Farming '92, 1992-03-18, Page 23FARMING ’92, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18,1992. A 23.
Farming '92
Making a budget lets you look at whole picture
BY ED BARRIE
OMAF SWINE SPECIALIST
FOR PERTH COUNTY
Recently the Federal Government
ntroduced a new budget. It is
acome tax filing time again, and
ae cost of electricity in Ontario has
ncreased. What do these events
nean? They are all signals of
hange. Some of them are regular
events, some are occasional and
ome are severe, but they are all
;igns of the rapid changes taking
dace in the country in which we
ive. Farm management can be
orced into changing, or lead into it,
iepending a great deal on who is
ioing the managing.
The most suitable definition I
have seen lately of a farm manager
is “Someone who keeps the whole
picture in mind.” To carry out this
role effectively, the manager must
be aware of their own strengths and
weaknesses, but more importantly
be willing to delegate to, or hire
other people to carry out tasks they
don't handle well. Many pork pro
ducers have reached this level in
areas of accounting and tax man
agement, herd health,' building, and
machinery repair.
The person doing the managing
must accept that there are other’
sources of valuable information
that have to be tapped and used if
their business is going to continue.
Areas that are typical here include
energy use in buildings, human
resource use to produce pork, and
the cost/profit benefits of crop pro
duction and manure disposal, com
pared to pork production. Are you
putting your greatest efforts into
the areas that bring you the greatest
returns, and exploring other
methods of getting the least return
jobs done?
This perspective on management
doesn't mean that the manager must
do everything himself, although
when you start farming you usually
have to. What it does mean is that
you know what has to be done, rec
ognize where it fits in importance
with everything else that has to be
done, and you are able to sec that il
gets done. It's critical that the man
ager has lime available io read,
attend courses, and trade shows,
and be able to communicate with
other people in the industry. With
out the time to do these things,
changes occur, the industry moves
on, and you will not be aware of it.
Have you written out your budget
for the coming year? The Federal
Government has!
GET READY FOR SPRING
Buffering along waterways
improves water quality
Land use activities carried out
adjacent to waterways and ditches
can directly influence the quality of
water as it tours through your prop
erty. As the name implies buffer
strips reduce the potential problems
by buffering the activities of one
area from another. Buffer strips
generally consist of permanent sod
along the sides of the waterway
(minimum 3 to 6 metres wide (10'
to 20')).
Buffer strips serve several func
tions:
1/ discourage the operation of
tillage equipment in close proxi
mity to the channel which can
weaken the bank, causing loss of
soil into the watercourse;
2/ stabilize the stream bank by
reducing the speed of surface
runoff over the bank;
3/ reduce the potential for pesti
cide overspray into the water
course;
4/ filter soil out of the surface
water as it moves from the field to
the watercourse.
Currently the National Soil Con
servation Program has limited
funds available to assist landowners
interested in planting buffer strips
on their property. For further infor
mation on this program, or buffer
strip recommendations, please con
tact the Ontario Ministry of Agri-
You can lose a lot more than
(CJi Ministry of
J the Attorney
culture and Food, Huron County
office (482-3428 or 1-800-265-
5170).
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Application of pre-plant incorporated sprays at tfie same time
FERTILIZERS
•Terra-Gator® with air
spreader and impregnator
•Standard Mixes
•Custom Formulations
•Micro Nutrients
•Accurate bulkspreading
•Bulk Delivery Unit
•Spreaders readily available
CHEMICALS
We have a large supply
on hand
Protect your crop against
insects and weeds
Chemical
Application Unit
Available for P.P.I., Pre or
Post complete
with Dickey-John Monitor
& 60 Foot Boom
•Mixed grain
•Barley
•Oats
•Wheat
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•White Beans
•Grass Seeds
SEED CORN
•Hyland
Let us build you a fertilizer, and chemical program to meet your special requirements
Phone 523-4241 or come in and see us for your
complete line of spring planting supplies
Houlson & Houlson Limited
Flour & Feed Millers, Complete Farm Supplies Grain Elevators
WINGHAM, BLYTH, CARGILL
Propane: An
Energy-Saving
Workhorse
On the Farm
Propane is the all-purpose farm fuel.
It heats your home and workshop.
Cooks your food. Powers your trucks.
Dries grain, roasts beans, runs irriga
tion equipment, broods chicks and
heats your water. And a lot more.
Propane is dependable, clean burn
ing and economical. Compare energy
savings. You’ll discover that
Sparling’s Propane, dollar for dollar, is
your farm’s best energy source.
Put it to work for you!
HWY. 4 SOUTH, BLYTH, ONT. HOM 1 HO
523-4256 Reliable Energy Since 1951