The Rural Voice - September, 2021

Rural Voice

The

September 2021

THE MAGAZINE OF AGRICULTURAL LIFE ... $2.50 PM 40037593

LUCKNOW’S OLYMPIAN Rural and family support means everything to returned Olympian runner, Julie-Anne Staehli

VISION FOR AGRICULTURE Lisa Thompson hits the ground running as the new Minister of Agriculture

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Contents The

Rural Voice THE MAGAZINE OF AGRICULTURAL LIFE

Published monthly by: The Rural Voice, Box 429, Blyth, Ontario, N0M 1H0 Telephone: 519-523-4311 Fax: 519-523-9140 e-mail: info@northhuron.on.ca

26

Publisher: Deb Sholdice Editor: Lisa Boonstoppel-Pot rveditorlisa@northhuron.on.ca

16 33 SEPTEMBER 2021 Columns Lisa B. Pot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Keith Roulston . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Kate Procter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Jeffrey Carter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Mabel’s Grill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Viewpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Recipes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 Gardening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 Arnold Mathers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Woodlots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50 Agrilaw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52

Departments Ruralite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57 Business Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62 Advertisers Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

Newsletters National Farmers Union . . . . . . . . . .66 Perth County Pork . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Bruce County Federation . . . . . . . . .68 Grey County Federation . . . . . . . . .69 Perth County Federation . . . . . . . . . .70 Huron County Federation . . . . . . . . .72

• Cover Photo Julie-Anne Staehli. Photo by Lisa Boonstoppel-Pot.

• Deadlines: Oct. Issue – Sept.14 November Issue – October 12

16 JA Staehli the Olympian!

Julie-Anne returns home with stories of her Olympic experience

22 The new Minister of Ag Lisa Thompson hits the ground running as Ontario’s new Minister of Agriculture

26 Cattle are Not the Enemies Cattle and permanent pasture are a great combination to sequester carbon in the soil

33 An Idyllic Way to Farm The Steeles raised Blue-faced Leicester sheep, noted for their fine-textured wool

Contributing writers: Keith Roulston, Kate Procter, Jeffrey Carter, Rhea Hamilton Seeger, Arnold Mathers, Donna Lacey, Melisa Luymes, Anne Mann, Nancy Fisher, Carolyn Crawford, Bonnie Sitter, Jeff Tribe, Amanda Brodhagen, Hetty Stuart and Bob Reid.

Mailed by: McLaren Press Graphics, Bracebridge, ON Advertising Sales: Shelley Kroes rvads@northhuron.on.ca Production co-ordinator & Telemarketing: Joan Caldwell Advertising & editorial production:

Dianne Josling PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40037593 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 429, BLYTH ON N0M 1H0 email: info@northhuron.on.ca Subscriptions: $20 (12 issues) $35 (24 issues), includes HST Back copies $2.75 each U.S. rates, $65.00

36 Grain Bin Goes Glam Grain bin becomes guest quarters on Thorndale farm

39 Tiny Home Production Two carpenters combine talents to start a business making tiny homes

All manuscripts submitted for consideration should be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the publisher. Editorial content may be reproduced only by permission of the publisher. The Rural Voice makes every effort to see that advertising copy is correct.

However, should an error occur, please notify The Rural Voice office within 30 days of invoicing in order to obtain a billing adjustment.

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“

When I started into sport and won races

and now, having made it to the Olympics, you come to

•

Climate Change

this realization that no matter the times you run and no

“The kids love it. At

matter the performance, your worth as a person does

some point they

”

not change. At the end of the day, the question is ‘are

realize they can

you a good person’?

play a role in

~ Julie-Anne Staehli, Huron County’s 5,000 metre Olympian,

solving climate

reflecting on her journey to and from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

change.”

Story on page 16.

Physics teacher, Tom Franklin, on why

Where Do These Phrases Come From?

● Close, but no cigar: During carnivals in the 1800s, cigars were awarded as prizes for winning carnival games ● At the drop of a hat: Instead of a gunshot to indicate that a race had started, it was customary in the 1800s to drop a hat to signal the start. ● Pull out all the stops: This originated back when organists would literally pull the stops from every pipe on an organ in order to play at maximum volume.

he has a soil regeneration plot at Saugeen Secondary School to teach kids about cropping, soil health and carbon sequestration.

Story on page 26.

FARMING IN SEPTEMBER

“Always do your best.

What you plant now you will harvest later.” ~Og Mandino

•

Neil’s One-Liners (Wisdom and humour from the McGavin files)

• Believe half of what you hear and be very sure to find the

•

right half.

Wheat Harvest Trifecta ~Photo by Bonnie Sitter

September 2021 3

Lisa B. Pot Lisa B. Pot is editor of The Rural Voice and farms in Huron County

Driving slow has its moments The discussion moved to cars and trucks during a family gathering. We began to compare fuel mileage on our respective vehicles with the trucks ranging from 12 to 16 litres per hundred kilometres (l/100 km). I was pleased my little Ford Escape stayed tucked under 9l/100 km when my parents announced their Toyota Rav 4 measured in the five to seven l/100 km range.

“Are you sure,” I asked, astounded by their vehicle’s fuel mileage. Both the RAV and Escape are classified as crossover SUVs so I

4 The Rural Voice

was NOT pleased. Maybe it was time to change my driving habits to see how I could improve my gas mileage? I decided to reset my SUV’s computer screen to zero and set a goal to stay under 8.0.

Obviously, this wasn’t a “save the world” kind of goal but in the month I’ve been tracking my fuel mileage, I have noted some astounding changes in my behaviour, habits and approach that have been quite interesting.

Every change creates change, it’s said, and this little experiment is a classic example of that idiom.

At the beginning of this experiment my car was sitting at 8.9 l/100 km and I was an unapologetic speeder. Not drag racing speeds, of course. But in a 90 I’d go 105. In an 80, I’d clock 95. Nothing crazy.

Nothing dangerous (which the lawn might not agree with). Just slow enough not to attract at the attention of the police while getting to my destination as quick as possible. We all have things to do! Places to be!

People to see! There is no time for dilly dallying.

However, anyone who drives will know how easy it for 105 to become 110 before you notice. Cruise control really is a driver’s best friend.

For this experiment, I decided to follow the speed limits on area roads.

I also intended to ease the gas pedal when taking off from a stop and if there was a big hill ahead, I wouldn’t ram the pedal to reach the crest. No. I would glide up the hill then coast down the hill to get those precious 1.0 or zero fuel mileage numbers to lower the average.

Jeepers, it was hard at first. Old habits die hard. I like to rip-roar out of the laneway but have you checked the instrument cluster when you press hard on the gas pedal? It can quickly reach 50 to 60 litres per hundred kilometers and blow your fuel economy goals. This was the hardest part of the experiment … rewiring my foot to gently accelerate onto roadways instead of charging in like a Spanish fighting bull.

It was also hard to have people pass. I like to pass! But when you have your cruise control set to 90, many people will zoom past while taking a good look at you for surely, no one less than 80 would drive this slow. I longed to slam on the pedal and show them what a Ford Ecoboost could really do (yes, go laugh all you Ford haters but it does have a nice bit of pep for a little SUV). “No, Lisa,” I would remind myself. “This is an experiment. You have a goal.

You can do this.” So I learned to nod and smile and send kind thoughts across the airwaves.

I watched the numbers zealously.

After setting the fuel mileage to zero, the numbers bounced all over the place and seemed to settle around 8.5 l/100 km. This was better than the 8.9 from before but not near the 7.9 I was trying to achieve. I had to be even more diligent. So I was. Over the weeks, that number dropped to 8.3, then 8.2 and finally 8.1. At this point, I let my partner drive and he thought it would be funny to speed out the laneway and down the road to see my reaction. I was not amused. I don’t think he understands how seriously I take the little goals I set for my life. His antics brought the number back up to 8.2 and it took

Lisa B. Pot forever to get back down to 8.1. It took another week of driving to get it down to 8.0 and that’s where it sits right now. I’m driving even more carefully now because I WILL get it down to 7.9.

Is this a silly little goal? Probably.

But it’s the “change creates change” part that is fascinating. It’s been said amongst my children that sometimes I can be “rammy” when getting things done. That may have extended to driving. When, however, you drive slow, there is no “ram ram”. You don’t get upset by leisurely drivers in front of you because it means your fuel mileage is improving. Negative reactions disappear. Instead, you find yourself calm. Relaxed. Smiling!

You gaze at the scenery and listen to a podcast knowing you will get to your destination in good time because it’s good, it’s all good.

Knowing you can’t speed means you leave home a little earlier which avoids the rush, rush, rush because you are late, late, late. Lateness is a problem for me (there’s always some task to squeeze in before you leave) and perhaps this driving goal will help that situation.

Ultimately, I’ve just found myself calmer. We might be moving into “serene” territory here.

I did a little research to see if there have been any studies out there on the benefits of driving slower. Here is what I gleaned: • It saves gas and my fuel mileage tracker is proving it.

• It saves lives. Faster driving gives you a shorter amount of time to respond to something in your path, and even a fraction of a second can mean the difference between life and death.

• It’s simpler. You don’t worry about getting a speeding ticket or deal with being-late-stress. It’s just a drive with interesting farms and fields to see along the way.

• Speeding, while not classified as an addiction, has addictive elements that can lead to harm for others I’m not sure what will happen once I meet my 7.9 goal but I rather like feeling serene versus rammy and that, even more than better fuel mileage, might be the real win here. ◊

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Keith Roulston Keith is former publisher of The Rural Voice.

He lives near Blyth, ON.

When plenty is a problem Canada in September is definitely a land of plenty. Farm-gate fruit and vegetable stands, farmers’ market stalls and family gardens overflow with a summer’s bounty of tomatoes, apples and other deliciously fresh food basics and treats.

Looking at all this plenty, it’s hard to realize that hundreds of millions of people in other parts of the world are starving – and the COVID-19 pandemic is making things worse.

The World Food Program estimated last year that as a result of the pandemic, some 270 million people might have become acutely food insecure by the end of 2020 – double the already high 135 million estimated to have been food insecure

in 2019 – a record year for hunger.

That’s the terrible irony of food – some parts of the world have more than they need while elsewhere people die of hunger. In the First World, obesity is a major threat to life expectancy. Even while we eat more calories than we should, food waste is a major problem. According to the National Zero Waste Council’s research on household food waste in Canada, almost 2.2 million tonnes of edible food is wasted each year, costing Canadians in excess of $17 billion. In addition to the economic costs, food waste has substantial environmental impacts.

I know several families where people refuse to eat leftovers, so anything not eaten at one meal, goes to the garbage or organic recycling bin. What’s thrown out could save the lives of children in villages hard hit by drought, but how do you get it there?

Even on a larger scale, how to get food surpluses from here to there is always the problem. There are problems with assembly, transportation and distribution at the destination. It all costs money and

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someone has to pay. The producers of that food can’t be expected to donate the products of their hard, expensive labour for nothing, either.

In fact market forces often punish farmers with lower prices when they produce surpluses, sometimes to the point of losing money.

The market system has a long history of balancing supply and demand, yet it never fails more than when it comes to getting foods from countries with surpluses to countries in dire need. Starving children don’t have money to buy imported food.

And then there’s the sad reality that global climate change is causing drought that is depriving more people of the solution to grow their own food. We in the First World are living a luxurious lifestyle because of burning fossil fuel, and the climate changes the extra carbon dioxide in the air causes, hurts people most in areas where living is already precarious.

Canadian farmers are, by nature, generous people. When restaurants were closed by pandemic restrictions, reducing demand for their products, egg and dairy farmers made huge donations to food banks. But that was easy by comparison to international food drives – the food banks were just down the street.

The problems of international food aid are demonstrated by farmers’ efforts through the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. When it started in 1975, Mennonite farmers in western Canada (and later here in Ontario), grew grain that was designated for donation to countries in need. Over the years that proved impractical, and now crops are grown and sold and the proceeds donated to the Bank.

And even in a charity supported by churches, there are still jobs that require paid labour. According to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank website, it employs 46 people full-time and five part-time, at a cost of almost $4 million a year.

So the distance between our bounty and the terrible need in other parts of the world can still only be bridged by dollars. As we approach Thanksgiving next month we all, farmers and urbanites alike, need to help shrink that gap with donations.◊

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September 2021 7

Kate Procter Kate farms, hikes, canoes, and plays guitar in Huron County.

what3words will take you places Back a few years ago when smart phones were a new thing, people would semi-jokingly say, “there’s an app for that”, seemingly about anything you could imagine. I don’t know how many thousands of apps are available to help you organize all areas of your life, have fun, do your shopping, control the temperature of your house, cut your grass … well, maybe not cut your grass, but there really does seem to be an app for almost everything.

I will never be accused of being on the cutting edge of technology, and recently a friend told me about an app that I’d never heard of, in fact

8 The Rural Voice

I had to get him to spell it out. “what3words” is an app that is touted as “the simplest way to talk about location” (https://what3words.com).

It may sound a bit confusing and it takes a bit to get your head around the concept but once you get it figured out it has many uses, and could even save your life.

Because street addresses do not always take you where you need to go, and not everywhere in the world has street addresses (think the back pasture), some clever young men — Chris Sheldrick, Mohan Ganesalingam, and Jack WaleyCohen — decided there had to be a better way. Chris, who grew up on a farm, was working in the music business and was frustrated by the number of times equipment and people ended up at the wrong place, once even getting a message that they sound-checked at the wrong wedding. Together, they eventually divided the entire world into three meter squares and assigned each square three words. Each square has GPS coordinates that are converted into three words, which can be used

to pinpoint the exact place in a more human-friendly way than dictating long strings of numbers.

Today their app is used by millions of people to find, share, and describe places anywhere in the world. Using the app can bring you to within a 3 meter square distance of what or who you are trying to find.

The main selling feature of what3words is that it allows you to communicate a location with other people. Whether you need help in an emergency situation, are trying to meet up with other people, or even want to mark a ground hog hole in the field so you can come back and deal with it later, the app is a quick and easy way to help you do that.

For example, I want to meet my friends for a bike ride. I know where I want to meet but have to communicate that information to them. I look on the map in the what3words app and touch the spot where I want to meet. The three words that come up are hoof.teach.knockoffs. I tell them those words, they search them in the app, and can see the location. They can then touch “navigate”, which will help them arrive at exactly the right place. what3words is a free app and available in over 48 languages. It works offline so it can be used where connectivity is sketchy like trails and fields. Automobile manufacturers, including Ford, Mercedes-Benz, and Mitsubishi, are starting to use it in onboard navigational software as a more accurate way to get people where they want to go.

This app was developed in 2013 and has become popular around the world, especially in the UK and Europe, where it first began.

Businesses have started using the app to help customers and suppliers find them. The app won the Royal Institute of Navigation’s Duke of Edinburgh’s Navigation Award for Outstanding Technical Achievement in 2019.

In the UK, the emergency services including police, fire and rescue, ambulance and the Coastguard, have been using what3words to make sure responders are directed to the exact location

Kate Procter where help is needed. Canadian emergency services have also started using the app. An extensive list is available on the company website (https://what3words.com/news/emerg ency/three-words-to-tell-canadianemergency-services-exactly-whereyou-are/), but you can also ask when calling if they know of it. Currently the Ontario Provincial Police are using it, as well as many local detachments, including London, Waterloo, Guelph, and Owen Sound.

Farmers are also finding lots of ways to use the app. An article appearing in Farming Secrets.com (https://www.farmingsecrets.com/ho w-a-new-global-addressing-systemcan-help-australian-farmers-tooperate-safely-and-more-efficiently/) details how Australian farmers are using the app to increase operational efficiency, save key farm locations, and report crime and emergencies. I know that I flag problem areas in a field when working it – either with an actual flag in the ground (if I have one handy) or using the technology I have on board. But communicating that information, or remembering where it is later, is always a challenge.

Recreationally, it can also come in very handy. Out on the trail, it can be used to mark down trees, damage needing repair, or even places you want to come back to. How many times have you been in a crowd and get separated from your friends or family? This tool provides a great way to reconnect. I remember lots of lost time driving around towns looking for soccer fields that had one name posted but a different name communicated. Even a small town can have lots of different soccer fields.

As with all new technology, nothing is perfect and some criticism has been raised about words that sound the same but are spelled differently. So it isn’t completely foolproof. But I’m sure it is an improvement over the old “drive about 200 feet past the big rock and then you can’t miss it” method. I doubt it will ever be used to share the favorite fishing hole, though. That one will remain a secret even the what3words app won’t find. ◊

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September 2021 9

Jeff Carter Jeff is a freelance journalist based in Dresden, Ontario.

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anadians have learned an important lesson through their involvement with development projects around the globe. If you wish to help impoverished communities, follow rather than lead.

Yet within Canada, the paternalistic model is too often applied, often with disastrous results.

The remote indigenous communities of the Canadian North are a prime example.

For the past half century, in an effort to make the cost of food affordable, retail subsidies have been applied to reduce transportation costs. That began with the Food Mail Program in the 1960s and continues to this day under Nutrition North Canada, part of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.

