Tag Archives: farm preparedness
The Miracle of Rain
It’s always amazed me when weather announcers on TV or radio almost uniformly apologize when forecasting upcoming rain. As if rain is going to irrevocably ruin the next days’ activities or permanently scar kids’ psychics when an outdoor sport is impacted or postponed. Oh, my weekend plans are disrupted. News flash. Without rain, there is […]
The Blessed Alternative to Irrigation
We take a lot of things for granted in this life, especially in our convenient, 21st century society. A society where food somehow miraculously appears before our eyes – whether on the grocery shelf, kitchen counter, drive-thru window, or restaurant table. Many of us, mostly the Gen-Xers and younger, are oblivious to where this amazing […]
Snow and more snow
We’re snowed in! This isn’t earthshaking news for Canada but in our part of the country, it is. Fifteen inches over three days and most everything has stopped in its tracks. Only essential travel is recommended. So we have little movement at the end of our dead-end road to the farm. The dynamics are interesting. […]
A Petty Agricultural Argument between Neighbors
Usually Canadian politics is a bit on the boring side, but not when it involves the US. I actually think the 2nd most popular sport in Canada…after hockey….is bashing America, or more specifically Donald Trump. May 2018 is no exception, especially when Trump is threatening to dismantle or at least re-negotiate NAFTA, the North America […]
Preserve food. Prepare for an emergency.
Last month I blogged on the subject of food security, and how important ‘local’ food was for our ancestors. In order to have adequate food beyond the growing season, some clever food preservation methods were devised in centuries past — and still in widespread use today. Preservation slows down or stops bacteria and other pathogens […]
Celebrating the Seasons through Food
As the saying goes: “Everyone talks about the weather, but no one can do anything about it.” The significance of four seasons was more than just idle chatter a century ago. It had a huge impact on food security. Then, we were largely an agricultural society. Our ancestors were close to the land. Our lives […]
The Family Farm
I recently returned from a visit to my family farm in South Carolina, and was jolted back to the past. Many days of hard work with my siblings on a small dairy. For years, I remember waking up before 5AM, seven days a week. It was just a routine, like we all have. If nothing else, […]
Size doesn’t matter.
With a long career in agriculture, I have been fortunate to be exposed to both large and small farming. As part of my Masters’ requirement at Texas A&M, I tested mechanical irrigation systems in the San Juaquin Valley of California on multi-crop farms that averaged 25,000 acres. As mentioned in earlier posts, I grew up […]
Agricultural Producers and Natural Hazards – Part II
Last month, we discussed the wildfire hazard for agriculture and especially the protection of farm animals – either by movement or ‘sheltering in place’. Let’s mention a few other natural hazards. Earthquakes are a common topic in western Canada, since we’re along a similar geological zone as California to our south. And we know of […]
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