The Rural Voice, 1980-06, Page 32Agriculture Canada pathologists have
confirmed the presence of the spores on
several varieties of seed corn.
There is no effective seed treatment
registered for the control of head smut
spores. Agriculture Canada is concerned
that the sale of diseased seed corn
contaminate disease-free fields.
Additional tests have indicated the
presence of head smut spores on some Tots
of sweet corn seed. Because sweet corn
varieties tend to be more susceptible to this
disease than field corn varieties, farmers
are cautioned against planting sweet corn
near field corn.
A survey is planned during 1980 to
determine whether the disease has spread
to other areas.
Research has been started to determine
the resistance of corn hybrids to head
smut and the effectiveness of various
chemicals for head smut control.
Chicken and pigs
don't mix
Chickens and pigs don't mix, says Bill
Bulmer, chief of indigenous diseases in
Agriculture Canada's health of animals
directorate in Otfawa.
"For 50 years we have been warning
farmers to keep poultry separate from pigs
and cattle. But on some smaller farms, the
message hasn't always gotten through."
Dr. Bulmer says.
His concern is that chickens commonly
carry tuberculosis (TB). The avian strain of
the disease can spread to pigs, and, to a
lesser degree, to cattle.
"Generally, poultry is slaughtered
before the disease can develop, so there is
little economic loss. But if the disease
spreads to a pig, its meat will be
condemned at the packing plant and the
farmer will lose a considerable amount of
money," Dr. Bulmer says.
The federal government also incurs a
cost.
"Tuberculosis is a reportable disease
under the Animal Diseases Protection Act.
This means we have to send a veterinarian
to the farm of origin to investigate and
collect samples to see if the disease has
spread to other livestock."
In a recent example, Dr. Neil Palechek of
the directorate's Edmonton office, had to
investigate the source of an infected hog
carcass.
"Dr. Palechek found a flock of heavily
infected chickens roosting directly above
the pig pens. He then tested all of the
cattle on the farm and found that several
reacted positively to the TB test," Dr.
Bulmer says.
The veterinarian explains that the avian
type of TB found in chickens and pigs is not
considered dangerous to humans, so there
is no eradication program for it.
On the other hand, the bovine and
human strains of TB found in cattle are the
subject of an extensive eradication
program. When infected animals are found
in packing plants, they are traced back to
the farm of origin. From there, veterinary
officials trace the source of the disease and
where it may have spread.
Compensation is paid to livestock owners
when animals infected with the bovine or
human strains of TB are ordered
destroyed.
Do I have to grow
bigger and bigger?
by G.S. Moggacb OMAF Agriculture
Engineer
One of the biggest worries associated
with farming in the past 25 years has been
the question -- Do I have to grow bigger
and bigger, piling risk on risk on an
evergrowing investment to keep from
being left behind in the game?
When looking at farming over this period
of years, I have come to the conclusion that
there is room for the moderate man in
agriculture. In fact, in many cases, he has
more chance of success and of getting more
fun out of life than the large operator with
the super-duper push-button outfit.
Some of the really big ones succeed, but
so me don't. The factory approach to cattle
feeding works, but many medium-sized
operators have also done very well. When
we look objectively at the spectacular
farming ideas that have been pushed over
the years, I think we have to admit that
several of them have failed.
The moderate farmer has watched these
highly publicized operators, picked up
some of their ideas to be adapted to a
middle-sized business, and continued to
operate a profitable farm business. I think
we have to admit that a lot of the good
farming is still being done by the
moderates.
The moderate farmer knows you must
have a good volume in today's farming to
meet the cost of purchased inputs and the
increasing expense of raising the family,
but he knows the most profitable business
is not always the biggest.
The big guy who has bitten off more than
he can handle can be just as much of a
slave as the little operator who hasn't
enough to work with.
The moderate farmer knows that the
manure fork and scoop shovel are obsolete,
but he also knows that he can work quite
efficiently with a tractor and a front end
loader in the feeding of his livestock, and
that the push-button feeding setup may not
be economical for him. Smaller tractors
may do as well for him as the larger ones if
Mailbox of the month
Ken and Dorothy Williams, Tuckersmith
Twp., Huron County
he adjusts his habits to work them more
hours.
The moderate farmer knows that he has
to keep good records and that modern
farming is done more and more with the
head rather than with his hands. However,
this does not mean that getting up in the
morning, taking good care of land,
livestock, machinery and avoiding waste
have gone out of style.
The moderate farmer also knows the
value of specialization and streamlining of
his business, but he is wary of staking
everything on the investment in one crop
and nothing else. He still thinks there is
room for "old-fashioned" diversification to
spread the risk and make more efficient
use of his time.
The moderate farmer borrows money
when he needs it with an eye to increasing
his returns from land, labor and
equipment, but he uses a sharp pencil first
to make sure that new expenditures will
help his cash flow and increase his net
income in the long run.
He doesn't expand just to keep up with
his neighbours. He can't afford to be too
far behind and pass up new ideas that
really make money, but he knows there is
always risk in being an innovator.
Will the moderate operator be able to
succeed in the fast-moving business of
farming as we know it today? I think he will
and I am sure the credit agencies he deals
with will support him because moderate
and efficient farm businesses are possible
and desirable for most farmers.
THE RURAL VOICEIJUNE 1980 PG. 33