The folks at Nutrition North are correct in that their program has succeeded to a degree. With the subsidy in place, food costs have indeed been reduced.

Yet the approach remains an abject failure. There is a world of difference between being fed and being fed well.

Along with the poverty and despair that continues to plague many of these communities, the rate of diabetes, heart disease, obesity and other nutritionally-linked ailments are far higher in the north compared to the rest of Canada.

There is an opportunity for positive change, if recommendations from the July report from the federal Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs are not relegated to a shelf to collect dust.

The report calls for greater selfreliance in the north, a shift toward traditional foods such as game, fish and geese. These resources provided the bulk of the nutrition prior to the

arrival of Europeans to North America and the people were better for it, leading healthy active lives for the most despite the hardships.

That view is supported in the First Nations Food, Nutrition and Environment Study released in 2019.

The study, which took a decade complete, shows that people with at least some access to traditional foods were receiving better nutrition compared to those community members relying solely on store purchases.

The direction is supported by indigenous leaders as well.

According to Jason Smallboy, Deputy Grand Chief of the Niskwabe Aski First Nation of Northwestern Ontario: “A significant and sustainable change is needed. We must re-envision food systems and food governance within our nation, because what has been made available through government funding and initiatives to address food security in the north simply isn’t working … We support system change, placing emphasis on the traditional culture of food within communities and the significant role it plays in not only physical health outcomes but also mental health outcomes.”

Placing greater reliance on traditional foods is a step in the right direction but unfortunately it currently represents only a relatively small part of northern diets. Other community-based solutions are needed, such as gardening where climate and soils allow, and other locally-managed efforts.

Another major recommendation in the standing committee report, one which has received little media play, is a proposed change to the Nutrition North Canada program so that the retail subsidy would become “… available to agricultural producers and well as community cooperatives, non-profits and community organizations, such as food banks, which provide food and services in some remote and isolated community.”

That would support the work of the non-profit Regional Food Distribution Association based in Thunder Bay and the Southwestern Ontario Gleaners in Leamington that

Jeff Carter are already shipping donated foods to the north – but without the benefit of Nutrition North’s retail subsidy.

The SWO Gleaners has been shipping donated greenhouse produce north along with dried soup mixes, remarkably the same type of soup mixes they prepare for hungry people in other parts of the world.

Yet charitable models, no matter how well intended, are not a longterm solution. What the indigenous peoples of Canada have been calling for is empowerment, the ability to

choose their own direction.

Why not look beyond charity and build a two-way connection between the food-rich resources of Canada’s south and the north? A connection, that might start with donated foods but become something greater, an exchange of ideas, aspirations and resources.

I can see individual farmers or perhaps a network of farmers getting involved. With the retail subsidy available to them, the heavy cost of shipping food north would at least

partially be addressed and farmers have a long, ingrained knack of getting things done in the most efficient way possible.

From there, some of what the north has to offer might find its way south. One thing to consider is that while indigenous people of Northern Canada are among the most generous of all peoples, they may also be the wariest. Best to begin with small things first, build a bit of trust and then find a way forward as a partnership of equals. ◊

eak r B a e k a T

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September 2021 11

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“If anybody’s thinking about ordering one of Mabel’s apple fritters or cherry Danishes this morning, forget it,” Molly Whiteside told the guys the other morning when they gathered for their morning session.

“That thunder storm this morning knocked out the power for an hour and she’s behind in her baking.”

“Oh, I guess I did notice the power blink for a minute,” said Dave Winston. “With the big generator I’ve got because of the pig barn, I hardly think about it.”

“Well nice to know your pigs get better treatment than our restaurant,” muttered Molly as she pulled out her order pad.

“Maybe Mabel needs to get herself a generator for times like this,” Dave said.

“Yeah, right, like that’s going to

happen!” Molly shot back. “With the money she’s lost because of COVID and the wet weather that’s cut into our patio business, it’ll be years before she can afford a luxury like that. Right now she’s just trying to keep the lights on!”

“Or not, in this case,” said Cliff Murray.

After Molly took their orders and headed back to the kitchen, George Mackenzie noted that at least the power had only been off for an hour.

“Yes, not like that situation down in the States where the Russian hackers messed up that gas pipeline and people couldn’t get gas for days,” said Cliff.

“I hope Hydro One has better internet security than that company did,” said Dave. “Imagine how much ransom the hackers could get if they shut off electricity for Ontario for a few days.”

“I was reading that they don’t even have to shut down huge companies like that,” said Cliff.

“They’ve taken over the computer systems of hospitals and smaller businesses and won’t let them get access to their own data until they

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pay a ransom, which with smaller organizations might only be a few thousand dollars.”

“Yeah, I read a while back that we’re all vulnerable,” said Dave.

“This security expert said that even a tea kettle is a risk if it’s connected to the internet.”

“Well, I figure I’m safe,” said George, confidently. “I don’t have a cell phone and I hardly spend any time on the internet.”

“But what about that ‘smart’ toaster you were telling us that your wife bought – the one she can control with her phone?” Cliff asked.

“Yeah, the Russians might burn your toast until you agree to pay them $500,” laughed Dave.

“And your ‘smart’ TV,” said Cliff.

“Maybe unless you pay them money, they’ll give you 24 hours a day of Vladimir Putin’s greatest speeches.”

“At least it would be better than Trudeau’s!” grumbled George. “Now that I’d pay up fast to get rid of!”

“Hey, what has Mabel told you guys about discussing politics in here!” warned Molly as she delivered their breakfasts.

“It’s a sad thing when even your smart appliances make you feel dumb,” sighed George after Molly headed back to the kitchen. “I don’t even have kids around any more to save me.”

“Well none of us look too smart when we’re getting more and more things that are controlled remotely without having thought through what might go wrong,” said Cliff. “I mean imagine if Russian hackers took control of one of those auto-steering tractors when it’s supposed to be ploughing wheat stubble and ploughed down your soybeans instead! Multiply that a few thousand times and they could bring down the Canadian economy.”

“Especially at this year’s bean prices!” said George.

“Or those self-driving cars,” said Cliff. “Imagine the damage they could do if they took control of all those and made them run into each other – say even drive the wrong way on the 401!”

“Huh, would anybody notice?” wondered George. “That kind of sounds like how I already feel when I drive on Toronto highways!”◊

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Viewpoint Ralph C. Martin is an author and a retired professor from the University of Guelph

From bigger and better to smaller and smarter As a wee lad, on our home farm, I was impressed when Grampa moved manure, ploughed in perfect patterns and hauled hay with his voice activated power units. They were even self replicating. Sometimes he would let me tug on the reins but the horses stayed on course, until Grampa called for a change.

Grampa died in time to be spared the scramble to larger equipment, larger tractors and larger farms in order to reduce hours of labour and cost of production per unit of

agricultural product. However, I’m guessing he would have been curious about new power units on the agricultural horizon.

I recall a conversation with my colleague, Dr. Dave Hume, a few years ago when he said that one person could probably operate several autonomous tractors at one time from a farm office or field location. Why then would any one unit have to be so large? Why indeed?

Some of the current promotions for robotic tractors are recommending swarms of small units which may collectively do the same task, or different ones, depending on what is needed, in each field. Selfpropelled robotic cover crop seeders (www.rowbot.com ) and weeders with sensors, can work 24/7.

Weeders may not so much till soil but rather poke small weeds into soil or pull slightly larger weeds out.

Over 50 years ago, at Expo 70 in Japan, I had the privilege to entertain crowds as part of the Elmira District Secondary School band.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, Kubota was already showcasing a prototype of their Dream tractors of the future (https://bit.ly/3rOHigv ).

Their 1970 model was a bit off the mark for practical implementation, but the modern version can “adjust its height to tackle varying terrain and is equipped with four in-wheel motors to give it an ultra-sharp turning radius.”

AgXeed features an optimization option with their Agbot. “Select the field border along which you want the robot to start, choose a start and finish position, the desired overlap between paths, the number of headland passes and let it calculate the routing.” (https://bit.ly/3bJpePh ).

Large, rectangular fields may no longer be necessary. Autonomous units offer new possibilities for agroforestry with rows of high value trees on field contours, riparian zones hugging winding creek banks and wildlife corridors linking small woodlots. A small autonomous unit will efficiently find its way without mumbling about so much turning.

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Viewpoint It seems reasonable that autonomous tractors will be more cost effective to purchase and operate, on a per acre basis, than large units with cabs and amenities for drivers. Electric units will have fewer moving parts. Furthermore, large equipment is increasingly difficult to move safely along public roads and operator time is required to make adjustments for road travel.

Compaction has been an increasing problem as tractors and equipment get larger and heavier.

Certainly tracks, larger tires and low tire pressure can help spread the load but with these advances applied to smaller and lighter units, compaction will be more effectively mitigated.

Furthermore, small units linked to satellite moisture data might be flexible enough to seed earlier drying land, within a field, with an earlier corn hybrid while leaving the laterdrying land for another day, with a slightly later hybrid, thus decreasing compaction and optimizing routing and planting times. Similar flexibility may also reduce compaction at harvest.

Wendell Berry, a farmer and author of many essays about food and farming, first elucidated the idea that there is value in increasing the ratio of eyes per acre. Autonomous units will be guided by numerous sensors and satellite data. In my opinion, a practiced eye connected to a relational and considerate human is worth 1,000 sensors. Regardless of opportunities with autonomous tractors and sensors, farmers should keep observing their land directly, with their own eyes, as well as keeping sharp eyes on dashboard data. ◊

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People

“I want another chance” says Lucknow Olympian It was hot and humid when Julie-Anne Staehli represented Team Canada at the Tokyo Olympics but she ran a powerful race to the delight of her family and fanbase in Huron County Proud parents, Cathy and Mathew Staehli (left) embrace their daughter, Olympian Julie‐ Anne Staehli, after she returned home from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics where she competed in the 5,000 metre race for Team Canada on July 30 (below). ~Olympic photo

by Greenfly and Getty Images.

• By Lisa Boonstoppel-Pot •

J

ulie-Anne Staehli and her family hosted a community party at their Lucknow farm to celebrate Julie-Anne’s return home after running the 5,000 metre race for Team Canada in the oppressive heat during the Tokyo Olympics. Lucknow and area residents have been behind her the whole way.

“Julie-Anne you are gold in our hearts,” reads one sign in Dungannon and a Facebook page tracking Julie-Anne’s Olympic experience is full of photos revealing how proud Lucknow and surrounding Huron County was to see 27year-old Julie Ann race against the best in the world.

“The heat was stacked. We had 25 women with runners able to run 14:14 in this race,” recalls Julie-Anne, talking about the race just days after returning home from Tokyo. “I talked to my coach and we knew at the very least we had to be top 10 to make that final because the top five runners would advance and then the next top five times. I ended up 17th. I was a ways off ... it was not my best race. Overall it was not my best performance but it was definitely the best I had on that day.”

The extreme heat, her inexperience, and not expecting it to be such a fast pace were all factors in Julie-Anne’s time which was 15:33. She had come into the race with a slew of personal bests including dipping under 15 minutes with a time of 14:57 in Portland, Oregon just months before the Olympics. This was a major accomplishment as Julie-Anne, who has been competing internationally for 10 years, had only broken the 16 minute barrier in 2019. The Olympic standard to make the Canadian team was 15:10.

“My Olympic race wasn’t the performance of the season, but the season as a whole was my best performance. Everything I had done to qualify made this the best year I have ever had and this one race will not take away all the work and everything 16 The Rural Voice

I have done to get to that point,” says Julie-Anne. While her fans are just so proud she made it to the Olympics and don’t care what her final placing was, Julie-Anne is a competitor and admits she wanted to be IN the race.

She had a moment on the Tokyo track when she wavered. After the first kilometre, Julie-Anne realized this was going to be a very fast heat.

“There were women who could slide into placing but for me it was going to have to be an all out and I was okay with that,” recalls Julie-Anne.

When the lead pack started getting further away, she had a few thoughts that stood out. One was, “just get to that damn line.” The other was to keep doing her best because she was essentially racing her own race.

Being in the top 10 was now out of reach but she trusted her body to perform and told herself that when she stepped off the track, she did not want to have any regrets.

Sitting on her parents’ deck at their Lucknow farm, Julie-Anne is tired but pleased with her success.

There are no regrets. If anything, she is more determined to improve her times. “In my heart, I know what I am capable of and I left that track thinking, ‘I want another chance.’

You want to be the best in the world.

You want to achieve that. And it seems lofty. But you have to give yourself permission to set big goals and when you get a taste of it, there is no cap to anything. People think the Olympics is the ultimate but once you get there, you see the next mountaintop and I think that is where I am at now. How far can I take this?”

This attitude is what has gotten Julie-Anne this far from her early days first at Brookside Public School, then F.E. Madill Highschool in Wingham where she got her first taste of winning at the OFFSA level.

Her first-place finish in the steeplechase launched a varsity career at Queen’s University in Kingston where she connected with coach Steve Boyd who is still her coach today. Julie-Ann was a fivetime all-Canadian athlete while in Queens, earning bronze at the NACAC Championships for the 3,000 metre steeplechase. From 2013

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to 2015 she won a silver and two bronze in the 3000 metre steeplechase and in 2017, she competed at the World Cross Country Championships.

Switching from steeplechase and cross country to indoor distance racing was a good move for JulieAnne. In 2020, she ran the secondfastest indoor 3,000 metre ever by a Canadian woman as she broke though the nine-minute mark for the first time. In February 2020, she lowered her personal best to 8:47.

Qualifying for the Olympics was definitely on the horizon.

Then there was a pandemic and no more races for 2020. Fortunately, running doesn’t require much equipment so Julie-Anne took the time to run outside and did a few time trials. By December 2020, she felt she was as “fit as I would ever be” but she could not get into the United States to race and earn a

qualifying time.

“I was starting to panic. I did not have any times from 2019 to rank me so I was banking on early 2021 performances to qualify,” remembers Julie-Anne.

Then in February, she was able to compete at the New Balance Grand Prix in New York where she earned a national record with a time of 9:22 in the 3,000 metre. A few weeks later, she ran a 5,000 metre race in 15:34 in Austin, Texas. She was getting faster!

Another lockdown brought JulieAnne home to Lucknow from London, where she was earning her teaching degree from the University of Western Ontario. “It was a hard decision to come home but I needed to reset.” Plus, the sideroads were bare and a perfect training ground for Julie-Anne to keep the pace because time was running out to qualify.

It was now May and the Olympics

Julie‐Anne waits at the start line of the Sound Running Track Meet in May 2021 (above).

Photo by Kevin Morris @kemofoto. At right, Julie‐Anne can rest after a good race at the Portland Track Festival, also in May. Photo by Jake Willard @runjwill 18 The Rural Voice

were starting in July. Julie-Anne had to qualify soon. She lined up three 5,000 metre races on back to back weekends in the United States. The first one, in Kansas City, gave her a time of 15:24. “I was still a ways off the qualifying time. It was not enough.” The next weekend, in California at the Golden Gate USATF, she broke 15:10 (the Olympic standard) for the first time with a time of 15:02. “I was eight seconds under and thought, ‘wow, I have a real legit shot of making it!’”

Julie-Anne still had one more race to see what she could do so she travelled to Irvine, California and ran a 15:01. In Canada, there were now five women trying to earn the three spots on Team Canada to race the 5,000 metre. “I did not want to be the athlete left out,” says Julie-Anne. She decided to sign up for another race in Portland, Oregon where she knew other top American and Australian

Above: Julie‐ Anne Staehli is thrilled with her time in the 5,000 metre at the Texas Qualifier race on February 27. Photo by Luke Webster @lukewebstr

athletes were racing for their own Olympic goals. “In that race, I took the lead for the last 400 meters and I knew we were close to breaking 15 minutes so I went for it. I got passed in the last 100 metres for third place but I finished in 14:57. That clinched it. At that point I felt at peace. I had done everything I could do. I had run the Olympic standard three times and dipped under 15 minutes. I had run five, 5,000 metre races and PB’d with every performance.”

It was now June and she came back home to Lucknow again for her two-week quarantine. With 200 acres of which 50 acres was bush and trails, she was able to run outside and get workouts in. She had a month before Canada selected its athletic team and just two months prior to the Olympic semi-finals. Training mattered so she took advantage of being in a rural area with open, unlimited space and ran.

Then it was a matter of waiting.

Julie-Anne had the second-fastest time for a Canadian woman in the 5,000 metre plus the highest points in the rating system. She was fairly sure she would make the team but she had to wait until July 3rd for confirmation. When Julie-Anne saw her name on the list for Team Canada (on Instagram!), it was official. “I was so emotional. When you see your name written down, it’s like all the build-up reaches a shout of ‘I did it!’”

So much happened in quick order after that. Julie-Anne joined the Athletics Canada team in Flagstaff, Arizona to train in high altitude to increase her endurance. She ate more, upped her iron intake, hydrated, worked with a sport psychologist and fit in one more race — a 1,500 metre — before the Olympics, earning another PB. It was a great confidence booster.

