Grainews

Volume 42, Number 3 | february 2, 2016

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Oat acreage forecast up Price and disease a big factor in pushing oat acres across the Prairies

By Angela Lovell

A

round 2.9 million acres of oats were planted across Canada in 2015 according to Statistics Canada, and although acres have been dropping over the past few years, oat production will likely be up by more than 10 per cent this spring to around 3.3 million tonnes. Last year, the majority of those acres were planted in Saskatchewan, which grows more oats than Manitoba and Alberta combined.

“In Saskatchewan, specifically last year there was quite a bit of disease pressure from fusarium head blight in wheat,” says Shawna Mathieson, executive director of the Prairie Oat growers Association (POGA). “Because of that some people switched some wheat acres to oats.”

Oat supplies had tightened over the past year partly due to transportation issues, and U.S. millers especially were looking for more supply in the spring, which helped stabilize prices. Although oat prices vary quite a lot from province to province, estimates for oats in Manitoba

and Saskatchewan looked more profitable than canola or spring wheat last March.

“Oats gained some acres when it looked like they were going to be more profitable than some other crops in the coming year,” says Mathieson. Oats also cost less to produce so there’s less risk. “You can put in oats and still make a good return on them with a lower input cost,” adds Mathieson.

About half of Canada’s oat production is exported to the U.S., and there are still issues with rail transportation. “Delivery is a major issue especially in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan. Manitoba doesn’t tend to have the same issues because they have more direct rail lines down to the U.S. and the oat growing area is closer to the U.S. so trucking is an easier option,” says Mathieson.

POGA continues to work alongside the transportation and grain industries to review the Canadian Transportation Act to help increase export opportunities.

Another factor that may have driven oat acres in some areas was late seeding, prompting growers to switch to oats

because they have earlier maturity, says Ron Weik, seed portfolio manager for FP Genetics. “Oats is a tough crop. It will usually produce something even under very trying conditions,” says Weik. “If it doesn’t make maturity because of a drought or something, growers can still cut it for greenfeed, or bale it and sell it for hay.”

A good rotation crop Oats has always been a small acreage crop and area is very price sensitive.

There could be a lot more interest in oats as a rotation crop if growers could get more consistent pricing, says Mathieson.

“In the spring oats was competitive with most crops, including canola, but most farmers consider canola one of their key rotation crops. It’s tough for oats to ‘buy’ acres from canola because in a typical year, oats does not compete well with canola on net margin,” she says.

The expected high yield from oats can be a double-edged sword. “One of the challenges we have in oats is that because you get higher yields the price per bushel

is lower, and you also need extra storage than you would for soybean, canola or wheat,” says Mathieson. “Growers also have to factor in the cost of shipping because they ship three to four times the volume of oats per acre as they would canola. So there’s a cost for shipping and storage that has to be factored in. What I hear from growers in Saskatchewan is that they would like to see a minimum price of $3 a bushel to keep oats in their rotation and prices typically fluctuate from $2 to just over $3 per bushel.”

Millers and niche markets Most oats produced in Western Canada ends up with millers, but marketing oats is more complex than selling other grain crops such as wheat. Millers publish lists of desirable oat varieties and specifications that growers must meet. Growers provide a sample of the approved variety they have grown for testing; if the miller accepts it they will be given a delivery schedule.

“There is a fair bit of oat milling capac-

» continued on page 4

photo: poga

Shawna Mathieson is the executive director of the Prairie Oat growers Association (POGA), which is working to develop new markets for Canadian oats.

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In This Issue

Wheat & Chaff .................. 2 Features . ........................... 5 Crop Advisor’s Casebook . 8 Columns ............................ 14 Machinery & Shop............. 24 Cattleman’s Corner .......... 30

Wily wild boar

lisa guenther page 10

Mid-range tractor guide Scott Garvey page 24

FarmLife ............................ 35

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/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Wheat & Chaff STAMPEDE

BY JERRY PALEN

Leeann Minogue

Y

“He read it. Now he thinks he’s the richest man in the county”

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ou know it’s time for the Crop Production Show in Saskatoon when the temperature drops down to “wear your warmest coat.” This year’s show had the same format as the past two years, with a trade show on the exhibition grounds on one side of the city, a handful of meetings at the Saskatoon Inn on the opposite end of town and more formal sessions downtown.

All of the major commodity organizations that collect levies from Saskatchewan farmers held their AGMs along with the show. Because I’ve been trying to understand how they all work, I took it on as a personal challenge to attend as many as possible. Even with grit, determination and a lot of coffee, I only managed six. (The Sask Winter Cereals Development Commission meeting was held before I got to Saskatoon, I left town before the Sask Mustard meeting, and the Canary Seed Development Commission held its meeting simultaneously with other AGMs.) I won’t try to tell you it was a hardship. Each meeting featured friendly people, cushioned chairs, coffee and sometimes snacks.

However, it’s hard to believe that if we were starting this system from scratch we’d organize research and market development funding in a way that legally requires nine AGMs per year.

One of the problems with holding nine separate AGMs is poor attendance. At least two of the associations barely had enough actual levy-paying farmers in the audience to meet quorum. And quorum is not very onerous — for example, SaskFlax only needs 20 qualified farmers. (Of course there were still lots of people in the rooms — researchers, government analysts, out-of-province visitors and staff from the other associations filled out the room and helped drink the coffee.)

These meetings are funded through farmer levies. These are the meetings where our staff and board members explain how they’ve spent our money, and what results they’re hoping to achieve. This is our chance to speak up if we have an idea, or find out if we have something to complain about. Not all farmers grow all crops, so I’ll give most of you a pass on not wanting to discuss the detailed financial statements for Sask Mustard. And

Saskatchewan is big — not everyone has time to drive 10 hours round-trip to sit around at an AGM seconding motions to reappoint auditors. But across town at the trade show, a record 20,425 people turned up to look at the latest machinery. You would think more than 0.1 per cent of these people could have come out to the SaskFlax AGM. (I know.

Not everybody at the trade show is a farmer and not all farmers grow flax. But you see how nicely the math worked out.)

And so, I offer five reasons you should make an effort to attend as many commodity association meetings as you can next year.

Five reasons to go to the agm Reason 1: Meet the people running things. Maybe you don’t have a complaint or even a question. But you might one day. If you take the time to go to the AGM and meet the people running these organizations, it will be more comfortable for you to phone them up when you have a question. And, you’ll have a little more information about the candidates when it’s time to vote in the next election.

Reason 2: Get the jump on next year’s research. At all of these meetings, there were lists of research projects that we’re funding. Maybe there’s something on these lists that would solve one of your problems. If you know the research is underway, you can watch for results, or phone board members to find out how studies are progressing.

Reason 3: Take home free stuff.

Of course it’s not free — you’ve already paid for it. But if you don’t show up to collect your Sask Oat Development Commission oatmeal bowl or your Sask Barley beer mug, someone else will take it home.

Reason 4: Bring your voice forward. If you don’t think an organization is spending enough money or time researching a problem unique to your area, there’s no use complaining on coffee row that it’s a conspiracy. Unless the board members or staff hear about your problem, it’s entirely possible that they don’t even know you’re mad. Staying away from the AGM as a vote of protest will not make things better.

Reason 5: There could be an interesting resolution. There were several resolutions at this year’s AGMs. Most of the them were spearheaded by Dave Sefton, SaskFlax board member. He wanted to make sure that all of these organizations will work together with one voice when the new Liberal government is ready

to talk about carbon emissions and carbon credits for farmers. To make sure there was co-operation, Dave Sefton took his resolution to all of the AGMs I attended.

(He found other farmers to bring the resolution to the mic at some meetings, just for variety.)

Dave Sefton’s carbon credit resolutions passed unanimously at every meeting. That wasn’t the case with the resolution that Mossbank farmer Cherilyn Nagel brought to the floor at the SaskPulse meeting. Her resolution called for the SaskPulse levy to be made voluntary.

Most commodity organization levies are refundable, and are charged on a dollars per tonne basis.

SaskPulse has a non-refundable levy of one per cent of all gross sales of pulses and soybeans. After a discussion where some farmers pointed to the organization’s current large surplus (it has current assets of $28M), and others pointed to the profit and cropping options that farmers have gained through SaskPulse’s breeding programs, the resolution passed.

However, the resolution was non-binding and won’t necessarily be implemented. SaskPulse chair Tim Wiens committed to reporting back on the issue at next year’s AGM. Non-binding resolutions can seem frustrating if you’re actually at the meeting, but with less than 50 farmers in the room for the AGM, it hardly seems fair to be passing resolutions that must be implemented.

Another non-binding resolution was passed at the SaskWheat AGM. While other farmer-run cereal organizations have signed up to join Cereals Canada, the SaskWheat board has been a lone holdout, waiting to see if Cereals Canada would, in its view, be beneficial for farmers. After hearing the Saskatchewan Ag Minister, Lyle Stewart, encourage SaskWheat to join Cereals Canada, the levypaying farmers at the SaskWheat AGM voted in favour of joining.

Other farm meetings If you live in Alberta, your comparable AGMs were held at FarmTech in Edmonton from January 25 to 28. Manitoba farmers may still have time to get to CropConnect in Winnipeg for your meetings on February 10 and 11.

Those lucky farmers in the B.C. Peace River region only need to go to one AGM. All of their levies are collected by the B.C. Grain Industry Development Council, which will hold its Annual General Meeting in mid-June. † Leeann

Grainews has a Facebook page.

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

Find us on Twitter: Leeann Minogue is @grainmuse Lisa Guenther is @LtoG Lee Hart is @hartattacks Scott Garvey is @machineryeditor These are just some of the annual reports Saskatchewan farmers could have picked up in January.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

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Wheat & Chaff Farm safety

Be an ag-safe family — keep kids safe

E

ach year, the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association teams up with sponsors and friends to celebrate Canadian Agricultural Safety Week. For the next three years CASA is asking everyone in the agricultural community to “Be An Ag Safe Family” and this year, you can do just that by “Keeping Kids Safe.”

The ag family is large, it includes all those who work and care about Canadian agriculture. Ag family members come from farming communities, schools, agri-businesses and other organizations that work to make Canadian agriculture vibrant and thriving. For each of the next three years, Canadian Agricultural Safety Week will focus on different parts of the ag family. For 2016, this focus is on “Keeping Kids Safe.”

So how can members of the ag family (emember this includes more people than children, moms and dads and grandparents) work to keep kids safe?

Well, there are plenty of things each and every one of us can do.

Farm families can work to establish safe play areas where little ones can explore, learn and play without the risk of being hurt or killed. We all know that small children are incredibly curious. Their little minds and bodies are growing and absorbing the big, wonderful world around them all the time. Something as simple as a blade of grass can be fascinating.

Or a small bug or butterfly can send their imaginations soaring. Livestock, farm equipment and other potential hazards can also be intriguing, exciting and fascinating. That’s why it’s so important to set boundaries and establish rules and guidelines around play areas on the farm.

Farm families can also work on determining tasks for children on the farm that are safe and age-appropriate.

Understanding how children develop and grow is key in determining what they are capable of and how they can participate in ag tasks safely. It’s important to be honest with yourself and your child. Just because they

might be big enough, that might not always mean they have the attention span or the skills to successfully and safely complete a task.

Farming communities and schools can work to teach children about the hazards they might come across on the farm. Some ways of talking with children about farm safety can include incorporating farm safety into the school day, or even hold a farm safety day event. Safety day events, like Progressive Agriculture Safety Days are available for all Canadian communities. These days are organized by the community for the community and address the safety issues that are of most concern to the community.

Agri-businesses are in unique positions to influence safety on the farm.

As trusted members of the farming team, agronomists, equipment technicians and sales representatives all understand their customers. Agribusinesses hear the problems of their farming community. Weather woes, equipment prices, input costs, insur-

Photo contest

ance issues, and even safety concerns can all be topics of conversation between the agri-business rep and his customer. By being a voice and talking about safety with your customer, you can influence safety. By supplying safety gloves with products or hearing protection, you are making a difference to the safety of farmers and their families.

Most of all, everyone can be a part of keeping kids safe. Supervision, training, determining safe play areas, ageappropriate tasks and talking about safety are all a part having an ag safe family.

Canadian Agricultural Safety Week (CASW) is a public education campaign focusing on the importance of farm safety. CASW takes place every year during the third week of March. In 2016, CASW takes place March 13 to 19. Be an AgSafe Family is presented by Farm Credit Canada. For more information visit agsafetyweek.ca † Canadian Agricultural Safety Association, www.casa-acsa.ca

Agronomy tips… from the field

GIVE US YOUR BEST SHOT

Find the right cereal variety for your farm

V

ariety selection in cereals, like every crop in your rotation, is one of your first and most important management decisions.

Each variety is unique, as are the growing conditions on your farm. A variety’s performance is going to vary across environments due to many factors, including soil type, precipitation, fertility, temperature, planting date, pest infestations, and crop protection choices.

Choose varieties that have the attributes you need (yield, disease tolerance, standability, etc.), then research those varieties to see which ones are most likely to deliver in your situation. Your research shouldn’t begin and end with looking at seed guides. In most cases, that data will be averages from a number of locations and years, which may not reflect how a variety will perform on your farm.

It’s important that you have conversations with your seed provider or even the breeding organization and ask questions specific to a variety and your conditions to understand the best fit in your operation.

There are many inherent benefits to using certified seed (including yield). One not to overlook is that if you’re planting certified seed, you’ve got an opportunity every year to test new varieties. If you’re farm saving seed, you may be missing the opportunity to find the best varieties for your farm and to capture the genetic gains in agronomics and pest tolerance that come with the latest varieties. †

This agronomy tip is brought to you by Bryan Ulmer, Product Evaluation Scientist, Cereals, with Syngenta Canada Inc.

You might be from the Prairies if...

By Carson Demmans and Jason

Chris Bellefontaine sent us this photo. Chris wrote, “I took this photo of my son, Jack Bellefontaine, in his grandpa’s soybean field last September. He’s our Jack in the beanstalks. Jack loves visiting grandpa Bill McCormack on his farm in Jerseyville, Ontario and thinks Grandpa is basically the greatest person on earth, because he has tractors to ride on. I grew up on that farm, and seeing it again through the eyes of my kids makes me realize more than ever what a special place a farm is for a family. It has its challenges, but also a great many simple joys.” Chris, 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

You konw where Buffy St. Marie and Joni Mitchell were born but you can’t identify any of their songs.

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/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Cover Stories Crop production » CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Oat acreage forecast ity in Western Canada, especially in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and now in Alberta, which we don’t have for wheat, so the milling market is a big market,” says Weik. “One of the problems with oats is that there’s a futures market in Chicago but the market in Western Canada doesn’t always reflect that. The basis has become so wide that it’s got really no relationship to the Chicago price so it’s very much a supply and demand thing. Even in a year when we grow lots of oats, if the quality is not good for one reason or another, you can see some pretty attractive prices, provided you can meet the specifications the millers are looking for.”

There are some promising niche markets developing, such as gluten free, that are offering a premium for oats, although growers do have to adhere to stringent production specifications to ensure that there is no gluten contamination from prior crops such as wheat or barley.

Increasing the beta-glucan

level in oats has been a focus for breeding programs over the past few years, as millers demand more beta-glucan content to enable them to make health claims about their products. Studies have shown that beta-glucan can help reduce cholesterol and may play a role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

“For a heart-health claim to be made in the U.S. and for the Health Canada claim in Canada, there’s a minimum level of four milligrams of beta-glucan per kilogram, and a maximum level of seven per cent fat content, that millers have to meet in their products,” says Jennifer Mitchell Fetch, an oat breeder at AAFC’s Brandon Research and Development Centre at Brandon, Manitoba. “There are several things in the heart-health claim that are very beneficial for the consumer.”

“Varieties coming out of the AAFC oat breeding program tend to give you a little better betaglucan,” says Weik.”Nobody really understands the relationship between fertility or nutrients and beta-glucan so that remains somewhat of a mystery, although some varieties inherently have higher beta-glucan.”

Another niche market is being explored by OATDEAL, a com-

pany based in Saskatoon, which has developed a gluten-free, oatbased smoothie mix and an oatbased coffee creamer. The products are available in all Co-op retail stores in Western Canada, as well as a number of smaller, specialty stores.

Oats for Feed and Forage There has also been a lot of interest in oats for the forage and cattle feed markets. “We’ve had a few varieties out, the most recent one being CDC Haymaker (available through SeCan), which is a forage variety that’s intended to be cut as a forage greenfeed to meet the needs of the dairy industry,” says Dr. Aaron Beattie, a professor and oat breeder at the University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre (CDC).

“We also have a feed oat variety, CDC Nasser, which is meant to be harvested for its grain but the grain has elevated fat content in comparison to milling oats to provide higher energy content for the cattle industry, and also has a lowlignin hull to make it more easily digested.”

POGA has been leading an initiative — the Horse Healthy Oats Project — to inform and influence U.S.-based horse owners of the

role oats can play in their feed rations and the health benefits of feeding oats to their horses. The U.S. equine feed market offers a good premium for growers, but suffered from some bad publicity a few years ago.

“There was a big drop off in the use of oat in equine feed due to a lot of misinformation about oats,” says Beattie. “There was a perception going around at the time that oats were bad for horses, which was a misinterpretation of a study that was done in the U.S. by some veterinarians. POGA has gathered a lot of information, and are doing a lot of education, visiting feed manufacturers and horse owners to explain the actual benefits of oats.” The initiative seeks to help Canadian oat growers recapture more of this market.

POGA is also working to develop new markets for Canadian oats, such as Mexico, the third largest importer of oats globally, and several other Latin American countries. POGA is focusing on increasing consumer awareness in these countries about the health benefits of oats and the high quality of Canadian oats. † Angela Lovell is a freelance writer, editor and communications specialist living and working in Manitoba. Find her online at www.angelalovell.ca.

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crop production

The story of oat breeding and research

Advertising Services Co-ordinator

Breeders and researchers are expanding our knowledge of oat varieties and agronomy

Printed in Canada by Transcontinental LGM-Coronet Winnipeg, Man.

By Angela Lovell

O

ats is a small acreage crop, so many companies aren’t interested in providing significant funding for research,” says Shawna Mathieson, executive director of the Prairie Oat Growers Association (POGA).

“Most Canadian oat projects receive funding through our organization or through provincial and federal government funding that we apply for.”

(POGA receives funding from the Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba Oat Development Commissions, which are primarily funded through farmer levies.)

POGA is currently helping to fund 18 research projects, including projects at Agriculture & AgriFood Canada’s (AAFC) Brandon Research and Development Centre in Manitoba, the Crop Development Centre (CDC) at the University of Saskatchewan and Oat Advantage, a private oat breeding program near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

All of these projects are looking to improve the agronomic performance and marketability of oats. They include efforts by Dr. Jaswinder Singh at McGill University to identify genes responsible for characteristics such as higher beta-glucan and stronger straw.

Dr. Xiao Qui at the University

“

of Saskatchewan is looking at improving the nutritional and health benefits of oats through projects to identify oat germplasm with higher levels of oleic acid, a healthy fatty acid, and clone the genes responsible for these traits. Dr. Qui is also trying to identify the genes responsible for beta-glucan in oats and develop functional markers for breeders. Another aspect of his research involves increasing the level of avenanthramides, a novel bioactive compound in oats that has strong antioxidant and antiinflammatory properties.

“We are making progress towards developing markers to utilize in marker assisted selection in breeding programs,” says Jennifer Mitchell Fetch, an oat breeder at the Brandon Research and Development Centre. “It’ll be very helpful if we can have a marker for certain traits where we can look at them earlier in the life cycle of our varieties.”

Dr. Chris Willenborg at the University of Saskatchewan is working on projects to develop integrated weed management strategies to optimize oat production. “The first thing we are doing is something called ‘many little hammers’ which is combining multiple tactics to manage weeds,” says Willenborg. Those “little hammers” are comprised of three components. First is a five-year

crop rotation trial using three different rotations and assessing three different cultural control methods — oat cultivar (comparing short or tall), different seeding rates, and row spacing. The second is looking at different herbicide options.

The third is ecological effects.

Although the project has only completed its first year there are some encouraging results.

“Even after the first year, we see multiplicative effects between the different cultural methods that we had,” said Willenborg.

“We had an interaction between row spacing and seeding rate, so the effects of going from a 40 cm to a 20 cm row resulted in a 0.75-fold reduction in wild oat contamination. At a higher seeding rate of 400 seeds per m² we saw a 1.5-fold reduction in wild oat contamination over a seeding rate of 200 seeds per m².

But when we combined both of those factors together, we in fact saw a three-fold reduction.”

Production practices Willenborg is also leading a project investigating the response of oat yield and quality to different harvesting approaches, including the use of glyphosate as a harvest aid.

