Prairie Memoirs: Straight lines

Farmers love straight lines. Straight lines look sharp and mean you are on top of your game. Look anywhere and you will find them. Drive down any Prairie road and look down a line of grain bins and good luck trying to find one out of step. This is civil engineering perfection, Prairie farm-style. If […] Read more

Avoid driving pain

Avoid driving pain

Stiff and sore after a long day in the tractor or on the highway? Try these tips to help you feel better

Long drives are an unavoidable part of life on the farm or in the country. Whether it is long days spent in a tractor or driving across the Prairies, we often have to put our bodies in sedentary positions just by the nature of our lifestyles. Tension and pain in the lower body, spine and […] Read more


Garden star

Garden star

Eggplant can be delectable but it takes a bit of know-how to cook it properly

Like many Prairie children of central European extraction, my early experience of eggplant was erratic, error-prone and anything but remarkable. My mom never mastered eggplant, which she’d encountered on her European travels — on her return to Canada, she dutifully did her best, slicing, dredging, frying. But the true nature of eggplant never emerged in […] Read more

How to reinvent your farm life as you age

How to reinvent your farm life as you age

Mind Switch could be a good place to start

Harvest is in full swing on our farm, and I am not there — for a few days. Where is it written you cannot leave the farm during harvest? (Answer: on almost every page of the unpublished book, The Culture of Agriculture.) If you are one of the 2,800 folks who have stumbled upon “Finding […] Read more


One of our Eppich Quarter Horse weanlings standing patiently for a refresher course on being tied up.

Saying goodbye to an old gelding

Eppich News: Calves sold, and cows and heifers are home for the winter

We had a bit of snow on Thanksgiving Day but that quickly went away. October 12 I brought the mares and foals home from the home native pasture so that we could start the weaning process. We put the mares and foals in separate pens with a slab fence between them and with a few […] Read more

One of the last foals born in 2021, 
affectionately named “Tarzan” by Joseph.

A busy spring with crazy weather

Eppich News: Last of the 2020 foals sold, and a few of the 2021 crop spoken for

The beginning of May found us seeding and foaling. By the morning of May 14, all seven of our foals had been born and were doing well. We ended up with four fillies and three colts. That afternoon we branded our calves and vaccinated our cows. We worked at it slowly and we got it […] Read more


Due to the cold temperatures in February, cattle were provided with good wind breaks and plenty of dry bedding.

Last of hay and flax bales hauled home

Eppich News: Hopefully, cold temperatures are gone by early March calving

The beginning of the new year found us hauling bales. Gregory and John hauled slough bales the first week of January. Then, with the help of the blade on the tractor, they were able to plow snow and get 80 flax straw bales home on Jan. 8 and 9. On Jan. 11 Gregory drove his […] Read more



It’s time to bring people to the table to find what each person wants for their life, their family and their farm business.

Froese: How to pitch pride and get transition traction

If emotion is affecting transition — you need to talk

In 2003, Tom Hubler, a family business coach, told me “Pride and stubbornness” are barriers to a successful transition. This winter Beth Moore’s teaching has encouraged me to explore the aspects of pride that impact family harmony. Let’s dissect this touchy topic. 1. Heart. I am convinced the emotional factors affecting planning are keeping well-meaning […] Read more

There is an extraordinary amount of things on a farmer’s mind, at the best of times. This year that number has multiplied.

Toban Dyck: Piecing together the farming puzzle

A picture is starting to emerge of what farming looks like for me

Eight years ago, when Jamie and I moved to the farm, I opened the box and dumped the farming puzzle on the table. There seemed to be an infinite amount of pieces and just as many ways to put it together. And, as you know, this particular puzzle does not come with a reference picture. […] Read more