Mentally, she was ready. Longdistance racing is about managing and overcoming pain, says JulieAnne. “You have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.” Working with her sports psychologist and learning from other athletes, she went into Tokyo knowing how to turn anxious thoughts into positive adrenaline so she could enjoy the

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process. Also, to minimize distractions from social media, noise and any negative comments.

Two weeks before the Olympics started, Julie-Anne travelled to Tokyo with the team to acclimatize to the hot, humid conditions in a holding camp outside of Gifu. The hotel and facilities were beautiful but movement was very restricted.

Athletes were required to take shuttles to and from the 1.8 kilometre loop with Japanese guards close by to keep the public from coming in.

The Japanese she did encounter were the kindest, most gracious people she has ever met. “Everything was thought of and they do it with such a welcoming and thankful attitude.The culture is incredible.”

Commuting, however, was the only time the team saw the countryside.

Once in the Athletes Village, Julie-Anne described it as being at University because everyone is young. What makes it surreal is all the body types, languages and cultures represented. “You feel like you are in this supernatural campus.

There were countries I had never heard of. You come into the dining hall of a million different types of people but you share a common purpose of wanting to do the best at what you do. I think it was the coolest thing I have ever done.”

She would see Canada’s mostdecorated medalist, Penny Oleksiac in the elevator or decathlon gold medalist Damian Warner on the tracks, an athlete she endorses as Canada’s flag bearer. “He embodies sportsmanship and being a decathlete, you could arguably say he is the best athlete to be able to do all the disciplines.”

Julie-Anne took it all in but a moment that really stands out occurred just before her race.

Talking to one of the six other athletes she shared a suite with, one o competitor told Julie-Anne to pause a moment when she entered the stadium to take it all in. So she did.

“Walking into that stadium was emotional. It was like Times Square.

The whole place was lit up. It was massive. And I was walking into potentially, the biggest race of my 20 The Rural Voice

life. So I took a moment and that was the best thing … to be in that space.”

The other best thing was coming home. Julie-Anne admits weeks on the road had her longing for home. “I have slept in so many beds and been in so many airports but now I am home. I can let my hair down and not think about what is next.” Sleeping has been difficult because of the time difference but she had the month of

that gave us pleasure. We will never be over it but we had to figure out a way to live with it. That whole year, well, it shifts your perspective to what is important in your life and what you will prioritize and how to be resilient and come out of it.” In fact, that encapsulates what running itself is about, says Julie-Anne.

“You have injuries and setbacks but the person who is going to make it is

Back home on the farm, Julie‐Anne takes adavantage of all the hugs she can get from her parents Mathew and Cathy Staehli after long weeks on the road, first qualifying for the 5,000 metre race at the Olympics then spending a few weeks in Japan to acclimatize to the heat and humidity before the race. Lucknow and area was thrilled to have one of their own become an Olympian and the village was full of banners and signs to show support.

August to adjust, to process and to celebrate!

Her parents, Mathew and Cathy Staehli, organized a large community celebration in the foundation of their barn that burned down in 2019. Now a gorgeous eating area and garden, the Staehlis have created something beautiful out of loss. They are still learning to cope with another loss that occurred in the same week as the barn fire —the death of Julie-Anne’s oldest brother, Dominic. Running, for Julie-Anne, became a survival and grieving mechanism. “Each of us had to hold onto something solid and consistent in our life, something

the person who will overcome it.”

Community has always been a support to the Staehli family and turned celebratory in the weeks before the Olympics. The encouragement and excitement for Julie-Anne’s achievement was overwhelming, say Julie-Anne’s parents. They credit Chris Hackett and Cathy Gibson for creating a Facebook page called “JulieAnne’s Journey to the Tokyo Olympics” that has over 1,200 followers and showcased the displays and banners Huron County residents created to support their daughter.

Sitting down with Mathew and

Cathy while Julie-Anne hunted up photos from her Olympic experience, the pair are clearly proud of their daughter’s achievement but also her determination. “To be able to do all the work that goes into it and the sacrifice and discipline…” says

make the final is so grounding, she says. “When I started into sport and won races and then made it to the Olympics, you come to this realization that no matter the times that you have run and no matter the performance, your worth as a person does not change. At the end of the day, the question is ‘are you a good person?’. I mean, just because you are a good athlete, doesn’t mean you are a good person but I hope that comes first. That has nothing to do with performance. What you have done is an extension of who you are.

Your values, your character, how good of a friend are you, your family … that is invaluable.

“Performance is part of me and what I do but being from a small area you have this different type of

grounding. When I came home, everyone was proud of me no matter what. I did not make the final but they don’t really care. They are just happy to see me. I feel fortunate to have this type of upbringing ... and it gave me perspective that you can be on the world stage but at the end of the day, this is what really matters.”

The month of August, spent with family and friends at her parents’ hobby farm with horses grazing in the pasture and ducks waddling across the yard allowed Julie-Anne to rest and reflect. Athletics will be her focus for the next three years but she also has her teaching degree to use in the future. Whatever she does, she has the full support of a family and community who, as the sign says, believe Julie-Anne is golden. ◊

Julie­Anne Staehli Team Canada Cathy, as Mathew adds, “that is who she is, that is her nature.”

Cathy knows Julie-Anne is disappointed in her race. “It was not her best day,” but is even more proud of her daughter’s ability to accept it, not dwell on it and move forward.

The ultra-humid conditions (described as running through a wet blanket) made it one of the hardest races she had ever run, believes Cathy.

“As her parents, what else could we want for our children but to do something they are passionate about.

And even though she made it to the Olympics, she is still humble. She is still herself,” says Cathy.

This is important to Julie-Anne as well. She had a chance to meet some of Canada’s top athletes, such as the members of the men’s 100 metre relay. To chat with them is to learn that their ability to run fast is the least interesting thing about them. “I just love that,” she says. “The people you know and are closest to know all the other things you have to offer.”

Knowing her community was proud of her even though she didn’t

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September 2021 21

Politics

Thompson plans to lead by example An early morning phone call made Huron Bruce MPP the new Ontario Minister of Agriculture and the announcements keep coming • By Amanda Brodhagen •

L

Huron Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson of Teeswater told Premier Doug Ford she was “ready to hit the ground running” when she received an early morning call, asking her to become the new Ontario Minister of Agriculture, taking over from Oxford MPP, Ernie Hardeman. ~Photo submitted.

22 The Rural Voice

isa Thompson, MPP for the riding of HuronBruce, remembers getting a call early in the morning from Premier Doug Ford asking her to step into the agriculture, food and rural affairs portfolio. She responded by saying, “I’m ready to hit the ground running,” calling it a surreal moment.

And she’s done just that. Thompson has been running full steam ahead.

Since taking over the reigns from long-time MPP for Oxford, Ernie Hardeman, Minister Thompson and the Ford Government have made a number of announcements including: increasing provincial support to the AgriStability program; funding to support research for the vegetable sector at the Ontario Crops Research Centre in Bradford; new regulatory changes to increase on-farm renewable natural gas from food and organic waste; modernizing the Drainage Act – one of the oldest pieces of legislation in the province; additional funding for agricultural and horticultural societies which have faced hardships during the pandemic; funding to support wine agri-tourism; emergency funding to support farmers in Northwestern Ontario dealing with drought conditions; investing in local display bins in grocery stores to promote Ontario grown tender fruit; funding for agri-food research projects; along with several rural broadband announcements.

Prior to her current role, she served as Minister of Government and Consumer Services, Ontario’s Registrar General and Minister of Education. In addition to her parliamentary role, she is also the Chair for Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians representing the Canadian region. On June 18, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced a major cabinet shuffle, which comes just under a year before the next provincial election.

The Rural Voice interviewed Minister Thompson on the porch of her beautiful stone house and farmstead that’s been in her husband Dennis Schiestel’s side of the family for 120 years, making it a Century Farm. The picturesque farm located near Teeswater on a back gravel road features a

historic bank barn that houses the Minister’s prized pedigree Boer goats and a farm dog named Maxie.

“My vision for this portfolio is to absolutely lead by example, which requires the ministry to be working on all cylinders and facilitated in partnership with industry stakeholders,” said Thompson.

One of the immediate issues that has been top of mind for the Minister is the severe drought in Northwestern Ontario. She said it was hard not to get choked up hearing the stories from farmers of what the unprecedented dry weather has done to their crops and feed sources for livestock. She plans to continue to work with the federal government to address farmers’ needs in the long term.

As someone who has grown up in the sector, Thompson feels the weight on her shoulders to do right by the industry that raised her. She was born on a beef and cash crop farm near Wingham in Huron County, but then moved to Bruce County with her husband where she resides today. In addition to her farming roots, she obtained her degree in Public Administration and Consumer Economics from the University of Guelph and is also a graduate of the Advanced Agricultural Leadership Program (Class 6) and the George Morris Executive Leadership Program. Prior to entering public life, Thompson was the General Manager of the Ontario Dairy Goat Cooperative and she also worked at the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs as a Rural Community Advisor. Her volunteer accolades include past Chair of the Ontario 4-H Foundation and Vice-Chair of AgScape.

“I feel the need to dig deeper and be a good communicator. Looking ahead I want to ensure that stakeholders will continue to have access within my ministry,” she said, adding that she plans on being consistent.

There aren’t many Ministers in government who can say that they worked in their Ministry before being in charge of it. It has certainly given

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Thompson a unique perspective and some might say an edge for internal relationship building. One of her highlights so far has been seeing familiar faces within her ministry.

“On a personal level, it’s been great to connect with the team through Zoom meetings and recognize friends on the other end,” she said. “It makes things much easier to have a foundation to work from and deliver for the people of Ontario.”

When asked about her favourite announcement to date, Thompson says promoting local food and elevating produce in season including tender fruit. “I’m so proud of the promotions we’ve invested in,” she said.

“We’ve invested in branded display bins to make them stand out at grocery stores.” The Ontario Tender Fruit Growers say the bins are critical to their marketing, adding they help with point of sale when people seek out local produce.

The Minister hopes to play a key role in helping to unlock the agriculture and agri-food sector’s potential, especially during this time of economic recovery from the pandemic.

“It’s safe to say that our stakeholders and our farmers in Ontario know the potential already and are ready to innovate, many of whom have done so already,” she said. “I plan to continue to let people know that Ontario is the place to do business.” She looks forward to opportunities to champion the sector through future events pending health and safety rules including, the U.S. Private Label Trade Show in Chicago, a trade mission to Texas and hopefully meet with her counterparts trilaterally.

“We need to demonstrate how Ontario farmers and our value chain are leading by example and embracing technology and continue to innovate and adapt,” she said. “If we lead by example, businesses will want to engage.”

While Thompson has big plans for her Ministry, she also remains firmly rooted in her riding. “While it’s been busy being Minister, I’m also very committed to ensuring my riding understands the opportunities available to them,” she said, noting that several festivals in her riding have received funding support along with announcements relating to broadband and hopefully more to come. ◊

Interviewed at the Century Farm she shares with husband Dennis Schiestel, Huron Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson says she is very concerned about the drought in Northwestern Ontario, saying the farmers’ stories were hard to hear. Thompson grew up in a farming community and say she feels the weight on her shoulders to do the right thing for the agriculture community. ~Photo by Amanda Brodhagen

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Cattle & Climate Change

Cows can help solve climate change

Saugeen Secondary School physics teacher, Tom Franklin, is also a beef farmer who uses his farm to address climate change issues, a subject he is eager to learn about and teach to anyone who blames cattle for the problem.

T

here is a high school science textbook used by physics teacher Tom Franklin which features a double spread of a skinny cow, fenced in by barbed wire, under the subject “factors affecting climate change”.

“It looked like the cow was in jail!” recalls Franklin, an advocate for sustainable agriculture. “I thought this textbook material was biased and inaccurate, and completely anti-agriculture,” says Franklin who is a teacher and beef farmer, has a master’s in biochemistry and is a vocal proponent of carbon sequestration and climate change solutions.

He considers that text book graphic and movies such as Cowspiracy the “low hanging fruit” for people who want to blame agriculture for climate change.

Franklin, who describes himself as a good listener and a good reader, ramped up his goals to create a farm where carbon sequestration is a reality.

He believes science and real-life farming prove that pasturing cattle is an ideal method to sequester carbon, increase biodiversity and improve the planet.

Franklin is sharing his thoughts on the subject inside the driveshed at the Kincardine-area farm he shares with his wife Christine and three daughters — Katie, Jenna and Abby. Rain is thundering on the steel, adding to the wet conditions of the land, but it pleases the buff ducks waddling down the 26 The Rural Voice

He likes to teach but Tom Franklin also likes to learn so he can act on ways to sequester carbon using perennial crops and cows ... yes, cows.

• By Lisa Boonstoppel-Pot

laneway. They plunk themselves down in the middle of it, refusing to move even as Christine drives away.

She is forced to go around them.

When the rain stops, layer hens peck at the grass in their enclosure and later, we visit the hefty Simmentals in one of the pastures behind the barn. When they see Franklin, the cows come to the fence and Franklin reaches over to playfully rub the head of a favourite cow. She is eager for attention and to move into fresh grass. More wandering takes us to the market garden behind the shed, featuring long rows of vegetables grown by his oldest daughter to raise money for her post-secondary education. Here is where Franklin will plant a plot of perennial wheat.

Behind that is the hayfield grown to accommodate both bobolinks and his hay crop.

There is a lot going on here and Franklin admits he is very, very busy.

That’s what happens when your convictions lead to actions. With many contacts in the research community and a constant need to read about ideas and opportunities to improve soil health and carbon sequestration, Franklin is always eager for a new project. He wants to share it all! Much was said during this interview. Following are some of the highlights.

Carbon Credits: Regenerative farmers and market gardeners are very keen to connect how they grow crops with the result of sequestering carbon towards an eventual goal of being able to sell carbon credits.

That’s all well and good, says Franklin, but are they really?

Certainly, regenerative agriculture improves soil and is far better than “industrial” cropping, says Franklin, suggesting that on many farms, plants are supported by soil that is merely a placeholder for all the fertilizers dumped in. However, there is not a straight line between soil quality and carbon sequestering, says Franklin.

“All of the methods to improve soil health lead in the right direction,” says Franklin. “But inputs from turkey manure as compost that increase soil carbon come at the expense of other ground on that turkey farm. It’s like robbing Peter to

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pay Paul.”

When, however, a farm creates its own inputs then the farm has created a closed nutrient cycle and can legitimately claim they are increasing and sequestering carbon on their farms.

Life-cycle Analysis (LCA): This is an academic term Franklin prefers to use. LCA is a method used to evaluate the environmental impact of a product throughout its life cycle starting from the extraction and proceeding with processing, manufacturing, distribution, use, recycling and disposal. This is a way to make it measurable and is something Franklin is very keen on.

Though measuring carbon in the soil is not so hard, tracking an increase in carbon is very difficult. There is debate in the scientific community as to how deep soil needs to be measured. As such, Franklin has not measured carbon increases on his own lands. Franklin is eager to delve into this subject and starts using terms like “labile” and “Co2 cycles” but I do not have a masters in biochemistry so I suggest we move the conversation to more practical methods of sequestering carbon. If someone wants to call him and get more definitive, they are welcome to do so, says Franklin.

Deep Roots: To really improve soil health and sequester carbon, crop Tom Franklin is very proud of his Simmental cattle. They are shiny, fleshy and the picture of good health as they devour grass, fresh every two days via the Kincardine‐area farm’s rotational grazing system. Franklin is also a teacher who debunks the idea that cattle cause climate change.

He believes cattle can improve climate change when grazed on permanent pasture that allows perennial plants to lock carbon deep below the soil surface.

September 2021 29

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The Simmental herd at Tom and Christine Franklin’s Kincardine farm get fresh pasture every one to three days.

Rotational Grazing: Having already stated he likes to read and research, Franklin shared information from Michigan State university revealing a life-cycle analysis of rationally-grazed pastures, which included all inputs, indicating the carbon stored in these fields equals 3.6 tonnes per hectare. “This is my goal … something I can do to improve the climate on this planet,” says Franklin.

To meet that goal, Franklin created 26 paddocks averaging two acres each into which his herd of 20 Simmental cows moves with their calves every one to three days, depending on conditions. “I call them and they know they are moving to grass that has been growing for 40odd days.”

The paddocks used to be quite weedy and aware of what conventional farmers might think, Franklin used to cut them neatly after grazing. He doesn’t any more. “The weeds go away as the ground improves,” he says.

When it’s time to spread manure, he adds a coffee can of trefoil and red clover seed to the spreader (clover seed is also added to the cow minerals) to encourage natural

seeding. It works very well, says Franklin. “Trefoil is my favourite and this method is great to add legumes to the pasture.”

As they eat, the cattle are literally creating conditions for underground composting. Franklin explains that chewed plants are set back a bit which kills some of their roots. As the roots die, they exude sugars and compost in the soil. This creates an ideal climate for microorganisms which feed off the sugars and create a community of fungi and microbes.

