Times-Advocate, 1986-04-16, Page 2Poo 2
Times -Advocate, April 16, 1986
Becomes vexed over grower's questions
RIdd•II won't tel/ farinCrs what they can gr.*
Noting that he was not as convinc-
ed as some area rutabaga farmers
are that canola is the main cause of
turnip mosaic virus, Agriculture
Minister Jack Riddell strenuously ex-
plained this week that even if he was
so convinced there was no way he was
going to stop canola from being grown
In the province.
"If you think I'm going to tell
farmers what they can grow and what
they can't, you've got the wrong
minister of agriculture," the Huron -
Middlesex MPP said in a rather
heated exchange with veteran
rutabaga grower Raphael
Devlaeminck at a meeting at Cen-
tralia College On Friday.
The latter noted that Riddell was
espousing farmers' right to farm, but
suggested that . his right to Vow
r
•
MINISTER ON HAND — Agriculture Minister Jack Riddell was on hand, Friday, when OMAF announc-
ed a program to help save the area rutabaga crop from turnip mosaic virus. Joining him in an informal
chat prior to the meeting from the left are Dr. Gaylan Josephson, Pat O'Rourke, Frank Kints and Jim
O'Toole. In the background, Frank Vanneste chats with Dick Heard.
Project
Continued from front page
ximity to rapeseed fields, it was con-
cluded that the amount of damage
was contingent on the proximity to
rapeseed.
"There's no quick and easy answer
on how to keep the virus out of
rutabaga fields," he emphasized.
Dr. Lorne Stobbs said the virus has
been prevalent in Ontario for the past
25 years, but had become serious on-
ly in the last few years.
He said there is no known chemical
control and it was necessary to pre-
vent or minimize the spread and that
means controlling aphids, of which
there are 49 known species.
Stobbs said there was some pro -
NO INJURIES
No injuries were reported in either
of the two collisions investigated by
the Exeter OPP this week.
On Friday at 8:10 a.m., vehicles
operated by David Statton, Clinton,
and Grant Bisback, Hensall, collided
at the intersection of Albert and Rich-
mond St. in Hensall. Damage to both
vehicles was set at $1,000.
The other occurred on Sunday at
5:00 p.m., when a pickup truck driven
by Morley Thompson, RR 1 Crediton,
struck a tree on private property in
Stephen Township. Damage was
$1,500.
for rutabagas
mise in the fact there are two strains
of rapeseed resistant to the virus. He
held out hope this could be bred into
rutabagas.
To help control the virus, he stress-
ed the need to eliminate the source
and that included getting rid of cull
piles and volunteer rutabagas as well
' as good weed control.
Wayne Roberts, manager of the
OMAF pest management program,
explained there is no effective
aphicide. "Science can't bail us
out...we have a problem and we know
we need a lot of work," he advised.
His suggestion was that farmers
apply an oil based product to their
rutabaga crops in 1986 in an effort to
prevent aphids from feeding:
However, he said that this year will
primarily be an investigative year.
"We're not going to have all the
answers for 1986. We're looking at
band-aids," he added, noting that the
long-term solution is a virus resistant
rutabaga.
That could take a minimum of five
years according to the final speaker,
Dr. Vern Shattuck.
He said he realized that anything
more than a year is an eternitt,
especially for farmers on the brink of
disaster.
That prompted grower Pat
O'Rourke to ask whether Shattuck
had enough research funds, sug-
gesting that money being spent in
some other aspects of the program
may not be as useful.
Questions were also asked about the
cost of the oil treatment that were
outlined for this year, and the
response was that the cost should not
be very high.
He'll concede!
It may be difficult to get neighbor-
ing municipalities to concede
anything to Exeter in the area of
recreation, but one such item did crop
up this week.
Rec director Lynne Farquhar told
the South Huron rec centre board on
Thursday she is planning special ac-
tivities associated with national
fitness week.
rutabagas was being impinged by the
tad neighboring farmers were gr ow-
orcano/a and that wail responsible
for the virus severely damaging his
Riddell mid there was nothing stop-
ping Devlaeminek from growing
rutabagas and explained that the
ministry had come up with an ex-
cellent program to try and rid the
crop of the virus "so you'll be in
' 'business this year, next year and the
year after".
The minister added that other fac-
tors, such as the dry conditions of last
season, may have added to the virus
problem and said he got a little work-
ed up when people made unfair
comments.
He explained that "as long as I was
knee-high to a grasshopper" there
had been rape grown in the province
and the crop was used on his parents'
Rec board
Continued from front page
The board approved Stewardson's
report, which included permission to
have the annual inspection done on
the ice making equipment and the
chemicals.
