The Rural Voice, 1993-11, Page 23comment to me on how much they
like driving by, and being on a main
road like this, it's nice to brighten it
up for people.
"If you like doing something, it's
not hard work. In the summer, we
are up early in the morning, and stay
up late at night. Sometimes we get
home from work and start on the
garden — there's always weeding and
of course lots of watering — and we
don't come inside and start supper
until after dark. But we find it to be
both rewarding and relaxing." Her
husband nods in agreement.
* * *
Al and Rosalie Zettler of
R.R. 1, Cargill, won
first place in the
category, "Rural home,
already improved".
They built their Viceroy home nine
years ago on a 14 -acre triangle of
Rosalie and Al Zettler and their
prizewinning rural home.
land backing onto the Saugeen River.
Both were born and raised on farms,
and Rosalie now works for the
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and
Food in Walkerton, while Al is the
manager of the Walkerton Golf Club.
He has worked there for 25 years,
starting as a caddy. He also has a
license to allow him to purchase and
apply professional lawn chemicals.
At one time, he was also caring for
about 20 lawns besides the golf
course and his own property, but that
got to be too much.
"It takes about five hours to trim
and cut this property," says Al.
"Often in the summer I'm up and
starting at 5:30 to get it done. It
takes a lot of time. I get out there
with herbicides, fertilizers, whatever
it needs. The trees are fertilized each
year, and each shrub gets different
applications, depending on what it
requires. I have the soil tested about
every two years. I send it to the
University of Guelph, and get a fax
back saying what to change."
This year the Zettlers added a new
shed to match the house. The
property is beautifully landscaped.
Many of the shrubs they started from
seedlings themselves, and each year
they add more perennials. They
have many spring bulbs in the
gardens as well. Each year
everything is carefully trimmed and
pruned to keep it at its best and
healthiest. The vast expanse of green
lawn, set off by glorious old maples
across the back, welcomes visitors to
their home.
Al is especially proud of that front
acreage of lawn. "That area is all
what they call blue clay and sand.
Blue clay is as hard as cement when
it's dry, and like gum when it's wet.
There is not more than — at most —
two inches of topsoil anywhere on
there. That's part of the reason I'm
so proud of it now. It takes a lot of
time and effort to keep it looking
good, but I would defy anyone to
find a weed out there anywhere. The
main thing out in the country is that
you're at the mercy of nature. If
there's no rain, you're done. We
water with hoses for close to the
house, but need rain for the rest. You
also have to know the right quantities
and types of fertilizers to use, and
when to use them. It's an art, there's
no doubt. But to me, it's not work,
that's my love. Turf, trees, flowers —
I love it. Even inside the house;
some people say it's
like a jungle."
* * *
erald and
Marlene
Poechman
won first
place in
the "Conservation
Farm" category.
The Poechmans and
one of their children,
Nathan, at the entry
to their 650 acre
conservation farm.
"This basically covers how you
manage your farm," explains
Marlene. "It has to do with control
of wind, soil, and water erosion. I'm
very proud of Gerald and of winning
the award. He really deserves it
because of the incredible amount of
work he has done here."
The Poechmans took over their
farm in March of this year from
Harold Poechman, Gerald's father.
"We were conservation minded
first," the couple explain, "and now
we farm organically as well."
Both Gerald and Marlene were
raised on farms. They have five
young children. Gerald was born and
raised on this farm that was his
father's. They now have 25 .beef
cattle, 3600 laying hens, and 10 pigs
for the freezer trade. Their 650 -acre
farm south of Walkerton is located
on highly erodable land — sandy and
hilly. Gerald explains their priorities
"We rotate according to crop rotation
guidelines, but more to the needs of
the soil. We don't plant according to
cash crops. We keep the soil covered
at all times, using cover crops and
residue management, and growing
winter cover. We have stopped
mould board plowing entirely. We
don't do it at all any more."
"For winter crops we plant wheat,
rye, and spelt, and in the spring we
do barley, oats, wheat, corn,
soybeans, faba beans and hay."
Gerald studied farm business
management for two years at
Centralia College, learning the basics
of soil life and soil fertility.
"Everything starts with soil health,"
he explains. "Everything is
intricately connected with soil life. It
is dependent upon humus: the
compost and crop residue, and the
`herald tikAttarierze Rechmani
and fa may)
NOVEMBER 1993 19