Category Archives: Uncategorized

Thanks for great harvest: We dumped the last loads of grain in the last light of day, then took our combines home to a hot supper in the warm house. What a wonderful end to a great season. The farmers … Continue reading →

Alanna Koch, deputy minister of Saskatchewan agriculture said, “They used to say, Saskatchewan is the place to be from. Now it’s the place to be.” Koch gave the opening address of the Canadian Farm Writers’ Conference in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan … Continue reading →

“Exposure is everything,” Pastor Jessy once told me. He was referring to his Zambian small scale farmers that rarely travel out of their region; many can’t even read. Exposure wasn’t something I thought of much until then. We have so … Continue reading →

It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a 7-day weather report like todays: sunny, and warmer! I’m almost scared to check it again, just in case ‘they’ change their minds. Farmers will be happy – it was pretty disheartening … Continue reading →

The golden grain fields have taken on a shade of grey. “It’s all going to be feed now, I’m afraid,” says Rod Fisher, from Westlock Terminals. It seems such a shame – what little wheat came off before it started … Continue reading →

It smells of hay or silage, and the swath I leave behind almost looks like it too. I’m combining Theo Feitsma’s organic barley. To his credit, the organic part has nothing to do with the green matter. Feitsma’s got hail … Continue reading →

It’s wet outside, cold and raining again. Robert reminds me it’s often this kind of weather the beginning of September. Quite a few farmers got a start at combining last week – the dust was flying in barley fields, some … Continue reading →

Putt, putt, putt, putt… the tractor strains to pull the ever heavier load. Perched on the rusty steel seat, the farmer in blue jeans and straw hat stretches to pull the lever on the old John Deere one cylinder model. … Continue reading →

Before Mike Samson of Tawatinaw, Alta., died, he dreamed of building a house for his wife Lisa. Mike had terminal brain cancer. The doctors told him he’d have another six months or so to live. Determined to build until he … Continue reading →

My parents came down from Fort St. John, B.C. and we spent some time on the nearby Hutterite colony picking berries with the women. I’m sure my ancestors were hunters and gatherers. I’m never happier than in a berry patch … Continue reading →