Letters of commendation for the
staff were received from Scott
Weldon of CHRW-FM and Welcome
Wagon hostesses Cathy Seip–ind
Doris Weigand.
Weldon and his cohorts from the
UWO radio station broadcast the
Mustangs hockey games when the
team played in Exeter and he noted,
the sfaff had been a big help, par-
ticularly in getting them on the air
after a fuse had blown'and an exten-
sion cord was needed. -
"Your enthusiastic cooperation is
very much appreciated and extreme-
ly helpful in making such an event
successful," wrote the Welcome
Wagon duo in reference to the bridal
party show they recently held at the
rec centre.
"It's good publicity to get letters
like that once in a while," commented
Oke.
Rec director Lynne Farquhar in-
dicated the two pieces of cor-
respondence may be framed.
A six-page communication was
received .from the ministries of
tourism and recreation and municipal
affairs explaining that some rec
groups operate contrary to the
In addition to free fitness tests and Municipal Act by maintaining bank
demonstrations, she suggested the accounts for financial transactions.,
area councils could possibly be in- All such transactions must be handl-
volved in some type of challenge ed through the municipal treasurer.
demonstrations. Apparently assured they were
One of her suggestions was for operating correctly, board men$bers
members to skip rope 100 times and 4 4..00k no action on the epistle, although
then to. see who's .still staoding. -. .Oke said it was so poorly detailed the
"I'll concede," Stephen Reeve Tom it was difficult to get to the point that
Tomes responded, but quickly added was being made.
that only tests of physical endurance He said it was apparent the letter
may be "one thing we'll concede to writer must have had a lot of time on
Exeter." his hands.
farm to flu* ewes.
"We're bvW io a country where we
can grow what we wait," he added.
Riddell then explained to
Deviaegeoirdc that aop insurance was
available to rutabagas growers, as it
is for other mope, and noted that the
inwrame was designed for the pur-
pose of eovetieg crap lasses of the
kind that the rutabagas producers ex-
perienced
The ag miaister emphasised that he
could not compensate farmers for
crop lasses when insurance was
available, noting that to do so would
be to totally undermine the crop in-
SWILDOE program.
undermine a damn good
program, he continued saying that
providing extra compensation would
be akin to throwing crop insurance
out the window.
"We tend to forget the good years
we've had," Riddell commented
noting that farmers often don't buy
crop insurance because they don't
think there is a risk to their crops.
He admitted to not carrying crop in-
surance on his own corn crop, but he
does on his beans.
The area MPP said that had
rutabaga farmers had insurance last
year, they would have received
payments of up to $600 per acre and
that was certainly better than what he
was getting per acre for his harvested
corn.
"I think my staff have bent over
backwards to put a program in
place," he told the rutabaga growers
at Friday's meeting, suggesting they
were getting more help than some
other segments. .
"There are many farmers who are
hurting." he mated. maid these will be
a hellion let mare halftime through to
the slid of this decade:."
He told his asltirer ee Mat Ontario
farmers wire cadet iia cnailfire of
a trade war Whitens the US. aged
Europe and plted that the
"shakeout" it the icidt u i sec-
tion of the U.S. `tis LMS to be like
something you woukket believe".
The ministry bas to put its
resources Where it wilt help as many
Ontario farmers stay alive as possi-
ble, be reported, emphasizimg again
that they were doing all that was
possible for rutabaga pnoductioge in
the province.
"1 say hope your tib come up
with yields this year that WiU prompt
you to come and say, "Riddell you
weren't wrong", the minister
concluded.
He emphasized that bis door was
always open and if there were con-
cerns, a meeting could be arranged
through his secretary, "and 111 be
there„
Pat O'Rourke, farmer ebain nan of
the Rutabaga Marketing Bayard, said
the growers appreciate what the
ministry has done. "We're always
looking for more; we're farmers," he
Following the meetiog, veteran
grower Frank Vanneste agreed that
growers should have carried in-
surance to cover their !tosses last
season.
Frank Kints added that the
ministry has reacted very quickly to
the problem and lauded their efforts
to get at the root of the problem with
the program that was Wilmot! at Fri-
day's session.
tAUC RUTASAGAS — Area rutabaga producers Pat O'Rourke and
Frank Vanneste get together for a chat following Friday's session
at Centralia College when producers were given details of a pro-
gram underway by OMAF to help over come turnip mosaic virus that
seriously hit last year's crop.
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