CARMAN, Man. – When Jack Vanderveen arrived in Canada, he had only a dream, a suitcase and $60. His dream was to farm in Canada. That ambition drew him away from Holland and the dairy farm that his father owned there. Vanderveen arrived in 1953, choosing to live at Carman because his girlfriend lived there. […] Read more
Stories by Ian Bell
Proposed plant converts flax to special fibre
Plans for a flax processing plant in Western Canada are coming together, with hope among its proponents that full production could start within two years. The plant would convert flax straw into a fibre referred to as Fibex. The fibre would then be blended with plastic to create a strong, lightweight composite material. Alpha Fibre […] Read more
Clues sought in fatal spray plane crash near Virden, Man.
News spread through Western Canada’s aerial application industry last week following the death of a spray plane pilot in western Manitoba. David Michael Sidoryk, a 40-year-old Virden man, died after the plane he was flying crashed into a field. The accident happened June 22 shortly after takeoff from a small airstrip near Virden. “Anytime anything […] Read more
Two million acres unseeded due to rain
Harvey Clark’s seeding equipment sat idle this spring, kept off his fields by torrents of rain that swept over his farm in May and June. As seeding drew to a close last week, Clark was forced to confront the spectre of having 6,000 acres of unseeded land, the amount he and his two sons usually […] Read more
Manitoba gov’t regains control of water drainage
A Manitoba farmer suffered a setback last week in the debate about who has jurisdiction over land drainage in Manitoba. Ray Hildebrandt, a farmer at Ninga, Man., found himself in a debate after being charged two years ago with illegally draining water from his land. He drained water from his field without a provincial permit. […] Read more
Wet fields sink seeding
A grim reality began to settle over parts of southeastern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba this week. Farmers such as Howard Taylor were confronting the fact that they won’t seed a crop this year. Their fields remain too wet to work. “I can hardly even spray,” said Taylor, who farms with his brother near Carievale, Sask. […] Read more
Children make themselves at home on Manitoba farm
SIDNEY, Man. – Dylan Carritt seems indifferent to the mosquitoes that dart around him in the humid warmth of the evening. After clambering up the knots of a rope swing, he eagerly looks for someone to set the swing in motion. “Dad, can you push me? Can you push me?” he calls to his father, […] Read more
Short line to open; ‘use it or lose it’
A railroad company admits there will be challenges to starting a short line in southern Manitoba. CN Rail reached an agreement in principle this month to transfer the Miami subdivision to Manitoba Southern Railway Inc. The subdivision, a 230-kilometre stretch of track, runs from Miami to Elgin, Man. Manitoba Southern Railway is a newly created […] Read more
No let-up in Manitoba’s unruly weather
ELGIN, Man. – Wicked weather added insult to injury at a farm here last week. Rick Pettinger was struggling this spring to get his crop seeded because of too much moisture. The weather dealt him another blow June 8, when a tornado tore through his farmyard, uprooting trees and lifting the roof off his machine […] Read more
Manitoba wants control of water
A case that could set a precedent for land drainage in Manitoba is before the Court of Queen’s Bench in Brandon. At the centre of the case is Ray Hildebrandt, a Ninga, Man., farmer who was charged two years ago with illegally draining water from his land. Hildebrandt diverted water from a field without a […] Read more
