The Rural Voice, 1982-02, Page 10settle and work with each other.
At present they work the same acreage.
Bill owns 137 acres and rents an additional
60. They carefully check the land and
decide together which piece of land should
be worked and seeded first. The same
goes for the harvest decisions. Between
the two of them they grow white beans,
and winter wheat and share the cost of the
machinery required.
"It sure comes in handy having an extra
pair of hands to share in the work." says
Bill.
At the end of the year they review the
seeding and harvest and go over the
figures for fertilizer, and seed and
determine an even balance.
Bill also keeps busy with his 60 sow
farrow -to -finish operation. He has re-
novated his barn quite carefully and has
enjoyed developing new ideas to stream-
line his operation.
But his ingenuity has carried right into
the home, he and his wife built. With his
father so close and able to manage a lot of
the farm work for him, Bill and his wife
Fran designed and built their own home
using as much materials as could be
salvaged from the old farm house they
originally lived in. Together they even
installed the plumbing and heating with a
major innovative idea.
Bill made a metal box around a
downdraft wood stove and hooked the cold
air vents of his furnace to that. He heats
most of the time with wood while still
keeping the oil furnace ready to use when
the wood stove gets down. Without the
cost of a combination furnace he has
managed to curb costs and come up with a
working idea to heat his home a more
efficient way.
Bill is a very active family man as well as
being involved in the CFFO.
He participates in the parent/teacher
group at the Clinton Christian School his
children attend in a nearby town. Fran was
a teacher there until their youngest child,
Ricky, was born just before Christmas
1981. Bill is corresponding secretary of the
Christian school board and has served as
elder and deacon in their church. As well,
he is the representative to the income
stablization commission of Ontario for the
CFFO, on the elected secretary of the
Ontario Powerhouse committee (a
remnant of the power plant committee
that represents 27 organizations). He is
also part of the Listowel working group
meetings on the Ontario Hydro trans-
mission lines.
For the past three years Bill has been
completely involved with all the threats to
the family farm and to the farming way of
life. His work has not gone unnoticed and
he was nominated to stand as vice-
president for the Ontario body of CFFO
but declined, realizing that his time is
spread thinly now.
"In our own local we like to be objective
and talk openly about problems. The
Central Huron Association of the CFFO
meets six times a year with the emphasis
on local topics."
"We leave the issues like interest to the
provincial bodies, and look to projects like
Corn for the Horn." Bill says.
Corn for the Horn involves farmers
donating corn, specifically to Central
Africa where corn is a staple in the diet.
Although not a CFFO project it is one of the
involvements with other groups, run by a
steering committee representing various
farm organizations.
But the present does not consume all of
Bill Jongejan's time or thought. The
future is very much on his mind and he is
thinking about regional government and
treatment of land. A firm believer in
protecting and taking care of the land for
future generations. Bill sees regional
government as detrimental to the point
where everyone is planning for develop-
ment without concern for the foodlands of
the nation.
"We need good government re-
gulations. If we had that then we would
have not had any problems with this
matter of absentee foreign ownership.
"It is not fair to expect a farmer to make
the decision where he either sells at a loss
to a Canadian or makes money by selling
to a foreign investment firm."
The provincial membership of the
CFFO is over 600 and. compared to the
Ontario Federation of Agriculture it's a
very small organization. But as Elbert van
Donkersgoed. past president and now
research and policy director for the
Ontario CFFO says. "our membership is
80 per cent active and that makes us as
effective as any farm organization."
Living and sharing together for the
Jongejan family is more than an idea that
they just think about; they live with a total
commitment to making this a better place
to work and live.
Corn (rootworm) country
More research is needed to
by Sheila Gunby
Corn production losses and insecticide costs in Ontario are
staggering. A conservative yearly estimated by Pat Lynch, OMAF
soil specialist in Stratford is a $10 million loss in corn yields and $9
million spent on rootworm control. Lynch says more money is
spent on corn rootworm control than on any other insect pest.
Research is needed in rootworm control and across the province,
specialists are working on different angles of the problem.
Rootworm damage varies from field to field as well as from year
to year. The reason for this variance is not totally understood but
there are a few clues. There is practically no rootworm damage in
sandy soils and the adult rootworm beetle is attracted to feed on
the silks of certain preferred hybrids, then lays its eggs in those
fields. It has been noted that sturdy deep-rooted hybrids usually
sustain little economic loss from the rootworm.
Not everyone is familiar with the life cycle and habits of the corn
rootworm. Remember, there are two kinds. The Ministry of
PG. 8 THE RURAL VOICE/FEBRUARY 1982
control the corn rootworm
Agriculture and Food says the northern corn rootworm is present
across southwestern Ontario and is the only species east of
Toronto. The western corn rootworm is common west of Toronto
and in the southwestern counties of Essex and Kent. Knowing the
Life cycle aids in detection and control of crop losses.
The corn rootworm spends the fall. winter and spring in the egg
stage but when the soil reaches a certain temperature, usually
around June, the eggs hatch. The newly hatched larvae (worms)
have only two days to find corn roots, according to U.S. research.
The most damage and injury to the corn plant is done by these
larvae as they feed for the next three to four weeks on the roots.
They consume the small roots and tunnel and gouge the larger
roots. If the infestation of rootworm is severe, both the main and
brace roots can he destroyed.
By mid-July, they leave the roots, become soft white pupae and
emerge as full grown beetles about the first in August. They