The last day of our visit to the Canada Farm included a visit to the grain farmers who lease our three quarter sections, with about 310 acres of the 435 acres under cultivation. A favorite part of the visit is to learn about the newest FARM TECHNOLOGIES in use on our land. The current crop rotation is the entire acreage in Canola alternating with a grain crop, usually red wheat or barley. Our Canadian leasers harvest around 10,000 acres, with most of the work done by two men. The technologies needed for that to happen allow each man to till, fertilize, and plant three quarters sections, up to 480 acres (such as our farm) in one day! Most of their tractors and other large equipment are made by John Deere with their trademark green paint jobs and are up to 20 feet tall with 8+ foot diameter tires. The new technologies include a new seed/fertilizer car which follows the tiller/planting implement, which is pulled by the massive tractor. This boxy cart uses air pressure to blow seeds or fertilizer forward to the tiller/planter. One tube goes to a large disk which slices a deep seam in the soil in which fertilizer is down. On either side is a more shallow tiller that creates a two inch furrow, inserts 1-2 seeds per 3-4 inches, and covers the furrow back up. The tractors then follow a satellite-guided geomapping program which drives the rig precisely without wasteful overlap or missed ground. The rest of the long northern days is spent looking for pests or keeping weeds at bay. The global shortages of grain and vegetable oil promises a good market for the Canola and barley this year.
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