As this community grows and matures, they bring minerals to the root systems in a symbiotic relationship between microbes and plants, which translates into healthier soil and carbon sequestration. The deeper this happens, the safer the carbon is because it gets locked-in below the depth of tillage systems.

Bobolinks: These grassland birds are an indicator species for biodiversity. So Franklin decided to reserve 20 acres of hayfield and develop a cutting strategy that would allow bobolinks to raise their young before the hay fields are cut. “While I

don’t have evidence for it, it’s likely that wherever you see bobolinks, that field is able to store carbon,” he says.

Franklin has partnered with Bird Ecology and Conservation Ontario (BECO) to track bobolinks and researchers found 14 males in his field, indicating this was a very successful project.

Sharing Information: “I am a teacher with one foot in agriculture and one foot in academics and I am passionate about sharing this information,” says Franklin.

Soil Regeneration Area at School: Merging his farming and teaching status, Franklin created a soil regeneration project at Saugeen District Secondary School where he teaches. Students from Grade 9 and 10 are brought to the patch beside the rugby field to take soil temperatures, test for water infiltration, examine soil tilth and set insect traps. Cover crops are discussed which leads into opportunities to teach about soil health, deep roots and soil carbon.

“The kids love it. At some point, they realize they can play a role in solving climate change,” says Franklin.

Instead of hearing “don’t eat meat” as a climate solution, Franklin teaches that “it’s not the cow, it’s the how” referencing the difference between cattle raised in huge feedlots versus cattle raised on pasture and grasslands.

Perennial Wheat: Always looking for something else to learn and experiment with, Franklin will be test planting 10 pounds of perennial wheat as a pilot project. The next stage will be to find 20 acres to rent to grow a larger stand. The goal is to determine if perennial wheat has value for craft breweries, if it can serve as an ingredient in baking, if the straw is useful to livestock operations and if the stand will also attract nesting Bobolinks.

Franklin believes that fields and soil across North America are depleted and that the time is now to learn and implement old and new ways to protect soils, improve soils and ultimately, store the carbon that years of tillage (and mining and forestry and other climate evils) have released to reverse the effects of climate change. ◊

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32 The Rural Voice

Sheep

Newbie Farm Tours #2: Sheep for Wool As Hetty Stuart tours different farms to share what a non-farmer sees and learns when visiting the farm, she discovers a sheep superpower is turning grass into wool.

Marg Steele of Steele Wool Sheep Farm west of Blyth raises Blue‐faced Leicester sheep, which are noted for their finely‐ textured wool that is both soft and strong.

A

small family farm with sheep on a hillside, and a farmer with her dog walking in their midst on a summery day — can there be a more pastoral setting for writing poetry and songs, as the shepherd David did, centuries ago? Marg Steele agrees that the beauty surrounding her on Steele Wool Sheep Farm of Blyth is one of the most compelling factors in her life.

“Our line of sheep — the Blue-faced Leicester — is raised for fibre and meat, not milk. The finely-textured wool that comes from this particular breed of sheep is soft and lustrous as well as strong,” Marg informs me. Bags of packed-down fleece, harvested from this farm, are sent to be washed in the States, then sent to a mill in Prince Edward Island, where the lanolin is washed out and then replaced, before being processed into yarn. The fun begins when Marg dyes the wool with Goldenrod, Black-eyed Susans, or Hops from her many gardens. Different flowers will give varied tones of colour, from soft to brilliant.

There is a satisfying rhythm to rotational grazing, and creating a particular habitat for their flock, Marg says, “Our main thrust as sheep farmers is to be ecologically sound, with as small a footprint as possible. Sheep will feed us, clothe us, and keep us warm.”

Her husband, Rick, works off the farm, allowing Marg to farm in an enduring and natural manner, for the past 28 years. “While most commercial farmers have flocks up to 800, we own about 180 ewes and six rams. When the lambs are born, their tails are docked, and they get a shot of selenium. They nurse directly from their mothers, who also decide when weaning begins”.

Breeding of the ewes happens in December, shearing in March, and lambing in April. “It all happens naturally here without hormones,” she states. “And we sell directly to local markets including Brussels Livestock.”

• By Hetty Stuart • September 2021 33

The barn is used only for handling, shearing, and lambing.

Cold or rainy weather will drive the sheep into the shelter, but their four inches of wool on their backs will keep them warm, allowing them to remain in their favourite place — the outdoors.

Marg has a deep love and respect for their animals and land, moving the sheep to fresh pastures twice per week. Our interview coincides with this transition from one field to the other. The sound of the flock’s movements is music to any untrained ear ... the baa-ing as Skeins dry in the sunshine after they listen for and being dyed (above) while Rick Steele follow the shepherd; the rustling of their (right) enjoys the good weather footfall as they run to with a little lamb in the field where the lush purple vetch; rotational grazing is put into effect and then the constant munching as they as part of the Steele’s approach to enthusiastically ecological sustainability on their devour the seedheads. Ecology is at sheep farm west of Blyth. work. Barn swallows swoop and soar in the newly-disturbed grass, eating the insects and mosquitoes. Birds will sit upon the sheeps’ woolly backs, pecking at grasshoppers and other insects they find.

Marg is watching the sheep move to new pasture. Her keen eye is trained for anything unusual: “Good teeth, firm udders, and strong feet are the most important thing for sheep,” she says. Amongst the white coloured family is the one black one — Pepper by name — who they hope to use as a breeder ram, bringing forth the much-coveted black fleece that is so difficult to dye.

Back at the house, Marg has been soaking skeins of yarn in a bucket of water 34 The Rural Voice

and fixative, before plunging them into vats of simmered flowers and plants for the colour. The skeins then dry in the sun, on the clothesline, before being sent to different local customers. Irene Kellins, of Blyth’s downtown store, Stitches with a Twist, sells a selection of Marg’s yarn. Sharlene Bolen of Stitch Revival Studio has designed The Huron Wristers Kit, with Steele Wool yarn as well. And, FACTS -

Fashion Arts Creative Textiles Studio, offers courses to fibre artists who extract incredible hues from natural colours, using Marg’s yarn.

“A positive side-effect of our Covid conditions last year,” Marg philosophizes, “was that people are being more thoughtful when they purchase. We all can buy less clothing: as it is, we use woollen blankets that are over 30 years old… why not well-made sweaters knitted

from our own local wool?”

For the decades that this hardworking couple have been running their farm, the benefits of sheep farming have been immense. Their children have also grown up, working alongside their parents, tending the flocks. For young and old alike, there can be no more heartwarming scene than a green pasture of baby lambs, milling about with the ewes, beside still waters. ◊

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Farm Life

Grain bin goes glam with makeover Thorndale couple transforms old grain bin into a bunkie for friends and family

Purple is Cheryl Gardiner’s favourite colour so it features heavily in the decor of a grain bin she and husband Reg transformed into a bunkie. The barn quilt designer and painter decorated the bunkie with painted‐on barn quilts.

36 The Rural Voice

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sleepovers with Grandma and there are sure to be many more. With all the pets — three dogs, a cat, a rooster and lots of hens — there is never a dull moment on their farm. The couple also repurposed a water trough into a tomato garden proving Cheryl and Reg have a talent for repurposing and improving things.

Their method of painting quilts on curved metal will also work with cement silos. Could silo quilts be the next way to add colour to the countryside? ◊

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his pretty repurposed grain bin might inspire you! It is located at the home of Reg and Cheryl Gardlner who live along the Ilderton Road near Thorndale.

Cheryl Gardiner could picture in her mind how the grain bin could become a bunkie. Reg, her husband, wasn’t so sure. Cheryl persisted with the notion and the result is a show stopper. As you approach the bunkie, you pass her flower garden where Cheryl has planted four varieties of lavender. The garden, already beautiful, is adorned with barn quilts on the gates and fences.

You may remember Cheryl as the artist who painted a large number of beautiful barn quilts for Huron County residents in 2017 for what became the Barn Quilt Trail in association with the IPM that year.

Her talent and passion for painting barn quilts continues. Quilts decorate the outside and inside of the bunkie, and bend to the shape of the bin.

Originally the bin stored corn. It is 19 feet in diameter and 15 feet high.

Luckily Cheryl found a narrow door that fit the existing opening perfectly.

Searching for windows led her to a business selling windows that had been manufactured the wrong size.

She saved money on these. The steel walls on the inside were leftovers from her parents’ drive shed. Before being installed, insulation was sprayed right to the peak. Cheryl did the painting inside and out and the attractive porch was constructed by her brother-in-law. The hand-medown spindle bed, with a heritage quilt on it, is just the right touch.

Why did she choose yellow paint for the bunkie? It needed to match the colour of their home, hen house, shed and studio. Her favourite colours are purple and teal so the inside walls and porch chairs are purple.

Cheryl calls it her Johnny flat after all the Johns in the family.

Ultimately she did it so her brother John has a bedroom when he visits from China, and she is honouring her Grampa John and her Dad John who were farmers in the same area.

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Housing

Tiny Footprint Homes finds home in Vanastra Builders launch new tiny home business to help solve the affordable housing crisis

Josh Batkin and Paul Arts stand in front of their first tiny home at their building site in Vanastra, Huron County. They utilized a metal shipping container for this first build but plan to use trailers for future builds.

T

he best friends involved in Tiny Footprint Homes are both young married men with three young children. One day, Josh Batkin and Paul Arts discussed the lack of affordable housing and how it was impacting peoples’ lives.

They decided that just maybe they could put their building skills to use and make a difference. They began investigating the tiny home concept which has become a popular topic of conversation, at least in North America. A new business soon came to fruition.

What is a “tiny home?” What makes it different from a camper, recreational vehicle, cottage and another structure used on a seasonal basis? A “tiny home” is a small, private, self-contained dwelling unit with a living and dining area, kitchen and bathroom facilities, and of course a sleeping area. It is intended for year-round use and can be a primary home, cottage or a so-called “granny flat”. There are plans to develop communities where tiny homes are placed, although with the proper permit you can have one in your backyard hooked up to water and sewer. The design possibilities are numerous.

Josh and Paul are builders and have set up shop. Their hope is that future tiny home owners wanting a custombuilt tiny home will come in with an architectural plan that they can build for the client.

Paul already runs his own business in Vanastra called

Arts Building Solutions while Josh offers the same services with his business named All Trade Residential in Clinton.

The pair combined their ideas and talents and found a new shop in Vanastra for Tiny Footprint Homes where their first tiny home prototype could be built. As is often the case, the idea was the easy part.

Though tiny homes are smaller by far than a regular home, it does not exempt them from the usual requirements of Ontario’s health and safety building codes. Municipal zoning and other local by-laws plus the necessary servicing for water and sewage all require due diligence. Another consideration is the square footage of a tiny home. You may be surprised to learn that municipalities have minimum and maximum sizes for square footage for tiny homes. What works in Nova Scotia does not necessarily work in Ontario.

Both Josh and Paul said they are very pleased with the encouragement and assistance that they have received from their local building inspector.

As they work towards getting their tiny home designs CSA (Canadian Standards Association) approved they have moved from the original plan of recycling metal shipping containers for the frame and base to building the tiny houses on metal trailers. Brian Cox, of Canadian Trailer

• By Bonnie Sitter • September 2021 39

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40 The Rural Voice

Company in Goderich, is very enthusiastic about the tiny homes and his company will be manufacturing the custom trailers for Paul and Josh.

Being built on the trailers means the homes can be transported into place.

The wheels and axle can be removed and skirting added to finish around the bottom of the tiny home.

Potentially, they can build a variety of sizes. The smallest permitted is 224 square feet and the largest is 480 square feet. Each step of the build has to be inspected and the young men have been told by the inspectors that they are excited about the tiny home business.

I asked about heating and cooling systems and learned that a system called a mini split or ductless split is a popular solution when the space is tiny. They offer both cooling and heating in the same unit. They have an outdoor condenser and an indoor air handler. As tiny homes gain popularity advances are being made to make them energy efficient.

Paul and Josh work with another local man, Dustin Court, who is a cabinet maker with his business in Vanastra. He can build just about any cabinet or cupboard that can be imagined and at the same time make sure every bit of space is utilized.

Once the tiny home is on the purchaser’s property, renovations are permitted and steps, a ramp and/or a deck can be added. One Ontario family opted to have a tiny home put in their backyard so their wheelchairbound adult daughter could have her own space and still be close to her parents for support. Some people are planning to downsize and live a simpler life while others are hoping for a break and get a roof over their head. Tiny homes might be a solution for both situations.

A suggestion has been made that a tiny home village of four or more homes with a central communal building to cook and socialize might be something to consider.

Even in rural areas, leaders are looking for solutions to the housing crisis. There are employment opportunities available but no accommodation for employees. Tiny homes could be part of the solution. ◊

Josh Batkin and Pauls Arts stand on the trailer that was built by Canadian Trailer Company in Goderich. These trailers will serve as the base for the tiny homes they are building. Trailers with wheels will facilitate moving the tiny homes to the locations chosen by the new owners.

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September 2021 41

Recipes by Anne Mann

Harvest cakes sweetened with fall fruits

T

ruly, “To every thing there is a season…” Ecclesiastes 3:1.

The time for harvest always makes me grateful for the abundant supply of fruits and vegetables we have in Canada, but also for the seasons that give us another magnificent spectrum of produce each autumn, like a kaleidoscope creating a new and beautiful collage in the field, in the kitchen and on our palate. Every year the natural world makes this offering a little different but usually there is a place to fit these much loved harvest cakes into the canvas!

Applesauce Cake Suzanne Irwin shared the recipe for this spicy cake, brimming with the flavour of the apple harvest, with me and it was given to her by the prize winner at the Brussels fair. She also gave me the idea to make it in a bundt pan, unfrosted, as a lighter way to enjoy it. For the gluten-free version I have replaced some of the water with an extra egg which makes it a little richer but also easier to half the recipe which can then be baked in four mini bundt pans (and an extra cupcake). Gluten-free cakes tend to be moister and more difficult to bake so for the full recipe I use a 9 x 13 pan for thorough baking, but I cannot resist adding the browned butter frosting made this way!

Ingredients: 1/2 cup margarine 1 3/4 cups white sugar 2 eggs 1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce 2 1/2 cups GF all purpose flour* 1 tsp xanthan gum 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp cloves 1/2 tsp allspice 1/4 cup water 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional) *Substitute regular all purpose flour for the gluten-free and exclude xanthan gum Directions: Beat margarine and sugar for a 42 The Rural Voice

minute until fluffy then add eggs, one at a time.

Mix in applesauce, beating until combined.

Add flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and allspice, alternately with the water, scraping bottom of bowl at least once.

Clockwise: Pumpkin Chiffon Cake topped with brandied cream is a sweet treat; Cliff’s Favourite Carrot Cake is perfect with cream cheese icing; Applesauce Cake can be baked in a bundt pan and frosted with icing sugar or topped with a dollop of browned butter frosting.

Stir in raisins, if using, until evenly distributed.

Pour into greased 9 x 13 inch pan or tube or bundt pan.

Bake at 350°F about 55 - 60 minutes, longer for the tube pan, until cake springs back when lightly touched, a tester comes out clean and cake is pulling away from the sides

Recipes of the pan.

Cool and enjoy as is with a light sprinkling of icing sugar or ice with browned butter frosting.

Browned Butter Frosting This is my delight and so simple there is no excuse not to make it!

Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter 2 Tbsp milk 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups icing sugar Directions: Heat butter in saucepan over medium heat until beginning to brown.

Cool slightly then stir in milk and vanilla extract.

Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the icing sugar, beating until smooth, thinning if necessary.

Spread on cake and enjoy.

Cliff’s Favourite Carrot Cake Every year I make carrot cake for my husband’s birthday because it remains his favourite cake even after 40 years. For larger gatherings I often make the 1/2 slab size because it goes a long way and seems to be universally popular. I substitute gluten-free flour and a tsp of xanthan gum for the regular flour and it is still delicious but does not keep as well.

Be sure to frost with the cream cheese below.

Ingredients: 1/2 slab 1 cup all purpose flour 1 cup whole wheat flour 1 cup white sugar 1 cup brown sugar, packed 2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 cup yogurt 3/4 cup canola oil 3 eggs 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup crushed pineapple, drained 2 cups coconut, any type* 2 cups grated carrots, lightly packed Directions: Mix both flours, both sugars, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

Stir in yogurt, oil, eggs and vanilla until smooth and beat 1 minute.

Add pineapple, coconut and carrots and mix until evenly distributed.

Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan or 2 - 8 or 9 inch round layers and bake at 350°F for 50 - 55 minutes (less for the layers) until cake springs back when lightly touched, tester comes out clean and cake is beginning to come away from the sides of the pan. Since this is a very moist cake you do not want to under bake it.

Cool cake completely before icing with cream cheese frosting. *You may replace 1/2 cup of the coconut with raisins.

