On June 3, 1987, an average heifer was born on my family’s dairy farm and named Melamar Astro Jet Wendy. She wasn’t remarkable. Many Astro Jet daughters were being born […] Read more
Comment: Polled Holsteins finally get their day
Bringing livestock into high-value crop land
Here’s how a young farm family is making livestock work where corn, soybeans and wheat dominate
One of the most valuable ends for a cover crop is for it to be eaten by livestock, converted to manure and added to the soil as processed nutrients. That’s […] Read more
New players find way into dairy genetics markets
Some Canadian farms are now selling bull semen
New service providers and technology allow some large dairy farmers to sell genetics from their own bulls. Stanton Farms, one of Ontario’s largest dairy farms, now sells its bull semen […] Read more
ALUS gets new provincial funding
Program helps farmers pay for projects that protect species at risk
At the Crump farm near Ilderton, runoff from 400 nearby acres, grazing by too many cattle and an elevation change of 35 feet in a short distance led to a […] Read more
Opinion: Keep balance in research funding
Many ingredients went into the mix that resulted in the extraordinary success of agriculture in feeding a growing population. There’s the ability of farmers to constantly learn and increase their […] Read more
Virtual option expands dairy apprenticeship reach
Travel time had limited access to the program for those far from Ridgetown
Ontario’s Dairy Herd Apprenticeship Program is creating a virtual option, which should allow more people to take the Ridgetown-based program. The apprenticeship program gives students practical knowledge that can immediately […] Read more
Opinion: Guard against electronic trespassers
I know farmers take trespassing seriously. There are numerous risks associated with people wandering on and through the farm. There’s the risk of a biosecurity breach that could result in […] Read more
Slow burn: Weed control at 0.2 kilometres per hour
A laser weeder helps with weed control in high-value crops
Kerr Farms was presented with a challenge by one of the buyers for its conventional carrots: could they grow them organically? Nature’s Finest, a major Ontario supplier of root vegetables […] Read more
VIDEO: Autonomous equipment evolves on the farm
A tour put on by Ontario’s Autonomous Working Group shows reliability and field uses increase for farm robots
Autonomous equipment use in Ontario agriculture is growing, but mostly in areas where crop value is high and the challenge of finding human help for crop care has dire consequences […] Read more
PHOTOS: Here come the crop robots
Here are some of the autonomous units in use and research in Ontario this summer.
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
