Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-03-27, Page 19L .r► £ARMl]PDATF Times-Advutate, March 27, 1996 Page 19 These. sheds are for the birds Brenda Burke T -A staff •JR1CH - Ken Gascho and his' 4fe, Della, are of the few in Hay - . wnship who grow sunflowers sell the seeds as bird food. bout 40, years, ago, the couple planted sunflowers in their garden. When they discovered birds sought thc flower's large seed with a stk . - abet a10, s .there . was a for the failidiliiirey expanded three acrel the following year. Since then,'their sunflower acreage varies from five, td 10. ' (though there.. is sottae. demand for the flowering plant as a dec- • o dve' item, most 6f their custom' et in Exeter, Zurich, .Bpyf`Jpld and Grand Bend are seeking seeds: "We tryto grow just enough 1 to suPply our customers,!', said Ken, adding seeds grown in the Southern States and Western, Canada are, ifn- ported to supply larger retail Mar- kt:Its. . . The Gaschos sold seeds to a local ' mill up until about 15years, Ago but because the product is ' prone to n>poisture damage, they began to store it in ventilated bags lit 'their' fain and sell dirsctly''tb customers; relying on a mill in Dashwood as their only retail outlet. ,People buy seeds from Ken and Della at a price of 2$ to 30 cents per pound to feed squirrels has well as a large variety of .birds. "We find there's not very many birds that don't go for the sun= flower seeds," said Della while watching birds flock to numerous feeders in her yard. Cardinals are especially keen. on , thie seeds, explained Ken, due,to their ability to crack them opn. Bluejays, chickadees and •house finches are also attracted to the feeders in her yard. ' Cardinals are especially keen on the seeds, explained Ken, due to their ability to crack them open. Bjuejays, chickadees and house finches are also attracted to the food. And according to Della, bird feeding has become. more popular ober the years. - . The seeds are cleaned with an es- ti(tlated 7.0 -year -Old fanning. mill Ken bought for $1 in the 1950's. Throughout the fa)I and winter, , ., aur, Is,i...cr L1 J ed . and stocked year round. mach- ine is also used to clean grass seed, oats atW corn on the mixed farm. use they, prac-, dee ecological farm- ing, the Gaschos griow their own seeds fctt planting. ( "V//e think a seed produced on our land becomes adapted to it," said - Ken, explaining the earth's natural nutrients f3mvide the most healthy growing environment. 'Claiming continual use of chem- icals destroys the soil's balance, he wonders what traditional farts will be like many years from'now. Because insects may develop a resistance to chemicals, he added, fanners often work with increased amounts, which results in addi- tional expense and damage. Ken and Della farmed conven- tionally until 1961, then, for health and spiritual reasons, decided to avoid chemicals. . "Some people call it organic fanning but we've gotten away from that. Anything can be organ- ic," said Ken, a member of the Ec- ological Farmers' ,Association of Ontario. 'The soil will last forever if it's,not harmed in arty way." From • an ecological standpoint, rotating crops and depending on natural predators is vital to crop success. The Gaschos avoid grow- ing a crop in the same soil for more than one growing season. As well, manure froth their beef herd pro- vides natural fertilizer, ' Although they sometimes en- counter insectson.tbe flowers; such as one particular pest that bores holes in the seeds, rendering them blanks, it's not usually a long-term predicament, mainly due to the ben- efits of crop rotation. . They have not had a problem with weeds either, largely because sunflowers create their own