DUVAL, Sask. — Corn is moving closer to a permanent place in Saskatchewan crop rotations, if Brad Hanmer’s recent hybrid grain corn results are any clue. The Duval producer recently harvested a 65 acre field of two Pioneer Hi-Bred corn varieties: P7443RR and P7213RR. The corn stood 2.5 metres tall, nestled between the community’s old […] Read more
William DeKay
Stories by William DeKay
Program weighs rewards and risks
CANDO, Sask. — Jim Cook has become a believer in investing in intensive agronomic strategies. As he combined his wheat Sept. 13, Cook was noticeably pleased with what he was seeing in his field. He didn’t need a weigh wagon to tell him that the crop had a significant yield increase. The Cando farmer averaged […] Read more
Producers’ bumper crop a once in a lifetime event
Erin Hoogeveen quickly became a photographer when her combine’s yield monitor started reading 140 bushels per acre. She used her cellphone to photograph the monitor while the bumper crop sucked the horsepower out of the combine. Three days into combining, the farm near Springwater, Sask., is averaging 80 bushels per acre on its spring wheat. […] Read more
Play and work combine on community pasture
HANLEY, Sask. — Work and play are one in the same for the Gonnet family of Hanley. “It’s a great way of life,” said Peter Gonnet, who had just returned home with his wife, Pam, daughter, Becky, and son-in-law, Rick Wiebe, from a weekend of riding, roping and chasing cows at a neighbour’s working cowboy […] Read more
Photojournalist a hero during Katrina floods
Ted Jackson and I are both photojournalists. We began our careers about the same time, 25 years ago. He chose New Orleans and I chose Detroit – both cities that are highly visual and emotional front lines on the human condition. Next to firefighters and police, photojournalists working in large cities are accustomed to being […] Read more
Sask. 4-H Council gets ready to take home another accolade
The Saskatchewan 4-H Council will have to wait until November to see if it will win the annual Donner Award for the second year in a row. Last year, it received the award in the education category and picked up $5,000 in prize money. This year, the provincial 4-H chapter is among 19 Canadian finalists […] Read more
Monitor for signs of midge
Timing is everything and that goes for wheat midge too. Starting now, prairie producers need to be on the lookout for the insect pest. Combine this year’s high moisture with a series of normal heat unit days, and midge numbers could be high. The potential for economically damaging infestations to wheat crops is highest in […] Read more
Ag manufacturers eyeing Saskatchewan tractor design team
Engineering students from the University of Saskatchewan continue to get high marks in competition while attracting attention from U.S. Midwest implement manufacturers. The Sled Dogs team put in its best showing at the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers’ annual quarter scale tractor international student design competition, held this year in Peoria, Illinois, June […] Read more
Private collection honours bookworm
Shaunna Raycraft knows she made the right decision to buy the literary collection of the late Keith McCoy. She recalled walking by a burn barrel at McCoy’s home and the charred remains of her favourite book, Black Beauty. It was a first edition copy believed to be worth $9,000. “That motivated me to save the […] Read more
Ditch hay mowers need to know their dates
Ron Hansen knows the value of ditch hay and when it needs to be cut. That was reinforced several years back when the producer from Maple Creek, Sask., says he had a rough experience trying to cut ditch hay outside his area. Dry conditions meant there was little grass in the ditches around Maple Creek, […] Read more