Dr. William May is conducting a large cropping sequence trial at the Indian Head Agricultural Research Farm to see if there

are particularly beneficial combinations of new and traditional crops. He is also leading a project to evaluate the relationship between test weights and nitrogen fertilization in different oat cultivars.

Other projects are looking at improving resistance in oats to diseases such as crown rust and leaf blotch, and Dr. Linda Hall at the University of Alberta is focusing on enhancing the yield and profitability of oats in central Alberta through variety selection, optimizing nitrogen fertilization and the use of plant growth regulators.

Independent oat breeder Jim Dyck of Oat Advantage in Saskatoon is working with a U.S. researcher to evaluate of winter oats. Dyck says it’s not likely growers will see an oat variety in the near future that could survive Canadian winters, but is hoping that he can introduce some extra cold tolerance into spring oats. “Oats used to be the last crop to be seeded because it was often used for feed. It wasn’t really important so it suffered from bad timing. That’s one of the reasons why I want to try to breed some cold tolerance into oats for people who are seeding oats sooner in their planting schedule,” says Dyck. † Angela Lovell is a freelance writer, editor and communications specialist living and working in Manitoba. Find her online at www.angelalovell.ca.

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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.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Features

5

Oat production

New oat varieties on the horizon

By Angela Lovell

S

ince 2011 there has been an increase in the frequency of registration of new oat varieties, says Dr. Aaron Beattie, professor and oat breeder at the University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre (CDC).

Breeding programs continue to focus on increasing yields and improving disease resistance. They’re also trying to address the needs of millers who are demanding plumper, better quality oat grains and higher betaglucan content.

New in the pipeline FP Genetics will release milling varieties CDC Ruffian and AAC Justice in 2017. Both are high yielding. AAC Justice has better crown rust resistance, whereas CDC Ruffian is less suited for areas such as Manitoba where crown rust is more prevalent. They join CDC Minstrel, another good yielding variety compared to older varieties, which also offers a good disease package and milling yield.

CDC Minstrel has been tested by millers and looks set to be added to their acceptable list of oat milling varieties. “It’s a nice variety,” says Beattie. “It’s got some good straw strength to it and higher milling yields, and offers a bump in yield compared to some of the older varieties out there, depending where it’s being grown.”

Summit (also available through FP Genetics) is another recent oat variety which is also going through initial testing with millers. “Based on the initial testing from the registration, Summit looks like it’s also a higher yielding variety with an improvement in milling yields as well,” says Beattie.

Canterra Seeds offers CDC Morrison, a high quality milling variety which is grown on a closed-loop, identity preserved contract basis for Quaker Oats.

“It’s a milling variety with very high beta-glucan, which is the compound in oats that’s associated with the heart health benefit,” says Beattie. There is a, however, a yield penalty. “With the closed loop system, growers are paid a premium to compensate for that yield deficit. There was a big increase this past summer in terms of acreage that was contracted and I think the plan is to try to bump that up even further next summer.”

Canterra Seeds introduced Triactor, a high yielding milling variety with improved lodging resistance some time ago, but it recently got some interest from an end user who believes it has great quality potential, says Cosmin Badea, cereals product development co-ordinator with Canterra. The company also has a third variety, CS Camden, which was developed through its internal R&D program. CS Camden has a shorter stature to provide even better lodging resistance and improved quality characteristics, such as more plumpness and higher levels of beta-glucan.

Independent Breeder Independent oat breeder, Jim Dyck of Oat Advantage east of Saskatoon, has developed two new varieties — OT6008 and OT6009 — which have been supported for registration and will be marketed by SeCan. They should be commercially available to growers in 2019. “Now more than ever, milling companies want an oat with plump, heavy grain, so it’s not just about yield, it’s also about yield and milling quality, and I’ve focused a lot in my breeding program on how to achieve that,” says Dyck.

SeCan has a number of different milling and forage oat varieties including AC Morgan, which

is the most widely grown milling variety in Saskatchewan and Alberta. It also has a tan hull variety, CDC Big Brown, which is resistant to smut and crown rust and is on the accepted list at Richardson Milling. Its forage variety, CDC Haymaker, launched in 2015, is intended to be cut as a green feed. CDC Norseman, available for 2018, offers excellent grain quality and a white hull with a solid agronomic package.

“I expect the oat portfolio available from SeCan to change quickly with the launch of new products,” says Todd Hyra, business manager, Western Canada for SeCan. “AC Morgan has been a cornerstone in our oat lineup for a long time, strong straw and consistent yields

have made it a tough product to beat. For a new variety to be successfully it has to offer the customer an improvement over what they have been growing. CDC Norseman will have improved milling quality that should speed uptake by end users. The new lines from Jim Dyck offer a plump kernel, with AC Morgan yield potential with an earlier maturity and stronger straw. This is something we and oat growers have been waiting for.”

Consult your provincial seed guide for details about oat variety performance in your area. † Angela Lovell is a freelance writer, editor and communications specialist living and working in Manitoba. Find her online at www. angelalovell.ca.

photo: courtesy poga

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Features

Crop production

Five keys to successful oat production Here’s the lowdown on five of the key factors behind growing a winning oat crop this year

By Angela Lovell

O

ats is a small-acre crop that has tended to fall behind in terms of agronomy research.

That’s changing as more oat varieties become available and new niche markets continue to develop and offer premiums to growers meeting their specifications. For anyone trying oats for the first time, or considering adding oats to their rotation, Grainews has rounded up the latest oat-related agronomy information.

One of the most pressing issues for growers is disease resistance, in particular resistance to crown rust, which is especially prevalent in Manitoba and some areas of southeast Saskatchewan. “We’re seeing more crown rust in oats and the genes that we have been using up until now for resistance seem to be breaking down,” says Jennifer Mitchell Fetch, an oat breeder at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Brandon Research and Development Centre in Manitoba.

“We are monitoring the races that are coming up through the United States because we need to stay ahead with genetic resistance.”

Crown rust can reduce yields and increase lodging. The disease bearing spores can be blown in from the southern U.S., and can also be produced locally on buckthorn bushes, the alternate host, where the fungus can undergo crossing and changes in genetics.

It’s important to know the resistance rating of the seed you’re planting and choose the most resistant varieties if they are in an area prone to crown rust.

Don’t jump the gun on fungicides.

“There are some oat variety cultivars like AC Morgan that are susceptible to disease and growers should pencil in a fungicide application when

photo: courtesy poga

1. Diseases in oats

Swathed oats can be threshed as soon as they reach the correct moisture level. Left too long in the field and they may weather and lose quality. growing them, but there are others that have good disease packages and fungicides aren’t going to be of benefit to them,” says William May, a research scientist at AAFC’s Semiarid Prairie Agricultural Research Centre at Indian Head, Saskatchewan. May’s research has found that the use of a fungicide did not increase the oat’s ability to yield when the oat was not susceptible to disease.

Only consider applying fungicide when the yield potential and value of the crop is high, and when leaf diseases develop early in the season and continued moist weather conditions are forecast. The best time to apply fungicide is at the late flag leaf to boot stage. Provincial Crop Protection Guides provide details of registered products.

Researchers are also keeping an eye on barley yellow dwarf virus (BYD) which seems to be spreading northwards through the Central Great Plains. “There seems to be more BYD occurring in the southern part of Minnesota,” says Mitchell Fetch. “I don’t know if

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that’s something we need to worry about coming into Manitoba with a vengeance. It’s transmitted by infected aphids that get blown up into Manitoba and if conditions are milder we don’t know if they will be able to over-winter There’s a lot of those things that are unknown.”

2. Weed Management Oat growers are urged to use many different control options to help manage weeds. Wild oats remain a major concern for oat growers and there are still no herbicide products registered for incrop wild oat control. Careful field selection is important — only plant oats in fields that have low wild oat populations. If growers plan their rotations well in advance, they can control wild oat populations in preceding crops. Farmers can use tillage or herbicides to control the first flush of wild oats just before emergence of the oat crop or can delay seeding until after the wild oats have emerged and been con-

trolled. But under drier summer conditions, farmers should expect yield and quality loss if seeding is delayed. There can also be more than one flush of wild oats anywhere from May through to mid June. Higher seeding rates and banding fertilizer adjacent to the seed can increase plant populations and make them more competitive, but growers should choose varieties with good lodging resistance as there is a higher risk of lodging at higher seeding rates.

Herbicides containing 2,4-D should be avoided on oats as they have been shown to cause considerable yield reduction. Products containing dicamba should be used according to the stage restrictions on the label and should be avoided under stress conditions.

3. Seeding oats Seeding oats earlier generally results in increased yields and quality, although optimal dates vary by location. In general,

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seeding by the middle of May in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and southern Alberta will give optimum yield and quality. Soil temperature should be above 5 C. Seed treatments can help prevent soil borne diseases such as smut, and in cool, wet growing conditions will also help prevent root rot. Seed treatments are recommended for hulless oats as they are more susceptible to seed diseases. (See the POGA website at poga.ca for information about registered seed treatments for oats).

Seeding rates recommended by Canadian oat researchers vary from 300 to 325 plants per square metre (28 to 31 per square foot) with some data suggesting that seeding up to 375 plants per m2 (36 per ft./sq.) may help control wild oat and achieve uniform, high yielding stands. However, some producers report good yields with a seeding rate as low as 220 plants per m2 (22 plants per ft./sq.).

Seeding rates can be calculated based on the intended plant density, thousand kernel weight (TKW) and per cent survival (the percentage of seeds expected to germinate and produce vigorous seedlings). For example, under normal conditions growers should expect around 95 per cent germination, but if planting in cold, wet soil, they should reduce the expectation to 90 to 93 per cent germination because three to five per cent of the viable seed will likely not produce a plant.

The thin seed coat of hulless oats make them more fragile, which can lead to lower germination. Hulless oat growers may need to increase the seeding rate to achieve a minimum plant population of 300 to 325 plants per m².

Oats should be seeded at a depth of one to two inches — just deep enough to reach soil moisture — and never deeper than three inches.

Oats are usually seeded with a row spacing of 7.5 to 12 inches but research has shown that in no-till

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Features systems a wider row spacing up to 14 inches has no detrimental effect on plant numbers or tiller development, although wider row spacing may result in an increased problem with wild oats and other weeds.

4. Fertilizing oats Nitrogen is the most yield limiting factor in oats. There has been a lot of research into optimum N rates, which vary according to location. A soil test is always recommended to allow growers to accurately calculate the amount of N they need to apply.

Too much N will reduce test weights, plump kernels and increase lodging; too little N will reduce tillering and yield.

Water availability is crucial to oat yield and is closely tied to the N rate. Research at the University of Montana has shown it takes four to five inches of water to produce the first bushel of oats, after which yield increases by 12 to 14 bushels per acre with each inch of additional

water. The more moisture that is received, the more N will needed to achieve the increased yield potential. Under these circumstances a 100 bu./ac. crop of oats will require 97 to 117 lbs./ac. of N. Research done by May and others has shown that under normal conditions around 89 lbs./ac. total N (soil + applied) provided optimum yields, which translates to between 36 to 71 lbs./ac. of applied N depending on the soil residual.

A phosphate (P) application may be necessary in certain situations such as on newly broken land, fallow fields, or early seeding into cold, wet soils. Again, soil testing will determine phosphate levels in the soil. An application of 18 to 28 lbs./ac. applied with the seed is usually adequate to produce optimum yields.

Oat response to potassium (K) usually occurs when soil test levels are below 280 lbs./ac., and soils that are sandy to sandy-loam or poorly drained are more prone to K deficiency. In cold, wet soils, an

application of 15 lbs./ac. of K chloride (0-0-60) in the seed row, even when soil test levels are sufficient, may result in a crop response.

Applications higher than18 lbs./ac. should be side-banded or broadcasted to avoid seedling damage.

Oats have one of the highest requirements for sulphur (S) so soils which test low in S may require an application of sulfate to correct the deficiency if growers want to obtain optimal yields.

Recommended fertilization rates for specific areas can be found on provincial government and POGA’s websites.

5. Harvesting oats Most oats are swathed and then threshed by a combine with a pickup attachment to avoid losses from shattering; growers need to be careful with timing to avoid damage to oat hulls that can reduce yield and quality. There can be a lot of variability in maturity across the field but gener-

ally oats are ready to swath when moisture content is about 35 per cent and the greenest kernels have changed to a cream colour.

Swathed oats should be threshed as soon as they reach the correct moisture level. Oats left too long in the field can weather, resulting in lower quality, and will shatter during rain or wind storms.

Straight combining oats may be an option in some circumstance such as on even, uniform land or when a crop matures early, but growers should make sure no green hulls are present or the oats will not make milling grade. If the oats are left too long in the field before straight cutting weather may cause the stems to break down and reduce yield.

Reducing cylinder speeds to around 900 r.p.m. and allowing wider concave clearances will help to prevent damage to oat hulls.

Growers should be cautious about using a pre-harvest glyphosate application on oats. Major oat buyer, Grain Millers recently announced

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that they will no longer accept oat shipments that have received preharvest glyphosate because of concerns about the functionality of the oat during processing.

“It’s a major concern that people have to be aware of,” says May. “If they do a pre-harvest growers have to be very careful on their timing.

My perspective is that if the crop is not mature enough to combine in August, you should swath it. I’m not a big pre-harvest person in oats because you’ve got that big panicle with different levels of maturity.

It’s supposed to be a weed control measure and if you’re using it as a harvest desiccant, I don’t think you’re doing anybody any favours.”

There could also be issues with glyphosate residues depending on where the oats are being sold.

Find more information about growing oats at the Prairie Oat Growers Association website, poga.ca. † Angela Lovell is a freelance writer, editor and communications specialist living and working in Manitoba. Find her online at www. angelalovell.ca.

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Features

Crop Advisor’s casebook

Pea conundrum for Alberta farmer

By Travis Elford

1

B

ob, a dryland farmer east of Warner, Alta., who grows canola, lentils, peas and cereals, called the office in mid-June with some concerns about a field of peas that had patches of new growth that were turning white.

Bob said the whitening of the leaf tissue had just started at around the 10-node stage on the crop. He was unsure of what was causing it, but his thought was it might be a nutrient deficiency issue.

When I arrived at Bob’s farm and began scouting the problem field, it was evident that most of the peas were healthy and growing fine, but I could easily see patches throughout the field containing plants with white leaf tissue.

When I pulled up one of the affected plants, I observed there was significantly less nodulation on its roots than there should have been at this stage.

I also noticed that the top three to four inches of the soil was very dry, which was not surprising, as it hadn’t rained in the area for at least three weeks.

I walked the whole field, making sure the problem wasn’t located in only one section or strip such as a single sprayer pass. I noticed that the affected areas were on hilltops within the field, but I also realized that stand establishment, uniformity and growth stage in the affected areas were basically equal to that of the rest of the field.

I decided to take tissue samples from both the affected and unaffected areas of the field.

The results showed that both areas had the same level of macro and micronutrients within the optimum range in both samples. So I now knew that this eliminated any possibility of nutrient deficiencies.

When I asked Bob for further

2

CASEBOOK WINNER This issue’s winning Casebook entry came from Brian Mose.

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background on this field, he told me it had been seeded to durum wheat the previous year and at that time had been sprayed with a Group 2 and 27 herbicide in-crop.

Prior to seeding peas, Bob applied sulfentrazone to the soil for preemergent control of kochia.

Bob had used his sprayer to apply glyphosate and 2,4-D to a chemfallow field before he sprayed his pea field. The sprayer had been flushed multiple times with ammonia prior to moving on to the pea field.

After learning the history of Bob’s pea field, I was able to put the pieces together as to the source of the trouble and the true cause of the whitening leaf tissue on the pea plants.

If you think you know what’s causing Bob’s pea crop to turn white, send your diagnosis to Grainnews, Box 9800, Winnipeg, Man. R3C 3K7; email leeann. minogue@fbcpublishing.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 oneyear subscription to the magazine. The answer, along with the reasoning that solved the mystery, will appear in the next Crop Advisor’s Solution File. †

3

1. Travis Elford is a sales agronomist with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Stirling, Alta. 2. Blem wasn’t located in only one section or strip such as a single sprayer pass. 3. The pea plants on the left are unaffected. The affected samples on the right had significantly less nodulation than they should have had. 4. Patches of new growth were turning white. It started at around the 10-node stage on the crop.

4

Travis Elford is a sales agronomist with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Stirling, Alta.

Crop advisor’s solution

Canola problem caused by herbicide mix-up

By Jaclyn Phillips

E

d, a producer in Melita, Man., who grows primarily wheat and canola on his 5,000-acre farm, called me in July to tell me about a problem with one of his fields. The InVigor hybrid canola in it was clearly struggling and he asked me to come to the farm to have a look.

When Ed took me out to the field, I observed many plants that had turned yellow-brown and were stunted and struggling to bolt. The affected canola, however, covered only one-half of the 320-acre field, and there was clear boundary between it and the unaffected crop.

It had been a fairly wet summer and flooded fields had been an issue for some farmers in the area, but I quickly ruled out water stress as a possible cause since that

would have affected plants throughout the whole field — not just half. I also dismissed nutrient deficiency for similar reasons, after I was informed the entire half section had been treated exactly the same in terms of his fertility and crop rotation programs.

Ed also told me the plant symptoms first showed up about a week to 10 days after the crop had been sprayed. It was also the first field of canola that had been sprayed after he had finished treating his wheat fields with herbicide, so he wondered if there might have been some residue left in the spray tank that caused the problem.

Ed recalled that he had used two tanks to spray the field, one for each half.

This, plus the fact the plant symptoms appeared worse in the area where the sprayer booms overlapped, led me to believe something definitely had been amiss with the tank mix.

When Ed and I walked over to area where the sprayer was parked, I noticed there was an empty glyphosate container sitting among the empty barrels of Liberty herbicide on the sprayer trailer. Ed wasn’t sure how it got there, as he hadn’t had time to use a glyphosate spray for a spring burn-off like he normally would due to the condensed planting season caused by poor weather conditions.

I learned that Ed had used two barrels of herbicide per tank during spraying, and that all of the empty containers were from this year. It certainly looked like the grower had mixed one barrel of glyphosate with one barrel of Liberty in his spray tank when applying herbicide to that half of the field with the affected plants — something you definitely shouldn’t do with InVigor canola.

When I suggested this to Ed, he indi-

cated I was probably right as he’d been in quite to hurry to complete his spraying and he vaguely remembered that the contents of one barrel might have been a different colour while he was filling the spray tank up.

We now had a diagnosis, but there wasn’t much Ed could do except to wait and see how much of the damaged canola crop would come back. The farmer was eventually able to swath and combine the entire canola field, although the yield in the affected area was less than half of that on the other side of the field. Ed, however, did come away with a valuable lesson from the experience — namely, to slow down and always pay close attention to what’s going into the sprayer tank. † Jaclyn Phillips is an area marketing representative with Richardson Pioneer Ltd. at Antler, Sask.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Features Crop production

Five risky situations for stored canola Agronomist Greg Sekulic explains how you can get your canola safely through the winter

L

a s t w i n t e r, w e s t e r n Canadian canola growers reported rising temperatures in canola bins.

The reasons for the heating were many, and most could have been avoided had the bins been regularly checked. To further reduce the risk of spoilage, keep in mind these tips, provided by the Canola Council of Canada’s agronomy specialist, Greg Sekulic.

1. Temperature risk The temperature risk is often unavoidable. When it comes to safe storage, the two big considerations are temperature and moisture. From an agronomic perspective, though, canola is going to go into the bin when it goes into the bin, regardless of environmental factors.

Basically, the colder the grain is when it’s put into storage, the longer it’s going to store. “If it’s hot, even like 25 C, the storability of that really isn’t much longer than four to five months,” says Sekulic. “So that’s clearly not the entire winter here in Canada.”

At harvest time, growers should aim for a target temperature of 15 C. Keep in mind that external temperatures can move from hotter to cooler in just a few short days, which can create huge problems for safe storage.

Moisture, says Sekulic, will be moving and concentrating at the top of the middle core of the bin.

For this reason, it’s really important to cool the grain as quickly as possible.

the risk can be higher, more a more vigilant monitoring schedule may be warranted.

To avoid this risk, only harvest canola at its most optimal time.

DRY DOESN’T MEAN SAFE

Check your bins regularly

4. Problems with cables The importance of cable usage cannot be underestimated. Without them, a small bin becomes almost impossible to monitor for localized hotspots, says Sekulic.

5. Immature (green) seed Green canola seed increases storage risk, even in situations where the grain is cool and dry.

“Immature seeds have higher moisture content and could create pockets of heating,” explains Sekulic.