Cream Cheese Frosting This may be the best part of the carrot cake. If you are frosting the layers and sides you will need to double the recipe.

Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter, softened 1/2 pkg (250 g) cream cheese, about 4 oz , do not use light 1 tsp vanilla 2 cups icing sugar 1 tsp lemon rind, grated Pumpkin Chiffon Cake From the first time I made this for my mother’s October birthday it became a family favourite and is used often for birthdays and special occasions because the brandy cream is so rich and aromatic, the perfect pairing with the moist and fragrant pumpkin chiffon and it is really quite easy to prepare. I was delighted when I found out it tastes just as good or better made with my GF flour blend.

For my Mom’s 90th birthday I made the cake on sheet pans layered with pumpkin marmalade and brandy cream for a truly spectacular creation. A single recipe made two 17 x 11 inch sheet pans and I made it twice, cutting each pan into three layers. I placed the triple tier rectangles around the edges of a square plate so there was a space in the middle for a vase with flowers.

Really not that much work for a showy cake to feed 30. The only issue with this presentation of the cake is you need a place to keep it cool until it is served. If you make it in an angel food pan you only need to keep the cream cool and people are able to adjust the portion to suit themselves.

Ingredients: 7 eggs, separated 1/2 tsp cream of tartar 1 1/2 cups white sugar 1/2 cup water, apple cider or juice drained from pumpkin when preparing purée* 1/2 - 3/4 cup pumpkin purée, fresh, frozen or canned 1/2 cup canola oil 2 cups GF or regular all purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder *For the best way to make your own pumpkin puree see my blog www.annesfavourites.ca or The Rural Voice, October 2017 issue.

Directions: Whip egg whites with cream of tartar in a clean bowl with clean beaters on high until foamy then slowly add 3/4 cup sugar while beating until stiff peaks form.

In another bowl beat egg yolks, remaining 3/4 cup sugar and water about 5 minutes until yolk mixture is thick, pale and beaters leave marks.

Fold pumpkin and oil into egg yolk mixture.

Sift flour, xanthan gum and baking powder and stir into yolk mixture until smooth.

Pour egg yolk mixture over the beaten egg whites and fold together quickly but thoroughly.

Immediately pour into an ungreased tube pan and bake at 350°F for about an hour until cake springs back when lightly touched and is golden brown.

If cake is getting too brown before it is completely cooked then turn oven down to 325°F for remaining time.

Invert pan on rack and cool completely. Serve with brandied cream on the side.

Brandied Cream You need lots of self control to keep your fingers out of this cream after tasting it for sweetness!

Ingredients: 2 cups whipping cream 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed 2 tsp brandy Directions: Whip cream until soft peaks form then add brown sugar and brandy and continue beating until combined and cream is stiff. ◊ September 2021 43

Gardening Rhea Hamilton‐ Seeger is a skilled cook and gardener who lives near Auburn.

Carefully lift and separate when moving Iris rhizomes September already! Where did the summer go? I do admit that I love September. The weather is perfect — not too hot, not too cold. Kids are back in school, hopefully, and everything and everyone settles into a routine again.

Our routine this summer was mostly painting and scraping windows and board and batten, and amidst that walks about the new gardens spudding out weeds and noting the new growth on the plants we moved. Our peas and beans supported a small family of rabbits.

The Japanese beetles, glorious looking gems, never got too much of a foothold in the garden. They did nibble on the blackberry, basil and rhubarb plants until they got knocked into a yogurt container of oil, dish detergent and water. You have to move fast to get them as they can fly off quite quickly. You also have to survey the garden often to catch them.

We are getting a soup bowl of berries this season from the black berries. I had not expected that. The rhubarb is flourishing and I keep reminding myself not to pull any until next year. New plantings need at least one season to get established.

And the basil is harvested and the pesto is in the freezer.

We all missed the wonderful horticultural society plant sales last spring due to COVID-19 restrictions.

I know Auburn is hosting their sale the second Saturday in September. It will be outdoors and rather than an 44 The Rural Voice

auction format, which I find exciting. in.

The plants will be grouped and When setting out the rhizomes, tagged for a set price. consider a circle or line with the It will be interesting to see what is slender ends pointed the same way, donated as September is not the time spacing anywhere from six to 12 we think of for dividing plants and inches apart. You can plant them yet it makes sense for the early close for a good show but they will spring bloomers. They can get settled need to be thinned out in a few years. in over the winter and show off in the The rhizomes are set on a wedge of spring. soil with their roots carefully placed I have three massive clumps of in the trough on either side and then iris to offer. They are lovely dark covered in. Iris don’t like to be purple, almost black, and white with covered with too much soil. I lightly purple falls and a bronze and yellow cover the top of the rhizome, letting combination. They are overgrown some of it show and weighing the and other seeds have sprouted in rest with soil. I step lightly on either among the roots posing a weeding side to make sure they are firmly issue. They desperately need cleaning planted. You don’t have to cut the up. fan of leaves back to six inches but Iris are easy to move. Simply use most do to help keep the weight of a garden fork and carefully lift and the leaves affecting how well the gently separate. Break off the roots settled in. Water them lightly to younger rhizomes and plant with keep them stable. If it’s a dry fall, some of the larger ones, as they won't bloom for another year. Discard any that are soft or have evidence of insect damage. Extras can be set into a box with a bed of shredded newspapers lightly misted with water, you don’t want to rot them, simply keep them hydrated. I like to keep my iris donations healthy and by avoiding a major dry out, they will settle into their new spot nicely.

Iris can suffer from soil augmented with rotted manure. This can invite assorted wireworms etc. to infect the newly planted rhizomes. If the soil is hard and lacking humus, I work in a bag of storebought compost.

Iris such as this purple and white variety (above) are Healthy rhizomes have food stored but I easy to separate by using a garden fork and lifting the still add a handful of clump. Younger rhizomes can be broken off to plant blood/bone meal to with larger ones but throw away any roots that are soft the area and scuffle it or have been infected with worms or insects.

Gardening monitor the moisture and water carefully when needed.

One more tip for your iris: if you are digging up rhizomes and donating them to the local plant sale or simply selling from the garden gate, take a marker and write on the base of the leaf the name of the plant if you know it, or the colour. This will make it so much easier if you are handling multiple colours.

Among the other perennials you can tackle in September are hostas. I personally hate moving them when they are in leaf and yet what better time to thin them out and share them as when the leaves are evident. It makes them easier to picture in the new location. Lifting and dividing hostas sets them back several years in maturity. How far back depends on how much root system is lost in the digging. This explains why the hostas we moved last fall did not roar ahead this spring. They were busy repairing roots!

Pick a day when the soil is moist from rainfall to lift and divide. If rain is a rare commodity, then water well the day before. Dig out a distance from the plant; leaf edge is a good guide, to a depth of eight to 18 inches depending on the cultivar of hosta.

Pry it out of the hole and set on a tarp. Shake and pull some of the dirt off so you can see the “eyes” and then divide with a straight spade or sharp knife.

Enrich the soil with lots of compost and plant at the same depth.

Tamp the soil around the plant and water well to eliminate air pockets.

September is one of the best times to assess and move plants. Happy sharing! ◊

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Yesteryear

W

hen I was in my later years of public school at SS # 7 Morris, which was known as The Stone School, I would check the mirror every few days to see if I had sprouted any fuzz on my face. My Dad shaved every morning before he had breakfast or even combed his hair. He was a great role model so I looked forward to shaving. The summer before I started to high school, Mother decided that the peach fuzz on my chin should be removed and my life as a shaver began.

Shaving has changed a lot since that time. My granddad used a straight razor that he honed to a keen edge on a razor strap that he kept hung on a hook beside his dresser.

He got a pitcher of hot water from the reservoir on the cook stove, took the hot water up to his bedroom and shaved. He had a special soap-cup and a shaving brush that he used to lather up. It was a production. He used the overhand method much like a barber. Straight razors need to be wielded with a steady hand to avoid nicks and cuts and this was at a time before band-aids were invented.

People who had money would go to the barbershop to get their shave.

One of my great uncles was a barber in the local village and he made quite a good living shaving his regulars.

He also gave hair cuts, but his real business was shaving. His special was a shave and a hair cut for two bits. In the 1920s and ’30s it was considered a rite of passage for a young man to go to the barber shop for his first shave.

Shaving has changed a lot over my almost four score years. I still have Grandpa’s straight razor and we also have a dresser basin and pitcher but they are purely antiques now.

Dad shaved in the era of the safety razor, a wonderful invention by King C. Gillett in 1901. The blade was inserted in a razor stick which was scraped across the lathered face.

Safety razors were far from safe. The blade was as sharp as a diamond drill and could do real damage to a pimple or a dimpled chin and I had both.

Dad kept a styptic stick handy to seal 46 The Rural Voice

A close shave

“I see you wiped the wrong end this morning, Ed.”

By Arnold Mathers the leak caused by just such minor mishaps.

Razor blades were relatively expensive in the post-depression era so a blade had to last a week or more.

Although this may sound strange, the more used the blade was, the more likely one was to suffer a nasty little nick. Often Dad and other men that we knew did not bother using a styptic stick. They would just stick a little piece of toilet paper over the nick to stop the bleeding.

I remember going to a threshing and one of our neighbors showed up with two little bits of toilet paper stuck to his face. He was either in a hurry or forgot to check the mirror before he left home. Another neighbor looked at Ed and said, “I see that you wiped the wrong end this morning, Ed.” He was not the only person who ever showed up in public with a wall- papered face.

Blades came in five packs and Dad was always running out. I think that this was about the same time that

rural women started shaving their legs because of the shorter-skirt fad, so the blades got used up a little faster than normal. Electric razors were a new invention and Mother and my sister and I decided to get Dad one for Christmas. We had it purchased, wrapped and hidden away but the Sunday before Christmas Dad ran out of blades. He made a bit of a fuss about who in tarnation used his last blade — it was probably him because I wasn’t old enough to shave and my sister was younger than me.

Maybe it was Mother. Anyway, we all looked at each other and nodded and Mother brought out the Christmas present. Electric razors were in their infancy so this awkward thing with a rounded head did not work all that well but it did the job and we were off to church with a reasonably whisker-free dad.

Electric razors have changed remarkably in the last 50 years but then so have safety razors. Electric razors have three floating heads that

Yesteryear give a smooth shave any time of the day. They have become smaller, lighter and cordless. Many briefcases now hold a little electric shaver that can be whisked out before an important meeting to rid the five o’clock shadow. Electric razors also come in pink for the female executive. Safety razors have not lost their spot in the shaving market.

They now have five or six mini blades that give an extremely smooth shave that outlasts the electric shave by several hours. They come with “fusion proglide, flexball technology and an ergonomic handle”. They are almost, but not 100 percent, nickfree.

Not all men shaved, and that has changed back and forth over the decades. In the old pictures of my great-grandparents almost all the men had beards and many had moustaches too. About the time of the First World War it became the custom to go bare faced. A few men still sported moustaches but in the main, the army was shaved.

Shaving, we are told, began about 3,000 BC with the invention of copper. The first recorded mass shaving happened in 4BC when Alexander the Great promoted shaving because it looked neater.

In 1690, Peter the Great travelled secretly to Germany and England to get ideas about how to modernize Russia. Most Russian men were bearded and what he saw in Europe was that most men shaved. So, in 1703, a few years after his return to Russia, he imposed a beard tax to encourage Russian men to shave and encourage noblemen be more up to date like the Europeans. Shortly after that time it became popular in Europe to grow facial hair like Van Dyke beards and mutton chops. You can just never really keep up with the Joneses.

The Mennonite sect adopted the custom of not shaving after marriage.

I am guessing that was to let the opposite sex know when it was acceptable to pursue and when it was strictly hands off. That custom is still maintained today by the Old Order Mennonites or Amish.

When I was a young shaver, professional athletes were clean-

shaven, beards and mustaches were forbidden by the team owners. Then, in the 1970s along came the Oakland Athletics and their popular pitching star, Rollie Fingers, with his upper class English twirled handlebar moustache. Their maverick team owner, Charlie O. Findley, not only allowed the twirled wonder but encouraged other players to match it.

That broke the facial hair bar and all manner of beards and haircuts quickly spread to the other teams.

Lanny MacDonald, a Maple Leaf legend, knew that beards were outlawed and so he grew an outlandish red moustache. That led the way in the NHL. Now almost every male-dominated sport has its cast of over-paid bearded wonders.

Good old conservative Ontario was dominantly a clean shaven haven until 1967, Centennial year. Beard growing competitions abounded to celebrate those fine old bearded Fathers of Confederation. Hordes of males who had shaved every day of their adult lives suddenly gave up

shaving as if it was Lent. Many liked their hidden-face appearance and some of us never picked up the razor again. Not quite true but close, the razor morphed into a trimmer. My beard has been a part of me for nigh onto 50 years, my children and grandchildren would not recognize me without it. It has undergone one major change. It is now white. I can easily play Santa without a fake beard.

There is one burning question in this whole facial hair story. Since men have been shaving since the time of Alexander the Great why isn’t the earth covered to a depth of at least six inches by whiskers.

Where do they all go? Every day the average male produces a gram or two of whiskers. That should add up to millions of tons a year and over the millennium we should have accumulated a mountain of whiskers at least as large as several Torontosized garbage dumps, but no, they disappear into thin air. Truly that is one of the world’s great mysteries. ◊

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Markets Scott Krakar is a Grain Merchandiser with LAC Inc., Hyde Park, 519‐473‐9333

Wheat crop flattens and suffers quality issues The winter wheat harvest in the region has been a challenge this year.

While the early harvest quality was good, much of the subsequent harvest quality has been poor. Heavy and frequent rains fell on the wheat crop once it became mature and therefore harvest was delayed. With the rains and lack of dry-down due to constantly high humidity, the wheat

crop remained vulnerable to quality issues. Even before the rains began, quality was of concern as much of the crop had been lodged due to heavy storms during the grain-fill period, which flattened an abundance of acres.

The big challenge that has occurred with the crop is that a large quantity of the crop has low falling number. Low falling number occurs when the grain begins to grow, and the seed begins to transform its accumulated starch into sugars; sugars are needed for the plant to begin to sprout and regrow. While this transformation from starch to sugar is necessary for plant regrowth, it is very detrimental to flour quality.

Wheat with low falling number does not have the qualities needed to give baked goods their desirable characteristics. Instead, this wheat leaves the baked goods clumped, with no rising to the structure. In other words low falling number soft wheat would produce a flat cake, rather then a fluffy cake.

What complicates matters with this wheat crop is that the majority of

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the wheat that has low falling number does not have visual sprouts. Often visual sprouts are seen in low falling number wheat and therefore it is downgraded to a feed class. However this sprouting is not seen in most of the crop. Also much of the wheat has retained very good test weights, and often low falling number wheat has lighter test weights, as sprouting wheat loses test weight as the kernel begins to use stored reserves for establishing plant growth.

Because of the lack of visual clues, both the grower and the elevator system have received this wheat expecting it has good milling characteristics and have expected it to have good demand into the milling industry.

The problem with this expectation is that unknowingly, elevators have received this wheat and it is not acceptable to the millers or to the exporters with whom they have milling commitments.

This predicament is not often being realized until the shipper sends a load to the terminal or mill, only to be rejected or discounted at the destination because of the quality factor. Naturally the shipper is disappointed as rejected loads and discounts are not what they wanted, nor can they afford the financial repercussions. But the end users are not handed a windfall either and their financial risk can be substantial.

To clarify, consider this reality: a terminal elevator would have contract specifications that they would have had to contract with their buyer, in order to sell them wheat.

The buyer buys according to specific specifications and for milling purposes always includes falling number. The obligation that the terminal then has what is contracted.

As they receive wheat that is low falling number this quality is lower than their obligation to the customer.

It is then up to the customer to accept wheat of poorer quality only if they are willing to receive it.

Consequently, all players in the value chain have risks, and the industry needs to sort out usability and pricing of the crop. This will take some time.

Due to the quality issues, many shippers have turned to the feed trade to utilize this non-milling wheat.

Markets Initially in harvest there were some thoughts that the feed market would be able to utilize the poor quality wheat rather easily at little to no discount to milling prices. Because of the abundance of feed wheat, and the sheer volume of tons that have wanted to move into the feed market, bids at the mills have been dropping and consequently we have seen wheat basis levels push significantly lower.

Currently wheat prices are at a discount to corn and feed mills are using wheat. Looking into the future , we see that wheat loses this advantage and new crop corn prices are more competitive than wheat.

Just to touch briefly on other crops. The Western corn belt and the Eastern corn belts in the U.S. are at extreme opposites. The Western belt continues to be extremely dry while the Eastern belt has too much rain.

Will the production in the eastern U.S. make up for the losses in the western region? This won’t be known until after harvest. One thing we do know is that the market needs record yields in the U.S. in order to maintain current balance-sheet expectations.

Therefore, with the west known to be challenged the market looks to the east for large production. Currently the Eastern belt looks great, but thoughts of disease and fungal growth are in the forefront of everyone’s mind because of the constantly wet conditions. ◊

Enjoy the Country Lifestyle!

