Reading Time: 3 minutes Drop by precious drop we are celebrating rain in the dry areas — and cursing it on the flood plains. The weather patterns have been rather unpredictable with monumental hail in Mexico City to extreme heat in Europe and Saharan winds that are dropping sand in the most remote of locations. Putting seed in the […] Read more
Schoepp: Fresh water a gift we can’t afford to take for granted
What falls from the sky gets most of our attention but the entire water supply should be our concern
Ottawa’s focus on green programs a concern for some farm groups
Focus On Practical Energy: While the programs are fine, producers also need ones that don’t fall into the green ‘bucket,’ they say
Reading Time: 4 minutes The flood of federal funding for adopting environmentally friendly farming practices is a positive step, but also a “drop in the bucket,” says the general manager of Alberta’s cereal commissions. Producers should definitely apply for the On-Farm Climate Action Fund (which offers 85 cents on the dollar for certain green practices), said Tom Steve of […] Read more
Don’t count pipelines out as a source for your livestock watering system
Underground pipe may be more economical than you think — especially with federal funding
Reading Time: 4 minutes You can place them wherever you want on your pasture, set up watering stations as you like, and keep your cows out of streams and dugouts. But underground pipe is also costly compared to some other watering options — at least on first analysis. But sometimes a pipeline may be a less costly option, say […] Read more
Partnership gives Prairie ag students new 800-acre opportunity
Saskatchewan farmland bequest expanded Smart Farm eastward
Students from Saskatchewan Polytechnic and Olds College will be getting more opportunities to collaborate with each other on a large scale. The two institutions have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) which entails both schools working together for five years on various programs, notably Olds College’s Smart Farm operation. The partnership comes as a result […] Read more
Schoepp: Many popular foods have a long history — and an uncertain future
Reading Time: 3 minutes Lately I have been curious about lettuce. The plant has been traced back to Egypt some 6,000 years ago and is a member of the sunflower family. That may surprise you because we often think of sunflowers in terms of the flower and the oil. But lettuce was not grown for its leaves, it was […] Read more
Wastewater regulation eased for Nova Scotia on-farm processing
Nova Scotia has introduced regulatory changes that allow on-farm processing operations to better manage wastewater on their smaller scale. The changes, which took effect May 11, come at the request of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture (NSFA) — which has said that owners of small farm-level processing facilities shouldn’t be treated the same as […] Read more
Drought gone in Manitoba but worsening in Alberta, AAFC reports
MarketsFarm — Record-breaking precipitation in southern Manitoba and eastern Saskatchewan helped improve moisture conditions in the region in April, taking much of the area out of the drought classification, according to the latest Drought Monitor report from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) for the period ended April 30. Two separate Colorado lows brought significant snow, […] Read more
The numbers keep getting bigger for irrigation
Only one in 23 acres is irrigated but collectively they generate more than a quarter of farm sales
Reading Time: 2 minutes Only 4.4 per cent of Alberta farmland is irrigated but it accounts for more than a quarter of primary agricultural sales in the province. That’s one of the biggest numbers in an updated study done for the Alberta Irrigation Districts Association, which was released in early winter. The study uses the same methodology as an […] Read more
Bow River flows set to bounce back in time for irrigation season
A big snowpack comes to the rescue after water levels in the Bow fell to near-record lows last fall
Reading Time: 4 minutes After a winter of exceptionally low river flows, above-average mountain snowpacks are coming to the rescue of the Bow River and many of southern Alberta’s irrigation districts, says a leading water scientist. The water supply is now “assured” for the irrigation districts that take water off the Bow and Red Deer rivers, said John Pomeroy, […] Read more
Drought severity easing across much of Prairies, AAFC reports
MarketsFarm — Drought conditions persisted across much of the Prairies during the month of March, although the extent and severity of the dryness was reduced in many areas, according to the latest Drought Monitor report from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). “While there have been substantial improvements to drought conditions across Western Canada since last […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
