesk@westcoast seeds.com, phone toll free 1-888-804-8820, OR Early’s Farm & Garden Centre, 2615 Lorne Ave., Saskatoon, Sask.

S7J 0S5; email: orders@ear lysgarden.com, phone toll free 1-800-667-1159. †

photo: courtesy west coast seeds, www.westcoastseeds.com

Tumbler tomato is an excellent hanging basket choice for an urban gardener’s balcony. It even tolerates shady conditions. A single plant in a 25-cm (10-inch) pot cascades over the sides, producing masses of really early 1-1/2inch bright-red tomatoes.

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