The key to organic rotational no-till lies in the amount of mulch cover, said a research technician. The key is also understanding that tillage will be necessary at some point to control weeds, said Keith Bamford of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Manitoba. Since 2007, Bamford has been studying […] Read more
Farm business
Alberta Party focuses on research, value-added
Farmers can expect an elected Alberta Party government to tweak farm safety legislation, as well as kickstart a fund to bolster research. The party’s agriculture platform, released April 8, says the party aims to grow Alberta’s agriculture industry by $1 billion through new programs and policies. The Alberta Party said it would create an agriculture […] Read more
China-canola disruption has wide-reaching effects
Here are some random observations on canola, China and grain markets overall. No conclusions, no solutions, just food for thought. First, given the loss of our biggest export customer for canola, it’s surprising that the price drop hasn’t been more precipitous. Canola prices have certainly declined, but there weren’t a bunch of limit down days […] Read more
NDP vows to extend AFSC financing
Alberta farmers can expect a re-elected NDP government to streamline farmland approvals and allow the Agriculture Financial Services Corp. to extend financing for non-traditional crops and livestock. The measures, unveiled in NDP leader Rachel Notley’s platform March 31, hope to lure voters despite rural support remaining generally low for the party. The NDP platform said […] Read more
Life after death: learning to carry on
Two farm women whose husbands died in farm accidents share their experience of how they rebuilt their lives
A farm family is tied together by love and work. When that bond is torn apart by the sudden death of a family member, the survivors are grief-stricken and the business can be thrown into upheaval. Maggie Van Camp and Angie Fox lost their husbands in farm accidents. Maggie was 46 with three teenagers when […] Read moreRotations long been focus for agriculture
In the 1830s, The Farmers’ Cabinet, and American Herd-book arrived in the mailboxes of about 10,000 farmers in United States. It covered nearly all aspects of production agriculture, from growing crops and livestock to processing, financing and selling them. Twice each month, farmers received 16 book-pages for the modern equivalent price of about US$48 annually. […] Read more
Alta. dairy farm innovates its way to success
On the Farm: The ter Borgh family believes in adopting new technology but says supply management is also crucial
CALMAR, Alta. — The ter Borgh family continues to evolve, adopting newer technologies on their dairy farm to make tasks easier. The family recently installed a rotary milking system, a merry-go-round-like structure that can milk 250 to 270 cows per hour. Without it, milking would’ve taken about six hours, said Johan ter Borgh. “There would […] Read more
How a model canoe is like family farm succession plan
My wife gave me my 54th birthday present back in February. It was a long cardboard box not quite 1.5 metres long, 25 centimetres wide and 10 cm deep. As I took off the wrapping paper she watched for my reaction and, as it wasn’t immediately obvious what she had got me, I took my […] Read more
‘Boomtown’ theatre enjoys long life
Concerned residents formed an organization in Bashaw, Alta., in 1998 to save the historic building from demolition
BASHAW, Alta. — The more things change, the more they stay the same. This adage has proven true when it comes to the 104-year-old Majestic Theatre in the central Alberta town of Bashaw. The exterior of the plain clapboard 1 1/2 storey structure looks almost identical to when it was erected in 1915. In the […] Read more
Life coach helps set clear vision
One of the most important life lessons Wayne Gibson learned in becoming a life coach is the value of a powerful question. “We need the right questions, the right perspective on how to look at something so we can see it a little bit more clearly than we did before,” says the Regina-based life coach. […] Read more
