If nothing else, the rain has certainly greened things up and likely cleaned up some of the dirty snow that was left behind. We can hope that the sun will be back out shining quickly. Friday, we were able to get a good chunk of plots planted. Of course, not without some issues. The Ontario & Manitoba barley and wheat trials went in with little concern. The oats always cause some issues as they tend to bridge. The seed just doesn’t fall through the seeder nicely and with only a few seconds between plot plantings I don’t have much time to fiddle, and the tractor driver cannot stop when making a pass as it will mess up the entire planting pass. We were on the second-last pass and the seed did not flow so I asked the driver to back up and start that pass over. My driver accidentally backed up with the drill down and we had a big mess on our hands. Fortunately for us, but unfortunately for him, a friend stopped and helped us make a fairly major repair. Although we were late leaving, we managed to finish the last two passes. The trial is likely a bit messed up, but we will make use of the plots that had no issues. I think I might have jinxed us as while riding the drill and I looked at the time, I was thinking, “wow, we are going to be done in really good time!” All in all, we had a very successful day, but I do think our friend will think twice about pulling in if we have wrenches out and we are trying to fix something.
My students started last Monday and by Friday we were planting so I am really pleased! My helpers are Kennah LeBlanc and Carenna Haw. I am very excited to spend the summer with these girls!
Congratulations to the Rainy River Federation of Agriculture for hosting a great Ag Day on Saturday! There was a great trade show, speakers, and a wonderful lunch! It is a lot of work organizing these events and I know seeing people attend these events is a wonderful feeling of accomplishment for those that work hard in making it happen.
The Rainy River Stewardship Committee is once again bringing in red pine and white spruce seedlings. The cost is $7 per bundle (bundles have 20 trees). To pre-order you need to head over to rrds.store. Trees will be available for pick up on May 18 and 20 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Fort Frances Library parking lot.
The Rainy River Ag Society is hosting a gala this Saturday night. “A Small-Town Mardi-Gras” is the theme and they are fundraising to build a brand new 4-H food booth! We all love the homemade fries and food that comes out of our food booth but now we will be able to work in a new building! It should be a great night and we sure hope the community will show us once again how generous everyone is.
Next Wednesday, May 17, the RRDRAI (Abattoir Board) is hosting their AGM. It will begin at 7 p.m. at the Chapple Rec Centre. I know most of you are tired of us complaining about the lack of profits but if you are tired of it, you can imagine how a board of volunteers are feeling. I have said many times that the abattoir adds value to this entire District, not just the farmers. We are at risk of making the decision to close the doors. We would hope that the members would attend our meeting, listen to the situation, and maybe offer some suggestions.