The best advice for avoiding spoilage in stored canola: “Do check regularly, and don’t not check,” says Sekulic. Don’t assume that because it went in dry that it will store indefinitely, he warns. Monitoring, he continues, should begin at harvest. It takes six weeks for grain to level out and get into its dormant state.

Constant monitoring during this period is critical.

“Basically, you cannot check often enough,” says Sekulic. “Make it part of your routine.” † Melanie Epp is a freelance farm writer.

MOISTURE (% AT BINNING)

By Melanie Epp

12 SPOILAGE LIKELY 10

8

SPOILAGE UNLIKELY FOR AT LEAST 5 MONTHS

6 0

5

10 15 20 25 30 35 TEMPERATURE (°C AT BINNING)

40

Courtesy of the Canola Council of Canada

2. Moisture content Lower moisture is better, but not for yield. In canola, nine per cent moisture content is commercially acceptable. “The same relationship for temperature works for moisture as well,” says Sekulic.

“It’s just that we need to get it down to seven and even six per cent moisture before we start seeing the kind of longevity that we see out of cold grain.”

The problem is that at those moisture levels, weight drops, which means further losses in yield. Anything about 10 per cent needs to be dried, warns Sekulic.

3. Bin size Bigger isn’t always better. While bigger bins provide additional storage, canola kept in those bins brings additional risk. For one, says Sekulic, the bigger the bin, the higher the risk. A small hotspot in a larger bin, for example, could bring more risk because of there’s more to lose when problems do arise.

Also, he says, the larger bins tend to leave more space between the cables where heat can accumulate without growers noticing.

Larger bins also create additional compaction and pressure on the grain. Compaction and pressure can reduce airflow, which could create even further challenges for growers. While Sekulic advises growers to monitor stored grain regularly, in large bins where

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Features

Wildlife feature

Wild board cause trouble on farms There are many feral wild boar across the Prairies, but few us of will ever actually see them

By Lisa Guenther

M

ichael Hicks likes to talk about wildlife.

The G las lyn-ar ea farmer still chuckles about the time he watched a black bear stand as high as it could on its hind legs, longing for out-of-reach oats in a grain truck.

But just after Thanksgiving, Hicks’ game camera recorded something new in his pasture near Thunderchild Reserve, in northwestern Saskatchewan. There, licking minerals at his deer blind, were several wild boars.

Over the next few weeks, the sounder of swine returned to Hick’s deer blind several times.

They appeared at night a few

times, but they tended to favour the day, especially between 4:00 and 5:30 p.m., Hicks said.

One day, Hicks was setting out bait for the deer when the pigs appeared. He managed to shoot one before the rest scattered. A few days later, Hicks was in his deer blind when the sounder returned, and he shot a second pig. Since then, the game camera has caught one lone pig returning to the deer blind periodically. Hicks think it lost its buddies in their mad scramble to escape, and returns to the deer blind hoping to reunite with them.

Hicks had the pigs butchered.

One sow had one to two inches of fat all the way round, just like a finished pig, he says. The butcher even got a few slabs of bacon

off her belly, which is rare for a wild pig, he added. On a related note, neighbouring farmers had suspected the pigs of eating their standing corn and ripping into a grain bag of CPS wheat.

Despite his appreciation for wildlife, Hicks isn’t thrilled to have feral wild boar in the area.

“It’s kind of a novelty at first, but knowing the problem that they cause, it would be nice to get them taken care of one way or another.”

Much the same all over Hicks isn’t the only one who would like to see the feral wild boars “taken care of.” Many western Canadian producers share his sentiment.

Feral pigs are notorious for harassing livestock. They also carry disease. A recent study of Saskatchewan’s feral population found a new strain of A. pleuropneumoniae, a highly contagious and deadly disease in pigs.

The swine also damage crops and wildlife habitat in their quest for plant roots, tubers, and invertebrates. Graduate student Ruth Kost says crop damage looks like a “huge rototiller” has been in the field.

Kost, an animal science student at the University of Saskatchewan, spent her summer mapping feral wild boar populations in Western Canada. She drove about 15,000 kilometres to interview conservation officers, biologists, and other

wildlife professionals in Alberta, B.C., and Manitoba.

Kost still plans to talk to wildlife professionals in Saskatchewan and the eastern half of the country.

She’ll also be surveying a random sample of the rural population.

Kost says feral wild boars are present in every western Canadian province. B.C.’s pig problem is less acute than the rest of the west. Alberta’s pigs tend to be segregated to the north, she says, while Manitoba’s are in the south.

In Saskatchewan, they’re found in the south and as far north as Prince Albert.

Saskatchewan’s wild boars were originally imported from European breeding stock, says Kost. They were used to supply hunt farms and diversified livestock operations. A call to Saskatchewan Crop Insurance confirmed that people can still import wild boar.

And wild boars are still escaping from game farms, Kost says. She adds that researchers don’t yet know how far a feral population will spread in Canada.

“There are studies from Europe and the States but it’s so different because they have such denser human populations,” she says.

Researchers are now collaring feral pigs in southeastern Saskatchewan so they can track their movements and dispersal rates, she says.

Kost hopes to start analyzing data from her study this spring so she can create maps.

She hopes her maps will help the Saskatchewan government ramp up a province-wide eradication program.

To hunt or not to hunt Short of actually seeing wild boars, producers will have to look for other signs of the elusive animals. Kost says the rototillerlike damage is the most obvious marker. Tracks basically look like deer or elk tracks, with large dewclaws in the back, she says.

Observant landowners might spot their nests in the winter. Kost says they build nests out of cattails and grasses near water bodies.

But even if producers know they have a problem, they have few control options.

Hicks says he’s been getting calls from hunters interested in bagging a boar or two, but he’s not too interested in guiding them. He’s noticed the animals are extremely hard to hunt — they’re wilder than deer, he says.

And it turns out that trying to control the population through sport hunting may do more harm than good.

Sows can rear two litters a year, with four to twelve piglets per litter. That rapid reproduction rate makes sport hunting ineffective.

Plus the survivors seem to learn, and change their activity patterns, Kost says.

“They’re extremely nocturnal, they’re more elusive. So if you are going to hunt them, you just have to make sure that you kill them,” says Kost.

Plus, wild boars still fall under the Stray Animals Act. Technically, they are supposed to be treated more like loose livestock than nuisance animals such as coyotes,

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Hick’s pasture is in rough country with plenty of trees and coulees to provide cover for the shrewd pigs. Turtle River also runs through the area.

says Dan Baber, who handles feral boar calls for Saskatchewan Crop Insurance. Baber says the Ministry of Environment is trying to have them classified as nuisance animals.

For now, wild boars roam in a legal grey area. Hunters should check with their local rural municipalities and landowners before stalking the swine.

Surviving and thriving Since cells of wild boars began their great escapes, they’ve proven very competent survivors. After seeing the pigs close up, Hicks isn’t surprised they’re thriving.

He noted they have a thick coat of hair. And although there are wolves where he pastures his cattle, he’s not sure the pigs would face many serious predators.

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Top: Michael Hicks’ pasture is in rough country with plenty of trees and coulees to provide cover for shrewd pigs. Turtle River also runs through the area. Bottom: Michael Hicks first realized he had wild boar on his pasture after setting up a game camera over Thanksgiving. After Hicks shot two of the pigs, the rest scattered. But one pig keeps returning. Hicks thinks it lost its mate after the scramble, and is hoping to reunite. Note the long hair.

While Hicks only saw about a dozen pigs, he’s worried about the long-term consequences of the renegade swine. He already has problems with deer, ravens, and elk ripping grain bags. And his pasture is in rough country, with plenty of coulees, bush and a river to provide cover.

“We’ve never had a pig problem yet, but this could be the beginning of it.”

Producers with any photos of or information on wild boar sightings can contact Ruth Kost at 306-2270998 or by emailing r.kost@usask. ca. Photos, trail cam locations, and other information will be kept confidential. † Lisa Guenther is field editor for Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.

Guenther@fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

11

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Features

Wildlife feature

Saskatchewan’s elite hunting team Meet Saskatchewan the hunters from Sask. Crop Insurance’s wild boar eradication program

By Lisa Guenther

I

t’s a crew that comes from all walks of life — farmers, government employees, and semi-retired men.

They come from all over the province. And once they get the call, they have 24 to 48 hours to assemble. Then they attempt to eradicate very intelligent,

cropscience.bayer.ca/infinity

potentially dangerous animals that are invading farmland.

While it may sound like an action movie, it’s actually part of a program administered by Saskatchewan Crop Insurance to eradicate feral wild boar.

Dan Baber is a customer service rep with Sask Crop Insurance out of Melville. He looks after the Feral Wild Boar Control program. When

1 888-283-6847

someone reports feral wild boar to Sask Crop Insurance, Baber gets the information together and contacts one of the two hunt team leaders.

Sask Crop Insurance took over the program from the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) in March 2015. They’ve had about six calls since then, which is in line with previous years, Baber says.

Ian Esson is a hunt team leader and producer based near Beechy, Sask. Once he gets the information from Baber, he follows up with the person who called it in. He finds out if there are enough feral swine to warrant sending in the team. He checks with local producers to make sure the team can hunt on their land. He consults with Baber. Then he calls his crew and they go in.

Esson’s team of 10 isn’t the only group trying to control feral boars. Bob Brickley, a rancher near Moose Mountain Provincial Park, has been trying to eradicate the animals for 15 years.

B:17.7083” Asked how he got involved with the hunt, Brickley says it T:17.4583” was a question of necessity.

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Features

photo: michael hicks

» CONTINUED FROM Previous PAGE

This nightime photo of a wild boar at large was captured by Michael Hicks’ game camera.

“When we started there were several hundred. They were coming out in droves in the night. It was out of hand at that time,” says Brickley. The feral swine stampeded livestock and drove them away from feed.

They also destroyed crops.

Brickley and two or three of his neighbours started hunting the pigs. “We just thought we’d go and shoot as many as we could.”

But that proved to be counterproductive. That year they focused on a group of 14 pigs, but they never were able to get them

all. All they managed to do was “educate” the surviving pigs.

“They’ll sense you coming and they’ll do evasive techniques to avoid you. And if you hunt them a second time and don’t get them, then it’s just about impossible,” says Brickley.

Esson has observed the same behaviour.

“We would just as soon the locals didn’t hunt them because they pretty well go nocturnal when they start getting pressured,” says Esson. The swine are very smart, with an acute sense of smell and hearing, he adds.

“We floundered and stumbled for a few years,” says Brickley. But they kept regrouping and figuring out how to overcome the obstacles. His team eventually grew to 14 people.

Co-ordinated hunts more successful

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These days, both Esson and Brickley use a similar, highly co-ordinated hunting method designed to eradicate entire groups.

And it’s nothing like a sport hunt.

“It’s not fun. It’s hard, hard, concentrated work. We’re co-ordinated to the tenth of a second to pull some of these off,” says Brickley.

Before the hunters move in, a plane scouts for groups of nesting pigs. Brickley says it’s much easier to kill the pigs when they’re concentrated in their nests.

Once the pilot has located the nest, the teams move in. About three people move into the nest to shoot the pigs. Other shooters take up point and flank positions to shoot any pigs that escape the initial onslaught.

Both Brickley and Esson keep safety top of mind for this phase.

One danger is the boars themselves. Brickley says the pigs won’t normally attack people.

“But when you put them in a corner, when you’re in their flight zone, and you’re challenging them, that’s their defensive mechanism. And that is extremely dangerous.” Brickley says the team has had boars charge them.

Hunting accidents are another risk. Esson’s team wears red or orange clothing with reflective bands. They also have radio communication and GPS. Each time a team member keys the mic, it shows each person’s name and location.

Brickley says it’s important to

hunt with people you have confidence in. Team members know what everyone is going to do if things don’t go to plan. They terminate the hunt before putting anyone in danger, he says.

Brickley’s team usually uses shotguns with double ought buckshot for the nest. It’s very hard for pigs to survive that many pellets, he explains. Also, the buckshot doesn’t go too far, so it’s safer for the guys waiting outside the nest.

Brickley says they’ve had “tremendous success” with their hunting methods at Moose Mountain.

They’ve killed about 780 animals over the last 15 years, he says.

“Our biggest challenge has been re-infestation. If we wouldn’t have had that, I’m totally confident that we would have had them totally eradicated by now,” says Brickley.

The co-ordinated hunt has worked well for Esson, too. He’s been hunting for 10 years or more, and his team’s kill rate is around 75 to 80 per cent, he says.

“We’ve had some hunts that we’ve taken everything out that was there. And we’ve had some where, because of the terrain, some were able to escape us,” says Esson.

Brickley has helped other groups trying to eradicate boars. But he says many people aren’t interested in eradication because hunters want the feral pigs around. People don’t usually take the problem seriously until the pigs are causing losses on their land, Brickley says.

Brickley advises producers to take wild boar problems seriously and inform their rural municipalities.

His hunt team has had financial support from the Wawota Wildlife Federation, which fundraised to hire their plane. The RMs of Hazelwood and Wawken also provided some financial support. The RMs and wildlife federation also raised the issue at meetings, he adds.

Saskatchewan producers can also report feral pigs to Saskatchewan Crop Insurance.

“Don’t hesitate to give us a call and we’ll look into it and see what we can do,” says Baber.

To report feral wild boars in Saskatchewan, contact your local Sask Crop Insurance office. For more information on the Feral Wild Boar Control Program, visit saskcropinsurance.com/wildlife/feralwild-boar-control-program. † Lisa Guenther is field editor for Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.

Guenther@fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

Agribition

Information exchange Phil Birnie of WRAZ Red Angus and Garnet Yewsiuk of V6 Livestock chatting over coffee in the JJL Livestock booth one morning during Canadian Western Agribition. Birnie and Yewsiuk were coffeeing in the Stock Exchange Arena, where the commercial cattle were displayed during the show. †

photo: lisa guenther

Lisa Guenther

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Columns Hart Attacks

Apples have come a long way, baby Man cannot live by canola, wheat and barley alone. Put an apple on your plate

By Lee Hart

The lazy orchard

photo: lee hart

I

f you ever wonder where apples come from forget the notion they are produced in some lazy looking orchard, with grand, sprawling shady trees that have been growing for centuries under which you can spread a blanket for a picnic lunch before picking the next basket. Get ready for the Super Spindle.

That was the I eye opener I had on my last trip to B.C.’s apple capital, Kelowna on a tour guided

by Hank Markgraf, grower services manager with the B.C. Tree Fruits Co-operative.

There are still some of the old style orchards around, but more apples are being produced today

These Super Spindle trees help apple growers increase efficiency and production. on these almost broom-stick size trees known as Super Spindles. I don’t have much contact with the fruit grower industry, and I knew that probably 15 or 20 years ago that orchardists had gone to dwarf trees. But on this recent trip I was introduced to the Super Spindle.

The apple tree trunk is about two inches in diameter, the trees grow about 12 feet tall, rows are spaced about 10 feet apart and you can comfortably fit about 2,000 trees per acre, producing fruit within two to three years with about a 30-year productive lifespan. They

start with a root stalk known as an M-9 root and then graft varieties to the stalk. The tree rows are supported with a trellis type-fence to keep the trees erect. Ideally they aimed to harvest 100 bins (about 4,200 bushels) per acre. Talk about production.

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I am old. And I grew up on a small dairy farm in Eastern Ontario, where apple trees grew like milkweed. We had a small orchard on our farm and it was probably 100 years old by the time I came along. And it did have these sprawling trees with a 12 inch diameter stumps that did their best to produce fruit. There were probably about 50 trees on this two to three acre orchard, and I am not really sure what we did with all the apples. I imagine a lot of them went to waste.

For a while, when I was a kid my dad use to spray the trees to kill caterpillars. It was a pretty rough operation as I recall. Dad outfitted the Allis Chalmers 45 tractor with a small platform at the back.

He’d put a 45 gallon drum on the platform and attach some sort of sprayer. My grandpa would drive the tractor, and dad would stand on the platform and operate a sprayer wand to apply an insecticide on these trees. No safety gear in those days, except wear a jacket to keep from getting too wet.

There might have been a bit a pruning once in a while, but other than a quick spray it was just a matter of waiting until apples were ready and then we would pick.

There were some early and some late varieties. Some good for eating and some better for cooking.

There were always apples in the cellar over winter and we never went without apple pie. I also well remember a one-day bee every fall to make apple cider. We’d collect burlap bags full of fallen apple, bring them to the yard, and my dad or my brother would operate a hand crank cider press to make what I remember was the best tasting apple cider in the world.

Fast forward about 55 years. The Ambrosia apples in this Kelowna orchard were a thing of beauty.

Apples were first introduced to the Okanagan Valley in the 1870s and although the industry has had its production ups and downs over the years, today produces about four million boxes of apples (a box is 42 bushels). Sounds like a lot, until you look at nearby Washington State which produces about 125 million boxes a year.

Markgraf, who works with growers, explains it is a real science to schedule the production of apples over the season. There is in-season pruning, growth regulators are used, pesticides are applied as needed, and you end up with these perfect looking apples. Hand picking is an art too. Every marketable apple must have that bit of stem at the top and of course no bruising is permitted. From the orchards all apples go to the cooperative processing and packing plant for washing, grading and packing.

So grab a bag of B.C. apples next time you’re at the store.

Apparently those little individual stickers on each apple are a real pain in the packing process, but it makes the consumer happy knowing each one has a name. † Lee Hart is a field editor for Grainews in Calgary, Contact him at 403-592-1964 or by email at lee@fbcpublishing.com.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

15

Columns Off farm income

Buy when you see the right signals After several columns with selling advice, Andy Sirski turns to advice for buying stocks ANDY SIRSKI

I

have often written how I use sell signals to help me decide when to sell shares.

My most common sell signal is to sell when the daily price drops through the 10-day moving average. I sometimes let my “love” for a stock stop me from selling right away but I sure do sell a lot sooner than I used now that I have selling rules.

But what about “buy” signals?

This is mostly for retail investors who manage their own investments although when I listen carefully I hear some talking heads tell us how they decide to sell a stock. Over time I have developed at least four “buy” signals.

I use charts on Stockcharts. I subscribe to a paid version that locks in my indicators but you can use these same indicators on the free version. The important thing to remember is that if I buy a stock because the indicators suggest it is fairly safe to do so, and I’m wrong, I should sell that stock when I’m losing a little money and long before I’m losing a lot of money. A lot of investors wish they had used a decent selling rule with stocks like TCK.B.TO (Teck Resources Ltd.).

USE THREE INDICATORS Don V. uses a combination of three indicators as a buy signal.

The indicators are: the shares have to be rising faster than the S&P index; the price has to be above its 20-day moving average; and the price has formed a bottom and jumped above its downward trend.

If he really likes the stock he might start nibbling when two out of three indicators are pointing to “buy” but he prefers to have all three indicators be positive.

HIGHER HIGHS AND HIGHER LOWS Like it sounds, this indicator is quite easy to see. It really takes

three steps. The first step is to be patient and not buy a stock as it is falling. Seems like common sense but it is so easy to think: this stock has dropped so much it’s a bargain. The problem is that as long as a stock is falling it can easily fall more.

The next step is to watch the shares form a bottom. A bottom can often happen right after the stock trades at its low at a high volume, and often has a tail under the candlestick as the stock drops and the market pulls it back up during the day.

This takes patience and we won’t be buying at the bottom. The bottom can be quite elusive. It’s often safer to give up a few cents and let the shares form a bottom and

start to go up so we can see higher highs and higher lows.

Finally we can watch the charts for higher highs and higher lows.

As that happens we should see the parabolic SARS drop from above the candlestick to below. The Vortex (VTX) should have the green chart cross the red chart going up.

The daily price should cross the 10 dma going up. The histogram on the MACD should move from below to above its zero line.

When these indicators are lining up one by one we can be quite confident that the bigger money is now interested in the stock and there are more buyers than sellers.

If you want to compare the two types of charts take a look at charts for Crescent Point (CPG.

TO) and then look at charts for Barrick Gold (ABX). Remember this is as of January 4, 2016.

CPG’s charts show the parabolic SARS (0.05,0.2) spending a lot of time above (bearish) the candlestick chart. For ABX the charts showed the parabolic SARS below the candlestick most of the time although on January 4 the parabolic SARS had jumped above the candlestick for the first time.

If you want to chat about this send an email to sirski@mymts.ca or call me at 1-204-453-4489. † Andy is mostly retired. He travels a bit with his wife, plays with granddaughters, has a small tax business and manages his family’s investments. Andy also publishes an electronic newsletter called StocksTalk and if you want to read it free for a month send and email to sirski@mymts.net and Andy will sign you up.

Handles the toughest diseases. And climates.

This takes some thinking and involves some risk I bought TCK years ago at around $5, sold calls and held shares and finally sold at $38.

