Rob Graf likes winter wheat. And he admires it. The Agriculture Canada wheat breeder has been working on new varieties from the Lethbridge Research Centre for 19 years. “I could never go back to breeding spring wheat. Spring wheat is just a wimpy little plant. Winter wheat is where it’s at,” he told those at […] Read more
Barb Glen
Stories by Barb Glen
Award winning breeders explore DNA testing
Alberta ranch is the inaugural recipient of the Certified Angus Beef Canadian Commitment to Excellence Award
When Dyce Bolduc bought three Angus females at a sale in 1967, it was a way to assert his independence. He didn’t know then that it was the start of a 51-year career in Angus cattle and the start of the Cudlobe Angus operation that he and his brother, David, built on a ranch near […] Read moreNew winter wheat varieties outlined
Elevate, Wildfire and Goldrush are among the newer varieties of winter wheat that stem from Agriculture Canada wheat breeding efforts. Wheat breeder Rob Graf outlined some of the varieties’ attributes June 7 during a plot hop organized by Lethbridge-based Farming Smarter. Elevate Registered in 2014, Elevate was an attempt to find a variety suitable for […] Read more
Alberta ag minister visits the big burn
The area near Hilda, Alta., that burned last fall in a wildfire is no longer black but damage to pasture and cropland remains evident. Andy Kirschenman, whose family sustained crop, equipment and building losses in the fire, including his parents’ home, said recovery has begun but it will be slow. “It’s hurt, you can tell,” […] Read more
Yes, Hutterites do pay taxes
Hutterites and Hutterite colonies pay income taxes. In fact, they often pay more than their non-Hutterite farming neighbours. “It’s a very common myth,” said MNP regional managing partner and certified professional accountant Gord Tait. “The biggest myth … is that Hutterites don’t pay income tax or that they pay significantly less than others. “It is […] Read more
A crop sensor that costs only $25.69? Sign me up
Farmers shopping for soil sensors to assist in crop monitoring might find a unit priced at $25.69 to be appealing. Yes, the decimal is in the right place. Adam Stanford, research technician at the Farming Smarter applied research group in Lethbridge, said that price is possible for farmers willing to employ some do-it-yourself ingenuity. “The […] Read more
Horse owners wary of proposed EIA regs
A proposed new control program for Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) in horses is raising concerns with horse owners. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has offered the proposal for input until June 18. As the deadline approaches, some horse owners have voiced concerns about proposed new requirements for testing and a view that the proposal amounts […] Read more
Non-fundable checkoff subject to Alta. vote
Plebiscite will be held later this year on a joint plan agreed upon by the two largest cattle groups in the province
A refundable checkoff or a non-refundable checkoff? Members of Alberta Beef Producers and Alberta Cattle Feeders Association have been wrestling with the question seemingly until the cows came home. The matter will be settled through a plebiscite to be voted upon later this year by members of both groups, with the terms yet to be […] Read more
Award winning farmers guided by five goals
FORT STEELE, B.C. — Energy and enthusiasm for agriculture are in abundant supply at Cutter Ranch, owned and operated by Sacha Bentall and Tyler McNaughton. Their pasture-raised pork, lamb and beef operation, which they’ve developed over the past 10 years, required plenty of both attributes. Those same qualities also factored into earning them the 2018 […] Read more
Zen and the art of power pole maintenance
HAYS, Alta. — Power pole number 6663136 stands along Highway 36 north of Taber, Alta., holding up an array of electrical wires. The lodgepole pine pole is 35 feet tall with a circumference of 32 inches. It was placed in its spot in 1994 after being treated with chromated copper arsenate (CCA), a wood preservative. […] Read more
