Most producers will remember the long weekend of May 2000 with a bitter taste in their mouth, or should I say a dusty taste. On May 22nd and 23rd, high winds caused severe blowing conditions on a number of fields throughout northwest Saskatchewan. The evidence of this weather system will be perceptible for years to come: ditches, or what used to be ditches, filled in with soil; fence lines that look like motorcycle jumps. It was two days of pure misery. Many producers watched helplessly as this spring's hard work was blown away before their eyes. It was once again a sobering reminder of the importance in maintaining residue cover on our precious soil resources.
Every few years we witness weather conditions like these that result in major soil erosion. It takes decades to build a single inch of topsoil. On May 22nd and 23rd one to two inches were eroded away on a number of farms. Any erosion can be devastating. Soil erosion on your fields is a sure sign that your farming practices are not sustainable. When you're sick and tired of driving past ditches full of soil, it's time to examine the changes you need to make to your present tillage practices.
It is not rocket science: tillage puts our soil in a vulnerable state to both wind and water erosion. My hope is that the distress over May's merciless winds can be put to good use. Now is the perfect time to reflect on what you are presently doing. How can your farming methods be improved so you're ready when the next major weather problems arise? Prepare for the unexpected. That means keeping your soil resource in a condition that can resist erosion from wind or water at all times. We don't know when these major weather conditions will arise. We only know that they will.
Building up the surface residue and soil organic matter gives our soil greater resistance against erosion. A reduction in tillage, a more diverse rotation, and possibly the inclusion of forages into the rotation, are all factors that will go a long way toward protecting our most precious resource - our soil.
A producer from this northwest area planted his 75th crop this year. That May weekend, as he watched the skies darken in dust, he shook his head in disgust. "In the 30's everyone farmed like that. The sky was black no matter which way you turned. We didn't know what else to do. Today we know better."
Boy, do we ever! When the next major weather system arrives, I hope you won't find your resources blowin' in the wind.