The shares went to something like $50. Then demand dropped for coal, copper and other stuff that China was buying from TCK and the shares started to drop and drop. If I had been swift enough I could have bought puts on those shares and made a tonne of money as the shares dropped to under $6.

This takes some thinking and involves some risk. But as always, if we have and use decent selling rules we can always cancel the put or the call option when the shares have turned against us and we are losing only a little money not a lot.

Let a stock form a bottom A very good buy signal is to patiently watch and let a stock form a bottom on its charts. This means we often miss buying at the very low but it is difficult and risky to think that we can spot a bottom precisely time after time.

It’s a lot safer to let a dollar or two go by as we watch and verify that the stock has bottomed and is heading up.

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/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Columns Soils and crops

Soil salinity: causes, cures, coping After recent wet years, we’re seeing salinity again. Learn to cure it or cope with it Cause of soil salinity

les henry

There is only one fundamental cause of soil salinity: a high water table and conditions where evaporation exceeds precipitation. Now, before reading on stop and think. If evaporation exceeds precipitation how can a high water table be maintained?

To maintain a high water table in dry spells there must be water movement underground.

In areas of thin glacial deposits over salty bedrock shale side-hill seeps can form. The “tight” shale prevents downward movement of water and horizontal movement leads to side hill seeps. Southern Alberta and Montana have such conditions.

A

few years back we predicted that the super wet years would lead to a marked increase in soil salinity. It is now happening.

In this piece I am not going to talk about Solonetzic soils or true Alkali (high pH , low salts) soils. I’m talking only about saline soils — soils that have too much salt and are waterlogged. Soil salinity is really not a soil problem but a water problem.

Saline soils are often high in organic matter and loaded with nutrients.

But in many areas of Western Canada the most common cause of soil salinity is artesian discharge from aquifers that can be shallow (50 feet or less) or deep (100 feet or more). One such aquifer is the Shaunavon aquifer in southwest Saskatchewan. Since installation in 1967 the piezometric (pressure) level of the Garden Head observation well has risen five metres.

Two metres of that rise has taken place since 2010. The current water level elevation in the Garden Head observation well is 897 MetersASL or 2,942 FASL (feet above sea level).

Land that is near or below that elevation is at risk for increased salinization.

To inspect the hydrograph see www.wsask.ca. From there, Water

Info/Groundwater/Observation wells. There you are presented with a long list of wells. Click the Garden Head location for the Shaunavon aquifer, or go through the list and pick a location near you to examine groundwater changes over the years.

Alberta also has an observation well network. The link is www.esrd.alberta.ca. from there, click Water/Programs and services/Groundwater/Groundwater Observation Well Network.

The Manitoba observation wells are in defined aquifers that are used for irrigation or other high use and are intended to monitor impact of water extraction rather than natural cycles. To my knowledge the data is not avail-

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able online. If I’m wrong I am sure a reader will correct me.

Some shallow observation wells show the water table at that location but many measure the piezometric (pressure) level in an aquifer.

Henry’s Handbook of Soil and Water has diagrams that explain it all.

Cures For Soil Salinity Cure 1: Sell it in the winter time. That might seem like a glib statement but it does happen often. In the land price crash of the early 1990s the back page of the weekly Western Producer was devoted to ads for distress lands.

A scan of those ads with soil map in hand found many examples of salty soils. It was bought at high price in heady times and under the snow and sold years later at a much lower price. So, do be careful buying land under the snow — it might turn out to be the same colour in July!

Cure 2: Tile drainage and leaching. This is the only cure.

Drainage alone or leaching alone does not do the job. In the brown and dark brown soil zones leaching usually means irrigation.

A few years ago a farmer near Glenboro, Manitoba asked: “Would our 18 inches of rain here in Manitoba be enough to flush the salts without irrigation?” My answer was a rather vague “maybe.”

Thanks to John Lee of Agvise Labs in North Dakota we now have a much better answer. They have monitored a tile-drained field in North Dakota since the drains were installed in 2002. The site is 25 miles west of Grand Forks, ND. The soil is sandy loam to loam texture with a pH of 7.9 to 8.2 and Organic Matter of four to 5.5 per cent.

The April to October rain at that site has averaged 17.2 inches through 2002 to 2013. The high was 22.5 inches in 2010 and the low was 13.9 inches in 2012. In 2014 John Lee sent me updated data and the following conclusions, which are taken verbatim from his Powerpoint: • Topsoil salt levels decreased over the years as long as excessive rainfall was received.

• Several crops now produce good yields — corn, soybeans, sunflower.

• Subsoil salt levels take longer to decrease.

• High subsoil salt levels do not affect crop growth as much as high topsoil salt levels.

• Salinity stayed the same or increases in dryer years, even with tile drainage.

It seems clear that in much of the brown and dark brown soil zones of Saskatchewan and Alberta it would take a series of unusually wet years in a row to get much reclamation by tile drainage alone. With hindsight, tile drains installed in 2009 on my farm would have resulted in much leaching and removal of salts via the excess rainfall. We had five irrigation years from 2010 to 2014.

Are we going to get more such years? I doubt it.

In my rolling land there is lots of grade to move water. One area about 10 acres in size could easily be tile drained via a road ditch

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

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to a natural waterway that leads eventually to Blackstrap Lake. In the process it passes through land owned by two different neighbours. I doubt very much if others care to see my salty water.

And, therein lies the rub in many cases. There may be no place to drain and if there is, who wants it?

To be sure there are areas where there is a natural outlet and the impact of the drained water would be minimal. But, caution must be used.

Before tile drains are installed it makes sense to me that a few shallow observation wells be installed to see where the water table is currently sitting. See my column in Grainews October 2015 to learn how to install such wells.

As well, the appropriate permits should be in place. A recent tile drain project just south of Melfort will, in time, give results that will take theory into practice. That project was well planned in advance with all ducks in order including appropriate permits.

Tile drainage in progress south of Melfort, October 2014.

The water table was high and tiles were running as soon as installed. The drain outlet is Melfort Creek. This project is on the Alan Hurd farm.

Mark Gordon of Agri-Trend provided the soil EC mapping of the site and Stu Brandt of NARF (Northeast Agricultural Research Foundation) installed the observation wells and is monitoring the site.

Coping I have seen demonstration projects that planted salt tolerant forage crops in a saline area to “reclaim” the land. That is not reclamation it is coping.

We used to refer to it as “management” but I think “coping” describes it better.

Planting salt tolerant crops — usually barley — does produce some crop. Canola is actually quite salt tolerant if it gets established.

Bulletins describing salt tolerance of crops are available on provincial ag websites.

In the last outbreak of soil salinity in 1970s we talked a lot about continuous cropping. At that time summerfallow was almost half the acreage in Saskatchewan. The switch to continuous cropping took place at the same time as a natural desalinization was in progress. The dry years of the 1980s lowered the water tables and any rain in excess of crop use resulted in salt leaching.

Continuous cropping is a plus on all fronts. It helps to “cope” with but does not “reclaim” salty ground.

In a small salty patch of mine the best crop I ever had was peas.

That was in 2005 when water tables were down. Very good late May and early June rains washed the salts down far enough to support a fair pea crop.

Keeping something green whenever possible is important.

I mow kochia patches before seed set in place of cultivation. And late broadcast and cultivating in of canola in sloughs will keep it green and keep down the weeds.

So, that is why I call all of the above “coping.” It is better to do those things than not do them but do not suffer under the delusion that such practices are going to “reclaim” salty ground.

Hmmm… sell it in the winter time… Maybe you can catch someone that does not read Grainews? † J.L.(Les) Henry is a former professor and extension specialist at the University of Saskatchewan. He farms at Dundurn, Sask.

He recently finished a third printing of “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.

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photo: les henry

Columns

18

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Columns Reporter’s notebook

Only an optimist would take this on Not everyone would have the nerve to start tackling our tough-to-solve wild boar problem

By Lisa Guenther

photo: michael hicks

I

aspire to be a relentless optimist. I don’t mean that in a Pollyannaish sort of way.

I like energetic optimists who get stuff done, such as Teddy Roosevelt and his national parks. I admire optimists with enough grit to figure out a way to climb over or under or around big obstacles.

It’s very easy to fall into cynicism or apathy. I think we all have moments where we want to throw our hats on the ground and our hands in the air. But if we do that regularly, we’ll never get anything done.

No one knows this better than Bob Brickley. Brickley and his neighbours have been trying

The feral boar issue is a tough problem for many parts of the Prairies, but it’s not unsolvable. to eradicate wild boar in Moose Mountain Provincial Park for several years. This is not an easy task.

After trial and error, they found that co-ordinated hunts were the

only way to go (more on those hunts in this issue).

The hunt team figured out a fixed-wing aircraft was needed to spot the boar nest. But who

was going to pay for the plane?

The Wawota Wildlife Federation stepped in, fundraising to pay for the plane and pilot. The RMs of Hazelwood and Wawken also

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kicked in some dough to support eradication efforts.

The Moose Mountain Wild Boar Eradication Committee also had to get the public on their side. At first, they had some pushback from locals who weren’t convinced that the boars needed to be hunted, Brickley told me. But wild boar damage can be devastating to farms, ranches and the environment. They clean everything out, Brickley said.

You won’t have a nesting bird below three feet, he added. Once locals understood that, they were on side.

Close to home I ended up writing about wild boars after hearing about wild boar sightings in the farmland around Livelong this winter. As far as I know, we’ve never had a wild boar problem here before, although they’ve been spotted south of us.

Brickley said ridding typical farmland of the beasts is easier than eradicating them in Moose Mountain. I’ve personally never been to Moose Mountain, but it sounds like rough country.

Unfortunately, there is some rough country around Livelong, too. The pigs were spotted in pastures bordering the east side of Thunderchild Reserve, which has plenty of coulees and trees.

We’re not far from the boreal forest, either. If they were to head north, they’d be difficult to eradicate. I’m a big fan of the boreal forest, and would hate to see pigs ripping it up. Just how far the pigs will roam is a question mark researchers are trying to answer right now.

But after speaking to Michael Hicks, along with a couple of others who didn’t want to go on the record, it sounds like there are only 10 to 12 feral pigs around here. That seems like a manageable number, so I’m hoping they’ll be eradicated shortly.

Despite all their efforts, the Moose Mountain hunters still haven’t won the feral boar battle. Pigs are still escaping their enclosures, restocking Moose Mountain. Can you imagine how frustrating that must be for the hunt team and other local producers?

But Brickley’s not giving up.

He’s trying to get the word out that this is a serious problem. He’s grateful to the local RMs and the Wawota Wildlife Federation, as they’ve also raised the issue.

The feral boar problem is a tough problem for many parts of the Prairies. But it’s not unsolvable. Brickley and his fellow hunters have found a way to control the population. Perhaps they could eradicate them completely, if the park wasn’t restocked by new hogs.

Like so many things in life, tackling this problem comes down to attitude as much as anything else. Brickley summed it up perfectly.

“We can do it if we want to — if we have the energy and want to put the resources to it.” † Lisa Guenther is field editor for Grainews based at Livelong, Sask. Contact her at Lisa.

Guenther@fbcpublishing.com or on Twitter @LtoG.

15FMC072_Authority West Print Grain News 8.125” x 10” Insertion Date: January 5, 19 & February 2, 2016

19

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Columns Agronomy management

Diagnosing your own sodic soils Do you have sodic soils on your farm? Here’s how to find out for sure

S

odic soils have a high level of exchangeable sodium (Na+) which can have a negative effect on soil quality, crop growth and yield. These soils often develop on naturally occurring highsodium glacial till parent materials. Soil enrichment of sodium by groundwater movement can also cause sodic soil development. Sodic soils often have very poor soil physical structure with a hard, cloddy structure and high sodium concentration causes toxicity to sensitive plants. Sodic soils occur mostly in Alberta and Saskatchewan as Solonetzic soils.

Sodic soils are one of three types of salt affected soils: sodic soils, saline soils and saline-sodic soils.

Diagnosing saline and sodic soils To determine if a soil is saline or sodic, laboratory soil testing is required. The first step is taking composite samples of about 20 soil cores at zero to six inches, six to 12 inches, and 12 to 24 inches in depth from the area of concern in the affected field. For comparison, also take samples from unaffected areas, to assist with diagnosing the problem soil. Send the soil samples to an accredited laboratory — follow their procedures for handling and shipping.

Ask the lab to do an Electrical Conductivity (EC) soil test, which is used to determine the level of soluble salts in the soil sample. This will indicate if a soil is saline. EC is given in units of decisiemens per metre (dS/m).

The classification levels of saline soils are shown in the table.

SALINITY RATING AND ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY (EC) VALUES Soil depth

Non-saline

Weakly saline

Moderately saline

Strongly saline

Very strongly saline

0 to 2 ft

<2 dS/m

2-4 dS/m

4-8 dS/m

8-16 dS/m

>16 dS/m

2 to 4 ft

<4 dS/m

4-8 dS/m

8-16 dS/m

16-24 dS/m

>24 dS/m

Source: Alberta Agriculture Agdex 518-20 Management of Sodic Soils

The Sodium Adsorption Ratio (SAR) is the laboratory soil test commonly used to determine the sodium level in soil. SAR is the ratio of the concentration of sodium cations in soil compared to the combined concentration of calcium (Ca++) and magnesium (Mg++) cations in soil. For interest, the formula used to calculate SAR is:

SAR =

Na+ (Ca

++

+ Mg ) ++

2 A soil SAR value below two is most desirable. A soil SAR level above 13 is considered very high, and the soil is classified as sodic (Figure 1). It is important to note, that sodium can cause soil structure deterioration and water infiltration problems at SAR values as low as four to five. When I see an SAR of >4, I am concerned but when the SAR is >13, sodium is a very serious problem in soil.

Exchangeable Sodium Percentage (ESP) is used by some labs to determine sodium levels in soil. An ESP of more than 15 per cent is considered the value for a soil classified as sodic, indicating that sodium occupies more than 15 per cent of the soil cation exchange capacity (CEC). However, sensitive plants can show toxicity injury or poor growth at an ESP of four to eight per cent.

Sodic Soil Structure Solonetzic soils are character-

ized by a high level of sodium in the B soil horizon (the layer of soil below the top soil or A horizon. The B horizon may also have an accumulation of clay leached down from the A horizon into the B horizon.

The presence of a sodiumenriched B soil horizon causes unique physical and chemical characteristics that cause agronomic problems for crop production: • poor physical soil structure that reduces crop emergence, root growth and water infiltration; • toxic levels of sodium in the soil that reduce plant growth; and, • very high soil pH. The poor, cloddy soil structure is caused by the high levels of sodium in the soil. It occurs when positively charged sodium ions are unable to satisfy the negative charge of clay particles.

This situation results in dispersion or repelling of clay particles when soils are wet. This process is called “deflocculation” of soil particles. When the soil dries, the result is a very hard, massive, cloddy soil with a columnar structure. The poor soil structure makes cultivation and seeding operations very difficult. These soils tend to crust after precipitation resulting in reduced crop emergence.

The hard B soil horizon will restrict root growth and penetration. Reduced crop emergence and poor root penetration will reduce crop growth and production. Sodic soils often have a relatively high clay content (> 30 per cent). When soils are wet, they tend to seal up as a result of

CLASSIFYING SALT-AFFECTED SOILS 8

Electrical Conductivity (EC) ds/m

Ross McKenzie

7 6 5 4

saline soils pH < 8.5

saline-sodic soils pH < 8.5

normal soils pH < 8.5

sodic soils < 8.5

3 2 1 0 0

10

13

20

30

40

50

Sodium Adsorption Radio (SAR) the deflocculation process, causing very slow water infiltration into soil.

Reduced water infiltration is caused by the dispersion of clay particles and reduced soil pore size, which can lead to water runoff and soil erosion problems with sloping soils. When runoff occurs, the amount of water stored in the soil is reduced, which further limits crop yield potential. The increased sodium level causes soil pH to be very high, often above 8.4. A soil pH above 8.4 often indicates a sodic soil problem. A soil with a high pH is correctly referred to as “alkaline.”

However, the term “alkali ” is often incorrectly used to describe

surface soils that appear white and are high in soluble salts.

Soils high in soluble salts are correctly referred to as “saline soils.”

The term “black alkali” is sometimes used to refer to sodic soils.

Sodic soil clods may have a somewhat black sheen or appearance caused by a coating of sodium enriched organic matter.

This briefly summarizes the physical and chemical characteristics of sodic soils. In the next issue, I’ll discuss the options for managing sodic soils. † Ross H. McKenzie, PhD, P. Ag., is a former agronomy research scientist. He conducted soil, crop and irrigation research with Alberta Agriculture for 38 years. He has also been an adjunct professor at the University of Lethbridge since 1993.

SOLENETZIC SOIL

NORMAL SOIL (GOOD GROWTH)

This Solonetzic soil has a columnarstructured B horizon, which restricts water and root penetration into sub-soil.

SOLONETZIC SOIL (POOR GROWTH)

BLOWOUT

Source: Alberta Agriculture Agdex 518-20 Management of Sodic Soils

20

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Columns Understanding market bulls and bears

Watch those pricing signs

Agribition

CATTLE WASH

Brian wittal

M

y last column talked about futures spreads, and how you understand what’s happening in the marketplace by watching how and why spreads change over time.

Now, a look at more pricing signals: grade and protein spreads.

During the era of the Canadian Wheat Board, grade and protein spreads changed very little throughout the marketing year.

The CWB, if it deemed it necessary, adjusted grade or protein spreads when it adjusted initial prices. Otherwise, spreads remained static.

In today’s marketing world, grade and protein spreads can change on a daily or even hourly basis, depending on the time of year and what the grain company needs to buy.

If you know when grain companies are adjusting their grade and protein spreads, you can get a good picture of what is happening in the market and make more informed selling decisions.

When they set or adjust grade and protein spreads, grain companies will consider how the harvest has gone, and the quality and protein for the majority of production. A good quality high protein harvest will likely mean the spreads will be narrowed, as there is plenty of good quality grain to meet sales demand.

With a poor quality, low protein harvest, it’s likely that spreads for the higher quality and higher protein grain will improve. Grain companies will offer premiums for better quality, as it’s hard to come by and in demand. Discounts for lower quality grades will likely widen, as there is too much lower quality grain, and the grain companies will have a hard time selling it all.

Part of the basis Grade and protein spreads are components of the basis.

Basis is another market signal that you need to understand so you can make marketing decisions based on what the basis is telling you about the current or future market demand for your products.

The main components of the basis includes freight, elevation, cleaning and handling charges plus grade and protein spreads, currency conversion (if the grains are traded against U.S. futures markets) and lastly risk or profit margin.

Once the freight, elevation, cleaning and handling charges have been set for the year they do not usually fluctuate much.

So if basis levels are bouncing

around and narrowing in or widening out it will be because of factors related to quality (such as grade and protein), the amount of production available, or if a grain company needs a specific grain to meet sales or fill cars.

When those factors are in play, you will see the basis change and fluctuate.

Strong futures values don’t necessarily mean a strong bid price at the elevator for your grains.

Futures may be rallying, but if grain companies aren’t making sales because buyers are stepping away from the market to wait for the futures prices to fall, then grain companies will widen their basis levels to stop producers from wanting to deliver grain.

A wider basis indicates that the grain company doesn’t want to buy grain — they may not be able to sell it, and they don’t want to own it at a price that could be higher than they be able to sell it for later.

On the other side of the marketing coin, there are times when grain companies need to buy additional tonnages to meet sales demands or fill cars at a time when futures prices are low. In this case, farmers aren’t selling (they’re waiting for futures prices to improve), so grain companies will lower their basis levels to get producers to start hauling grain to them. Once they have enough grain to cover their needs, they’ll widen the basis out again to stop producers selling. You need to keep a sharp eye out for these opportunities to lock in an attractive basis if it meets your marketing needs.

Understanding historical basis levels and how the current year compares to an “average” year as far as total production and quality are concerned is key to being able to determine if current quoted basis levels are good or bad, and if you should be locking them in or waiting for them to improve.

At certain times of the year, grain companies may offer attractive new crop basis contracts to get producers to commit grain for delivery at harvest, so they can make pre-sales for fall shipment.

When you see these basis offerings, if they look attractive or better than the average historical basis for that time of year, you may want to sign up some tonnes, knowing of course the risks that you are taking on by doing so early in the year.

Keep these things in mind when discussing pricing strategies and setting a marketing plan and you will have a better picture of where the pricing opportunities exist and be able to take advantage of them. †

photo: lisa guenther

Grade and protein spreads change during the year. Take advantage of change to increase your profits

An exhibitor washes her cattle at Canadian Western Agribition on November 26th. Agribition, held annually in Regina, is Canada’s largest livestock show.

HOT.

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).

