The Rural Voice, 1989-05, Page 26FARM SAFC1Y
SAFETY TIPS:
• Slow down before turning.
• Lock brakes together for high
speed travel
• Stay away from ditches and
embankments.
• Keep front-end loader buckets
low for travel.
• Avoid crossing steep slopes.
• Turn downhill if stability becomes
uncertain.
FACTS
TURNING a corner too fast or
travelling too close to a ditch
can flip your tractor over
SIDEWAYS and crush you.
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MUTUAL INSURANCE
When you need Insurance call:
Frank Foran, R.R. 2, Lucknow 528-3824
Lyons 8 Mulhern, 46 West St., Goderich 524-2664
Kenneth B. MacLean, R.R. 2, Paisley 368-7537
John Nixon, R.R. 5, Brussels 887-9417
Donald R. Simpson, R.R. 3, Ripley 395-5362
Delmar Sproul. R.R. 3. Aubum 529-7273
Laurie Campbell, Brussels 887-9051
Slade Insurance Brokers Inc.
Kincardine 396-9513
Dungannon, Ont. NOM 1R0 (519) 529-7922
HAYING EQUIPMENT
FOR '89
Bale Handler
- vertical
- horizontal
- barn systems
elevator
- elevator
w/undercarriage
Hay Basket
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ANADA
15 Broadway St.
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NOB 1X0
Forage Box
Contact your dealer
or call
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24 THE RURAL VOICE
again, the variety growers need may
not be what they want.
Another criticism levelled at
private seed firms is that they hoard
germplasm, denying other breeders the
use of the material. Dr. Kannenberg,
however, says he has never had a
problem getting access to germplasm.
He points out that companies like
Pioneer Hi -Bred have long had an
interest in genetic diversity. Pioneer
was the only institution to collect
open -pollinated varieties of corn when
they were replaced by hybrids. Those
collections were donated to the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. Pioneer,
Dr. Kannenberg adds, is also funding
the Latin American Maize Program,
which is revitalizing and assessing the
maize collections of 10 Central and
South American countries.
Assessment and revitalization are
two chronic problems associated with
germplasm collections. A collection
of seeds by itself is meaningless — the
plants must be evaluated. But many
collections, including those in the
West, are not well assessed. W. Baier,
director of the Plant Research Centre,
says in the 1988 PGRC newsletter that
progress in analyzing genetic diversity
"has been slower than anticipated."
Without good records, germplasm
collections are almost worthless.
Problems like this, as well as
technical and staffing inadequacies,
can usually be solved with money.
There are philosophical and political
problems with germplasm collections,
however, that are much more difficult
to solve.
As outlined by Plucknett et al.,
some scientists believe that the best
way to preserve germplasm is in the
farmers' fields. Gene banks arrest the
evolutionary development of a plant
and become, in a sense, genetic
ghettos. Unfortunately, the logistics
of maintaining landraces in natural
settings would be too complex. For
better or for worse, plant evolution is
now almost completely under human
control.
Another philosophical problem
with germplasm leads directly to
politics. Historically, the Western
world has been gene poor. With the
exception of the Mediterranean reg-
ions, all the centres of crop diversity
are in what are now Third World