STAVELY, Alta. — Three separate farming operations east of this southern Alberta town have co-operated on a 313.56 kilowatt project that will use the sun to power pumps for their irrigation pivots. Lamb Farms Ltd., Roemmele Farms Ltd. and Lilybrook Herefords Inc. turned the key last week on an installation designed and erected by Western […] Read more
Author Archives
Volunteers collaborate to keep crimson in countryside
PINCHER CREEK, Alta. — It’s a lot of paint — 150 gallons of it — and it was all needed to cover the 14,500 sq. feet on the Zoeteman barn during a painting bee Aug. 9-10. Most of the paint did indeed end up on the barn itself, which is noteworthy considering the job was […] Read more
Mapping soil beneath the surface has benefits
LANGHAM, Sask. — The session at the Ag in Motion farm show near Saskatoon was titled “Uncover the secrets below your soil’s surface.” Mark Kuehn, project manager with Trimble’s Ag Business Solutions sector, was tasked with explaining how that can be done and how Trimble has done it for various clients. The company uses a […] Read more
Strychnine ban for gophers pondered
Health Canada proposes to end the use of strychnine to control ground squirrels and is seeking public input on the matter until Sept. 27. The proposal stems from a regular review of pesticides under the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. In its consultation document, Health Canada said strychnine kills ground squirrels, also commonly called gophers, but […] Read more
Wasp may take sting out of lygus damage
Researchers in Alberta are studying if a parasitic wasp will attack lygus bugs and protect canola and alfalfa crops
Lygus bugs can adversely affect many types of crops and work is underway to see if a parasitic wasp called peristenus can become a natural control for the pests. Hector Carcamo, research scientist at Agriculture Canada in Lethbridge, said peristenus successfully attacked lygus in laboratory-grown canola and alfalfa. Now he is studying how and whether […] Read more
Alta. researchers on the hunt for shorter alfalfa
Shortening the distance between nodes on an alfalfa plant reduces its height but produces the same number of flowers
BROOKS, Alta. — Researchers are testing four types of plant growth regulators on alfalfa this year to gauge their potential for shorter stands and reduced lodging. Brad Alexander, in charge of research and extension with the Alberta Alfalfa Seed Commission, told growers on a July 24 summer tour that PGRs had shown promise in greenhouse […] Read more
Heat stress requires extra animal care
Prevent heat stress by providing adequate water for outdoor dwellers and air movement for indoor dwellers
Dairy cattle and pigs breathe harder, beef cattle lie around and eat less, and all of them drink lots of water when temperatures rise above 25 C. Those physical responses aren’t surprising but the potential for heat stress in livestock should be monitored, according to veterinarians. Cooler nights are the saving grace for most western […] Read more
Swift foxes found in Alberta
At least five swift foxes are now resident in southeastern Alberta, a species that was declared locally extinct within Canada in the 1930s. Cameras erected on property managed by the Nature Conservancy of Canada photographed the foxes in an area south of Medicine Hat and about 50 kilometres west of the Saskatchewan border in late […] Read more
Producers may be forced to look for strychnine alternatives
Health Canada proposes to end the use of strychnine to control ground squirrels and is seeking public input on the matter until Sept. 27. The proposal stems from a regular review of pesticides under the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. In its consultation document, Health Canada said strychnine kills ground squirrels but it also kills non-target […] Read more
Traces of PED a ‘serious heads up’ for Sask. hog farmers
Two positive samples of the virus were found last week in the province on a livestock trailer and a truck wash
The truth is out there: evidence of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus continues to appear. Two positive samples found last week in Saskatchewan serve as a reminder that hog producers should be vigilant about biosecurity. No Saskatchewan pigs had contracted the virus as of July 30. The samples were found in a truck wash and on […] Read more
MEMBERSHIP