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FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

21

Columns Guarding wealth

Higher interest, rising bond prices U.S. interest rates are heading up, and bond prices are rising. Here’s why security still pays

By Andrew Allentuck

T

he ominous Chinese greeting, “may you live in interesting times,” has arrived in Canada.

We face declining energy prices that are dragging down the entire economy to nearly zero growth.

Canadian stocks are accordingly dismal. Our partner to the south, the U.S., has a soaring currency that will inhibit its exports. As a result, the U.S. major stock indices have a negative bias. In this glut of bad tidings, bond prices, which should fall in the face of rising interest rates, are headed up — the wrong way. But for investors seeking security rather than profit, it makes sense.

The Federal Reserve Board began to raise interest rates with a 0.25 per cent boost in the overnight rate on Dec. 17. By itself, that tiny boost means just about nothing, but as a portent of the successive interest rates increases

SMALL.

to come, it is going to be tough medicine for any person or business with large debts, especially debts coming up for rollovers to new, higher rates.

The Fed’s mandate is to look after two factors in the U.S. economy — inflation and unemployment.

Other central banks are tasked only to manage inflation. For the record, U.S. inflation is running at a bare 0.2 per cent and the unemployment rate is down to five per cent.

From the viewpoint of the Fed, the great recession that began in 2008 is over. In 2016, the Fed’s Open Market Committee will meet eight times and, suggest a consensus of forecasters, it will probably raise short term rates four times.

That would put the overnight rate, which is what the Fed charges banks that need to borrow money to maintain reserves, at perhaps 1.5 to two per cent, which is headed back to pre-2008 normality. Bond traders should be selling and going to cash or stocks.

EARLY.

If it were only that easy. At present, stocks are vastly overpriced. The Case-Shiller Cyclically Adjusted Price Earnings Ratio, the CAPE index for short, is 26.8. That is, the broad stock market is selling for an average of 26.8 times what stocks earn. The historical mean is 16.6. The implication is that stocks are eventually going to fall back to the average. But there is no actual clock. It could be in a month or six months or six years.

Stocks are high because bond returns have been low. Money fled fixed income, especially riskless government bonds, to the stock market where even modest dividends of two per cent a year or so looked good in comparison to five-year bonds that paid barely half a percent. In the seesaw of bond returns and stock returns, bond prices will drop as interest rates rise.

In this period of adjustment, investors have shown a strong

LATE.

Just GO

preference for liquid assets. The more liquid, the better. Toughto-trade emerging markets stocks lost 17.3 per cent in U.S. dollar terms in 2015 and the worst hit, Latin American stocks, lost 32 per cent in U.S. dollar terms.

Grim forecasts Forecasts for the U.S. stock market for 2016 are downright gloomy. BlackRock Inc., which is the largest fund manager in the world with US$4.5 trillion of other people’s money in its coffers, says it expects only muted appreciation in the U.S. market in 2016 and a rising tide of bond defaults — chiefly among junk bonds.

In this market of low expected growth and rising interest rates, the most sensitive assets are junk bonds. Companies can suspend dividends on common stocks and investors can live with falling earnings. But bonds are a promise to pay interest on given dates and to return cash on specific dates.

If an issuer fails to do either, the bond is in default and the vultures are likely to push the company into receivership. Then they descend to pick at the carcass.

Junk bonds are thus the canaries of capital markets. Several big junk bond funds shut their doors in 2015, each having to suspend redemptions of client funds. In early December, the New Yorkbased Third Avenue Focused Credit Fund, a specialist in bonds rated CCC (“vulnerable in downturns” as bond rater Standard & Poor’s calls them) announced it would shut down its US$788 million portfolio and delay return of cash to investors rather than sell at fire sale prices. The fund told its investors that it would be months or even years before they could get their money back. Two other junk funds, Stone Lion Capital Partners L.P., based in Tennessee, suspended redemptions. Then on Dec. 14, Lucidus Capital Partners, a high yield bond specialist based in the U.K., announced that it had sold all of its US$900 million portfolio. It was returning money, reduced by the fall in junk bond asset prices, to its investors. The other two funds could not afford to pay off investors.

All investing is a game of musical chairs, but risk and illiquidity tend to go together. Some big coal companies’ lost as much as 90 per By jonny hawkins

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cent of their face value compared to what they sold for in mid2014. Shares of Peabody Energy Corp, the largest coal producer in the U.S. saw its shares drop 93 per cent in 2015 and its bonds drop by 78 per cent. Coal was once a sure thing. It is no more.

What is next? Solid stocks with dividends they have historically raised every year or two or even several times on one year in industries that are here to stay — banking, insurance, public utilities, global retail (think Amazon on this one) or entrenched national retailers like Canadian Tire all have some control over their profits. They are price makers. They are not price receivers like miners unable to do more than take what prices the world market dishes out.

Oddly enough, government bonds, especially U.S. Treasuries, the most liquid asset in the world, are likely to hold value and even rise as investors seek safety. The wise strategy is to split one’s investment, half on long bonds, half on shorts. As with any foreign currency investment, there is the risk that the Loonie could rise and the greenback fall. But that is not likely to happen any time soon given expected, prolonged loonie weakness.

Investing is a game of musical chairs Trading in and out of a foreign currency can be expensive, as banks take a couple of per cent commission either side of the market. However, if you buy into a U.S. equity index fund with Canadian dollars, you usually get a conversion price at the true market centre. In the short run, foreign exchange rates rule. Over periods of a decade or two, it is the underlying index that rules.

Call it an article of faith, perhaps, but statistically, over long periods, buying and holding a broad index has usually been a winning strategy. It means accepting that idea that all broad indices eventually rise. Yet there are exceptions. It has been two and a half decades since the Japanese Nikkei 225 index hit its high at 38,916 on December, 29, 1989, then lost 89.9 per cent of its value by 2009. As 2015 drew to a close, the Nikkei was trading at 18,789, less than half of the historic high. Take off 30 years of inflation and buy and hold index Nikkei investors are pretty well wiped out. Japanese government bonds, however, with the guarantee of payment at maturity, have produced huge profits for their holders in yen and even more in dollars. And that is why, in times of overvalued stocks and a stagnant world economy, bond prices are going up. †

TM

1/14/16 5:19 PM

“Meredith! I told you not to stay in there too long!”

Andrew Allentuck is author of “When Can I Retire? Planning Your Financial Future After Work” (Penguin, 2011).

22

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Columns Can’t take the farm from the boy

A project for a cold winter week Need a place to store your back issues of Grainews? Try this at home before its time for seeding

W

e had been talking about it for a long time. We would either purchase shelving for our living room or I would make something. In summer, such deliberations seem like a waste of time. There’s farming to be done.

Well, it’s done. And it’s pretty nifty, I must say, a giant raw-wood bookshelf hewn from felled trees in our backyard. It resembles an art installation (it does actually hold things, too), and when you look at it, its simplicity will strike you. “I could make that,” you’ll think to yourself. It’s true. You can, and now, you may have to — depends on how Grainews is distributed within your home.

If your farm is anything like ours, the nearby wilderness is something you’ve been vowing to clean up for a long time. Spoiler: harvesting a shelf or two from it won’t change this. In fact, you’ll only become more intimately aware of just how much deadfall there is to clean up.

What you need/what I used: • Chainsaw • Four-inch deck screws • Two spray cans of varathane • Skill saw • Level • Steel square • Orbital sander • Drill and drill bit Step 1: took some time. You have to figure out where you want this shelf —corner, along a wall, above the TV — and what you want it to look like. Done? Great. Now head out into the wilds to locate the felled piece of lumber that you can imagine becoming that shelf. If you don’t want to take the year or so needed to dry the wood before placing it into your house, the raw wood must not be alive, and it shouldn’t be rotten. This step is not easy. It took us a while to find the two specimens that would become our shelf. Cut the piece you want to use out of the branch or tree with a chainsaw and drag it to your work area (it’s convenient at this stage to have a quad or truck).

Step 2: cut the trunk so that when braced, the shelf will stand level on the floor. For ours, we had to get creative about the definition of “level,” and I think the pictures make that easy to believe. Also at this stage, begin

1

2

photos: toban dyck

Toban Dyck

shaping the wood, cutting down branches, and otherwise forming it. The branch we used as a support for the shelves we made out of a felled poplar near our house.

Step 3: the shelves. This part was dangerous, and I’m reticent to recommend that you do this. Take care of yourself. Use protective gear, and perhaps don’t do it alone as I did.

Find the pieces of trunk or branch that you wish to use as shelving, and split them in half lengthwise with a chainsaw. Make sure they are at least four to six inches in diameter, so this piece of upper-crust art you’re making can actually function as something practical, as well — hold things. We chose relatively straight pieces for this, but not entirely. The shape and contour of these shelves is entirely up to you. I also cut some disks out of a thicker trunk to fasten to my supporting branch at coffee-table height.

Step 4: sand, sand, sand. If you have a belt sander, use that. I didn’t have that, so I used an orbital sander to smooth all the shelf surfaces. Because I used a chainsaw to cut the shelves, the surface that shelf object would sit on was quite rough. Once you’ve smoothed these to a degree that will allow you to sleep at night, blow off the remaining dust with compressed air.

Step 5: build braces for base. Our shelf has limbs extending far from the base, playing with the whole structure’s centre of gravity in frustrating ways. It requires braces, which I cut out of those disks I made earlier using a carpenter’s steel square.

Step 6: assemble. In order to prevent cracking, pre-drill screw holes using a drill bit smaller and bit longer than the screws you’ll need to fasten shelves to base. Once done, fasten all the pieces of your shelf together.

Step 7: protection. I used about two aerosol cans of Varathane to seal and protect our shelf. There are other options available for protecting and sealing raw wood. If you’re unsure, talk with someone who knows about such at your local hardware store.

Step 8: bring it home. She’s not here to defend herself, but my wife was skeptical about this project. When I was pushing and scratching this large piece of lumber through our entrance, there was a look of reserved judgment on her face. But that changed once she saw it up and working. She loves it. It’s rustic and functional, and you’ll be the talk of the town. †

3

4

1. The first step was to find the right raw material.

2. This branch was used as support for the shelves. 3. With some shaping, it was starting to take form.

4. Braces for the base were cut out of disks, like the shelves. 5. Toban’s wife was skeptical at first, but now that it’s up and running, she loves the new bookshelf.

5

Toban Dyck is a freelance writer and a new farmer on an old farm. Follow him on Twitter @tobandyck or email tobandyck@gmail.com.

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Unless indicated, trademarks with ®, TM, SM are trademarks of DuPont or affiliates. © 2016, DuPont. InVigor® is a trademark of the Bayer Group.

1497 - Lumiderm_InVigor ad_GrainNews.indd 1

1/15/16 1:15 PM

Cyan,

Magenta,

Yellow,

Black

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

23

Columns forage production

Editing transactions with AgExpert Even the best bookkeepers don’t always get it right the first time. Here’s how to fix it Kelly Airey

G

etting help with the AgExpert bookkeeping has never been easier.

FCC Management Software has provided many new avenues to give you support you need. The AgExpert online community is a way for you to communicate with fellow AgExpert users in discussion boards, chat live with FCC support staff and look up answers to almost any question. There is also a multimedia section with training videos and tutorials that you can watch at your convenience. Help is only a click away.

Exploring the online community First, connect to the Internet.

From the AgExpert Program go to Help > Online Community to connect to the online community home page. You’ll see seven tabs at the top. The home page gives an overview and description of the features in the online community. Following are some highlights.

1. Home > Technical Support> Click on the blue link to “Customer Care Plan” to go to the webpage that describes FCC’s “basic”, “essential” and “premium” customer care plans. You can view, compare and renew your plan online or call in.

Tip: Sign up for Auto-Renewal so you always have access to the latest software updates and training opportunities.

2. Home > Technical Support> Click on the blue link to start a “Click-to-Chat” session with support. This starts a live chat online with a member of the FCC support team. Just type in your name and phone number and select the topic you need help with. You will then see a “Chat with Support” window pop up, where you can instantly message and chat with support. Tip: This feature is available if you’re on an “essential” or “premium” customer care plan. If you have a “basic” plan, you may want to consider an upgrade.

3. Knowledge Base > AgExpert Analyst > Click on any of the following links to access the most up to date articles, step by step instructions and videos on how to use the software. All the information that used to be found in the reference manuals can now be found here: Videos: Select from the menu of tutorials, How-to videos and learn what’s new in the software.

Visit grainews.ca to sign up for enews.

If you’d like to learn how to enter a grain sale for example, then choosing Videos > AgExpert Analyst Tutorials > Transactions > Sample Transaction — Grain Sale will open a three minute video on exactly how to enter the transaction.

Blog: Check in with the blog often for informative messages, tips, and solutions written by the support team. They’ve posted over 50 blogs so far, so there are sure to be some that interest you. Scroll through to find blogs such as “Top 10 Things You Can Do To Prepare For Year-End,” “How Safe Is Your Computer?” and “Download Your Software Update In Two Easy Steps.”

Discussions: Here, there is a

list of discussion boards. Select one such as “Financial and Accounting Discussions.” This is where you can post a question to the discussion board, and either another user or member of the support team can help you. You can also read through other questions that have been posted, and read replies or add your own reply if you know the answer.

Did you know? There is a discussion board called “AgExpert Analyst —Have an idea for the software?” Here is a place where you can send in your suggestions, feedback, and ideas for future releases.

Tip of the Month: Click on the month for the latest news and advice.

Contact us: Fill out this message form and support will get in touch with you.

Other help menu options From the AgExpert Program, choose: Help > Search online help: This connects you directly to the AgExpert Knowledge Base in the online community. Or, choose: Help > Connect to FCC Customer Care: This connects you directly to “Click-to-chat” to chat live with a member of the support team. Or: Help > What’s New > Connects you to the latest blog and information on the newest version of AgExpert.

Did you know? From any

screen in the AgExpert Software the [F1] keyboard key will connect you directly to the online community and take you to the exact location in the knowledge base that gives you information on the particular screen you were in. For example: go to Setup > Enterprises > then [F1]. You will now be taken to the exact page within the knowledge base that discusses setting up and maintaining enterprises. As an alternative to the [F1] key you can click on the question mark icon in screens such as the transaction entry screen. † 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.

24

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Machinery & Shop

Equipment market

Utility tractor comparison shopping We compare some buying choices for late-model,100-plus horsepower tractors

We’re comparing New Holland’s T6030 and its contemporaries in this market review. photo: new holland

By Scott Garvey

I

n our market review this time we’re focusing on late-model tractors just above the 100 horsepower mark, something ideal for livestock producers. We picked models that mate well with a front-end loader, are nimble enough to manoeuvre around livestock pens and still power-

ful enough to handle haying operations in the field.

As usual we’re relying on published test results from the Nebraska Tractor Test Lab for verified specifications. But we have to offer a word of caution here.

The lab doesn’t always test the same features or all the options all the time — it depends on what the manufacturer is willing to pay for. And there may be

more than one version of a tractor with the same model number, each with slightly different test results. So if you’re looking to buy a machine, be sure to verify the precise model, options list and year for exact specifications. Our chart should, however, give you a good reference point to start with.

For our survey of asking prices, we turned to AG Dealer’s online pricing

tool, and we used Tractordata.com as an authority for some of the specifications.

The chart provides a comparison of how each of these tractors stack up against the others in terms performance, fuel consumption and capabilities, which should help take some of the mystery out of what a dollar buys on the used tractor market these days. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

LATE-MODEL TRACTORS

Engine displacement

John Deere 7230

Case IH Maxxum 125

McCormick MTX135

New Holland T6030 (Delta)

Massey Ferguson 6465

6.8 litre Deere, 6 cyl.

6.7 litre FPT, 6 cyl.

6.8 litre Iveco, 6 cyl.

6.7 litre FPT, 6 cyl.

6.0 litre Perkins, 6 cyl.

PTO Horsepower at PTO speed

111

113

112

111

120

PTO Horsepower at rated engine speed

118

114

112

111

102

PTO Maximum horsepower

126

114

114

111

122

369 lb.-ft. @1,701 r.p.m.

435 lb.-ft. @901 r.p.m.

357 lb.-ft. @1,452 r.p.m.

420 lb.-ft. @898 r.p.m.

389 lb.-ft. @ 1,401 r.p.m.

14,678

10,390

13,100

10,235

10,655

At PTO speed

28.1 l./hr. (2,220 r.p.m.)

25.74 l./hr. (2,121 r.p.m.)

25.16 l./hr. (2,200 r.p.m.)

25.15 l./hr. (2,119 r.p.m.)

27.57 l./hr. (2,030 r.p.m.)

At maximum power

29.13 l./hr. (2,000 r.p.m.)

26.37 l./hr. (2,197 r.p.m.)

24.54 l./hr. (2,100 r.p.m.)

25.11 l./hr. (2,098 r.p.m.)

27.72 l./hr. (2,000 r.p.m.)

Gears available

12/16/24 spds.

12/16/24 spds.

16F-12R / 32F-24R

16/24 spds.

24/32 spds.

Maximum road speed k/hr

41.1 (24 spd.)

40.23 (16 spd.)

38.6 (16 spd.)

37.7 (16 spd.)

40 (16 spd.)

68.2 l./min. 104.3 l./min.

Optional

56 l/min.

109.4 l./min.

57.4 l./min.

101.2 l./min.

2 to 4

2 to 4

2 or 3

3 to 5

No load, 9th gear 70.1 dB

No load, 6th gear 85.8 dB

Not tested

No load, 7th fear 85.6 dB

No load, 10th gear 68 dB

207 / 249 optional

249

264

249

264

540/1,000, 540E optional

540/1,000

540/1,000

540/1,000

540/540E/1,000

2007 - 2011

2007 - 2011

2004 - 2007

2007 - 2012

2004 - 2012

$90,333

$81,000

$68,900

$58,999

$49,998

Maximum torque Max drawbar pull, pounds FUEL CONSUMPTION

TRANSMISSIONS

HYDRAULICS Tested flow rate, max power SCV valves Cab sound levels CAPACITIES Fuel (litres) PTO Production years Average asking price

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Machinery & Shop

25

Equipment market

Horsch offers 2nd Maestro toolbar The brand adds a smaller 40-foot version along with software updates for 2016

H

orsch has been selling its 60-foot Maestro planter for a while now. However, the company says it noticed there was significant demand from producers for a smaller version. So, this fall it introduced a second Maestro with a 40-foot working width.

“When we introduced the planter, we introduced it with a 60-foot toolbar, a 24-row, 30-inch type planter, says Jeremy Hughes, product manager for Horsch. “We had interest in smaller planters from different markets so we introduced the 40-foot toolbar. With the 40-foot planter the standard spacing on that is 16-row, 30-inch. We also have a 32 row on a 15-inch spacing, or a 24-row on 20-inch spacing.”

The 60-foot version carries a 1,000 gallon liquid tank and a 140 bushel seed hopper. The new 40-foot model gets an 80 bushel seed tank along with 780 gallons of liquid fertilizer capacity; but the liquid fertilizer tank can be switched out to boost onboard seed carrying capacity to 160 bushels.

“That’s where we gain a lot of efficiencies in the field,” adds Hughes. “Not only can we drive faster, we can drive longer, because we don’t have to be stopping and filling all the time.”

The 40-foot version gets the same

key features as the larger model. Those include electric drive on the vacuum meters, hydraulic down pressure and a weight transfer system.

“We built this planter to be a high-speed planter,” Hughes adds. “When you look at a lot of planters on the market today that are being marketed as high speed, all they’ve done is take an existing planter and put Band-aids on it, as far as a high speed meter. But they’ve done nothing to reinforce the framework or the row unit, itself, which is what takes the beating.”

Hughes says Horsch toolbars are built with high field speeds in mind, and row units have a robust design specifically to handle that kind of strain.

For 2016 Horsch will have an automatic down-pressure system available as a factory option. Owners of existing models will also be able to retrofit it onto their machines.

“It will be a system that operates on the go, as far as adjusting different sections of the planter,” says Hughes.

The brand will also offer a new in-cab monitor called the Touch 1200, capable of individual row shut off. Similar to an iPad, the Touch 1200 monitor can be mounted in both a vertical or horizontal position.

Software changes for 2016 include turn compensation to provide more consistent seed spacing in corners. †

Horsch Maestro planters will be available in 40- and 60-foot versions in 2016.

photo: hotsch

By Scott Garvey

Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews. Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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26

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Machinery & Shop

Equipment maintenance

New 15W-30 oil may offer benefits in ag applications Chevron introduces a “severe duty” oil for diesel engines

Chevron’s new Delo 15W-30 diesel engine oil is designed for “severe duty” applications, and offers a potential fuel economy improvement.

