As the combines started to roll this fall, many were very surprised at how hard the truckers had to work. While not a barn burner, the 2017 crop will go in the books for many as good, and considering the lack of rainfall some will say it is great. We all like to point out […] Read more
Farming through the drought cycles
Soils and Crops: Even with modern ag technology, we’re still reliant on rain or soil moisture
Combines I have known, Part 2
In the 60s, Les Henry spent most of his combining hours in Massey combine cabs
Harvest seems to be moving along better this year so now may be the time to talk about combines. This is No. 2 in an irregular series about combines I have operated. The first piece went back to the old Oliver 30 pull type that was the first combine I ran and to Cockshutt 132 […] Read more
Water, salt and cows in pastures
Let’s use disaster as a chance to learn more about measuring the salt content in water
The recent loss of 200 head of stock due to bad water brings the subject of water and cows into sharp focus. The loss occurred at a pasture near Shamrock, Sask., about 75 km southwest of Moose Jaw. Let me first offer condolences to the producers who lost cattle. In my experience cows are more […] Read more
How water comes out of the ground
Water comes to the surface in many different ways
In my last column I looked at water entering the ground and the factors that control that flow. This time, I’ll look at water coming out of the ground and the clues it leaves about its origin. Contact springs A contact spring occurs when the contact zone between a very sandy soil and a finer […] Read more
Natural controls on internal drainage of sloughs
Whether or not your slough will drain quickly is a more complicated question than it appears
Many farms in Western Canada are plenty wet, and the 1.25 inches of rain we got on May 7 set seeding back a few days. When a rain like that comes we hope for a hot, dry wind to “dry it up.” But, evaporation is a small party of the overall equation. Sloughs do not […] Read more
Getting to the root of the matter
In the third of a three-part series, Les Henry looks at roots of field and garden crops
This is the final of a three-part series. In part 1 (April 11, 2017) I talked about the folks that provided very detailed diagrams of many plant roots to the depth needed to get the complete picture. Part 2 (April 25, 2017) was perennial pasture and hay crops and weeds and part 3 is field […] Read more
Organic wheat and fusarium head blight
There have been recent farm press talks about the lack of fusarium head blight and associated vomi problems in organic wheat. Organic farmers do not spray with fungicides so how can that be? Some experts say that in a fusarium area and year there is no way to grow wheat without spraying with a fungicide. […] Read more
Back to the root of the matter
In Part 2 of a 3-part series, Les Henry talks about perennial crop roots
This is Part 2 of a three-part series. In Part 1 we talked about the folks that provided very detailed diagrams of many plant roots to the depth needed to get the complete picture. In this part, we’ll talk about perennial plant roots, and in Part 3 will be about annual crop plants. Read more: […] Read more
Getting to the root of the matter
For a look at the big picture, the ‘old’ research on roots is still relevant today
Plant roots are receiving more attention of late and well they should. Roots are the foragers that deliver water and nutrients to the plant, but too often our attitude is “out of sight, out of mind.” With the current interest in many plant species, cover crops and soil health, much of it comes down to […] Read more
Precision ag may not work on your farm
In the field, precision ag does not yet live up to the hype that has surrounded it
If we go into a farm meeting and ask how many are using auto steer almost all hands go up. If you ask how many are using variable rate only a few respond. The uptake has been slow and many techies think that farmers are slow adopters. Guess what folks: if it works farmers are […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