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September 2021 49

Woodlots Donna Lacey is a forester with the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority

Welcome the woodpeckers There are many species that use trees as part of their life cycle.

Among these creatures is the largest group of animals in the world -insects. Yes, insects are animals.

Some insects are classed as beneficial and others as pests. Another method of grouping them together is primary feeding, damaging insects or secondary feeders.

Beneficial insects can help trees through pollination and the control of damaging insect populations. Spiders are the first insect to comes to mind.

Other carnivorous insects that most people are aware of include lady

beetles, also known as ladybugs.

Pests can harm trees in a multitude of ways. There are the insects that bore into the bark of the tree to feed and grow within the cambium and sapwood. These insects are the most likely to kill a tree when their populations get too high. An example of this is the now famous Emerald Ash Borer. The tree will decline in health due to the lack of nutrients moving between roots and leaves as most of these nutrients are transported through the cambium layer. The cambium layer is a very skinny layer located just under the bark of a tree.

Other pests feed on the leaves of a tree. Leaf feeders will often only make the tree unsightly and cause a little stress to the trees unless their population numbers get too high and they defoliate for consecutive years.

Leaf feeders come in many different forms and fashions. Some of the smaller insects feed between the outer layers of the leaf and mine out the inside of the leaf, leaving a skeleton of the leaf consisting of the

outer layers, veins, and stems.

Larger leaf feeding insects prefer to chew away at the entire leaf leaving just the stem or portions of the leaf. A popular example of a leaf feeder is the Gypsy Moth. The leaf feeders are often messy and their

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50 The Rural Voice

Woodpeckers can damage trees when they create holes for nesting but mostly, they are natural controls for insect infestations and will help keep your trees healthy.

Woodlots presence is unappreciated without people even noticing the damage to the trees. Gross webbing, raining caterpillar droppings, and yucky green worms make this group the most disgusting.

There are insects that bore into the stem of the tree causing the leaf to fall. These petiole borers often result in puddles of otherwise healthylooking leaves at the bottom of a tree.

I most often find petiole borer damage causing leaf drop closer to fall, and the leaves had started to achieve their fall colour prior to falling. This colour shift is usually earlier than that of neighbouring tree leaves, that are not affected by a petiole borer.

Often not thought of when discussing insects that damage trees are those that feed on tree seed.

Obviously, insects that feed on tree seed will not cause too much stress on the tree but will most likely result in a lack of the regeneration of that tree. Cone borers are an example of this and their damage is easily spotted when looking at a cone and seeing sap leaking out of it.

All of these types of insects are primary feeders. I am using this term to describe those insects that will cause the tree to decline or possibly die if their populations reach high enough numbers. Secondary feeders are those that come into a severely declining or dead tree and feed off the wood that is left. Secondary feeders do not feed off of the living tissue causing tree mortality, but they are very obvious within dead wood.

These creatures help to break down the woody material aiding in nutrient cycling.

There are a variety of options available to those that would like to control insect populations within their trees. Concerned owners may choose to attempt to attract a greater number of beneficial insects, to apply a herbicide, to hand-pick the offending insects, or even to burn the nests. However, nature has provided us with a larger control method.

Many people are often shocked and quite concerned when a woodpecker starts to tap away at their trees. Then they are even more

shocked when I tell them that they should be happy that the bird has come to deal with their pest.

When a woodpecker arrives to feed from your tree, it will sense insect populations within the tree and tap to a depth that gets them to their prize, food. For insects like Emerald Ash Borer which are just beneath the bark, the woodpecker will mainly just knock off small flecks of bark and create a small hole into the cambium. If the woodpecker is going after ants that are in a decaying section of heartwood, the woodpecker will be excavating a larger deeper hole right to the centre of the tree. These larger excavations may cause further stress to the tree adding to that of the insect population that is deep in the heart of the tree.

Woodpeckers will excavate a hole within a healthy tree to use as a nesting cavity. These holes are used by the creator and then other species when abandoned by the industrious woodpecker. In this regard, the woodpecker should be viewed as a habitat builder adding to the level of respect which they deserve.

If a tree that you care about shows signs of woodpecker activity that doesn’t look like fresh wood, but more that of a grey or greenish colour, the woodpecker must have gotten what they were looking for and moved on. The woodpecker no longer feeding is the best indicator that the insect population has been lowered or eliminated. If the excavated site is light brown and looks like fresh wood, you should try

to watch and get a glimpse of the beautiful bird that is trying to keep your tree healthy.

The size and shape of the hole helps to indicate which woodpecker species was feeding within your tree.

If your woodpecker feeding sites are quite shallow and are in an even row or grid-like pattern, the culprit is that of a sapsucker, not a woodpecker.

A sapsucker will tap small holes into the cambium layer to encourage the flow of sap out of the holes. This sap flow will attract sap feeding insects to the site. The sapsucker will then swoop in and feed off of the insects that were attracted to the sap.

I am always happy to see or hear woodpeckers within our forests. I have struggled to get photos of these amazing birds as they do not stay in one spot for very long. Oddly enough, as I look through my photos for woodpecker images, I find many photos of snakes. If only birds enjoyed sunning themselves and showing off their beauty when I have a camera ready. ◊

Marvin L. Smith

B.Sc.F. (Forestry), R.P.F. Farm Woodland Specialist 570 Riverview Dr. Listowel, Ontario N4W 3T7 Telephone: (519) 291-2236

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52 The Rural Voice

John D. Goudy is a partner in Scott Petrie LLP Law Firm, and also farms north of London.

Organized Pseudolegal Commercial Arguments – Part III “What “pseudolaw” will they think of next?” That’s how I concluded the last article I wrote about “Organized Pseudolegal Commercial Arguments” or “OPCAs”. It hasn’t taken long to get an answer.

A series of decisions issued by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice this spring outlines a complex and possibly novel pseudo-legal challenge to the enforcement of a farm mortgage. Farm Credit Canada sued to enforce its mortgage. The mortgagors and related parties sued FCC for various relief. In the end, the Court rejected the pseudolaw, allowed the mortgage enforcement claim, and dismissed all counterclaims.

In April, 2014, FCC loaned a numbered company and its President the sum of $198,000 to purchase a rural property. In May, 2014, FCC loaned an additional sum of $150,000 to finance construction costs of a “production/processing facility” (type unspecified) on the property. Title to the property was taken in the name of the company. Security for the loans was provided by way of a mortgage from the company to FCC. The mortgage secured a sum of $400,000 plus interest at a ceiling rate of 18 per cent per annum.

In August, 2019, the company and its President (the “Defendants”) defaulted on their loans and the mortgage. FCC demanded payment.

When the default was not cured, FCC started enforcement proceedings, sending notices under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and the Farm

Agrilaw Debt Mediation Act. In January, 2020, FCC commenced a court action to recover the amount owing on the loans and seeking possession of the mortgaged property.

Here’s where the pseudolaw enters the picture. The Defendants did not dispute that the loans were advanced or that the mortgage was given and registered as security for the loans or that the loans and the mortgage were in default. Instead, the Defendants claimed that the company President is a “tribesman of the non-status Kinakwii Nation and the Anishinabek Solutrean Indigenous Métis Nation (ASMIN)” and that the land against which the FCC mortgage was registered is part of the “unceded territory of Turtle Island that belongs to the Kinakwii Nation.” FCC could not, therefore, enforce its security against the property purchased by the numbered company.

In a related court proceeding, ASMIN Grand Chief Wabiska Mukwa sued FCC to stop enforcement of the mortgage by asserting Indigenous rights over the mortgaged property in favour of the Kinakwii Nation. Justice J.T. Akbarali noted the following about Chief Wabiska, ASMIN and the Kinakwii Nation in one of the many written decisions rendered in the case: “The evidence before me indicates that Chief Wabiska’s email address, which includes the phrase “askit4equity,” is linked to a website advertising the Anishinabek Solutrean Metis Indigenous Nation (“ASMIN”), which claims to be one of the oldest unsurrendered, untreatied matriarchal Indigenous Nations of Turtle Island. For $225, anyone can become a member of the ASMIN nation on filling out an application.

“The Kinakwii National website suggests that the Kinakwii Nation was founded by William Allan of the Baldwin family and Jon of the Maskell family under certain notices which are in evidence before me. For $300 annually, anyone can become a member of the Kinakwii Nation on filling out an application.

“Neither the ASMIN nor the

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54 The Rural Voice

Kinakwii Nation are recognized as a First Nation on a comprehensive list of all First Nations across Canada that is compiled by CrownIndigenous Relations, Northern Affairs Canada, and Indigenous Services Canada.”

Among the many legal claims made by Chief Wabiska was a claim that FCC has printed money without any legal authority to do so – FCC traded in securities in the form of promissory notes from the numbered company and its President. Those promissory notes were securities over which the Defendants never released their interest, making them the creditors of those notes. The mortgage was a “British device” to obtain Aboriginal Title.

At a preliminary hearing in March, 2020 in the mortgage enforcement matter, Justice P.R. Sweeny found that Chief Wabiska did not actually have standing to address the Court as he was not a defendant and could not, therefore, be a plaintiff in a counterclaim. More recently, Justice Sweeny quashed (cancelled) summonses to witness that had been served by Chief Wabiska on Richard Wagner (Chief Justice of Canada and, until recently, acting in an interim capacity as Administrator for the vacant post of the Governor General) and on a former registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada, Roger Biladeau, Q.C. It appears that, through the summonses to witness, the Defendants and Chief Wabiska were seeking the following documents: “(1) proof of superior title to unceded land on Turtle Island prior to ASMIN, or proof of purchase or any treaty with ASMIN for same; (2) proof Victoria signed BNA Act and proof Canada Inc. is not a mere corporation and proof it was not repealed in 1893; and (3) proof Canada Inc. is not a mere corporation.”

In the most recent written decision which ultimately allowed FCC’s enforcement action against the Defendants, Justice Sweeny pulled no punches in a section subtitled “The Defences are Nonsense”: “The defendants … assert some duty to consult which has no

Agrilaw application in this case. The assertion is nonsense.

“They assert that the land against which FCC registered the mortgage is unceded land. This assertion is nonsense. […]

“The defendants also raise a number of other defences or alleged triable issues […]. These include that FCC is an artificial entity that created money by printing up numbers in their computer and whether FCC is a bank or a financial institution.

These and all asserted triable issues are nonsense.”

Nonsense? Maybe, but always entertaining. ◊ ______________________________ John D. Goudy’s law practice includes real property and environmental litigation, expropriation law, energy regulation, and regulatory offences.

Agrilaw provides information of interest to the farming community, not legal advice. Readers should consult a legal professional about their particular circumstances

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Time to enjoy some Fall reading

TREES AND SHRUBS FOR FLOWERS Flowering trees and shrubs are becoming a popular part of landscaping. This book contains 150 pages of information on different shrubs and tips on how to grow them. $24.95

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THE YEAR-ROUND VEGETABLE GARDENER The enjoyment of gardening, and of the fresh vegetables it produces, doesn’t have to be just a summer pleasure. The book shows you how to grow your own food 365 days a year no matter where you live. $23.95

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TREES AND SHRUBS FOR FLOWERS SCARECROWS BUILDING BETTER BATHROOMS 110 NATURE HOT SPOTS IN ONTARIO THINGS I LEARNED FROM KNITTING YEAR-ROUND VEGETABLE GARDENER OUT OF THE BLUE PRESERVING ANSWER BOOK

110 NATURE HOT SPOTS IN ONTARIO Informative introduction to some of the province’s best-kept secrets. A fresh look at destinations that have made Ontario famous. If you’re looking for a day trip or a weekend getaway, this book will appeal to you. $29.95

OUT OF THE BLUE: Further Discoveries in Huron County History The second book written by David Yates is an eclectic collection of stories about Huron County’s people, places and events between 1884 and 1939. This volume covers an era just before the social welfare state that emerged in the aftermath of the Second World War. $25.00

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56 The Rural Voice

The Rural Reading Room

THE PRESERVING ANSWER BOOK Expert tips, techniques, and best methods for preserving all your favourite foods. Includes canning, freezing, dehydrating, fermenting, pickling, root cellaring. $19.95

Send cheque or money order for full amount to: Books: North Huron Publishing P.O. Box 429, Blyth, ON N0M 1H0 or call and pay by credit card 519-523-4311 MAIL BOOKS TO: Name:_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Address: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ______________________ Code _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Phone: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Prices subject to change with increases in wholesale prices, postage, taxes, etc.

Please refer to current issue for correct figures. Incorrect payment will delay delivery.

Community

• By Gary West •

New steeple fits into place at St. Patrick church

It was a long wait but the parishioners of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Kinkora in Perth County, finally have a new steeple on their historic church thanks to church member and community support from people like Joey Leyser (left) who took down the original steeple 17 years ago.

T

he restored steeple on Kinkora’s St. Patrick’s Catholic Church is now a thing of beauty thanks to a fundraising goal that is close to reaching the top for a new steeple that was installed in March.

After many years of waiting for a new steeple after it was taken down over 17 years ago, the new one was installed on the church in this small hamlet of Kinkora, northwest of Sebringville. Many locals were “singing the praises” for what they thought might never happen.

The 139-year-old church — which is one of the largest and oldest in the area — had to have its steeple removed back in September 2003 because of a deteriorating condition caused by “old age”. The entire structure was taken down in two separate pieces.

This spring, it was replaced the same way with the help of workers from the London company “Cameron Crane”. The whole operation started

at 10 in the morning and was finished the same day six in the evening. Even though the momentous day could not be advertised to the public, many of the church members and neighbours knew it was going to happen and they, and the “Good Lord Willing”, were just glad to see a beautiful sunny day when it did.

Church members said it was heartwarming to see this day had finally arrived and knew that the generations that had come before would be so pleased with the day’s long-awaited outcome. There are now young couples who are the seventh family members to attend church services regularly.

It was also great to visit with the man who helped it all happen so many years ago. His name is Joe Leyser (demo Joe as he has become known) and now at 87 years old, will never forget the day he took on the enormous task of lowering the famous steeple. He said he and seven men, along with large cranes, started

the job at nine in the morning on the first day and had the steeple lowered and site all cleaned up by three in the afternoon on the next day. Everyone in attendance couldn’t say enough good things about Joe, who with all his knowledge and equipment, wouldn’t take one penny for all his work. He still has a collage of all the pictures of the dismantling.

Another Parishioner who also was mentioned many times that day was the late “Joe Murray” who made a very large generous donation to the fundraising campaign. Without his help and the generosity of the entire Kinkora community, the work might never have been completed.

As the present day priest — Father Ronnie — would say, the project is a testament to the efforts of a community that donated all their free time, talents and treasures to restore what remains as one of the area’s most beautiful churches, now with a completely restored and beautiful steeple! ◊ September 2021 57

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58 The Rural Voice

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September 2021 59

The

Rural Voice

Business Centre To place your ad call: 519-523-4311 or email: rvads@northhuron.on.ca

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AUCTION -------------------------------------------Elmira Produce Auction – Hay and Straw Sales every Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. Consignors and buyers welcome. Call Lloyd Martin 519664-3356, 7400 Reid Woods Drive, Elmira.

--------------------------------------------

CUSTOM WORK -------------------------------------------Custom stone picking. Let us harvest rocks so you can harvest crops. Serving Grey, Bruce, Dufferin and Wellington Counties.

Call Brendan Martin 519-503-1101. brendan.martin870@gmail.com -------------------------------------------DAIRY -------------------------------------------Screened bedding sand, delivered.

Call 519-625-8242 or 519-2741490.

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FARM FRESH -------------------------------------------Arranhill Garlic Farm, Table Garlic, Scapes and Shallots plus Garlic Seed for fall planting. 110-12 Conc.

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-------------------------------------------FOR SALE -------------------------------------------Woodstove - Osburn 1600 model, asking $500. Call 519-482-7362.

-------------------------------------------For prices on forage peas, forage pea mixtures, cover crop mixtures, fall rye, winter barley and winter wheat. Contact Courtney Grain & Seed (2015) Ltd., 225 Hwy. 21, RR 1, Ripley. Phone 519-395-2972.

Ask for Carmon or Mitch.

-------------------------------------------Martin’s Nursery & Bee Supplies Etc. Large selection of flowering trees, shade trees, fruit trees and hydrangeas and other shrubs. We have the plants you need to make a living “privacy hedge” or snow fence or windbreaks. Blue Spruce, Norway Spruce, White Spruce, Pine and Cedars. Also… a Complete line of Bee Supplies for the commercial or hobby beekeepers. Order your (Nuc) Bees for spring 2022. We now sell select Queen Bees raised under ORHBS program on a weekly basis. Order by Monday evening for Wednesday pick-up – $40 each or buy 10+, $37.50 each. We stock all wooden-ware (bee-hives) foundation, assembled and unassembled frames, smokers, suits, jackets, gloves, mite treatments and some extracting equipment. Honey containers, jars, pails, custom built wooden-ware.