By Scott Garvey

M

Refining synthetic oil from natural gas In May one of Shell Lubricants’ proprietary brands, Pennzoil, issued an announcement saying it has developed an entirely new process for creating synthetic engine oil from natural gas rather than crude oil, calling it “the first major development in motor oil in over 40 years.”

The refining process, referred to as PurePlus Technology by the company, is the basis for two new engine oils to be marketed under the Pennzoil banner with the names Platinum and Ultra Platinum. Both are aimed at the automotive market.

“What we like about PurePlus Technology is that it starts with a base of pure, crystal clear base oil made from natural gas with fewer of the impurities found in crude oil, which is the traditional base for many other conventional and synthetic motor oils,” explains Chris Hayek, global brand director, Shell Lubricants Passenger Car Motor Oil, in a press release. “Using this technology in our products helps Pennzoil provide motorists with one of the most advanced, premium motor oils on the market.”

The company says using natural gas and the PurePlus process improves the capability of Platinum and Ultra Platinum oils to address five key areas consumers deemed as most critical for motor oil performance: engine cleanliness, fuel economy, conservation of horsepower, wear protection, and performance in extreme temperatures. † Scott Garvey

photo: chevron

ost of the farm machines at work this summer likely have 15W-40 oil sloshing around in their engine crankcases.

That’s been the standard summer oil for some time.

But in April Chevron introduced a new lighter-weight, conventional oil that can replace 15W-40 in many applications. And according to Harry Hazen, North American marketing manager for Chevron, it will do a better job under “severe duty” conditions. » continued on next page

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FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Machinery & Shop » CONTINUED FROM Previous PAGE It’s their Delo SD SAE 15W-30.

This oil complies with the newest API CJ-4 classification standards, but it’s also backward compatible with the previous service categories required by older engines.

“This product is designed for what we term as severe duty applications,” Hazen says. “What those are by our definition are stop-andgo operations, frequent start up and shut down of the engine, and frequent engine cycling to adjust to varying loads.”

With so much emphasis lately on reducing fuel consumption, many truck fleet operators are instructing their drivers to reduce idle times by shutting diesel engines off as frequently as possible. While there are cost savings to be had with that practice in both on- and offroad applications, it can be hard on engine oil, degrading it prematurely.

“There is a potential down side,” Hazen cautions. “Because those types of operations can increase

the temperature of the oil. And by increasing the temperature of the oil, you could accelerate such things as oxidation. Oxidation is a breakdown of the oil, and it can result in deposits and other things that can impact component life. This (15W30) product is specifically designed for those severe duty applications.

It will resist oxidation better than other oils on the market.”

Another benefit of going to a lighter weight 15W-30 instead of 15W-40 is it allows the engine to sip a little less fuel even during general operation.

“15W-40 for a long time has been the standard in both on- and off-highway type applications,” he says. “Recently in the on-highway applications, we’ve seen people moving to a 10W-30. And the reason for that is they want to reduce their fuel consumption. And a 10W-30 will give them some fuel consumption savings.” “(With the 15W-30) we’ve realized 1.8 per cent fuel improvement, which is comparable to a

27

10W-30. What we say is with 15W30 you can get comparable fuel savings as with a 10W-30, and we tested that in Class 6 trucks. That’s something for folks to consider.

But the caveat I like to throw in there is fuel consumption is very much tied to the driver as well.

The driver or operator has a lot of influence on fuel economy.”

Oil change intervals According to Hazen, a 15W40 oil would be better suited to longer oil change intervals than the lighter weight 15W-30. But, he adds, if you are actually operating machinery in conditions that meet Chevron’s severe duty definition, trying to stretch out those intervals out no matter what oil is used may be false economy.

“That (15W-40) would be my recommendation if they’re looking to extend drain intervals,” he says.

“But if you can call it severe duty, I wouldn’t look to extend drain intervals.”

www.thisissevereduty.com And, he says, owners should always consult the vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations for viscosity selection and oil change intervals.

To see if your circumstances meet

Chevron’s severe duty definition, you can go online to their new website, www.thisissevereduty. com, and take the quiz. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

Is synthetic engine oil worth the extra cost?

Mike Jubinville President, Pro Farmer Canada

Mike is lead analyst and president of Pro Farmer Canada, an independent market analysis and advisory service he started in 1997. Benefit from his experience as he explains current and future trends in agriculture, the current state of commodity markets and what we can expect next.

Andy Nadler Agricultural Meteorologist, Peak Hydromet Solutions

Andy undertakes a variety of weather, climate and agriculture-related projects across western Canada. Find out how understanding the weather can help you make better marketing, agronomic and management decisions for your operation in 2016.

Peter Gredig Partner, AgNition Inc.

Peter grows corn, soybean and wheat near London, Ont., and builds apps and mobile resources for Canadian farmers, agribusinesses and organizations. He’ll help you discover how emerging technologies could benefit agriculture – and your operation.

J.P. Gervais FCC Chief Agricultural Economist

J.P. has over 15 years of experience in domestic and international analysis of agricultural policies and markets. He’ll provide insight into major economic trends shaping the Canadian agriculture industry and how they could impact your farm in the coming year.

Most Prairie retailers say they see a surge in demand for synthetic engine oils in the fall, at a time when producers are preparing tractors and equipment for cold weather operation through the winter.

“That is a very smart thing to do in a cold environment,” says Harry Hazen, North American marketing manager for Chevron. “There is definitely an improved flow with a synthetic. Synthetic oil has an inherently wider temperature range. It flows better in cold temperatures and maintains its viscosity at higher temperatures as well.”

Those improved flow characteristics offer better engine protection that can’t be matched by conventional, mineral-based oils. But it comes at a higher price.

Despite that, is it the best choice for summer use, too?

It does offer some fuel economy gains all year round, and it can cope with extended oil change intervals. But in ag applications pushing oil change limits may not be advisable no matter what is in an engine crankcase.

“In an extreme cold environment synthetics make sense,” Hazen says. “And if you’re looking to do something with really extending drains pretty far out there, which I wouldn’t recommend for the ag environment, then that would be the two key advantages of a synthetic.”

“A synthetic oil is superior to a conventional oil,” he continues. “And what a farmer has to weigh is the benefits of that versus the costs. A synthetic will generally cost three or four times more than a premium (conventional) product. And premium products are really very good.” † Scott Garvey

28

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Machinery & Shop

Farm security

Remote monitoring Multiple uses for automated xProxy

By Scott Garvey

photo: net irrigate

H

The xProxy can be used to monitor systems or for farmyard security.

ave you ever found yourself making frequent trips to grain bins to check if aeration fans are still working properly? If you have electrical systems — like bin fans — that need to stay running, Net Irrigate’s new xProxy system can help monitor them and notify you of a problem, avoiding the need for frequent physical checks.

The xProxy is designed to detect interruptions in an electrical circuit and use the cellular network to send out an alert. It works with any “normally closed” electrical circuit, which means one in which electricity should normally be flowing. As soon as the circuit is interrupted, or “open,” the xProxy knows something has gone wrong and sends an instant notification.

“The xProxy can be hooked up to any type of switch or relay,” explains Julie Upchurch, Net Irrigate’s director of sales. “It just needs a set of dry contacts to hook up to. When that circuit opens, it sends out a signal to let you know something has occurred.”

The system is based on one the company was selling to irrigation users to help prevent wire thefts.

“There are hundreds of potential uses for the xProxy,” Upchurch adds. “In agriculture there are a lot of security uses. You could hook it onto a simple limit switch on a gate or a barn door. Anytime they open it’s going to call you. On the grain side of things there are several uses on a grain bin to monitor functions. One we’re seeing is people are hooking it up on a relay on a fan. Anytime the fan on a dryer shuts off, (xProxy) sends out the customizable alert.” xProxy devices are set up and activated using a free mobile app, Alerts can be sent to several people.

“They can also customize who is actually getting those alerts,” she says. “It can be configured so up to five people receive an email, phone call, text message or push notification every time that alert goes off.”

Users do not have to pay for an additional cellular device in order to use the system. Each xProxy unit comes with prepaid service for it’s entire lifespan, which should be about five years.

“On the cellular side, we do not charge an ongoing subscription fee to our customers,” says Upchurch.

“All the cell data costs are built into that US$679 price. The reason we can get away with that is our devices have a fixed life based on the battery that’s in there. It has about a five year life. The best way to describe the battery is it has about 2,500 events. The battery life can be monitored from the mobile app as well.”

With the xProxy, Net Irrigate is just now moving into areas of agriculture other than irrigation, so it’s looking to expand its dealer network in both the U.S. and Canada.

For more information on the xProxy and to find a retailer — or to become one — go to the company’s website, netirrigate.com. † Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

Machinery & Shop

29

Harvesting

New headers from Deere and AGCO New swather and combine headers for small grains producers

By Scott Garvey

photo: agco

P

Left: John Deere now offers the 500D line of Draper headers for its W235 and W260 windrowers. photo: john deere

urchasers of a John Deere W235 or W260 self-propelled windrower can now choose to mate their machine with a new line of Draper headers for small grains crops. The green brand just introduced the 500D Series header line, which includes three sizes: 25, 30 and 36 feet.

The 500D headers use a quickchange system that makes replacing a broken reel tooth a simple procedure. It requires only simple tools and a 90-degree turn to remove and replace a broken tooth.

“Customers can now get more torque when cutting in difficult conditions with the 500D Series Drapers, thanks to new center belt drives,” says Jeremy Unruh, Deere’s product line marketing manager, in a press release. “The belts are being driven from the center of the platform and not the end, resulting in more consistent performance from end to end.

This also prevents slipping and excessive belt wear, saving money on maintenance.”

For those producers who also use their windrower to cut hay, Deere claims changing between a 500D Series Draper and a rotary hay-cutting header only takes about 30 minutes.

Top right: AGCO’s new 9255 DynaFlex headers are available in widths up to 40 feet for Challenger, Massey Ferguson and Gleaner combines.

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AGCO AGCO also has a new header to talk about. The 9255 DynaFlex is designed to mate with the brand’s Gleaner, Massey Ferguson and Challenger combines. It offers a flexible cutter bar and 12 degrees of hydraulic tilt for the cutter bar and Drapers. They’re available in 25-, 30-, 35- and 40-foot cutting widths.

9255 headers have a completely redesigned, larger and sturdier six-bat, single-piece reel assembly, which relies on heavier, larger diameter tubes and heavy-duty tines. According to AGCO, they feed crops onto the 41-inch wide Draper belts without wrapping crop material around the reel.

The drive system uses a mechanically driven gearbox with a flywheel to maintain cutter bar speed and momentum. That’s a lot different than a more traditional wobble box arrangement with a swinging counterbalance weight. AGCO claims this is a better design, and it also shaves three inches off the overall header width because of the smaller gearbox.

All the 9255 headers — other than the smallest 25-foot version — get dual sickle bar drives, one on each side for added durability. The end skids have also been beefed up and ride flatter to the ground. †

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Scott Garvey is machinery editor for Grainews.

Contact him at Scott.Garvey@fbcpublishing.com.

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/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Cattleman’s Corner forage production

Fungi key to grass production The soil is a complex world working hard to complete nutrient cycling

BY KIM NIELSEN

photo: kim nielsen

W

e always enjoy the cattle on 4-Clover Ranch near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta. It was our own animals back in the day and now someone else’s are on the farm for summer grazing. Fact is, we are really grass farmers and have chosen to harvest the grass with cattle rather than the haybine.

We have a really good relationship with the two cattle owners we work with who bring us cattle each year. On the grass-management side, we have reserved the right to decide which paddock the cattle graze in and for how long, and that hasn’t been an issue for the cattle owners. Quite the contrary perhaps as one of the herds is typically made up of first- and second-calvers enjoying some compensatory gain after a hard winter.

I have written before on the positive transformation of our pastures through planned grazing over 22 years and increased s p e c i e s d i v e r s i t y, n u t r i e n t cycling and carrying capacity.

While I have been inspired by many good graziers over the years — some have become great friends — the grain farming part of my brain had a hard time accepting it was possible to harvest X-pounds of beef per acre without commercial inputs.

I needed some answers as to why we experienced the pasture improvements on 4-Clover Ranch as a natural succession only brought on by a change in management.

There are miles and miles of microscopic fungi “root” hairs in this soil ball creating a vast network of pockets to capture water and create a microclimate for other microorganisms, protozoa, amoeba, bacteria and enzymes — all key elements in nutrient-cycling process.

LEARNING ABOUT THE PROCESS It seems the main key in the transformation of what we were seeing above the ground is really a result of what took place below the surface. It has been said if there is an abundance of plant species above ground there is an equal diverse abundance of microorganisms in the soil below.

I recently watched a YouTube video of American mycologist Paul Stamets on mycelium, the vegetative part of the fungus. It helped immensely in understanding the processes. I found the video captivating as it so plainly highlighted the role of mycelium in building soil carbon, humus and holding the soil together. I also didn’t know fungi arrived 1,300 million years ago or 600 million

years before plants, giving plenty of time to create the environment suitable for plant growth.

Mycelium or hyphae are really fungi “roots” and these microscopic hairs are extensive — one cubic inch of soil reaching up to eight miles in length — creating a network of pockets that can capture water and create a microclimate for other microorganisms, protozoa, amoeba, bacteria and enzymes. Mycelia produce oxalic acid, which is key in breaking down rock and freeing up nutrients that would otherwise be unavailable to plants. It took place over millions of years and became the process of the soil building and foundation for plant growth.

Hearing about Paul Stamets’s work gave me a much better understanding of why we had seen increased forage produc-

tion without commercial fertilizer. We had noticed that the manure and urine spots in pastures were gradually disappearing and suspected it was due to improved nutrient cycling in the soil. Now I had an answer, the effects of soil mycorrhizal fungi and their symbiotic relationship with plant roots.

While I was excited I might have mycorrhizal fungi in our pastures I was looking for ways to know for sure. The answer came from the work of soil scientist Dr. Sarah Wright with the USDA. In 1996 she discovered a soil protein called Glomalin associated with mycorrhizal fungi. The sticky glomalin attaches to the hyphae and tiny roots of plants and holds water, sand, silt and clay and the dissolved minerals like phosphorous and calcium.

SLOW PROCESS It takes time for the mycorrhizal fungi to build. Tillage as well as leaving land idle destroys the fungi. Iron and aluminium often binds soil nutrients such as phosphorous and another USDA soil scientist Dr. Kristine Nichols found that the glomalin can bind these metals freeing up the P for the plants. As well glomalin slows down the carbon decomposition and stabilizes the organic matter.

Understanding the role of mycorrhizal fungi and glomalin and their ability to free up calcium and phosphorous and other macronutrients didn’t explain where the plants’ nitrogen requirement would come from.

A pasture full of legumes would

have a fair bit of nitrogen coming from the rhizobia bacteria but soil biology researcher Dr. Elaine Ingham’s work at Oregon State University has broadened the scope. Understanding the role of soil protozoa, amoeba, soil bacteria and soil nematodes gives an explanation. Not only does the mycelium allow for housing these organisms but their lifecycle is very short. Simply speaking, the bacteria gets eaten by the protozoa, the protozoa get devoured by the nematode and the whole process releases massive amounts of ammonium.

Bacteria is microscopic, protozoa a smidgen larger and some of the larger nematodes can be seen with the naked eye. While we shouldn’t be confused with the larger undesirable nematodes that can cause crop damage, the good ones are too small to see with the naked eye. Just one teaspoon of soil can house 500 of the “good” nematodes. Their activity in the soil helps explain the mystery of why manure and urine spots were disappearing in our pastures.

Well-managed pastures ability to produce with lower inputs contribute to the bottom line, which is always good. Understanding these pastures’ ability to store enormous amounts of carbon and thereby contributing to a reduction in atmospheric CO2 emissions is an added benefit that society is awakening to and ranchers ought to celebrate. † Kim Juul Nielsen, retired manager of agricultural service, Clearwater County, Alta is a summer time resident of Alcheringa, Dunkeld, Victoria, Australia and is Canadian summer time grazier of 4-Clover Ranch, Rocky Mountain House Alberta.

markets

Retail specials helped sell some beef Jerry Klassen Market Update

T

he new year started off with a bounce in fed cattle prices with Alberta packer purchases in the range of $172 to $174, up from the December lows of $160.

While fed cattle wholesale beef markets were declining throughout the fall period, retailers were holding up beef prices. However, during the first half of January, grocers were featuring beef products, which alleviated the backlog in the supply chain. Wholesale beef prices have experienced a small recovery off the lows and packing margins are now in favourable territory.

Feeder cattle prices also recovered with the rise in the fed cattle market. In southern Alberta, steers weighing 800 pounds surged from $185 in late December to $212 by mid-January. Feedlot operators have breakevens for the May pen closeouts near $173 and the ability to lock in a profitable margin resulted in a surge of demand for replacements. The fed and feeder cattle markets have stabilized but there

are fair amount of risks moving forward so the volatility may not be over.

U.S. cattle on feed inventories as of Dec. 1 were 10.8 million ahead, about the same as Dec. 1 of 2014.

November placements were only 1.6 million, which was a record low but we need to see subsequent months to alter on-feed projections.

Heavier carcass weights is expected to cause a sharp 300-million pound year-over-year increase in beef first quarter beef production followed by a similar increase in the second quarter. The contraction phase in the beef cycle is over and I’m expecting growing production levels through 2016 and into 2017.

PRODUCTION UP The U.S. 2014 calf crop was 170,000 head larger than in 2013; I’m expecting the 2015 calf crop to be 0.7 million head larger than in 2014. This will be a significant change to the supply equation in the latter half of 2016 and into 2017 as market adjusts for greater feeder cattle placements. I’m forecasting 2017 beef production to reach upwards of 25.5 billion pounds.

Canadian beef production for 2015 reached 959,177 mt, down

three per cent from 2014. Exports to the U.S. of fresh and chilled beef cuts were up four per cent and latest data has total exports up one per cent. The recession in Canada took a toll on beef consumption in 2015, especially with the record-high prices. During 2016, we should see an increase in domestic consumption as retail prices come back closer to five-year average levels. Cattle on feed inventories in Alberta and Saskatchewan have been running two per cent above year-ago levels and this trend will likely continue due to lower feeder cattle exports to the U.S. Beef demand remains a large uncertainty for 2016 as the economic environment continues to erode in Canada and stagnate in the U.S. In early January, many grocers were featuring ground beef 30 per cent off regular price while other higher-end steaks were as much as 50 per cent off. January and February are periods of seasonal low food expenditures but the decrease in retail beef prices may help sustain wholesale and fed cattle prices.

The U.S. economy is vulnerable to slower growth in China and this uncertainty is not over. China may experience a period of slow or negative growth after years of double-

U.S. QUARTERLY BEEF PRODUCTION (MILLION POUNDS) Quarter

2012

2013

2014

EST. 2015

EST. 2016

1

6,283

6,172

5,868

5,664

5,955

2

6,475

6,517

6,183

5,855

6,135

3

6,584

6,608

6,179

6,066

6,370

4

6,571

6,420

6,021

6,115

6,145

Total

25,913

25,717

24,251

23,700

24,605

Source USDA

digit expansion. U.S. per capita beef consumption needs to rise to absorb the larger supplies, but this will only occur through lower retail and restaurant prices compared to 2015.

RECESSION PRESSURES The Canadian dollar continues to deteriorate, dipping to 13-year lows in mid January. There appears to be no end to the recessionary environment in Canada with historically low commodity prices, mainly crude oil and metals. Unemployment in the private sector continues to grow and governments run larger than projected deficits in 2016. The low Canadian dollar will continue to support fed and feeder cattle prices through 2016.

The ability of feedlots to lock in a profitable margin for the spring period caused a recovery in the feeder cattle market in January. I’m expecting Canadian fed cattle prices to remain relatively flat during the

first quarter and slightly weaker in the second quarter. Feedlots experienced significant equity erosion in the final quarter of 2015 so the recovery in fed cattle prices was a bright New Year’s gift. Further upside in the feeder market would cause feedlot margins to drop back into negative territory. I encourage cow-calf producers to be realistic with their price expectations. This recent recovery is not a return to the historical highs but an adjustment in line with the fed cattle market.

The larger U.S. calf crop along with soft margins in the feedlot sector will limit further upside. † Jerry Klassen is manager of the Canadian office for Swiss based grain trader GAP SA Grains and Products Ltd. He is also president and founder of Resilient Capital — a specialist in commodity futures trading and commodity market analysis. Aside from owning farmland in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, he’s a University of Alberta graduate who grew up on a mixed farm feedlot operation in Southern Alberta, which keeps him close to the grassroots of grain and cattle production.

He can be reached at 204 504 8339.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

31

Cattleman’s Corner Keepers and Culls

You can’t pass up “Good” advice Lee Hart

M

erle Good, a westcentral Alberta beef producer and a longtime farm tax specialist and farm succession consultant, always has gems of knowledge to pass along.

