Writing a farm safety program

There are lots of economic, practical and common sense reasons to write a safety plan for your farm

You’ve seen the farm safety folks at the farm trade shows and farm events. They’re the loneliest booths there. And they’re a resource that is very under utilized by farmers. In a perfect world, safety would be first. But too often it is “safety third” on our farms. While, like emergency planning, safety planning is […] Read more

What we do with whey

Make your own yogurt, mayonnaise and more!

Our family likes to research new uses for what we produce on our farm. Over the years we have become very proficient at utilizing all the milk from our cows/goats (depending on the time of year) and we love experimenting with recipes. The one drawback to all this is that we can produce an incredible […] Read more


Four men standing together in front of a hopper of grain.

What’s the secret?

What makes three farms operating as one such a success?

What’s the secret?’ is a question the Weichel family is often asked. With three generations and multiple families working together as a unit, everyone wants to know what the secret is to keeping three farms operating like one. For 85-year-old Mike Weichel and his wife Babe, 80, the secret lies in the history of the […] Read more

Pride and joy of the dairy farm

Ancestry of Holsteins dates back seven generations


The Flamans talk about their cows as if they’re family. There’s Erin, Lila, Prestige, Mazing and Mary. And then there are the Donnas. The Donnas are the pride and joy of this dairy farm. With ancestors dating back seven generations, the “D-line” of purebred Holsteins includes great milk producers like Dolly, Daffodil and Desire. The […] Read more


More information on dill

Plus, where to buy cuke seeds and Ted shares some of your emails


So what’s on this agenda? An old catch-no-cold remedy — lots on dill — where to buy pickling cucumber seeds — emails and who knows what else? I’m not at the end ’til I get there. Every gardener worth their dill pickle juice … has grown dill and made dills at one time or another. […] Read more

Life’s secrets, according to you…

People of the world, tell me this — what’s the best financial advice you’ve ever received? Part One


I’ll never forget the day my dad sat me down when I was 16 years old… I was desperate to buy a car, and equally desperate to spend every last dime I had saved to purchase it. To me, the math was remarkably simple: more money = nicer vehicle = cool cat. According to my […] Read more


Sliced tomatoes on a dinner plate.

Travel down Tomato Trail with Ted

The Singing Gardener: Plus, how do you handle your tomato issues?

Does that sound a bit like a spoken jingle when you read it out loud? Use your imagination for a moment. Let’s pretend we’ve gathered together in the greenhouse where it’s nice and warm and are enjoying a cup of energy tea. You’ve caught me sippin’ on a cup of energizing organic Cardamom Chai loose-leaf […] Read more

Life’s secrets, according to you…

Here forthwith, are the most embarrassing things you’ve ever done: Part Two

The only thing I can think of was from a Grade 12 ski trip… I was too scared to jump off the chairlift at the top, so I started going back down (which doesn’t really work). They had to stop the lift, and the operator yelled at me over the loud speaker and I had […] Read more


Making sense of 2013 to plan for 2014

How are you planning to stand out in 2014 and make a difference in the world?

The calendar may say that it’s a new year, but my new year was a few months ago in September. I always feel that “going back to school time” is really the start of my new learning season. But alas, you have bright, shiny new calendars on your office, shop and kitchen walls, so as […] Read more

Snow-skier cresting a hill about to wipe out.

Life’s secrets, according to you…

People of the world, tell me this — what’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever done? Part One


I share this story for one (or both) of the following reasons: It makes me out to be classy and sophisticated. Obviously. In case you happen to be having a crappy day my hopes are that this will make you laugh. Now where were we? Oh, right. The chairlift incident… it still gives me the […] Read more