Crop Management
By Robert Arnason Brandon bureau Canada’s rules and regulations for growing hemp are burdensome, tedious and in need of revision, says Chris Dzisiak, a grower from Dauphin, Man. Nonetheless, Dzisiak said it’s unrealistic to completely deregulate hemp production and treat the crop the same as canola, wheat and barley. “It is still a controlled substance…. […] Read more
Crop Management
Hemp industry argues for deregulation, but not all agree
General Mills begins selling Cheerios without GM ingredients
(Reuters) — General Mills Inc. said it has stopped using genetically modified ingredients in the popular breakfast cereal Cheerios as the U.S. branded foods manufacturer hopes the move will firm up customer loyalty in the face of growing opposition to such additives. Many activists and critics have cited studies showing that genetically modified crops are […] Read more
Now: The search for bigger, better bins; Then: wheat “currency”
Grain storage transformation. The concrete silos of yesterday sit empty. New, lighter, more portable bins have replaced them as farmers learn more about safe grain storage and proper bin ventilation. | by Mary MacArthur, Camrose bureau
NOW: BITTERN LAKE, Alta. – It was a push to modernize that encouraged Walter McNary to build the concrete silo in 1974. His son, George, had returned home to farm and encouraged his father to modernize their 50-cow dairy from a pit silo to something more automated. For $24,000, the family built the 24 foot […] Read more
Now: Dozens of tractor brands melded into few; Then: The world’s greatest tractor buy!
NOW: Breaking prairie sod and seeding crops at the turn of the century required big horses and strong men to work them. However, those big strong Canadian work horses and the prairie farm boys who drove them were swallowed up by the thousands in the muddy trenches of the First World War. By necessity, pistons […] Read more
Now: Will 2,4-D overcome its bad publicity?; Then: Reaction of weeds to 2,4-D
NOW: Last spring, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a postponement of its decision on whether to approve corn and soybean varieties that are tolerant of 2,4-D. The department said it received more than 8,200 comments on the potential impact of this new technology. It also received petitions signed by more than 400,000 people, mostly […] Read more
Neonicotinoids compared to DDT by environmentalists
Neonicotinoids are the new DDT. Neonicotinoids are the new DDT. Neonicotinoids are the new DDT. If you repeat something often enough, eventually people assume it’s true, says Joe Schwarz, director of McGill University’s Office for Science & Society and a scientist who dispels myths, nonsense and non-science. If Schwarz is right, North Americans may soon […] Read more
Both ends of tractor put to work
Front-mounted snow blowers | Front three-point hitch and p.t.o. equipment are more efficient than hydraulic systems
Front three-point hitches, front power take-off and big snow blowers have finally come into their own. This combination lets the operator use a large mechanical front-wheel drive tractor up to 400 horsepower, which helps prevent large snowbanks from building up. The added bonus is the health of the driver’s neck and back, which can take […] Read more
Auto Calibration keeps seed drill honest
Farmers know their calibration is off when they run out of seed and fertilizer 20 acres before the field is finished or too much product is left over when they’re done. Either way, it’s costly and cuts into seeding efficiency, says Owen Kinch, field research manager at Seed Master. “Our new Auto Calibration maintains one […] Read more
Manure transformed into biodegradable plastic
Petro-chemical replacement | Some PHA products are made from corn but using manure is more environmentally beneficial
GUELPH, Ont. — The idea of drinking out of a plastic cup made from cow manure may not seem overly appetizing to some people. “It’s not particularly appetizing to me either,” said Erik Coats, a University of Idaho civil engineering professor who is researching the chemistry of converting bio-waste into biodegradable plastic. “The yuck factor […] Read moreFront power take-off rotation standardized — then relaxed
Simplicity in the manufacturing process dictated that front power take-off systems would turn counter-clockwise when the first machines came to market in Germany 50 years ago. As well, only Deutz and Fendt were building the mowers that farmers bought for their tractors, which meant they could build them to turn any direction they wanted. “Rear […] Read more
