New Keystone Agricultural Producers president watches as her four children continue the family’s work in the industry
On a dairy, beef, and grain farm near Portage La Prairie, Man., the four Verwey children have always known they are part of a hard-working, politically savvy agricultural entity. Beginning with their grandfather, Gerrard, through his four sons, including their father, Ray, the next generation, Rachael, Brice, Randi and Lindsay have agriculture in their DNA. […] Read moreStories by Freelance writer
New blood offers new life to historical society
Younger members make it easier for the Birch Hills and District Historical Society to hold its annual Threshing Day event
Birch Hills was alive with history Aug. 13 as the 24th annual Threshing Day took people back in time to the turn of the century in Saskatchewan. Old tractors and machines were on display with a barbecue, trades demonstrations, and fiddle music. After 24 years of events, with a small break during the COVID-19 pandemic, […] Read more
Electronic patch helps monitor disease
Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed an electronic patch that can be applied to the underside of a leaf to monitor it for the first signs of viral or fungal infections or for other stresses, such as salinity or drought. Test results showed the patch could detect a viral infection more than a […] Read more
Video game takes young people on a tour of the range
The new game is the Canadian Cattle Association’s latest effort to update its documentary about the importance of grazing
Farm simulations are a popular video game subgenre. Now, the Guardians of the Grasslands teaching tool, produced by the Canadian Cattle Association, has a video game component aimed at middle and high school students for in-class learning. Riffing off the title of the popular superhero series Guardians of the Galaxy, the CCA has been promoting […] Read more
Advocacy group promotes fibre
Saskatchewan produces plenty of different fibres, including fibre from sheep, alpaca, flax and hemp. Yet the market for locally grown natural fibres has remained small. Now, the Prairie Fibreshed Network wants to change that by connecting producers and consumers and spreading the news about locally made fibres, said Sonja Welford, Prairie Fibreshed’s treasurer and a […] Read more
Small-town fire hall gets big upgrade
Residents of a Sask. village and surrounding RMs pitch in to improve the home base of their volunteer fire department
The residents of Dinsmore, Sask., and those living in surrounding rural municipalities have pulled together to build a larger, better-outfitted fire hall. The rural municipalities of Milden, Fertile Valley and King George partnered with the Village of Dinsmore to provide 25 percent of the capital investment. Additional funds were provided through Dinsmore and District Fire […] Read more
Alta. producer sings praises of hybrid fall rye
Farmer selected the crop when looking for ways to expand his wheat-canola rotation to solve disease and insect problems
GALAHAD, Alta. — The addition of hybrid fall rye to the crop rotation has helped limit disease, control weeds and produce better canola crops, said a Rosalind, Alta., farmer. “Consistently it performs. It is rather remarkable,” said Matthew Enright, who started growing the crop when he moved back to the farm in 2015. Enright said […] Read more
Drones put to work tracking down water stress relationship
A University of Saskatchewan researcher is using drones to study the correlation between the thermal temperature of a plant and water stress, which typically means a shortness of water. “I’m using UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to collect the thermal electromagnetic radiation that comes off of crops and using that to correlate it to crop volumetric […] Read more
Enjoying the sweet smell of success
Kristen Primrose — yes, that’s her actual name — is a flower farmer in Alberta’s Cardston County. “It was an accident,” she says with a laugh. “I was pregnant and didn’t get my garden in,” she says. “We had all these black oil sunflower seeds we were feeding the chickens and I wondered if they […] Read more
Sask. sheep exhibition shows market growth
Organizers scrambled to find room for 160 sheep and lambs from 32 producers for the Grasslands Sheep Exhibition
HUMBOLDT, Sask. — Sheep numbers at the 2023 Grasslands Sheep Exhibition in Humboldt, Sask., were up 50 percent over last year’s show, which organizers said is an indication of industry growth. Sheep producers from across the Prairies participated in the July 21-23 exhibition. Organized by the Saskatchewan Sheep Breeders Association and the Saskatchewan Sheep Development […] Read more
