The Food Issue
2015
grainswest.com
13
SHESAID, THREESAID
BY SARAH WEIGUM
1
D'Arcy Hilgartner
Camrose, AB
Most people have always had a sustain-
ability strategy, but it hasn’t been called
that. We soil test for our fertility needs.
We use the right blend of nutrients for
the right crop. Every crop that we grow
uses a di erent balance of nutrients. For
economic and environmental reasons you
want to feed that crop the appropriate
amount of nutrients, but not too much be-
cause that leads to runo and excess costs.
We also use up-to-date equipment with
features like GPS that limit the amount of
overlap so we’re not applying extra fertiliz-
ers or chemicals.
Cropping in rotation is key to our
sustainability. This year we’ll be putting
in nine di erent types of crop. The more
types of crops that you grow, the more it
helps to limit disease and weeds. By grow-
ing diverse crops that are not all a ected
by the same diseases and weeds, it helps
to reduce the amount of other pesticide
products I have to use in my crops.
2
3
Nowhere is sustainability more important than in agriculture. Farmers are intimate-
ly connected to the land, and it is their responsibility to protect and preserve it
for future generations. Three Hills-area farmer and writer Sarah Weigum talked to
three farmers about the things they do to keep their farms sustainable.
Elaine Bellamy
Rosebud, AB
Our aim is always to grow more so that we
can feed that burgeoning population. We
choose the newest, higher-yielding crop
varieties. That means you are getting more
commodity with the same amount of crop
protection product and fuel consumption.
This is a plus for the environment.
All crops are “scouted” many times
throughout the growing season so prob-
lems can be spotted early, and beneficial
insects can also be taken into account. All
empty oil jugs, chemical containers and
used grain bags are recycled. In our fertil-
izer program, we coat some of our nitrogen
with a product that prevents the nitrogen
from escaping into the atmosphere. Wet-
lands are retained in our fields and we sup-
port biodiversity. As we replace equipment
with newer models, we are switching to a
higher tier engine to reduce pollution.
There is also the benefit of fixing carbon
in the soil to counteract the destruction of
our atmosphere by other industries.
Kevin Auch
Carmangay, AB
My goal is to improve the land so that
it’s better than when I started. We are in
an area with less moisture and sandier
land, and one of the things that threaten
sustainability on our farm is wind erosion.
Years ago, we went to zero-till farming
to protect the surface of the soil from the
wind. By keeping the stubble from last
year’s crop on top of the soil, we also pre-
serve moisture.
Zero-till farming reduces fuel con-
sumption and preserves the health of the
soil. In the past, farmers used tillage to
kill weeds, but the side e ect is that you
disrupt the ecosystem that is in your soil.
There are flora and fauna in the soil, and
many of them have a symbiotic relation-
ship with the crops we grow. If we can
preserve that ecosystem, it enhances the
ability of our crops to produce. We’re
managing millions of little biological
units—we have to be good stewards of
that resource.