Speaking to a group of farmers recently in Edmonton, most of Good’s talk focused on farm business arrangements and tax strategies, which often go right over my head. But a few general points I did grasp.

As a specialist in farm succession planning, Good says there is a definite trend to more daughters coming back to run family farms.

He also noted whether it is male or female children involved in the farm, as soon as the young person joins the farming operation, the gross revenue of the farm will increase by 25 per cent. Nothing magical about that, says Good, it is just a reflection of new enthusiasm returning to the farm, which often brings new ideas with it. So if you’re old and near retirement and want to increase farm income, get a young person involved.

Good, who has been known to speak plainly during his presentations, urges farm families not to buy into the thinking “there is no room in the farm business, for a son or daughter to come back”.

“That’s just BS,” says Good.

“There is always room in the farm business.” People just need to innovate and find ways to add value and that will create room for the next generation.

And there is no place in the farm business for people to think the farm owes them a living.

Borrowing from an often-used quote, Good says family farm owners and managers need to think “don’t ask what the family farm can do for you. Ask what you can do for the family farm.”

ciently in different conditions and crops because of the various mower adjustments and choice of three conditioner types. The operator can also make many adjustments from the cab, which is especially important for operators going from field to field and changing crops or conditions regularly. German manufactured and globally distributed, the Krone North America headquarters is located in Memphis, Tenn.

COMING EVENTS Alberta Beef Industry Conference: Beef producers from across Western Canada are invited to the annual Alberta Beef Industry Conference, Feb. 17 to 19 at the Sheraton Hotel in Red Deer, Alta.

The conference will feature more than a dozen speakers on a wide range of topics including marketing, business management, nutritional advice, animal health, and North American and global economics and markets.

One session bound to have an interesting message will feature former Alberta Conservative cabinet minister Doug Griffiths with a talk on 13 ways to kill your beef industry.

For more details visit the conference website at: www.abiconference.ca SSGA Spring Break: If you’re looking to get away to some place warm, the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association may still have room on its seven day spring break trip to Puerto

Vallarta, Mexico March 4 to 11.

Along with being able to attend the Campeonato Nacional Charro Rodeo, it sounds like there will be plenty of time to relax at the Sheraton Buganvillias. Cost of the trip is CDN$1,610 (based on double occupancy). Call Katherin at 1-306-690-5309 for details.

Livestock care in Alberta: Fresh opportunities, global perspectives and lively discussion are set to capture the spotlight at the 2016 Livestock Care Conference, March 22-23 in Olds, Alta., hosted by Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC).

The Livestock Care Conference begins Tuesday, March 22, with special sessions including a sheep handling workshop,and the AFAC Annual General Meeting.

The main speaker agenda is

Wednesday, March 23, kickingoff with a message from the Provincial Minister of Agriculture and Forestry and a welcome and update from the AFAC executive director. Brenda Schoepp discusses The Interconnetion Between Human and Animal Welfare; Dr. Jennifer Walker talks Animal Welfare at the Intersection Between Politics, Policy, Profit & People; Leona Dargis presents on Animal Welfare Around the World; Dr. Alexandra Harlander discusses Hot Topics in Poultry Welfare; and Marion Popkin presents on All About Rabbits.

Complete agenda details and registration information is available at www.afac.ab.ca. Follow at hashtag #LCC2016.

Lee Hart

We all share the same table.

Pull up a chair.

THE REAL STORY OF AG

“We take pride in knowing we would feel safe consuming any of the crops we sell.

If we would not use it ourselves, it does not go to market.”

– Katelyn Duncan, Saskatchewan

“The natural environment is critical to farmers – we depend on soil and water for the production of food. But we also live on our farms, so it’s essential that we act as responsible stewards.”

– Doug Chorney, Manitoba

KRONE WINS AWARD

“The welfare of my animals is one of my highest priorities. If I don’t give my cows a high quality of life, they won’t grow up to be great cows.”

We’re starting to see more of these green (and yellow) machines and its dealerships around the country, as Krone increases its profile in Western Canada.

The company, which sent me a nice calendar this year, recently won the AgriMarketing magazine award for “product of the year in 2015” for its BiG M 420 selfpropelled mower conditioner.

Krone’s BIG M was created for commercial hay and forage producers who can benefit from the narrow transport width, the fast transport speed and cutting 30 to 32 feet of crop at one time with a single unit.

The BiG M offers several features, including working effi-

– Andrew Campbell, Ontario

Safe food; animal welfare; sustainability; people care deeply about these things when they make food choices. And all of us in the agriculture industry care deeply about them too. But sometimes the general public doesn’t see it that way. Why? Because, for the most part, we’re not telling them our story and, too often, someone outside the industry is.

The journey from farm to table is a conversation we need to make sure we’re a part of. So let’s talk about it, together.

Visit AgMoreThanEver.ca to discover how you can help improve and create realistic perceptions of Canadian ag.

32

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Cattleman’s Corner Animal Health

A few tricks to grafting calves It makes good economics to find replacement calves for productive cows Roy Lewis animal health

S

ince the beginning of time, a common procedure in spring calving is crossgrafting calves onto surrogate mothers. It used to be calves were bought from dairies but you do run the risk of exposing your herd to infectious organisms such as scours. With many of the exotic breeds such as Maine Anjou, twinning can reach the five to eight per cent range with many cows twinning year after year. This leaves an ideal opportunity to steal one

twin (provided both were born alive) and get it sucking on a foster mom who lost her calf. The birth cow is therefore more productive and most beef cows only have enough milk for one growthy calf anyways.

The ideal time to graft is right at birth if the cow has not had the chance to lick her dead calf. Most producers will have the twins close at hand so they can immediately be thrown in with their new mother. It’s easiest to rub the afterbirth or fetal fluid of the cow all over the replacement calf to change the scent and leave a large amount draped over the calf. This will usually fool even the wisest of cows. Heifers are generally easier to fool than the wise multiparous

cow, but placing the pair together in a small pen is also helpful.

Watch for the telltale signs of bunting or kicking indicating the match is not going well.

Often mothers do not accept one twin as well so if you need to keep them together keep in a small area. Once turned out into a larger pen or field it is likely to be abandoned. Fortunately twins get very inventive at stealing milk from other cows. They usually suck from behind while the cow’s own calf is nursing.

GRAfTING TRICKS If cows are hyper, or in dealing with young heifers, mothering can even be a problem with their own

calf. This is where a few handfuls of grain placed over the calf’s back or the use of a commercial product such as “Calf Claim” helps to encourage bonding. Some producers use a perfume-like product over the calf and applied around the cow’s nose to trick their scent.

Calf abandonment is one of the most common causes of death for young calves on large ranches, especially if many are calving in a small area. It is easy for young heifers to get mixed up as to which calf is theirs. I have seen hobbles used on cows for several days to allow the grafted calf to suckle a hyper mother.

If older calves die and grafting is desired the situation becomes more difficult. It is best then to

skin the dead calf and tie the hide over the new calf. This extra effort in skinning usually makes the grafting procedure go smoothly.

Take the largest piece of hide over the midsection of the calf. It is not necessary to skin out the legs and neck. After a few days the smell will become great the hide will fall off and generally the grafting will be successful. Older calves can even be hog-tied for a short while.

Their struggling and bawling will attract the cow and may initiate bonding.

To secure “extra” calves, often producers will keep over a few cows, which are really culls but were pregnant when examined.

Especially if these cows were bred early the opportunity may present itself to steal their calf and graft it on to a younger more productive cow, which has lost her calf. With twins, steal the calf the mother is not accepting as well or if this appears equal select the freemartin heifer in the case of mixed twins.

TOO MANY ‘EXTRAS’ If twinning success numbers are getting way ahead of grafting requirements, several options are available.

Bottle-feeding till the opportunity arises, selling or leasing the calf to a neighbour, and having high producing nurse cows around will all be a benefit. The nurse cows usually need some dairy blood in them and they can often raise three or four calves quite easily. These cows will usually let anything suck so grafting multiple calves onto the same cow is not a problem.

If possible it is nice to have the nurse cows calving early with their own calf so they are heavily producing when you need them. Some producers will purchase three-teaters or slow milkers from a dairy for this purchase.

A big CAUTION to prevent introducing disease is to make absolutely sure the management of the dairy fits in close to what you are doing and get the cows early before calving is initiated. Isolate the cow and her calves for two to three weeks to minimize the spread of any disease. Talk to your veterinarian if there is anything he/she would recommend testing for before bringing a dairy animal onto your premise.

If purchasing a calf for grafting the same precautions apply. Make sure the management of the operation is similar to yours. Beef calves will return you a higher return the next fall. But be absolutely sure to isolate the pair for two weeks. The last thing you want is to introduce scours into your herd through a calf purchase. Be absolutely sure the calf got a good feed of colostrum when first born. If at all possible try not to purchase calves off farm. Others may keep a cow milking in the hopes an extra twin will come along.

All these strategies allow utilizing twins and making productive cows out of ones destined to be culled. † 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.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

33

Cattleman’s Corner ranchers diary

Snow has meant feeding early Fence upgrade to keep deer from eating good hay

DECEMBER 26 2015

W

e had more snow last week. Michael brings his truck down every few days to load big bales to take up to his cows.

Granddaughter Heather’s friend Gregory drove from Saskatchewan to visit for a few days. Carolyn cooked a nice dinner the next day and we went up to their house and got to meet Gregory — a very nice young man.

Last Wednesday we sorted the young cows (first and second calvers), and put them on heifer hill where we can feed them separately.

We’re feeding them all some alfalfa, but we can save the best grass bales for these young cows and the weaned heifers.

My boxes of books finally arrived (my latest book, Ranch Tales) so I mailed some to family and friends as Christmas gifts.

Wednesday Sam had another X-ray, and the doctor said her foot has finally healed enough that she no longer has to be on crutches.

Robbie helped Lynn put the blade on our big tractor to plow snow off Andrea’s driveway and ours. Robbie cleaned the old straw out of our calving barn and put some into the field for the heifers to bed on, and spread some bedding for the cows.

About 30 whitetail deer are eating our alfalfa. We have the haystacks wrapped with netting, and tarps over the feed truck, but they come boldly into the feed trail to eat with the cows and heifers.

Michael, Nick and Robbie set new posts and rebuilt the fence on the north and west side of the calving pen in front of the house, and started rebuilding the old falling-down side of our main corral. We moved the big bulls to the back corral temporarily, and Michael used the backhoe to dig away debris and snow along the fence they sawed out. There was so much stuff covering the ground that it wasn’t frozen, and they were able to dig post holes without using a fire overnight to thaw the ground. They set the gateposts in concrete.

We’ve had several snow-

storms. Lynn plowed our driveways again, and his hip is really bothering him after getting in and out of the tractor. Andrea has been doing all the tractor work since then, moving hay bales around. We started feeding the cows two weeks earlier than last year, and with colder weather, they’ve been going through the hay more quickly than expected. We’ll have to buy more hay or straw to make it last the winter.

Thursday evening we all went to town for Sam’s birthday party at a pizza place. She’s 13 now. † Heather Smith Thomas ranches with her husband Lynn near Salmon, Idaho. Contact her at 208-756-2841.

photo: heather smith thomas

heather smith thomas

JANUARY 18

Andrea using tractor to move a bale of alfalfa hay.

JANUARY 5 Magrat’s yearling heifer was lame with foot rot last week, so we lured her into the second-day pens (by the barn) with hay, then put her in the headcatch and gave her injections of oxytetracycline. By the next day she was walking better, and by the third day was no longer lame.

The deer have been jumping in with Veggie and eating his hay at night. Andrea and Robbie screwed small poles onto the fenceposts to make the fence taller, and strung electric wires above the fence to keep out the deer. Veggie is 30 years old and it takes him most of the night to eat his hay. If the deer eat it, he won’t get enough.

The heifers ran out of grass hay in their feeder and it was too cold to start the tractor. We backed the feed truck up to the stack and four of us rolled a big bale onto the truck to take out to their field, rolling it off the truck into their empty feeder.

We give them alfalfa hay twice a day, but also keep grass hay in their feeder at all times. The deer don’t bother to eat the grass hay.

Today Michael, Nick and Robbie tore out the old fence between the calving pen and orchard. Then they built fires over each post hole they need to dig, to thaw the frozen ground, and put half barrel “ovens” over the fires, to keep the fires contained through the night.

LiveAuctions TV

34

/ grainews.ca FEBRUARY 2, 2016

Cattleman’s Corner better bunks and pastures

Proper body score pays dividends Target pre-calving feeding to avoid animals that are too skinny or too fat PETER VITTI

T

he warm weather we had a couple of months ago has given me a false sense of security. I somehow think climate change lasts forever, yet one good arctic blast snaps me out of it. In the same way, producers should make sure that their pre-calving cows’ plane of nutrition is adequate during the last couple of months of gestation and to help animals combat inevitable frigid weather.

Such is the case as shown by the picture that I took last February.

It shows a couple of cows from a well-managed 100 cow-calf operation. I know this producer very well and he has had many successful calving seasons in a row. His story is a testament of retaining the cow herd’s good body condition throughout winter until his last cow calves and then beyond toward the breeding season.

His experience is a mirror image of many university research studies, which prove that overwintered

mature cows and replacement heifers that calve at an optimum body condition score (BCS) of 2.5 to 3.0 (scale of one equals emaciation to five equals obese) have a greater chance of a trouble-free calving compared to skinny fresh cows.

Clear advantages of an optimum BCS in beef cows at calving are: an easier birthing time, production of more, higher-quality colostrum, nursing a vigorous calf, and earlier return to estrus translating to faster rebreeding and pregnant with the next year’s calf.

EASY SCORING TECHNIQUE Although, there is no scientific method to judging BCS in beef cows, producers can a take a practical approach to scoring cows that I learned a long time ago. To start, I look straight along the tail and then feel the fat cover on the tail head, pinbones, hipbones, hind backbone and finally the last couple of ribs.

It’s easy. To me, a really thin cow (BCS < 2.0) looks skinny while an over-conditioned cow (BCS = 5), simply looks fat. In between, a cow with an optimum BCS of 2.5-3.0 should have a good overall appearance without the look of being “too gaunt or too fleshy.”

Fat still covers her hips, but they are still visible and moderate pressure on them can still identify some bone structure.

I formulate diets to parallel the overall optimum body condition of the main cow herd during the last 90 days of pregnancy. I then increase the dietary energy, protein, mineral and vitamins by about 20-25 per cent depending on the BCS of the particular herd, which should take care of the dramatic unborn calf growth, placenta development and ammonic fluid accumulation, all of which allows the gestating cow to gain 1/2 to 3/4 kilo per day.

In addition, my formulation accounts for colostrum being manufactured in the cow’s udder and prepares the cow to resume estrus once she calves. I’ll also make further upward nutrient adjustments to the same diet as the weather gets colder based upon the a coldweather rule of thumb, which dictates that for every 1 C drop in temperature below 0 C, the beef cow’s TDN energy maintenance requirements are increased by about two per cent. Despite natural metabolic triggers that simulate her feed intake by an additional 30 per cent, I seem to be justified to

boost the dietary energy by 25-40 per cent at this time of year.

EASY RATIONS TO FORMULATE Luckily, I find the practical overwinter diets of pre-calving mature beef cows and first-calf replacement heifers (plus thin mature cows) are not particularly difficult to formulate if producers have a good forage inventory, which can be easily supplemented with highenergy grain and other feeds.

Adequate-quality grass hay or mixed grass-alfalfa mixtures make excellent pre-calving feeds often mixed with a little grain such as barley or grain byproducts such as distillers grain. Lower-quality forages such as poor-quality hay or cereal straw can be also adequately fed to pre-calving, as long as their feed intake by beef cows and nutrient limitations are recognized.

In these cases, the poorer forages should be blended with better-quality forages, or an extra complement of grain, or more protein might be needed. In addition to assuring an adequate supply of energy and protein for precalving cows, meeting their mineral and vitamin requirements is also very important. Commercial

minerals with complimentary levels of calcium and phosphorus to those found in the forages and with good levels of trace minerals (copper, zinc, manganese, cobalt, iodine and selenium) and vitamins A, D, and E should be provided at the rate of 50-85 grams per head, daily. Salt and a good source of free choice water should also be included in the feeding program for expecting cows.

These feeding practices are followed by the same beef producer that owns those cows in the picture. He maintains a herd with a good body condition score of his late-trimester cows during the last few months of winter until the snows disappears by: 1. Saving and feeding his better quality mixed grass hay during January to March 2. Supplements a corn/barley mix with a mineral/vitamin premix and 3. Has a well-bedded straw filled pole barn and makes good use of windbreaks in the dry lot.

As a result, his cows successfully give birth to healthy and profitable calves, year after year. † 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

dairy corner

Proper diet reduces risk of lame cows

A well-balanced ration and a clean barn are a great combination to keep dairy cows mobile

BY PETER VITTI

R

ecently, I conducted a barn walk in a 300-cow robot-milking dairy and within 10 minutes I spotted more than a half-dozen limping cows. I did not know what caused them to limp, but after I talked to the dairy manager, I discovered that lameness was a significant problem on his operation and several of these cows showed up as “alarms” because they were not visiting the milking stations as programmed.

In this particular operation, I recommended he should identity lame cows immediately as well as set up an aggressive prevention program. That’s because lameness in dairy cattle, whether it appears in a robot-milking barn or any other milking system is always an obstacle to good milk and other dairy performance.

I believe solving and preventing common lameness starts with the observation of the first limping cow. When a cow is seen limping, the producer should take the time to observe her general behavior to get some idea of why she is limping before proceeding with corrective action.

LEADING CAUSES One of the leading causes of lameness in dairy cattle is common physical injury.

Direct injury takes on different forms such as punctures, ulcers, abscesses, or deep cuts to the horn and sole. When the hoof is damaged, a protective barrier against hoof disease is broken, in which anaerobic (lives without oxygen) bacteria such as Fusobacterium necrophorum, (foot rot), strep and staph organisms are allowed

to enter and thrive. Similarly, anaerobic pathogens such as Treponema strains commonly known as “hairy heel warts” can also cause inflammation and painful lesions to the interdigital skin of the hoof.

Another leading cause of lameness in dairy cattle is laminitis, which is the inflammation of “living” laminar corium tissues within the hard hoof. It often leads to abnormal horn growth and wear, which makes walking difficult and is very painful for the animal. Such laminitis is classified upon severity into three main areas, namely: acute, sub-acute and chronic laminitis.

Acute laminitis is the most visible. It is the severe lameness that we frequently associate with cattle limping up to the feed bunk. For example, sole abscesses can result from cracks or holes originating from laminar corium damage in the hoof sole. This damage allows foreign material to enter the hoof and an abscess may form due to infection. White line disease can be another form of acute laminitis in which hemorrhages and poo- quality horn formation along the sole white line lets foreign bodies such as grit and sand to manifest itself into severe lameness.

During sub-acute laminitis, the clinical signs of typical laminitis are often visible.

This form of lameness is a degeneration of the laminar corium of the hoof which leads to increased hoof wear and greater hoof injury. Sole ulcers are associated with sub-acute laminitis, which is a loss of horn sole and unhealthy exposure of the laminar corium.

Lastly, I view chronic laminitis as an extension of sub-acute laminitis by which hoof damage has become irreversible.

Permanent damage to the laminar corium allows complete separation of bone from the horn wall. These dairy cattle have very broad hooves with the classic ridges (associated with high-grain diets). Hoof growth is altered so extensively the cow may walk on her heels rather than normally on her toes.

)FEEDING PROGRAM IS #1 The lactation feeding program has one of the biggest impacts on the cause and prevention of laminitis in milking dairy cattle. Feeding high-grain diets, low-forage diets or finely chopped forages can lead to sub-acute ruminal acidosis (SARA), a major cause of laminitis. SARA has also been implicated in greater rates of hoof wear, greater risk of physical hoof injury and thus increased potential for viral or bacterial invasion within the hoof.

As a ruminant nutritionist, I balance dairy diets by meeting the nutrient requirements of lactation, while preventing SARA at the same time. This means pH levels in the rumen are maintained above 5.5-6.0 by limiting the amount of non-fibre carbohydrates (NFC) originating from starch enriched grains digested by the cows, and also by feeding enough effective forage fibre that promotes good rumen fermentation and acid-buffering capacity. I target dietary NFC levels between 33 to 38 per cent, while assuring a minimum of 28 per cent dietary neutral detergent fibre (NDF) is fed and with 3/4 of this NDF coming from forages.

With such amounts of limited grain, and adequate forage going into the dairy mixer wagon, I often employ other nutrients that help strengthen hoof hardiness

that has been scientifically shown to prevent invading foot-disease.