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--------------------------------------------

Blue Water Angus Sale October 16, 2021 Viewing 9:00 am Sale Time 1:00 pm Cargill Auction Barn - Cargill, ON If you wish to consignee contact Sale Manager Mike Early 519-661-8713

-------------------------------------------BEES -------------------------------------------We now sell Select Queen Bees raised under ORHBS program on a weekly basis. Order by Monday evening for Wednesday pick-up, $40 each or buy 10+, $37.50 each.

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-------------------------------------------CONSTRUCTION -------------------------------------------WE POUR: liquid manure tanks, bunker silos, foundations and pads.

All are 100% engineered. Serving Ontario since 1968. De Jong & Sons Ltd. 519-348-0523.

-------------------------------------------CUSTOM WORK -------------------------------------------Janmaat custom bale wrapping.

In-line wrapping any size round bale and any size square bale up to 6 1/2' long. Call Cody at 519-9553384.

--------------------------------------------

Deadline for the October issue of The Rural Voice is September 14 62 The Rural Voice

EGGER FARMS CUSTOM BALING

• 3x3 Bales Automatic Acid Applications, Roto Cutter.

Individual Bale Wrapping 6' bales

Call Fritz: 519-292-0138

CLASSIFIED

CLASSIFIED

CLASSIFIED

FOR SALE -------------------------------------------Fall Sale: large variety of fabrics, quilting supplies and quilts at Retail Dry Goods September sale, September 20 to October 20, 10 kms. north of Kinloss to sideroad 30, Brockton, turn right, first farm on left. Fire #418.

-------------------------------------------Rosco grain bins for sale – 19' and 14' diameter. Parts available. Used grain bins wanted for parts or reuse. Closed Sundays, 519-3383920.

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LIVESTOCK FOR SALE -------------------------------------------LIMOUSIN – quality breeding bulls, open and bred heifers for sale.

Delivery included. Posthaven Limousin, John Post. 519-7667178. www.posthavenlimousin.com -------------------------------------------Red Angus/Simmental, Simmental and Red Angus heifers bred to calving ease Red Angus bull for Spring 22 calving. James and Joan McKinlay 519-599-6236.

-------------------------------------------Rabbit breeding stock. High quality genetics available in Ontario. Order your PS40 bucks and PS19 does today. CuniON@tcc.on.ca -------------------------------------------NOTICE -------------------------------------------Grey Roots Museum and Archives is once again open to visitors. Enjoy three new exhibits, activities for children and a 10-acre heritage village. Pack a picnic if the weather is fair! Book in advance at greyroots.com or call 519-3673690.

-------------------------------------------PERSONALS -------------------------------------------Retired farmer, young 72, good physical shape, Owen Sound area, seeking companionship. No internet service. 519-794-2735.

-------------------------------------------REAL ESTATE -------------------------------------------Selling or buying farmland, residential or commercial. All properties needed. Call Greg or Dwaine Nicholls, Brokers for GA Nicholls Realty Ltd. Greg 519-2910507, Dwaine 519-492-2002.

-------------------------------------------RESTORATION -------------------------------------------The Olde Tyme Radio Centre – antique radios, clocks, gramophones, telephones; sold/restored. (vintage autoclock radio, speedometer, tachometer repaired). Belgrave 519-357-4304, www.oldtymeradio.ca --------------------------------------------

RETAIL & GIFTS -------------------------------------------Stitches with a Twist – 404 Queen St., Blyth, 519-523-9449. Yarns, needles, notions, patterns, books and lots more yarn.

-------------------------------------------SERVICES -------------------------------------------INCOME TAX FILING FOR CORPORATIONS and late filers – for farms, small business, truckers and individuals. Will make house calls in the North Huron, Perth and surrounding area. Call Shirley in Wingham – cell No. 1-705-4348187.

-------------------------------------------Cronin Poured Concrete Ltd. Since 1976. Liquid manure tanks to 200'.

Heights of 8'-14' (1-pour). All jobs engineer specifications/inspections - guaranteed. Best firm quote in Ontario. Mark Cronin, 519-3489062.

Cell 519-274-5000. www.croninpouredconcrete.ca --------------------------------------------

Discount Steel Great for barn posts, stabling or other build-your-own projects

Custom Welding & Machine Shop Custom Stabling Mfg. Open Tues. & Thurs. ~ other days by chance John A.M. Martin 1467 Grey Ox Ave., Lucknow

-------------------------------------------IRON & STEEL -------------------------------------------DISCOUNT STEEL: New second grade steel sales; 1" - 8" square tubing; 7/8" - 14" round tubing; Rectangle tubing, discount plate; New and Used I-Beams; Bar grating, rebar, angles; Custom cutting, welding, punching.

Listowel. Phone Aden 519-5957775.

-------------------------------------------LIVESTOCK BEDDING -------------------------------------------MIRACLE FIBER Livestock Bedding.

Also, coarse wood mulch for horse and cattle walkways, wet areas around water troughs and bush lanes. Also available is dairy pack starter bedding. 1-877-773-8004.

Sittler Grinding. Rick Sittler.

-------------------------------------------LIVESTOCK FOR SALE -------------------------------------------Suffolks - purebred Ram lambs.

British bloodlines M-V negative, closed flock. Several bloodlines available. 519-233-7896.

-------------------------------------------Limousin bulls, open and bred females available. Smart Limousin, Meaford 519-372-7459. smartlimo @bmts.com www.smartlimousin.com --------------------------------------------

Tell them you saw their ad in The Rural Voice September 2021 63

CLASSIFIED

CLASSIFIED

SERVICES -------------------------------------------Firearms and hunting training.

PAL & HUNTER ED. Ongoing courses available. Certified instructors. Call Greg 519-8879622 or 519-291-0507.

--------------------------------------------

WANTED -------------------------------------------Round bales of horse or cattle quality hay picked up. Call Riley Gorman 519-321-1012.

-------------------------------------------Farmland – Long or short term.

Cash rent, share crop. Contact Paul at Hill & Hill Farms, 519-2333218 or 519-525-3137 or email: paul.hillhill@tcc.on.ca --------------------------------------------

DONALD A ANDREW ACCOUNTING

Accounting & Income Tax Services for FARMS, BUSINESSES & INDIVIDUALS 296 Ross St., Lucknow

Ph. 519-528-3019

Specializing in on Farm Pest Management Serving Southwestern ON, Golden Horseshoe, GTA Email: info@sgsltd.ca

519-692-4232 www.sgspestmanagement.ca

CLASSIFIED WANTED -------------------------------------------Young farmer looking for land rent, sharecrop, or custom work opportunities. Good environmental stewardship and professionalism.

Short and long term. 519-200-7845 or hundt.chris@outlook.com

Deadline for the October issue of The Rural Voice is September 14

Farms needed !! call us to see why we stand out from the rest A team of dedicated professionals here to serve you.

Selling or buying real estate in Ontario.

Home, farm or commercial.

We go the distance for you! like us on our facebook page keystone select

GLAVIN BARN & COMMERCIAL PAINTING FARMERS repaint your faded coloured steel FREE QUOTES ~ FULLY INSURED

RR 1 Crediton, Ont. N0M 1M0 (near Exeter)

Call: Jim Glavin 1-800-465-4725 519-228-6247 Eugene Glavin 519-228-6801 -------------------------------------------UPCOMING EVENTS -------------------------------------------Natural Dye Weekend at FACTS Blyth. September 18 and 19.

Saturday harvest flowers from the FACTS garden and learn to prep, mordant and dye yarn. On Sunday create stripes and variegated patterns on wool yarn with natural dye. For more information go to wwwfactsblyth.ca -------------------------------------------WANTED -------------------------------------------Cropland, very competitive rates or share crop, long or short term. 519276-9405, rastorferfarm@gmail.com -------------------------------------------Scrap Cars Wanted – 20, 30, 40 yd. scrap metal bins available. We sell quality used auto parts. Wanted to buy – scrap cars, trucks, farm machinery, heavy equipment.

Kenilworth Auto Recyclers. 519323-1113.

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64 The Rural Voice

Elly Boonstoppel Real Estate Agent 519-440-2797

Dave Boonstoppel Broker 519-440-2444

Pine River Tree Farm 739 Hayes Lake Ave., RR #1 Holyrood, ON N0G 2B0 Prop. Gideon Wagler Fax: 519-395-5062 (Bus. Hrs.)

Ask about our September 24 Auction We have a large supply of potted trees in stock - fruit, shade, windbreak, hedges, reforestry at competitive prices.

The best time to plant is in the Fall.

We guarantee our fall-planted trees to our area and south. Buy your trees from a local or northern grower for best results.

Lisa Thompson MPP Huron-Bruce

CONSTITUENCY OFFICES Blyth Office:

Kincardine Office:

408 Queen Street, PO Box 426 Blyth, ON N0M 1H0 Phone: 519-523-4251 Toll Free: 1-800-668-9320

807 Queen Street, Unit 3 Kincardine, ON N2Z 2Y2 Phone: 519-396-3007 Toll Free: 1-866-396-3007

Website: www.lisathompsonmpp.ca Email: lisa.thompsonco@pc.ola.org

Huron-Bruce Matters

Manufacturer of Precast Concrete Products

Fall Reads HOW TO RAISE A READER This book shows you how to instill the joy and time-stopping pleasure of reading. Divided into four sections, from baby through teen. Beautifully illustrated. $29.95 + S&H + tax ON THE WRIGHT TRACK Memories from C.P.R. School Car #2. William “Bill” Wright, was a teacher hired by the Department of Education and he and his wife Helen, raised four children on the C.P.R. School Car #2. These are their memories. $25.00 + S&H + tax COOKING WITH HONEY One of over 200 titles of Storey’s Country Wisdom Bulletin, this 32 page bulletin contains information on the versatility of honey.

Honey can enrich most any food. From cooking tips, beverages, dressings, etc. this bulletin covers it all. $5.95 + S&H + tax

Call 519-523-4311 to order your books today!

Check out huroncitizen.ca for more books

Complete Infrastructure Supply • septic and holding tanks • sewer • watermain • concrete structures • hydrants and valves • hydro vaults • plow blades Lucknow location also offers • septic pumping • ready mix • aggregate and decorative stone

www.porters.ca Lucknow (head office) 519-528-3537 Owen Sound 519-372-1636 Stratford 519-271-5554

Division of J.A. Porter Holdings (Lucknow) Ltd.

Deadline for the October Rural Voice Issue is September 14

Starting at $7795 702 MAIN ST. SAUBLE BEACH (519) 422-ATVS (2887) sales.atvdepot@bellnet.ca

September 2021 65

National Farmers Union – Ontario NEWSLETTER Strong Communities.

Sound Policies.

Sustainable Farms.

Phone: 1-888-832-9638 E-mail: office@nfuontario.ca Website: www.nfuontario.ca

Planting the Seeds for Future Generations: Natalie Legault of RD Legault Seeds Natalie Legault is planting seeds for future generations – metaphorically, and literally.

Natalie and her husband Raphael run R D Legault Seeds – a seed processing plant and soybean exporter.

The business was founded in the 1980s by Natalie’s parents, incorporated in 1997, and taken over

by Natalie and Raphael in 2016 as the second generation of the company. It was one of Eastern Ontario’s pioneer soybean seed processors and the very first micronization plant established in Eastern Ontario.

On site, you will only find nonGMO and organic soybeans. Corn and soybeans are micronized (a process of cooking the grain through infrared that penetrates the grain and helps with digestion, solubility and removes pathogens) for animal feed. Soybeans are dehulled on-site, splitting the soybean in half, which is then used primarily for human consumption.

Their main clients are local farmers who buy micronized corn and soybean for feed; seed growers who are given seed soybean contracts, where RD Legault Seeds commits to buying all of their crop when it comes to harvest; and manufacturers and/or distributor clients that make food-grade soy products in several different countries.

R D Legault Seeds works exclusively with plant-based farmers and producers who use sustainable farming methods. They voluntarily test every incoming truck of soybeans for presence of glyphosate and believe in avoiding GMO foods.

Currently, RD Legault Seeds is in the process of transitioning their land to organic. It’s a three-year process to achieve the certification.

“You have to grow as if you were organic, but you’re not certified yet.

We have three years to really transition. It’s difficult because there are different methods and products that we’re used to, so we have to find a different way of cultivating. We are confident we’re going to get there.”

As an accredited seed processing plant, seed treatment plant and grain dealer, Natalie believes in acquiring accreditation and certifications as much as possible “because it brings knowledge, it brings structure, it brings different procedures and guidelines. All our certifications brought us something. I like constant learning, constant evolving.”

Natalie says it also Raphael and Natalie Legault and family offers satisfaction grower can multiply registered seed in knowing they’re following guidelines order to get a certified seed. and knowing the product is highAgriculture has always been a quality. passion of Natalie’s. Having been “You sleep better at night knowing immersed in it most of her life, she this is protocol. It provides quality says it’s “the true meaning of ‘life’. It insurance.” is my parents’ legacy and will be our Certified seed is the “the product of legacy to our kids some day.” a production process designed to It’s not always easy, and can bring deliver specific plant breeding unexpected challenges and long hours, achievements to farmers and the food but that’s okay because that’s the job industry; one that is rooted to identity she chose, Natalie says. preservation and quality assurance (as Recognition of the work that goes per CSGA [Canadian Seed Growers into farming from those outside of the Association] statement). In other industry is always appreciated. “What words, it is true-to-type. True-to-type is important to mention and to not means all the benefits developed by forget is that most farmers take good the plant breeder are retained as the care of the environment, they make a seed is multiplied over generations (to difference for future generations and the certified seed stage) from the small we don’t thank them enough!” amount of seed developed by the plant “We are part of the food supply breeder.’’ chain.

We can make a difference with Seed purity, germination and different approaches and by doing so freedom from impurities are the three we help stimulate the economy (with components that must be achieved to export).

We get to do something we produce certified seeds. Seed varieties are passionate about, and for that, I are multiplied on-site. In order to have am grateful!” certified seeds, breeder seeds come Natalie’s family has been an NFUfrom a qualified breeder to ensure O member for many years. “The first purity. A breeder/grower can then generation was part of it and we want multiply the variety. Once you have a to stay a part of it. The NFU-O gives select seed, a CSGA select grower can a voice to farmers like us. It is multiply it. Once multiplied, you have important to get together and speak for a foundation seed that a C S G A what we believe in and what we need certified grower can multiply to get a as a group.” ◊ registered seed. A CSGA certified

A subscription to The Rural Voice is one of the benefits of being an NFU-O member 66 The Rural Voice

Stewart Skinner, President stewart@stonaleenfarms.ca / 519-492-2990

Perth County Pork Producers NEWSLETTER

* The Rural Voice is provided to Perth County Pork Producers by the PCPPA perthcountyporkproducers@gmail.com

Local Pork Products Available BBQ season is here – fill your freezer with local pork products!

Order today from: Tanya and Darryl Terpstra 519-291-7603 Dave and Ruth Kloostra 519-347-2619 or visit Leis Feeds in Milverton Open Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to noon

BBQ services for large groups are also available, Contact: perthcountyporkproducers@gmail.com for more details.

Pork Supplied By: Perth County Pork Producers September 2021 67

Email: bruce@ofa.on.ca website: brucefederation.ca

446 10th St., Hanover, Ontario N4N 1P9 519-364-3050 or 1-800-275-9551

NEWSLETTER

* The Rural Voice is provided to OFA Members in Bruce County by the BCFA

Have you seen this sign?

Any opinion expressed is that of individual County Directors or Representatives and may not necessarily reflect the views of the Bruce County Federation of Agriculture or Ontario Federation of Agriculture.

Bruce Federation in conjunction with Grey Federation took on a consumer education project this summer, with the support of the OFA through their Revive Fund.

(The Revive Fund was established as a way for local Federations to increase member outreach and support community recovery from COVID-19).

The federations designed and purchased signs that directors placed along high traffic roadways in the two counties. The signs indicate the crop that is growing in the field as well as some of the end-use products from the crop. Also, hay and pasture fields were identified.

The hope of the federations is to highlight the importance of Bruce County Federation of Agriculture

2021 MEETINGS • September 27 • October 27 AGM • November 8 DUE TO COVID-19 BCFA Board Meetings have become conference/video call format.

Please contact the office if you are interested in taking part.

@ BruceFedAg Bruce Federation of Agriculture

agriculture to our non-farming neighbours and establish a link “Field to Fork” to the end consumer.

Education is key as consumers are becoming more removed from food production with each generation. ◊

We’re connecting virtually for this year’s OFA Regional Meeting Once again due to the COVID­19 pandemic, the OFA is conducting this year’s regional meeting in a virtual format.

The virtual meeting will be hosted on October 27 at 7:00 p.m The OFA regional meetings offer the opportunity to support your local agricultural community.

This virtual format ensures we protect the health and safety of our staff, directors and members.

The event includes elections for delegates and alternates to the OFA’s annual General Meeting and Policy Advisory Council (PAC) members.

