I was pleased to accept the invitation to speak at the SSCA conference for two reasons. First it meant attending the conference and I know from past experience that means I'll go home excited, challenged and more knowledgeable. Second, by speaking today I can share some of my experiences, which I hope will be a benefit to those attending. I always enjoy the farmer presentations on the program whether it is a pioneer or a rookie, someone from Saskatchewan or from outside the country, so I hope I can add to what you take home.
Before I discuss "direct seeding in the seed growing business" I would like to explain how both direct seeding and seed growing have developed on our farm. Then I will outline some of the mistakes I've made over the years. Finally I will comment on where we are at today in the production and marketing of seed and how direct seeding affects those areas of our business.
As was noted in my introduction I grew up on a farm in south central Saskatchewan. It was a typical mixed farm with the grain land in 1/2 crop & 1/2 fallow and a few cattle to provide meat and milk. We are now third generation farmers as the land was homesteaded in the 1918-20 period.
After taking a degree in Agriculture and working off the farm for a few years, I got the call from my parents in 1982 to come back to the farm. My older brother had started farming with my Dad a few years earlier and I had just assumed he would be the farmer in the family. They had decided it was too much for one to handle, so they offered Judith and I the opportunity. Although my brother and Dad made many concessions to make it attractive for us to farm I knew we would need another source of income and something to do in the off season.
After looking at a few options, we chose to buy a used seed plant at Outlook and set it up on our farm in 1984. The reasons where:
As our farm and seed business began to grow, I also took and interest in soil conservation. It didn't take me long to realize that if the wind eroded knolls, salinity patches and gullies continued to expand at the same rate they had in the first sixty years of cultivation, we wouldn't have much to pass on to the future.
I became involved in programs offered by the Mossbank Soil Management Coop, the District 3 ADD Board, Ducks Unlimited, and PFRA. I don't classify myself as an innovative farmer. I read somewhere that they aren't the most profitable because they shoulder a large part of the R&D costs. I am more of a follower who lets other farmers field test new technology before I invest.
As a 3rd generation farmer, a 1st generation seed grower, and a 1st generation direct seeder, I'm not going to stand up hear and tell you that I haven't made any mistakes trying out new ideas. My father and my brother would be sure to correct me. It brings to mind the old sayings ; "If you make a mistake once you are careless, if you make the same mistake again you are a fool".
Here are some of my more memorable blunders. I hope you can learn from them:
In 1983, we started adopting some soil conservation ideas such as extending rotations with stubble cropping and chemfallow. One of the biggest improvements came when we started straight combining in 1994. We have been direct seeding on our farm since 1985 when I hired a neighbour to direct seed winter wheat. Since then I have tried various minimum till seeding systems and watched the variety of seeding tools that the neighbours used. We purchased an air hoe drill last year and we were very pleased with the emergence.
Currently, our biggest challenge is kochia and wild oat weed management. Both are weeds that can germinate throughout the growing season, develop rapidly, produce lots of seeds, and cause harvest problems. Our two main crops are durum and chickpeas. We find it takes an ongoing cultural and chemical program to keep these weeds under control.
As with any farm, the seed business has its production and its marketing sides. Does direct seeding work in seed production? Yes. Seed grower concerns are similar to commercial farmer - weeds, fertility, yield, soil degradation, net returns, capital requirements, and time. Seed producers also have additional concerns with contamination from previous crops and isolation from adjacent crops. With a proper rotation and good planning, we can use the benefits of direct seeding in a seed production system. It has meant we need to grow more crop kinds and fewer varieties to overcome the contamination and isolation problems but this has helped with some of the other concerns (weeds, fertility, soil degradation, etc.). I have also noticed a change in where we spend our time. Less time doing tillage has meant more time for other more productive jobs.
Does direct seeding impact on seed marketing? Yes. Because commercial farmers are extending rotations and using a wider crop mix, they are purchasing more seed for reasons of convenience and purity. Zero tillage farmers have also experienced more contamination problems and this means they need to purchase seed to ensure they can produce top grades. Those farmers that have accepted zero till farming are generally quicker to respond to market changes as well. They often need to purchase seed to meet these market signals.
One of the challenges that we face when using direct seeding/longer rotations in our business, is to produce all the cultivars and crop types that our customers want. This has led us to form some alliances and encourage others to grow seed as well. The biggest input cost for a seed grower is TIME. How many of you save your own seed? Seed growers do; up to five generations. How many of you buy seed from a seed grower? Seed growers do so they don't have to produce all the generations or to resell to their customers. How many of you have invested in equipment that is easier to clean out (hopper bins, airseeders, augers that reverse)? Seed growers have. How many of you have grown for an identity preserved program? Seed production involves a similar quality assurance program. How many of you are interested in doing more hands on marketing? A large part of the seed business is marketing. If you answered yes to most of these questions you are well on your way to becoming a seed grower. The time you save by direct seeding / zero tilling could be the extra time you need to be successful in this business.