weed control - shade. Between their two 100 acre farms that produce beef, corn, soybeans, hay, oats and pop- ping com, sunflowers are one of their easiest crops to grow. sunflowers create their own weed control - shade. Between their two 100 acre farms that produce beef, com, soybeans, hay, oats and pop- ping. com, sunflowers are one of their easiest crops to grow. The flower has a deep root sys- tem that makes it fairly drought re- sistant. If faced with a dry spell ear- ly in the season, its roots spread deeper. The train ingredient for sun- flowers, as their name indicates, is an abundance of sunshine. "They follow the sun," said Ken. "They bend east in the morning and west at night...It's sort of a sun dial." The flowers end up facing east when past their full bloom and be- gin to droop in preparation for at least a month of drying. Seeds are planted in tate May or early June, depending on the weather. "A cool, wet spring is the worst thing," said Ken. The flowers, measuring about six feet tall when full grown, begin to bloom in late July or early August and are harvested beginning in late October. "If they grow too tall they're harder to cut in the combine," said Ken. "We don't like too big a head. 1t takes longer to dry them." Planted close together, the flow- ers produce shorter stalks and smaller heads. Ken noted last year's sunflower crops as "one of the poorest yield- ing crops," because the plants, grown in sandy soil, were subject to a late drought. However, the year prior provided adequate rain and heavier soil to create ideal growing conditions. While clay earth is best for growing sunflowers, sandy soil ensures more convenient harvesting. Denfield Livestock Sales The market at Dent -mid traded on a good demand with the good -handy weight cattle selling 2.00 - 3.00 cwt. higher. Heavy cattle were harder to sell but did show some improvement. Cows sold higher according to quality. Veal sold steady, stockers a little stronger, pigs steady. sows and boars strong. Don Eedy and Mark Vandernlocg, Denfield sold 20 heifers average weight 1248 lbs. average price 85.00 to high sales of 97.00 and 95.00. Purchased by Dendekkcr Meats. Ray and Mary Catherine McPhail, Kerwood sold 4 heifers average weight 1316 average price 86.68 sales to 92.75 purchased by M.C.I. Bill Dykes. Granton sold 14 heifers average weight 1261 average price 82.45 sales to 90.75 purchased by M.G.I. Morley Hodgins, Parkhill sold 23 steers average weight 1354 average price 81.85 sales to 90.50 purchased by Holly Park Meat Packers. ' Bill Woodburn. Parkhill sold 13 heavy steers average weight 1568 average price 77.50, Choice steers 82-85 sales to 90.50 Good steers 76-82 Heavies 72-78 Choice Exotic heifers 83-87 sales to 97.00 & 95.00 . Good heifers 76-80 Common & medium 60-70 Good cows 45-52 sales to 56 Canners and cutters 35-43 Shells 20-30 Bulls 48-63 Yearling steers 65-70 Yearling heifers 64-69 Steer calves 65-78 Heifer calves 65-70 Holstein bill calves $25.-$125. Beef type calves $80-$180. Pigs 40-60 lbs. 75-85 Over 60 lbs. 65-80 • Sows 43-50 Boars 36-39 Stocker sale Saturday March 30 at 1 p.m. 1400 Head on offer Spring Stocker Sale DENFIELD LIVESTOCK SALES LTD. Saturday March 30 at 1:00 p.m. 1400 Head Featuring: 300 Char and Exotic cross steers on consign- ment. 500 Char heifers and many large consignments of Exotic cross steers and heifers. Further Sale Dates Sat., April 20, Sat. May 4 For information call: 566-1140 Denfield, 237-3120 Dashwood, 294-0585 Parkhill +hrr )tl�.41•1 i1•N1151100 ~ tNl 1 .•:`.1 rah.. :1 •'U•r1, 5 • I1l(. 1.