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Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 1986-08-13, Page 13PAGE 14. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 1986. So// testing first and last step in crop production BY JOHN HEARD SOILS AND CROPS SPECIALIST O.M.A.F. Times are busy down on the farm. With the variety of crops currently grown in this area, planting and harvest practically run together. Dairy farmers know this since they’ve been working on their second cut hay already, but this is new for some cash croppers. One farmer had the hired man combin ing winter rapeseed while he finished scuffling the beans - two jobs he traditionally considered fall and spring work. So with all this activity it is probable that some other jobs will be ignored. I hope you don’t ignore soil sampling or cleaning up the granary for the OFFIRR program changes announced More farmers will be eligible for greater interest rebate assistance under a new three-year program beginning September 1, Agricul ture and Food Minister Jack Riddell has announced. The new Ontario Family Farm Interest Rate Reduction (OFFIRR) program, as promised in the 1986 provincial budget, will provide interest rebates on up to $260,000 of existing long-term intermediate and short-term farm debt held by approved lenders. The new program brings the effective cost of long-term credit down to eight per cent or a maximum of seven percentage points. The maximum interest rate eligible for rebate on fluctuating demandloansisprime rate plus three per cent. The new program incorporates the interest reduction benefits of the Farm Operating Credit Assist ance Program (FOCAP) with the assistance provided under the popular 1985 OFFIRR program. At the end of July, the 1985 OFFIRR program had helped some 8,490 farmers with some $41 million in interest relief. More than 10,000 farmers applied for the program and applications are still being processed. It is expected the program will reach its target of close to $50 million in assistance. The new program offers enhanc ed benefits over the 1985 OFFIRR program including coverage of short-term and intermediate farm debt, an increase in the amount of eligible debt from $200,000 to $260,000, three years of assist ance, and expanded eligibility to include Beginning Farmers Assis tance Program participants. The operating loan guarantee aspect of the FOCAP program will continue as a separate program called the Operating Loan Guaran CUSTOM COMBINING TRUCKING AVAILABLE 2 Receiving Legs 8000 bu/hour unloading capacity OUR ELEVATORS WILL BE RECEIVING YOUR 1986 WHITE BEAN AND CORN CROP Ontario 1986 crop. Soil sampling and grain storage are the first and last activities in crop production -- not planting and harvesting. Now is theright time to soil sample for fall fertilized crops. This means the fields should be sampled now. It will take about two weeks from the time Agri-Food Labs receive your soil sample until you receive the mailed out recom mendations, so schedule your samplings accordingly. Agricrews are suffering a lull in their workload from late July into early August, so call in your manpower requests to your OMAF office. Of course, at this time of year it willbetheeasiesttosoil sample following a harvested crop - such as second cut hay, winter wheat or tee Program. The new OFFIRR program provides benefits of 100 per cent in the firstyear, 70 per cent in the second and 40 per cent in the third. The rebates are paid directly to the farmer by cheque. “This program is targeted to farm families with equity of 10 to 75 per cent,” said Riddell. “This is the group that has suffered most from eroding equity caused by high interest costs. The program will also consider producers with ex ceptional ability who have less than 10 per cent equity.” Ontario residents operating a farm from which they intend to earn a family living are eligible for assistance if they have less than 75 per cent equity. The amount of eligible debt is reduced if net worth exceeds $500,000, and if participants are already receiving benefits under the Ontario Junior Farmer Esta blishment Loan program or the Beginning Farmers Assistance Program. The amount of rebate is affected if off-farm income exceeds $30,000 and if participants are receiving interest reduction grants under the 1986 FOCAP. Rebates cannot be paid until after any loan guarantee under the Ontario Farm Adjust ment Assistance program or FOCAP has expired or repayment has been made. Deadline for applications if. May 18, 1987. Applications for the new OFFIRR program will be availble from local OMAF offices beginn ing September 1, 1986. Further information and applications forms are also available from OFFIRR, Farm Assistance Pro grams Branch, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, 801 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario M7A 2B2. (416) 965-7661. winter rapeseed - but sampling row crops is important also. This is especially the case if you suspect nutrient problems in the crop. Visual assessment of where the crop is good and where it is poor is much more accurate now, when the crop is actively growing than after harvest or worse yet, next spring after fall tillage. By noting crop colour or height differences you can sample problem areas separ ately and compare to soil tests from good areas. And if you are using the Ontario SoilTestLab at Guelph-- where there is no charge for routine phosphorus, potassium, pH and magnesium tests, you may feel guilty. You are getting a free service that most crop producers in this continent pay for. Even if you don’t consider this a benefit, you can rest assured that other coun tries consider it when figuring out subsidies paid to Ontario crop producers. For only $2.00 per sample you can get zinc and manganese tests and for another $5.00 an organic matter test. These measures are probably important in diagnosing problem areas. Rarely are OMAF employees accused of selling fertilizer for supply companies. But, when we get asked over the phone, “How much phosphorus and potash do I need on my alfalfa and winter wheat and I don’t have a soil test’ ’, we usually recommend for a low fertility soil, meaning high rates of fertilizer. That’s because the yield penalty for under fertilizing is more severe than the cost of over-fertilizing (since over fertilizing will help build your soil test levels). If you don’t soil test - then you should expect to pay more for fertilizer -- since you are not working at fine tuning your cropping program. Dealing with stored grain in sects is another textbook case of a bitof pre vention being a lot less painful than trying to cure the problem. Several farmers the last LOGEL Enterprises RR3, Listowel, Ont. TOPDOLLARS PAIDFOR SCRAPCARS ANDTRUCKS Parts to fit mostvehicles Check Our Prices! Call us at 291-1464 two months have gone through the task of transferring grain from one bin to another and fumigating the grain. Not only is this frustrating, but also dangerous. Proper gas masks must be worn when fumiga ting and farmers are often hesitant about feeding grain they know has been treated to kill insects. Grain bins should be thoroughly cleaned of all old grain and caked on material. This should remove the major source of insects that will spread to new grain. Fully perfor- atedfloors pose problems since they cannot be lifted for cleaning. Insects remaining may be controll ed by spraying the clean bin at least | A NEW ADDITION TO | J Steuwti "Pfiowtacty | | ____________BRUSSELS____________ | Keep an eye open for our Grand Opening Sale Triiiiiiiiiimiisiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin Public Tour of Reforested Farmland and Managed Woodlots in Goderich Township Take this opportunity to see the long-term resultsof reforesting marginal farmland and the bene fits of proper woodlot manage ment. All rural landowners, in particular, are invited. Date: Thursday, August 28, 1986 Time: 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. [two-hour bus tour] Location: Tour begins in the Holmesville area [please call for details] Cost: None, but PRE-REGIST- RATION IS REQUIRED by contacting, by August 22nd, Marvin Smith or Steven Bowers at the Wingham District Office, Ministry of Natural Resources, R.R. #5, Wingham, Ontario, NOG 2W0. Phone 1-800-265- 3003 toll free. Ministry of Natural Resources two weeks betore moving in ne^v grain. Spraying250to330mLof malatbion, 500 EC in 5 L of water will treat 100m2 of bin surface. Keeping the grain dry and cool will help control molds as well as insects. Grains should be stored at 14 per cent moisture or less and cooled if aeration is possible. Both of these jobs -- soil sampling and cleaning grain bins - are important and should receive a high priority --just as important as making sure your combine is repaired, adjusted and ready to harvest the 1986 crop. After all, soil sampling and grain storage are the first and last steps of crop management. Hon. Vincent G. Kerrio Minister Mary Mogford Deputy Minister