These positions will be representing Bruce County at the OFA’s annual meeting on November 22, 2021. These opportunities allow members to bring concerns and suggestions to provincial OFA leadership.

The deadline for a member to submit their intention to run for one of these positions is October 20, or seven days prior to the meeting date.

The deadline to register for this year’s OFA Regional meeting is October 25.

Please contact your local Member Service Representative Joanne Hughes at: joanne.hughes@ofa.on.ca or 226­230­2359 to register and for more information.

* The Rural Voice is provided to OFA Members in Bruce County by the BCFA.

68 The Rural Voice

St., Hanover, Ontario N4N 1P9 Grey County Federation 446 10th519-364-3050 or 1-800-275-9551 grey@ofa.on.ca Website: greyfederation.ca of Agriculture * The Rural Voice is provided toEmail: OFA Members in Grey County by the GCFA

Grey and Bruce Federations design and purchase signs

Corn—Growing here

WHEAT—Growing here

Used For:

Used For:

x Whiskey

x Cooking Oil

x Beer

x Straw-bedding

x Ethanol

x Bread & Cereal

x Flour

x Cosmetics

x Livestock Feed

x Glue

x Livestock feed

x Paper

Grey County Federation of Agriculture

2021 MEETINGS September 9 • October 13 (AGM) • November 11 • December 9 •

DUE TO COVID-19 GCFA Board Meetings have become conference/video call format.

Please contact the office if you are interested in taking part.

@ GreyFedAg

Grey Federation of Agriculture

We’re connecting virtually for this year’s OFA Regional Meeting Once again due to the COVID­19 pandemic, the OFA is conducting this year’s regional meeting in a virtual format.

The virtual meeting will be hosted on October 13 at 7:00 p.m The OFA regional meetings offer the opportunity to support your local agricultural community.

This virtual format ensures we protect the health and safety of our staff, directors and members.

The event includes elections for delegates and alternates to the OFA’s annual General Meeting and Policy Advisory Council (PAC) members.

These positions will be representing Grey County at the OFA’s annual meeting on November 22, 2021. These opportunities allow members to bring concerns and suggestions to provincial OFA leadership.

The deadline for a member to submit their intention to run for one of these positions is October 6, or seven days prior to the meeting date.

The deadline to register for this year’s OFA Regional meeting is October 11.

Please contact your local Member Service Representative Joanne Hughes at: joanne.hughes@ofa.on.ca or 226­230­2359 to register and for more information.

* The Rural Voice is provided to OFA Members in Grey County by the GCFA.

September 2021 69

Perth County Federation of Agriculture Email: perthcountyfedofag@gmail.com Website: www.perthcountyfarmers.ca Sue Shafer, Office Administrator 1-833-229-6834 Sara Wood, President: 519-272-5525

Ministerial Zoning Orders: An Exceptionally Common “Exception” for Land Use Development Driving around the countryside, this summer has proven to be busy like any other for farmers across the great earth of Perth County. Whether it’s been shipping livestock, completing fieldwork, or perhaps beginning construction on a new building project, it’s great to see agriculture thriving.

We at Perth County Federation of Agriculture (PCFA) have been busy this summer as well, working on various projects and programs while continuing to address local concerns in our rural communities.

One such issue that has recurred in our discussions this summer, is the use of Ministerial Zoning Orders when it comes to land development.

Ministerial Zoning Orders (or MZOs) are “a tool our government uses, in partnership with municipalities, to get critical local projects, like housing and long-termcare homes, located outside of the greenbelt, moving faster.” This is a quote by Krystle Caputo, spokesperson for the Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing from a recent Globe and Mail article.

In the Ontario Planning Act, MZOs essentially allow the Minister the authority to approve zoning without public consultation or opportunity to appeal.

Perth County Federation of Agriculture

BOARD MEETING

Thursday, September 16 8:00 p.m.

Call 1-833-229-6834 to participate or to obtain more information

After an MZO was requested by the City of Stratford for a proposed glass plant in 2020, it was granted by the province. This process raised many concerns with citizens near and far, namely due to the lack of transparency in the process. After significant public backlash, the MZO was revoked and the project cancelled altogether.

Historically, MZOs seem to have been approved in rarer, more exceptional cases, but as of late, have been requested and approved at a greater rate, raising further concerns surrounding land use and development.

More recently, on June 22, the township of Perth East voted to support an application for an MZO in the town of Milverton. This MZO was requested in hopes of rezoning a 35-hectare parcel of farmland south of the town in order to construct a new industrial park.

While PCFA understands the importance of supporting development of small businesses within our communities, concerns arise with the increased usage of Minister’s Zoning Orders in areas with established local planning processes which utilize public input.

In bypassing critical discussions, there remains the risk that stakeholders in these projects do not have the ability to have their voices heard. One such issue with the zoning process – regardless of the use of an MZO or not – is the continued use of farmland for development projects.

OFA’s president, Keith Currie recently commented, “The continuing loss of the key resource that underpins Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sector has the potential to jeopardize the future of food production in the province.”

As farmers in the county are well aware of, Perth County is home to some of the best farmland in the province. We ought to ensure we protect this resource and be mindful of its use in land development discussions, so that this remains true for generations to come.

As such, PCFA continues to urge municipalities to discover other avenues to complete projects so that all stakeholders may have ample opportunity to voice their concerns over land use, and ultimately, ensure that MZOs remain exceptions to the norm, not the new norm.

– Submitted by Derek VanDeWalle, PCFA Director

Harvest Gala from home

November 20 Details coming soon....

* The Rural Voice is provided to OFA Members in Perth County by the PCFA.

70 The Rural Voice

Index 100.1 The Ranch ............................14 A.G. Hayter Contracting Ltd..........55 Apples ..............................................5 Argyle Marine & Small Engines ....60 Artisanal Chicken Program............40 Backyard BBQ ..........................17,24 BDO ................................................40 Belore Trailers ................................61 Bernie McGlynn/SB Flooring ........50 Bester Wood Products ..................50 Bill Walker MPP ..............................23 Bio-Ag ............................................24 Blue Water Angus Sale ..................62 Boonstoppel, Dave & Elly ..............64 Buddsteel Architectural Products ..4 Bushell’s Auto Sales ......................38 Canadian Co-operative Wool ..........7 CG Farms ..........................................6 Chalmers Fuels ..............................13 Cliff’s Plumbing & Heating ............53 DJ Henry Homes & Renovations ..60 Easy Lift Doors................................12 Egger Farms ..................................62 Fall Harvest ......................................2 Fieldwalker/Agronomy Advantage 21 Gerber’s Workwear ........................60 Greenfield Global ..........................49 Greenville Liquid Plant Food ........27 Grey-Bruce Construction ..............48 GRK Products ................................13 Grober Nutrition ....................Cover 4 Hanover Honda ..............................27 Harold Jones Enterprises ..............37 Hayden Water Wells ......................71 Hill & Hill Farms ....Inside Front Cover Hunter Steel Sales ................Cover 6 Huron Hauling & Excavating ........49 Huron Perth Public Health ..13,21,52 Huron Ridge Acres ........................45 JA Porter Holdings Ltd ..................65 Jennifer Cook & Associates ..........40 Kingwood Bins ..............................52 KMM Farm Drainage ......................19 Kraemer Concrete Ltd ....................61 Kuepfer Farm Drainage ..................61 Lakeside Shelving & Racking........24 Lambton County Museum ....Cover 4 Lisa Thompson MPP ......................65 Live Landscape ..............................45 Local Travel ....................................11 Maitland Welding ..........................60 Mapleview Agri ..............................32 Mark Cook Drainage Inc ................15 Marquardt Farm Drainage..............30 Martin Farm Wagons ......................19 Marvin L Smith ................................51 McConville Omni Insurance ..........38 McIntee Realtor - Steve Nixon ......61 Mike Boven Carpentry....................61 MNP LLP ........................................30 Morris Sachs Silo ..........................45 Nature’s Wave Inc ..........................64 North Huron Carpentry ..................10 Nuclear Waste Management ........23 Nuhn Forage ....................................7 Nutrient Management ....................31 Ontario Mutual Insurance......Cover 3

Parker & Parker..............................28 Pine River Tree ..............................65 Preserve & Store ........................9,15 Raynbow Signs ..............................60 RBC Ag West ....................................7 Ridgeway Metals ............................60 Ritz Lutheran Villa ................Cover 5 Royal LePage - Steacy Den Haan 25 Rural Living ....................................35 Rural Voice Books..........................56 Rural Voice Subscription ......Cover 7 Sauble Beach Motorsports 37,41,54,65 Schmidt’s Farm Drainage ..............13 Schweiss Doors ................................8 Sew & Save Centre ........................45 Sharp’s Creek Forge ......................10 Signature Crane ............................48

Smyth Welding................................61 Somerville Seedlings ......................51 Steffen Well Drilling ........................61 Stihl Dealers ..................................58 Stratford Agri Analysis ..................44 Superior Barn Painting ..........Cover 7 SWO Diesel Inc ......................Cover 6 The Crushing Aghent ....................47 Townsley Barn Painting ................63 Tree Planting/Maintenance ..........59 Triple P Consulting ........................54 Trouw Nutrition................Back Cover Usborne Hibbert Insurance ..........71 Waddell Engineering......................53 WD Hopper & Sons Ltd..................37 Williams Drainage ..........................54 Working Iron....................................61

Automobile, Residential, Farm & Commercial Properties 507 Main St. S., Exeter

519-235-0350

www.usborneandhibbert.ca

Celebrating Over 75 Years

We speak fluent farmer…

BECAUSE WE FARM TOO!

DRILLED WELLS BORED WELLS IRRIGATION WELLS WATER GUARANTEED Call us FIRST for great deals on new wells & pump systems

LUCAN

(519) 227-0057

www.haydenwaterwells.com

1-888-535-4455

info@haydenwaterwells.com

September 2021 71

HURON

42 First Avenue, Clinton, Ontario N0M 1L0 519-482-9642 or 1-800-511-1135

County Federation of Agriculture NEWSLETTER

Vote for OFA’s next provincial director representing Huron-Perth OFA members in Huron and Perth counties will soon be casting their vote for a new Zone 7 Director to represent their interests on the provincial Board of Directors.

All members in good standing in Huron should have received a package from the OFA containing election details, candidate information and options for submitting your vote.

OFA members can begin casting their vote on Monday, August 16.

Voting closes on Thursday, September 10, 2021.

The newly-elected Zone Director will serve in the position for a threeyear term, beginning immediately

following OFA’s 2021 Virtual Annual General Meeting on November 22, 2021.

Your 2021 election candidates include: • Julie Danen • Erica Murray • Ethan Wallace Your active involvement in this election process will help ensure the Board of Directors represents your interests as an Ontario farmer. Thank you for your vote.

For more information, please contact your local Member Service Representative Margaret Vincent 519-482-9642 ext 1 or margaret. vincent@ofa.on.ca or visit ofa.on.ca.

Website: www.hcfa.on.ca Email: ofahuron@tcc.on.ca

Upcoming Events Please note that all events are subject to change and will follow Public Health Guidelines as necessary.

September 6 - Labour Day September 16-19 - Seaforth Fall Fair. Visit www.seaforthagriculturalsociety.on.ca/fall-fair.

September 17-19 - Lucknow Fall Fair. Visit www.lucknowagsociety.com for details.

The outdoor farm show has moved virtual again this year. Details are at www.outdoor farmshow.com however two small-scale inperson events will be held on the Discovery Farm site in Woodstock, ON: September 21-22 - Outdoor Dairy Days September 23-24 - Crop Stop September 27-29 - Howick Fall Fair. Visit howickagriculturalsociety.ca for details.

Huron County Federation of Agriculture

BOARD MEETING

September 27 - 8:00 p.m.

Please contact the office if you are interested in participating or have items you wish discussed at this meeting.

From the history files ....

The HCFA works toward the future of local farmers. Sometimes we find it necessary to participate in rallies to have our say. Signs like these were used by the Huron County Federation of Agriculture members at the Canadian Farm Family Demonstration on Parliament Hill. Approximately 40,000 Ontario farmers and their families supported Canadian farms on February 21, 1992 in Ottawa.

Save the dates for Annual/Regional Meetings The OFA Regional Meeting will be held virtually on September 15 at 8:00 p.m. (please note date change) This meeting will include updates on current OFA issues and ongoing efforts, in addition to elections for OFA Policy Advisory Council members, Delegates and Alternates to the 2021 Ontario Federation of Agriculture Convention in November. margaret.vincent@ofa.on.ca 519 482 9642 ext 1 ************ The Huron County Federation of Agriculture Annual Meeting will be held virtually on Friday, October 22 at 8:00 p.m.

Please contact the office if you are interested in joining this meeting.

This is an opportunity to discuss resolutions coming from Huron County to the OFA convention. Resolutions that are time sensitive can be submitted sooner. We will also have elections for the HCFA board at this meeting.

Accepting Nominations!

The Huron County Federation of Agriculture is collecting nominations for the Huron County Outstanding Contribution to Agriculture Award.

When sending in your nomination please include the name, address and phone number of the nominee. Your nomination should include an explanation for the nomination such as the person or group’s contribution(s) to agriculture and rural life in Huron County.

Send nomination to the HCFA office.

DEADLINE IS SEPTEMBER 20, 2021 Please call before visiting the HCFA office to determine if the office is open.

Please be assured that we are still available to address your concerns by telephone: 519-482-9642 or email: ofahuron@tcc.on.ca

The Rural Voice is provided to all OFA members in Huron County by the Huron County Federation of Agriculture

72 The Rural Voice

Country life is amazing!

MAKE IT YOUR GIFT TO LOCAL SENIORS FOR YEARS TO COME. They are your parents, neighbours, aunts and uncles, friends: Local seniors love living here as much as you do. That's why we're building a new, Class A long-term care home on the site of Ritz Lutheran Villa in West Perth. To keep our seniors close to home in the country. To keep them safe, to keep them happy. And we're asking everyone in the rural communities surrounding West Perth to help us raise our local share of the building fund.

We're over half way: Help us finish the West Perth Village build. Look for the donation package coming to your home, call the number below or give online.

(519) 348 8612 x223

Care and Compassion in the Country.

C

WestPerthVillage.ca/donate

Supplying the agricultural industry needs since 1977!

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Angle Channel Hot and cold rolled bars Tool steel Beams Rebar Concrete reinforcing mesh Mechanical tubes Black pipe Galvanized pipe Sheet and Plate Bar grating Welded wire mesh Grip strut Precision ground shafting

* NEW * Now Stocking • Hog & Cattle Panels • Various livestock penning sizes available Services offered: • Saw cutting • Punching • Rebar cutting and bending • Custom welded columns and beams • Priming • Galvanizing OPEN: Monday - Friday 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

www.huntersteel.ca 519-273-3151 500 Lorne Ave. E., Stratford

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House & Barn Painting Pressure Washing Asphalt Coatings Sand & Air Blasting Roofs & Walls Elevator Legs Lightning Rod Systems Heavy Duty Seamless Eavestroughing Fully Insured Free Estimates

Liquid Rubber Sealant Uses:  Roof Maintenance & Restorations  Foundations  Bins We’re also certified applicators of Liquid Rubber

Liquid Rubber Features:    

Towson Bailie 519-878-1273 Office 519-268-8500

Waterproof Adheres to almost any surface Resists Cracking & Chipping Flexible in all weather

www.barnpainting.ca DORCHESTER

“The Magazine of Agricultural Life”

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for 12 issues

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for 24 issues

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Add a digital monthly copy for $10 a year!

Call 519-523-4311 to pay by credit card or mail a cheque made payable to: North Huron Publishing Inc. to Box 429, Blyth, ON N0M 1H0

Meeting your animals’ needs... with precision Trouw Nutrition is a pioneer in precision nutrition.

For over 35 years, we have been balancing rations to amino acids with our NEWTON® formulation program.

This means more accurate and cost-efficient diet formulation that meets the needs of your herd and in line with your goals.

No more, no less, just enough.

To take advantage of the power of NEWTON, talk to your Dairy Nutrition Advisor or local Shur-Gain® dealer.

trouwnutrition.ca

HENSALL CO-OP Londesboro 519-523-9606 800-265-9000 Zurich 519-236-7155 800-565-7155 Ripley 519-395-5955 855-895-5955 Mitchell 519-348-8752 800-669-3502 Alisa Craig 519-232-4449 Kurtzville 519-291-2220

DAUPHIN FEED & SUPPLY LTD. Dungannon 519-529-7951 800-665-5675

NIEUWLAND FEED & SUPPLY LTD. Listowel 519-291-5795 800-265-3229

Walton 519-887-6023

Drayton 519-638-3008 800-263-9819

THE HITCHING POST (2019) LTD. St. Marys 519-284-2360 HOLSTEIN FEED MILL (2015) LTD. Holstein 519-334-3424

Elora 519-846-5354 800-265-5354 TROUW NUTRITION (formerly Yantzi Feed & Seed) Tavistock 519-655-2033