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The Citizen, 1995-03-22, Page 36It's part of the job While Dave Linton's love of farming doesn't extend to the bookwork, this former city boy turned farmer accepts it as just a part of the job. He and his wife, Brenda switched their record keeping to computers a few years ago, which makes the job a little less time consuming. Farming's challenges a thrill II:ONDESBORO SEED PLANT CUSTOM SEED CLEANING Mixed Grain, Barley, Oats, Corn, Wheat & Bean Seed Available Forage Seeds BOOK NOW 1. Custom Cleaning of Grain, Beans or Small Seeds. 2. ATV Seed Application 3. Seed needs for 1995 4. Mycogen Seed Dealer • Pet & Bird Feed & Supplies - Lawn & Garden Supplies • Farm Toys 523-4399 Proprietor: Robert Szusz P.O. 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CASE 2670 4 w. dr. w/duals '21,500. USED EQUIPMENT - 21 x 7 Drill P. Wheel, IH 784D - 8 speed w/ CIH 5100 2250 loader, bucket & forklift '17,400. Hydr. markers w/Grass Box '7,750 IH 1086D CAB CIH 5100 - 21 x 7 Drills w/Tandem Air, 20.8 x 38" Recond. '16,900. Hitch, 6 Box & Press Wheels '12,900. KUBOTA L3650 GST G. PLAINS - 21 Run Drill w/loader, low hours '23,500. D. Disk, P. Wheels, G. Box '8,450. "Low Rate Financing Available" C. A. BECKER LUCKNOW EQUIPMENT LIMITED 519-529-7993 ©, 1995 CASE CORPORATION • Case and IH are registered trademarks of Case Corporation CASE lit PAGE A16. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 1995. • • • • • + + + + + + + + + A GRICULTURE '95 + + + + + + + + + + + + + Global positioning hot topic on farms Continued on A15 the family investment, until after the birth of their first born when she worked part-time. The early years the Lintons tread- ed cautiously adding to their busi- ness as money allowed, until one day when they realized, "it actually started making money." The business portion of farming is something, Mr. Linton said, he has always accepted. "As long as you're making money it's easy to do the bookwork." The agricultural industry has undergone some vast changes over the years and it continues to alter. "Every day I look at what's chang- ing. Mistakes didn't matter when I was first starting out, but I have a fair bit of equity now and for me to go borrow $114 million I look care- fully." Through his involvement with the Huron County Pork Producers, from 1994-95 as their president, Mr. Linton says he has gained insight into "pig politics", which he feels his city background may have equipped him for. "Whether it was being in the city, or maybe it's just a part of growing up, but a lot of the conflicts and experiences I recall from my youth helped me cope with the politics." Whether any of their four chil- dren feel as tied to farming as their parents remains to be seen. Though they all help, it is the youngest, 10- year-old Jeff, who shows the most interest. The oldest Stacey, 17, does some of the computer work, while Randy, 16 and Paul 11, take turns with the weekend evening chores. Jeff does the chores on weekdays. "I'd like to think they share my interest, but if they don't, they don't. I will count myself lucky if one does start to farm." For Dave Linton, however, the past two decades have done noth- ing to diminish his love of agricul- ture. "Po ask me what I love the most, it's still the animals. That's what got me first and still does. I wake up in the morning and am greeted by two dogs, who are both happy to see me. Then I go to the barn, and there's nothing better nor more satisfying to me then seeing a barn full of thriving animals." "Now with my boys out there By Janice Becker A much-talked about system to help farmers improve the manage- ment of their farms is in the early stages of testing and only estimated results are available. The global positioning system (GPS) allows farmers to precisely map their property, using a satellite to pinpoint specific areas, then co- ordinate information on yield and soil quality with exact land loca- tions. The purpose of the system is to show the farmer the exact areas of his land which have poor yields, that which can be improved by adjusted levels of fertilizer applica- tion, as well as those areas which will not produce a higher yield with nutrient applications, says Bruce Shilling-law of Hullett Twp. Mr. Shillinglaw has been involved in GPS for two years and has done extensive testing on a plot of corn on his property. The test plot was soil sampled every 10 metres and check strips were left unfertilized for compari- son of yields. "One of the most surprising fac- tors discovered thus far is the lack of correlation between soil quality and yield," he says. "There are so many other factors which affect the yield, it may be that intensive soil sampling is not necessary." A walk-through inspection of the acreage may pinpoint problem areas and allow the farmer to adjust Continued on A17 with me, we get talking about things. There's always something about farming to challenge you, and they do get wrapped up in it too. That pleases me."