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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1991-08-28, Page 19EA_urtllpnArE___Times-Advocate, August 28, 1991 Page 19 Program actually pays to protect farmland By Adrlau Harte DASHWOOD - Sometimes it pays to farm a little less. At least that's how Steve and Dennis Dietrich see it, and they wonder why more Huron County farmers are not taking advantage of an Agriculture Canada program to preserve "fragile" lands. The National Soil Conservation Program has allocated about $225,000 for Huron County farm- ers to bid for. The idea is to take out of production those bits of fields that can contribute to soil erosion, water pollution, and limit sustainable crop production. In the case of the Dietrich's farms, these lands were found be- side the ditches that run through them. On Steve's farm, for in- stance, Agriculture Canada pay him what he calculated the rent of the two acres of land to be for the next 15 years, what it cost to seed a 20 - foot buffer zone on one side of the ditch, seed and plant trees on the other, and to maintain that area for the next 15 years. "The idea is to stop erosion from the fields getting into the ditch," said Steve, noting that topsoil in the Dashwood area is only six to eight inches deep. "We have to look af- ter that." A ditch on son Dennis' nearby farm received similar treatment, ex- cept that a hill area on the other side of the ditch has been termed an "enhanced buffer" and has been treed. The land won't be missed from his farm, he said. "Last fall it was so wet we couldn't get the crop off the side of the hill," he said. Father Steve is surprised more lo- cal farmers are not getting into the program, especially since it pays a lump sum up front for the 15 -year contract, and since crop prices are so low as to make yield losses neg- ligible. "They'd be eligible for the same program if they just took the time to look into it," said Steve. Steve also believes that much of the land in the area should have never been cleared in the first place, and government programs 15 years ago to encourage further clearing were a definite mistake. Yes, he admits, he cleared an ad- ditional three acres from a bush lot on one of his rental farms, but Den- nis has since replanted it with his tree planter. Steve looks around his farm and explains that his grandfather first cleared it in 1867. "Dennis is the fourth generation," he said, sabring that farmers have a responsibility to their land, corpo- rate owners or renters often do not. But he added, with a careful regi- men of crop rotation "I think our soil is more fertile that it was 25 years ago". The National Soil Conservation Program have issued notices that the deadline for the next round of bidding to take fragile lands out of production is September 27. The goal is to take 8,000 acres out of production across the province. Keith Lovell at the OMAF office confirmed that 75 bids were accept- ed from Huron farmers in the last round - each of which was chosen because of its protection of land which was susceptible to water ero- sion, wind erosion, or flooding. About $5.6 million has been allo- syated to the program over three - Farmers can make bids to take their fragile lands out of production for five, 10, or 15 years. Further information can be had through Ag- riculture Canada, or the local OS - CIA committee, the chairman of which is Lawrence Taylor in Lon- desboro. Soil conservation - Steve (left) and son Dennis Dietrich have both taken advantage of an Agriculture Canada program to take fragile farm lands out of production. The father and son stand on a buffer strip on Steve's farm; a grassy strip which prevents soil from the ac- companying scompanying field from making its way into the ditch. Need levels of erosion that nature can live with By Ross Haugh DASHWOOD - " We have to re- duce erosion to a level nature can live with." Those were the words of Kent :ounty farmer Jack Rigby speaking to about 100 persons attending a Soil and Water Conservation Day at Hayter's Turkey Farms, near Dashwood on August 20. Rigby in pointing out the benefits of no -till row crop cultivation said, " This method of cultivation along with a new cross slot planter helps save the soil which we have to pro- tect and is also very important when it comes to finances." He went on to say, " I couldn't go back to conventional tillage. It's too expensive. My records show that in 1986 our fuel consumption was 26 litres per acre, while in 1989 and 1990 with no -till methods it only took 13 to 14 litres of fuel for each acre." " An adequate supply of nitrogen is very necessary for no -till plant- ing. We had an instance where the operator forgot to turn the nitrogen on when planting a field of soy- beans. The stand in this portion of the field was good, if you hadn't seen the crop right beside it, which was treated with nitrogen.' Rigby said the new cross slot planter was designed by a Dr. Bak- er in New Zealand. It fluffs up the ground with seed coming out one side of the row with fertilizer on the other. Doctor makes calls Larry McGill of the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Asso- ciation was at the conservation day with a new Soil Doctor. The first machine of its kind in Canada, it tests the soil while planting and pt the same time varies the rate of ap- plication of nitrogen to fit the soil condition of the ground being