• 21 g et a ooh deal mower. Above; Ken ,? Gaschor displays some sunflow- er unflower seeds he and his wife, Della, sell as bird food. To his right is. the 70 -year-old fanning mill he uses to clean the seeds. ' BrusselsIIve�tockiai�s B SSELS - S1tles etBrussels 4.it^�,stock'for,ih9.week ending 'M h 22,1996: �,: ,...:, f' F cattle 540 . • Cows 293 • r - Veal calves 239 Sheep and goats 284 Stockers 1195' `.; ';.fit t(., . , r Fed steers and he3iferraisingtelsb ock'soldhctively at prices $1.00 to $2:00 higher. The cows sold SI.® lower. On Thursday veal and Iambs sold steady. On Fridaystockers sold steady. There were 359 Steers on offer s$IMrk10 to 822.)0 to the high of 95.25. Twenty stars oonaf 'by cilrjhi affns, Lucan'av'eraging 1459 lbs. sold for an average of 79.81 with sales to 92.00. , Eight steers consigned by Jim Howatt, Londesborough averaging 1431 lbs. sold for an average of 86.59 with sales to 90.25. Forty-one stars consigned by Lawrence Markusse, Wyoming averaging 1483 Ibs. sold for an average of 79.21. with sales to 85.00: There•wert 212 heifers on offer selling from 78.0010 82.00 to the high of 88.00 Twelve heifers consigned by Russ Faber, Kippen averaging 1120 lbs. sold for an average of 78.49 with sales to 82.75. Four heifers consigned by Gerry McPhee, Aubum averaging 1230 lbs. sold for an average of 79.09 with sales to 82.25. Three heifers consigned by Lorne Baird. Wingham averaging 1250 lbs. sold for 80.35. Nine, heifers consigned by Gerald Rathwell averaging 1236 lbs. sold for an average of 78.20 with sales to 80.00. There were 293 cows on offer selling from 34.00 to 49.00 to the high of 55.50. Twdcows consigned by 'Tony Dejong, Staforth averaging 1385 lbs. sold for an average of 50.87 with sales to 53.50. One cow consigned by Brian Marks, Belgrave weighing 1545 lbs. sold 53.00. There were 15 bulls on offer selling Stora 45.00 (0 55.50 to the high of 69.50. Two bulls consigned by Lois Kerr, Palmerston averaging 2122 lbs. sold for an average of 59.21 with sales to 69.50. There were 239 veal on offer. Beef: 75.00 to 104.50 • Hol: 60.00 to 75.00 . Plain hol: 50.00 as 60.00 Lambs: under 50 lbs. 185.00 to 227.50 , 5049 lbs. 177.50 aQ 722.50 , Sheep: 30.00 to 49.00 . Goats: $30:00 to 3177.543 Stockers Steers: 400 - 499 lbs. 71.00 to 101.00 500.599 69.00(0 8730 7200 to 87.75 68.00 to 85.00 73.50to86.50 74.00 to 87.00 6006 699 700 800 - 899 , - 90q & over . Heifers: 300 - lbs., 400: 500. 599 600'-'694 700 - 799 800 & Over 61.00 to 101.OQ 70.06 to 79.66 61.00 to 84.001 65.50 to 85.00 69.75 to 75.50 64.75 to 76.50 CTBA Seeds First Line Seeds Borland Farms g invite you to seed com. goads Pick up days March 28, 29, 30 8 a.m. 4 p.m. At Borland Farms Hot and cold refeshments 55.0567 If you're looking for a lawn tractor that offers quaM1 rekabdity and good value, the John Deere STX38 is for you. • High-torque 13 -hp overhead valve Koller engine • Full -pressure lubrication with replaceable od filter STX38 Lawn Tractor \` • Extra -tight 1S -inch turning radius Only • 38 -inch coming width $ 99' � *stable anti -scalp gauge el: • • Convenient shift -on -the -go S -speed transmission • • Optional Tricyder• mulching attachment NOTICE Ratepayers Township of McGillivray 1st installment of 1996 Taxes Due on or before March Z9, 1996 Shirley Scott Clerk -Treasure 1>a Test mow the STX3I for 38 days and N roue not sathped, bring it back for repairs, replacement ora full refund. That's The John Deere promise. Nonarla Ruse tats A Oetae• ®Come in today and deck out the John Deere STX311. Dont forget to ask about Our special financing options, rabble now during Deere Season. Wel make It even easier to get a good deal mower. Exeter Londdn 235-1115 285-3845 Blyth 1 523-4244 9 6 7- 79 9 6 DEERE SEASON SALE ENDS JUNE 30, 1055 WUFI Seed Barley and Seed Oat Growers for the 1996 Crop. Year "PREMIUMS PAID" Please contact D