THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2016
VOL. 94 | NO. 7 | $4.25
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SERVING WESTERN CANADIAN FARM FAMILIES SINCE 1923
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ELBOW GREASE AND A WRENCH
Warm winter a mixed blessing
Specialize or diversify? Crop advi adviser takes view th hat spec that specialization in a ffew ew crops is the way to go BY ROBERT ARNASON BRANDON B BRAN DON BUREAU
Western W We esttern Canadian Ca farmers have ffor fo or years yearss hea ye heard the same message ffrom fr ro m agronomists aagr g ono and advisers: gr w a diverse grow diver array of crops, the m ore the me more merrier. D Da vid Sulli David Sullivan takes a differentp po oint of view. view He says producers point ssh ho ou uld sspe pecci should specialize with three or four ccr rop o s and an nd drop dr the rest. crops “I see “I seeee way waayy too t many farms growiin ng se seve ven, ve n eeight ig or nine crops,” said ing seven, Su S u llll ivvan an,, vi vic Sullivan, vice-president of sales aan nd marketing m rk ma rket eti for Global Ag Risk and So S ollu uti tion ns, a private crop insurer Solutions, ba b asseed in n Moose Moo o based Jaw. ““If “I If you you we yo wer r to go to the racetrack were aan nd bet b t on every be e and single horse, you w wo oul uld dn’t ’t walk wa (away) with much w wouldn’t mo m on neey. y You’ve You’ got to pick the winmoney. ne n ers ers rs. F Fa arm rmin is no different.” ners. Farming S Su ulllliv ivan n, w Sullivan, who spoke at the Crop Co C on nn necct con Connect conference in Winnipeg Fe F eb b.. 10, 1 0 , has ha analyzed the crop Feb. rre ettu etu urn rns of Gl returns Global Ag Risk Solution cclients cl lie ien en ntts ts an aand dd determined that prod du uce cers rs m ake most of their money ducers make ffr rom om ttwo wo or three t from crops.
Livestock producers cers say swath grazingg is d crop more difficult and eld ds producers see fields drying out BY MARY MACARTHUR R CAMROSE BUREAU
Ryan Mercer expects c t s to to b begin e g in eg in if the thee warm warrm wa m seeding in early Aprill if weather continues. a nd d drying d r yi dr y i ng yin ng High temperaturess and he snow sn no ow w aan nd nd winds have melted the and ure o ut o ut tthe he started to suck moisture out off th ge-areea see se eeed d ground at his Lethbridge-area seed farm. n early spring spri sp ring ng “I expect it will be an M ercceerr. unless things change,” said Me Mercer. ering ab aabove b ovv e Temperatures hovering hawin n g th he 10 C have started thawing the s. ground and drying thee fields fields. as also ma m adee The warm weather has made ning se eed ed 24 24 it easier on crews cleaning seed stmas. hours a day since Christmas. easier,,” said s id sa d “It makes that job easier,” Mercer. und and n d tthe nd hee h The softening ground ound like likk e a lack of snow may sound oducers, s, but s, but ut bonus for livestock producers, h a de d e iitt Graeme Finn said it ha hass ma made cat attl at ttl tle. e. tougher to swath grazee his cattle. nit ni With no snow cover, the cattle ““nit waths, takingg pick” through the swaths, ng the straw w the best bits, dragging poundin ng itt between swaths and pounding into the soft ground. ch ffeed, eed d “They don’t need ass much but they go through more because they drag it around,” said Finn, who farms near Crossfield, Alta. Finn did unplug the electricity to his insulated water trough because the weather always seems to be above freezing at night. SEE WARM WINTER, PAGE 4
CROP CONNECT CONFERENCE
SEE SPECIALIZE, SEE SPECIALIZ PAGE 4
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FEBRUARY 18, 2016 FEB Return undelive undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 2 2500, Stn. Main, Saskat Saskatoon, SK. S7K 2C4
Grant Howg fixes a grain car leak at the G3 Terminal near Leader, Sask. | WILLIAM DEKAY PHOTO
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