Ken's Korner

Monday, May 5, 2008

Spring has arrived here in the northeast, finally! 

Winters sure seem to be a lot longer now than they used to be, even though we always sit around in the coffee shops during the short winter days and tell stories about how much colder the weather was when we were kids going to school.  You remember those days, when we walked 3 miles to school through waist deep snow drifts, and it was uphill both ways.  Regardless, this winter seemed like a long one, maybe because we had snow in mid October and it stayed until well past the middle of April.

And in our corner of the province, where it was thought that flooding was going to be a problem, the snow disappeared and there was very little evidence of excess water to be seen.  I guess the slow melt had a lot to do with that.

The drier conditions make it easier for seeding in our corner, and we do have lots of soil moisture for getting the crops off to a good start.  Not so for the more southern areas of Saskatchewan.  Those folks are very dry, and will be in need of a lot of rain to get a good crop.

I hope they get it, as I hope we get the timely rains our way too.  It would be nice to have a bumper crop when the prices are good, and especially now when it is so obvious that the world needs every bit of grain that can be grown, whether that is wheat, rice or corn.

Family Farmers wants to extend our most sincere congratulations to Paul Beingessner, who was recently awarded an honorary life membership by the Saskatchewan Institute of Agrologists.  He joins a pretty select group of people who have contributed greatly to the agriculture scene here in Saskatchewan.  Check out their website for a full list of those who have been honored over the years.  Again, congratulations Paul, it is a well deserved award.

This will be the last issue of Ken’s Korner for a few weeks, as my partner and I are leaving shortly for a few weeks overseas.  She has an opportunity to further her studies in England and we are combining that opportunity with a short trip onto the continent.  And when we return, it will be fishing season, so who knows when I find time to do this again.

Take care,

Ken