The Rural Voice, 1980-09, Page 25A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE
A look at crops out West
BY CARL HEMINGWAY
This news is a little late but I think I should finish up our trip
"West."
When I sent in the last news, "dead line" July 6th we were in
Vancouver, and it was raining. However, the last couple of days
were sunny and we enjoyed a visit to Buchart Gardens in Victoria
and of course we had clam chowder on the ferry. We also visited
Stanley Park as the main attraction in Vancouver.
We flew back to Winnipeg where Don met us and took us out
to his farm near Melita -some 200 miles.
Crops were much the same the whole trip -some barley and
mixed grain, very short headed out with very short heads. Other
fields ranged from just sprouted to six inches high -if there is an
exceptionally good fall, some may yield fair grain and the others
will make "green feed."
In Don's immediate area, they had about three inches of rain a
couple of weeks before we arrived, and the pasture was green
and growing well. Since we left they have had some rain every
day for eight days. It wasn't very good for some hay I cut the day
before we headed back to Winnipeg, but I'm sure it was welcome
as it will mean plenty of hay for winter.
Don carries on his veterinary practice from the farm which
doesn't leave much time for farming.
I went with him on a call out about 15 miles to treat a sick cow
and learned that they had 11/2 inches of rain since last September
and very little snow.
They got 1 inch of their rain shortly before we were there and
were able to turn their cows out to pasture.
RENTED OUT
Don didn't put in any grain this year, but rented out some 50
acres to a neighbour in order to get it worked and re -seeded to
alfalfa. The neighbour hopes to make some money out of crop
insurance at least.
Don runs a cow calf herd about half beef and half Holstein and
Holstein -beef cross -bred. All of the cows are nursing at least two
calves and some of the Holstein up to four calves up to weaning
age at a time. All the "dairy" cows are quiet and can be
hand -milked. He raises his replacements and has found that with
the ever increasing price for fluid milk, there is an attractive
market for hand -milked cows.
He finds his "milking machines" appreciate in value
with a minimum of labour and he can "steal" plenty of milk for
the house.
THE WHEAT CROP
1 forgot to mention the wheat crop. There was a lot of wheat
about eighteen inches high with what looked to have short but
rather good heads but was being disced down in order to qualify
for crop insurance.
Apparently it was planted early, sprouted and hit dry weather.
Instead of the grain filling it just dried up.
BACK TO WINNIPEG
On our way back to Winnipeg by bus, following a route
about half way from No. 2 and the U.S. border, crop conditions
were very much the same.
The only reasonably good crops were a few fields of barley as
we got close to Winnipeg.
On our trip home from Toronto, July 13 1 was disappointed to
find that crops weren't much better than in the West until we got
close to Listowel and of course when we got into Huron County I
was happy again.
BAYFIELD
LUMBER
Bayfield, Ont.
565-2990
Complete line
of
building supplies
and
rental equipment
W.D.HOPPER &SONS
Water Well Drilling
R.R.2 SEAFORTH
Members of the Ontario Water Well Assoc.
. Prompt Reliable Service
. Free Estimates
. 4 Modern Rotary Rigs
Call Collect
Neil
James
Durl
Seaforth
Seaforth
Seaforth
527-1737
527-0775
527-0828j
'Where Hopper Goes the Woter Flows'
SINCE 1915
THE RURAL VOICE/SEPTEMBER 1980 PG. 23