For example, I instructed a dairy producer a few years ago to add four grams per head per day of zinc methionine to his lactation dairy premix, which in turn was added to his daily milking TMR. After seven months of zinc addition, a successful reduction in lameness was observed and recorded. Even the hoof-trimmer made the comment — the general hardness of the hooves in the cow herd improved.

CLEANLINESS IS KEY Aside from these nutritional preventative measures to combat lameness, I am also a big advocate in improving barn sanitation.

A dairy producer operating a 150-cow dairy near Edmonton with three robot stations takes a big firehose, every morning and washes the concrete pad and metal grate under each milking station. I also know he worked with his veterinarian to set up the proper number of footbaths and protocols in his barn. As a result, I find the feet of his cows cleaner than most milking cows from my other barn visits and his farm has experienced a low incidence of ‘alarm’ cows due to lameness.

I guess that my friend figures that when it comes to healthy hooves, dairy cattle need all the help they can get. I can also help him and other dairy producers by setting up the proper dairy diets that keep lactation cows stand on their feed, eat lots of feed and produce lots of milk. † Peter Vitti is an independent livestock nutritionist and consultant based in Winnipeg. To reach him call 204-2547497 or by email at vitti@mts.net.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

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Home Quarter Farm Life SEEDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

‘We wish parents understood!’

Many young farmers have some issues they wish the older generation would realize Elaine Froese

“

W

e wish parents understood” was part of the Twitter feed from young farmers attending the fabulous AgExcellence Conference 2015, put on by Farm Management Canada in Regina. I was only able to monitor the tweets as I could not physically attend, but this nugget showed up and I’d like to express my take on their comments based on years of coaching young farmers.

Here is the list of “we wish parents understood”: 1. Work/life balance; 2. This is 2016; 3. Let’s get a plan; 4. Parents are entitled to retire; 5. Partners get to choose, they don’t have to be involved.

It’s a new year and February has this celebration called Valentine’s Day. I recall one wife accosting me at a farm show to say thank you for the best February birthday she had ever had. Apparently her husband was in my audience and heard my encouragement to “date your wife”

— show up with cards, flowers, and an invitation for a restaurant meal.

He followed through for the first time in their 24-year-old marriage and she was shocked, but thrilled to be cherished in that way.

1. I often tell audiences that the next generation is not willing to put in the long work hours that the parents have, and the heads nod in agreement. Unfortunately, I think “balance” is a misnomer, as it is something that is never done, and always needs to be negotiated in the family. It is also tied to the question of farm growth. Is this farm big enough? Can we sustain the pace of work already required? Could we become more efficient with what we already have? How can we get a workaholic father/founder to realize that “we are not him, ever!” As with most tough issues, this one requires communication about reasonable expectations. The urgency here is to protect the marriage and family values of each couple. If the farming son values tucking his son into bed with stories, grandpa better stop fuming in the field. If the marriage crumbles due to lack of attention, you have a bigger threat to handle, and it is called “divorce.”

2. This is 2016. I think this aligns with embracing change, or “that was then, this is now.” It also

speaks to new ways and approaches to farming. I see this with the next generation being quicker to outsource tasks like bookkeeping or custom work that pencils out better with the skill sets they want to offer to the farm. It also means embracing new technologies, and using the computer to analyze data for better decision-making.

3. “The plan.” Say this out loud with a gruff deep voice. Young farmers have high anxiety and stress with not knowing what “the plan” is for their future options to build equity and create financial security for their growing families.

Break your plans down to communication with one another for clarity of expectations, a lifestyle plan that outlines the income stream needed for family living for both generations, a succession plan with timelines as to when the management and ownership pieces will start shifting, and a business plan for the vision of the farm in the next five years. The estate plan is for death, so get the wills updated, and have an enduring power of attorney with your spouse, and an alternate. Ask me for my $10 binder tabs (elaine@ elainefroese.com), and I’ll get you started. The plan may also involve a discussion of where the parents

plan to live for the next 15 years, and who is available to help with child care on and off the farm.

4. Parents are entitled to retire.

I prefer the term reinvention, as the parents’ roles change to suit the needs of the new management of the younger generation.

Compassionate farm dads and moms make great mentors, and the young farmers appreciate gracious wise elders who are happy to make collaborative decisions with the energy of youth and the wisdom of experience. If the parents have been wise to create a “personal wealth bubble” outside of the farm’s accounts, they may have funds to play, travel, and gift to non-biz heirs without creating too much stress on the farm’s cash flow. The main point here is to have a full-blown exploration with the parents as to what a good day is like for them on the farm in their reinvention years. The message from my 70-something audience in Alberta was “don’t wait until after 65 to travel, do it earlier while you still have your health to enjoy it!” I enjoy the millennials who tell me that their parents deserve to enjoy the fruit of their labour of over 40 years, and they desire that the parents have fun!

5. In 2016 a good percentage of

young farmers have two jobs, one on the farm and one away. Some folks who are married to farmers choose not to get involved in the farm business at all. They create a very clear boundary that states, “I married you, not the farm!” Older folks don’t like to hear this. In their perfect world everyone on the farm regardless of gender or roles, pitches in, especially in the busy seasons of spring planting and harvest. My coaching conversations have revealed amazing incomes and energy for other careers that young women especially are not appreciated for. Their off-farm income allows the farm spouse to churn funds back into farm growth, yet their contribution of cash flow for family living is not appreciated or recognized by the founders. Again, the best remedy for this misalignment of values is to have courageous, transparent conversations about what roles work for you and which ones you cannot embrace.

What would you add to the list that you wish your parents understood? † Elaine Froese contributes to her farm cash flow as an author, speaker and coach. Visit www. elainefroese.com/store to buy her resources to empower your family, increase profit and secure legacy. Tweet @elainefroese. Call 1-204-534-7466. Like “farm family coach” on Facebook. Share your stories with Elaine.

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Home Quarter Farm Life PRAIRIE PALATE

What’s more Canadian than a bowl of porridge?

Canada is the second-largest oats producer and largest exporter and they were a staple for pioneers Amy Jo Ehman

I

photo: amy jo ehman

Apple Honey Oatmeal and Chocolate Oat Clusters.

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started my day with a bowl of oatmeal porridge.

Nothing could be more Canadian. We grow more oats in Canada than anywhere else but Russia. Canada is the second-largest producer — and the largest exporter — of oats in the world.

Mountains of our oats are turned into brand-name breakfast cereals, oatmeal cookies and granola bars, as well as many raw oat products from rolled oats to steel-cut groats to instant porridge. Saskatchewan grows about half the oats in Canada followed by Manitoba and Alberta at 18 to 20 per cent each, with the remaining fraction grown by farmers in other provinces. The “Oat Belt” runs from the Red River Valley in southern Manitoba, up across Saskatchewan like a Miss Universe sash, and north to Alberta’s Peace River Country.

According to historians, oats have been grown in Western Canada since the days of the fur trade; they were a major food group of European fur traders and their livestock. Oats were an important crop for the pioneers when, in the days before tractors, oats were the fuel for the horses and oxen who broke the land. Many are the stories of struggling homesteaders reduced to eating porridge three times a day. Even the Scots could get sick of that!

Speaking of the Scots, oatmeal was the culinary touchstone of immigrants from Scotland, as we read in this except from They Cast a Long Shadow: The story of Moffat, Saskatchewan by Kay Parley: “Oatmeal was the most popular food and there was porridge on every Scotch table for breakfast, always stirred, as it cooked, with a wooden spurtle…

Oatmeal was used in scones, cookies, dumplings and puddings. It appeared in fish dishes and meat dishes. It was used to

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stuff the turkey. New potatoes were coated with it.”

Leftover oatmeal was pressed into a wooden box and cooled, after which it could be sliced like bread. This would be fried up for supper or packed for a long journey by horse and buggy as a filling snack along the way, especially in wintertime.

Before we get cooking, here’s a lesson in oat vocabulary: • Oat groats or whole oats are the oat seed with the outer hull removed. They take the longest to cook and are often presoaked.

• Steel-cut oats (also called Irish oats or Scotch oats) are oat groats cut into smaller pieces by steel blades.

• Rolled or old-fashioned oats are whole groats flattened in a roller. They cook more quickly than groats.

• Quick oats are chopped groats flattened in a roller.

Because they are small and flakey, they cook quite quickly.

• Instant oats are precooked so they can be prepared simply by adding hot water, and are often flavoured and sweetened.

Take note that oats have a high fat content and, once the hull has been removed, can go bad quite quickly. For this reason, most “raw” oat products are steamed and dried so they can be stored at room temperature. Some specialty mills sell unsteamed rolled oats, which have more flavour and nutrients, but should be stored in the freezer.

Here’s a recipe for oatmeal made with groats. It’s more time consuming than using rolled oats, but it’s also more filling and flavourful. You’ll find the recipe for chocolate oat clusters on my food blog homefordinner. blogspot.com.

Apple Honey Oatmeal 1/2 cup steel-cut groats 2 cups water 1/4 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 cup dried apples, chopped 1 tbsp. honey The night before, mix steelcut groats with water and bring to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes.

Remove from heat, cover and leave overnight. In the morning, add another 1/2 cup water and bring to a simmer. Add the salt, cinnamon and dried apple.

Cook, stirring, until desired porridge consistency is achieved.

Stir in the honey and eat! † 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.

FEBRUARY 2, 2016 grainews.ca /

37

Home Quarter Farm Life

Stitching Prairie landscapes Woman creates art by ‘thread painting’

BY EDNA MANNING

photos: courtesy donna cutler

H

aving lived all her life on the Prairies, fibre artist Donna Cutler has developed a deep appreciation for the natural beauty of the country. She and her husband Adrian currently live on an acreage across from the Beaver Creek Conservation area about 13 kilometres south of Saskatoon. The area is a constant source of inspiration for Cutler as she goes for walks, camera in hand. “I have literally thousands of photographs.

There is a lot more to the Prairies than most of us realize,” she says.

These photos are the first step in Cutler’s process of creating beautiful art pieces known as thread painting — using coloured thread to “paint” images on fabric. It is primarily stitching using freemotion machine embroidery (moving the fabric freely under the needle); like drawing with a sewing machine.

“I do photo realism — pieces that are as close to the photo as possible. At times I use photo transfer, but mostly I do a fabric collage and stitch overtop of that. Or I simply freehand on the machine,” she says.

Cutler has been creating art since she was a child, but didn’t take any formal training until 2006. “I belonged to the Fiber Art Network (FAN), a group of western Canadian women who create fibre art. I got into quilting, but it didn’t feel right. I liked creating the pictures on the quilt, but didn’t enjoy the actual quilting,” she says.

Cutler then took a two-year creative arts course in Washington and then took a year and a half to “just play around and figure out what I wanted to do.” She studied books that taught thread-painting techniques. “I sat down at my sewing machine a couple of hours every day for two months and worked my way through them.

That’s when I started producing my own work; basically evolving my own style.”

Most of Cutler’s work originates from photos of landscapes or wildflowers she or her husband have taken at Beaver Creek or nearby Cranberry Flats. “The wildflowers there are amazing. The last few springs we’ve had so much rain and there are flowers everywhere; some that I’ve never seen before.”

Cutler’s fibre art is often so true to the photograph that viewers mistake it for such until they get close. She prefers to have her pieces mounted under glass because they want to feel the texture, which is not good for the artwork.

Dyeing fabric is a part of the process Cutler loves. “Usually I dye in the summer because I can take my vats outside and make a colossal mess.”

Sometimes she does snow dyeing. Fabric is spread flat on the bottom of a large pan, snow is piled on top and powdered dye sprinkled on the snow. As the snow melts, the dye seeps through the snow and dyes the fabric underneath, creating unique patterns.

Cutler became a juried member of the Saskatchewan Craft Council (SCC) in 2013, which validates and provides recognition to her

The finished pieces are mounted under glass to protect them from viewers wanting to touch the texture.

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Donna Cutler working on one or her pieces. work. Shortly after that she had her first show which was a huge success. After three more shows that year she had only eight pieces left of the 40 she had finished. “I would never have expected this.

There seems to be an explosion of interest in fibre art here on the Prairies,” she said.

“I love the process and I’d do it even if I wasn’t showing and selling,” Cutler says, adding that her husband’s support is greatly appreciated. “He’d rather I did art than clean. If I could clone and sell him, I’d be a billionaire!”

For more information on Donna Cutler’s fibre art check out donnacutler.blogspot.ca. † Edna Manning writes from Saskatoon, Sask.

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Home Quarter Farm Life SINGING GARDENER

2016 is leap year!

Plus, info on the moon, a new annual dianthus and healing power of onions

I

t’s leap year and that means February 2016 has 29 days.

If you’re amongst those who celebrate a birthday once every four years according to the calendar, let’s hear from you what it’s like the other three years.

We Canadians love to talk about the weather, so I’m asking Grainews readers to look skyward on February 8 when the new moon begins. I’ve got a question! Can you tell whether its horns are pointing upward or downward? I’ll fill in the blanks shortly as to why I’m asking.

There’s a new 2015 All America Carnation Pinks being introduced this year that was test grown throughout N. America (Canada, U.S. and Mexico).

I’ve been drinking my onion tea and have lots to tell about this ancient health-promoting bulb.

Long ago I took a fancy to wearing different kinds of headgear including my own originaldesigned Singing Gardener cap.

Now it’s time to tip my icon hat as a hearty gesture of thanks to Grainews readers for stopping by.

You’re all as welcome as the new moon in February, first day of spring in March, Earth Day in April and Mother’s Day in May. By the way, this is no myth. A Tilley hat is said to have passed through the entire digestive tract of a trained elephant not once but thrice. The hat came out the other end in due course and each time was retrieved and laundered to be worn again by its animal trainer owner. No wonder the hats are known as endurables.

WILL 2016 BE WET OR DRY? I am not a weather prophet but as a gardener do appreciate and respect past legends and folklore practices. Previous generations of indigenous peoples were very close to nature and maintained a strong adherence to the natural cycles of planting and food harvesting.

They looked to February as the beginning month and gave it such expressive names as ‘First Things Are Born,’ — and — ‘Seeds Swell.’

Farmers and gardeners are also very close to the land, many of whom I would think also look to the moon and watch for signs and symbols. Here’s an example. One widely held practice has to do with the new moon’s position during the first two weeks of February. By the way, the new moon arrives during the morning of Monday, February 8 and enters a most fruitful, emotional and intuitive sign the next morning. Continue to take a look while moonlight is increasing.

A folklore legend says if the horns point downward the moon

Useful in beds, borders, patio pots and for cut flowers, the Singing Gardener anticipates high demand among gardeners for Jolt Pink. This relative to carnation is a heat-tolerant new annual dianthus for 2016 that demonstrates vigorous plant growth. Flowers are produced all summer long, but no seeds. Once discovered by bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, these much-appreciated flying creatures will return time and again.

DIANTHUS JOLT PINK, A NEW INTERSPECIFIC FOR 2016

THERE’S HEALING POWER IN ONIONS

Floral fanciers sit up and take notice. Here’s news about a new annual for the forthcoming flowergrowing season. It’s a good one if you crave something really different with outstanding features and delightful attributes. Carnation Pinks hybrid Jolt Pink is heads-up indeed. This dianthus displays a blaze of showy, bright-pink fringy blooms non-stop, all summer long right through until fall for about 14 weeks and get this: without setting any seeds. (See photo of potted Jolt Pink on this page.)

It’s classed as the most heat-tolerant dianthus to ever be available.

The plants are described as vigorous, well branched, excellent for cutting and don’t require any pinching.

(Ouch! That would hurt anyway.)

The flowers are slightly scented, are edible and will attract streams of hummingbirds, bees and butterflies to your floral garden. Individual plants top out at a nice height too, just 25 to 40 cm (10 to 16 inches) tall with a spread of 30 cm (one foot).

Flowers are supported on strong stems that bear easy-going, easygrowing dark-green foliage. Besides renowned heat tolerance both in full sun or partial shade, this dianthus is low on upkeep and high in disease resistance whether as a single potted specimen or in a basket placed on the patio, or mass grown in the landscape as neat mounds.

Watch for it during the forthcoming bedding plant season at garden centres and nurseries. You can also start your own from seeds. Check seed racks at local garden centres or order a packet of Jolt Pink dianthus seeds from W.H. Perron, Laval, Que. by phoning 1-800-723-9071.

From the outermost skins to the innermost cores there’s something good to be said about onions. If you’ve never done it before, now’s the time to start saving onion skins from the most common brown-skin varieties to red and white onions. I have hundreds of handy tips in my arsenal and here’s one of the best reasons for saving onion skins. Just pop ’em into a large brown paper bag (not plastic) or brown cardboard box and keep dry. When it’s time to plant your seed potatoes place a few onion skins under each potato. You may never have potato bugs attacking your spud plants again. If you decide to try this approach, compare it with some potatoes planted elsewhere in your garden without using onion skins. Let me know your results, including seed potato variety grown, terrain, type of soil and region of the nation.

Price-wise yellow-skinned onions are the top choice as an all-purpose onion among millions of Canadians whether homegrown or purchased.

Personally, I’ve also made and consumed my own homemade onion tea and onion cough syrup this winter using yellow-skinned ones.

Onions are among the healthiest and most versatile of veggies we can eat. They possess vitamin C, sulphur compounds, flavonoids and disease-fighting quercetin, a powerful antioxidant with anti-inflammatory properties. Other phytochemicals are known to contribute toward heart health and reduce high blood pressure. The inhibitory effects of onions on carcinoma have been widely researched.

photo: courtesy w.h. perron

ted meseyton

is emptying its water and the spring and summer to follow will be wet. By contrast, a dry season is said to follow if the horns point upward, suggesting February’s new moon is retaining its water. Check the new moon more than once each evening and over several days then draw your own conclusion. A good pair of field glasses or binoculars will be of benefit. Your decision may help with deciding what crops to grow this season in your area.

Of course, scoffers will disregard and ignore the whole idea that February moon’s appearance has any impact on the planting season. As with anything, there is one important rule. When it comes to gardening and farming by the moon, we must always apply common sense. When not possible to use the best days for planting and harvesting, then select the next best and work with what we get.

Let’s qualify the aforesaid and keep the following in mind. We all know weather patterns are changing. Seems Mother Nature can be really angry in some places, yet kind and gentle elsewhere. Where we fit into the scheme of things this season remains to be revealed.

There are almost as many moonminded ideas about weather and seeding, weeding, feeding and harvesting as there are seeds. If you have something to share with Grainews readers from a personal experience with moon sign gardening and farming, let’s hear about it.

Onions are said to benefit those with neuro-degenerative health issues and can help increase the ratio of beneficial bacteria in the gut, may assist prevention of ulcers and aid weight management. We’re not tossing aside other veggies and fruit. It’s OK to say: Besides an apple a day keeping the doctor away — an onion a day also helps do the same thing.

HANDLING ONIONS Be careful not to peel onions too much. When removing the outer skin of an onion, take care to remove as little as possible.

(Remember to save those outer skins/peels for potato-planting season.) The immediate layers of onion flesh just below the skins are thought to be the most nutritious part, possessing the highest concentration of flavonoids. To maximize health benefits remember the following: remove as little of the edible fleshy portion immediately below the outermost paper skin layer; overpeeling an onion can result in unwanted loss of important nutrients. Here’s a tip to avoid burning tears. Onions release a gas called the lachrymatory factor causing burning tears.

To slow down the rate of release, chill onions for an hour in the deep freeze or fridge before cutting.

SEEDING TOMATOES — BEST DATES Can I squeeze this in? For millions of Canadian gardeners who start their tomato seedlings indoors, under lights or the greenhouse, here’s advance notice of preferred germination dates for 2016. They are: February (best)

17, 18, 19. (Next best) February 20, 21. March (best) 15, 16, and 17. (Next best) March 18, 19, 20.

April (best) 12, 13. (Next best) April 14, 15, 16. These dates also apply to starting annual flowers and other veggies.

RESOLVE TO BE A GARDENER oes life ever seem too D much for you?

In 2016 plant a garden.

If things appear bleak with an outlook blue, In 2016 plant a garden.

When bills seem high and income low, In 2016 plant a garden.

Worries will fade like melting snow, In 2016 plant a garden.

A gardener has no time to sit and brood, Make a tantrum or show a bad mood, Gardeners don’t sulk, act out nor are rude, In 2016 plant a garden. †

This is Ted Meseyton the Singing Gardener and Grow-It Poet from Portage la Prairie, Man.© Let’s avoid starting the day with broken pieces of yesterday. We all face obstacles and closed doors from time to time but they often can lead us to the right way and an open door. I’m not waiting for someone to bring me flowers that may never come and so grow my own. Time to pick up my guitar and sing: “A Smile Is So Contagious.” My email address is singinggardener@mts.net.

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