worked. McGill said the computerized equipment allows the rate of nitro- gen application to change as quick- ly as five times per second. It can produce a maxunum flow of 2 U.S. gallons per minute, per row at a speed of seven miles per hour. The Middlesex operator said the computer program is being continu- ally update. The current one was written on April 10. This soil sampler and nitrogen applicator was also on display, Wednesday at a similar conserva- tion day Wednesday at the Granton area farm of Wilfred Riddell spon- sored by the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Association. A number of wagon tours of the Hayter farms were part of the Hu- ron conservation day. Doug Hock- ing, a conservation services advisor for water quality talked about ma- nure management. Brian Hall of the OMAF office in Clinton discussed soybean varie- ties. He indicated seed treatment was very important. Mould does not affect germination, but will re- duce early maturity. The seeding rate for soybeans can be the same for no -till and conventional plant- ing. Hall said there are about 30 soy- bean varieties suitable for South Huron farms with T8508 one of the most popular. He continued, " We take a three year average of Ontario preferred trials looking at individual trials.for maturity, yield, standability, vigour and disease resistance." The primary objective of the Hu- ron Soil and Water Conservation District is to co-ordinate the soil conservation and water quality pro- grams of various groups and agen- cies, as they relate to agriculture. The district is set up to ensure good grass roots input, involving at least as many soil and crop mem- bers as others combined, giving it farmer credibility. A variety of equipment is availa- ble at no charge for establishing conservation cropping and tillage trials. Equipment available includes a Kinze no -till planter with 15 inch splitter push units, a 10 foot no -till Soli tester - Larry McGill of the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Association, centre, points out the features of the Soil Doctor which tests soil and sets the rate of application of nitrogen at the same time. Looking on are Peter Postl and Huron Soil and Crop Improvement Association president Peter Feagan. Great Plains drill, modified mold- board plow, and a weigh wagon. They can be used for any conser- vation system trial on a maximum of 10 acres. Staff will deliver the equipment to the field, assist in the adjustment to your particular field conditions, monitor the season growth and also aid in the harvest check. In addition to providing technical support during planting of trials, staff also supply information on fertility, weed control, and other management factors. Soil management plans act as a guide for landowners wishing to implement soil conserving practic- es'on their farm. Estimates of cur- rent soil loss rates are calculated to decide the best practices to reduce soil erosion and maintain produc- tivity. Staff provide design service and information on means for financing structural erosion control such as grassed waterways, sediment con- trol basins, etc. Area contacts for those looking for soil conservation assistance are Check soybeans - Looking over a soybean crop during last week's Soil and Water Conservation Day at Hayter's Turkey Farms at Dashwood are from the left, Ross DesJardine, RR 8, Parkhill; Brian Hall of OMAF in Clinton and Ed Kerslake, RR 3, Exeter. Robert Traut at the Ausable- Bayfield Conservation Authority at 235-2610; Chris Hoskins of the Maitland Valley Conservation Au- thority at 335-3557 or Brent Ken- nedy or Allan McCallum at the OMAF office in Clinton. They can be reached at 1-800-265-5170 or 482-3428. BuryA Little Residue tl .�`ur Lot .1 1 1.1)-i‘ r•� Inforrnatlon night for corn producers HOLMESVILI.E - Farmers arc invited to an information meeting on the recently announced NISA program The meeting is to be held on Monday September 9, 8 p.m. at the Godcrich Township Commtmi- ty Centre, Holmesville. Terry Daynard for the Ontario Corn,Producers' Association, will be thguegr speaker. Other experts will be on hand to answer questions and assist producers in completing forms. Producers are encouraged to bring the forms and information they received on the program to the meeting. The meeting is being or- ganized by the Huron County Fed- eration of Agriculture. Further information on the meet- ing may be obtained from the Fed- eration of Agriculture in Vanastra 482-9642 or from the Ontario Min- istry of Agriculture and Food Of- fice in Clinton. 1-800-265-5170. flLPINe ALPINE PLANT FOODS LIMITED Come Tour our Plots Thurs:, Sept. 5 2-8p.m. 8 miles south of Exeter, Hwy. #4 Equipment display, refreshments Eric Devlaemin9k 228-6275 1 • f$ ▪ to 4141 �:.• New model 445 Conservation Chisel Plow leaves as little or as much residue as you want based on your residue plans. • Rippled coulters and chisel points at 15" spacing leave more residue. • Disc coulters and twisted shovels at 12" spacing leave Tess residue. • Optional deep -till shanks till an extra 4-6" deeper than chisel shanks to reduce com- paction problems and rip hardpan. • Optional soil leveling bar provides a smoother secondary tillage pass. • Choose one of nine models fpm 7' to 23' working width. (19', 21' and 23' models fold flat). • Ask your dealer about special low -rate financing. 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