A permanent water supply and rich soils were two of the factors that attracted Dick & Diane Coombs to east central Saskatchewan. In April of 2001, the Bar C Ranch moved its cows and equipment from a ranch near Vanderhoof, B.C. and brought them all to land near Wroxton, about a half hour's drive east of Yorkton. Changes in how the land was managed began almost immediately.
The selling feature of the land the Coombs purchased is the huge permanent slough that covers about 80 acres over 2 adjoining quarters. "With that slough," Dick said, "we're never going to run out of a water supply for our cows". With more than 200 head, ensuring an adequate water supply is a real concern.
When the Coombs first arrived at their new ranch, the slough was just part of a much larger pasture. In order to water or to move from one side of the slough to the other, the cattle had to cross through mud. In no time, the cows and their calves were looking a little bedraggled. "The cows were covered in mud up to their bellies so their bags were covered in mud and the muzzles of the calves were caked with mud", explained Dick. It was a mess.
That same slough is of interest to the Sask. Watershed Authority (formerly the Sask. Water Corporation) because of its large wetlands habitat. Shortly after the Coombs arrived, the Authority got in touch with them. Together with the Coombs, they developed a plan for the area. The plan serves to protect the wetlands while at the same time providing good drinking water to the cows and access to the grasslands around the slough.
The first step of the plan was to run a 4 strand barbed wire fence around the perimeter of the slough, preventing the cows from walking into the mud and water. The next step was to develop a central watering system for the cows. A solar pump was set into the slough and a line was run to 2- 700 gal tubs. The cows much prefer drinking the water from the tubs than directly from the slough. Diane said, "Even when we have locked the cows out of the central system, they reach over the barbed wire to drink from the tubs rather than drink from the slough".
The final step in the conservation plan was to haul 3 loads of gravel to each of the 2 natural crossings on the slough. The dry, solid footing ensures the cattle cross at the same spot every time so they don't damage the shoreline.
Once the cows' watering needs were settled, the Coombs then turned their attention to seeding some grass for pasture and hay. But the Coombs discovered they had some lessons to learn when it came to seeding in Saskatchewan. "Where we ranched at Vanderhoof," Dick said, "the topsoil was about a half inch deep and while we could count on rain just about every day in the summer, it would take the whole year for the grasses to get established." In 2001, the Coombs seeded a mixture of Orchard grass, Meadow Bromegrass, Timothy, Alfalfa and Alsike clover together with 2 bushels of oats. The heavy seeding rate for the oats took its toll on the grass establishment. "While the grasses eventually did germinate and grow that first year, they were very slow," said Diane. When they seeded more acres to that same grass mixture this past summer, they cut the oats down to 20 lbs per acre. "The grasses had an incredible catch. We believe the difference was the competition from the oats. In fact, on some land where the tame oats were choked out by wild oats, we think the forages came up even quicker," said Diane.
The importance of weed control prior to seeding forages also became evident. Some of the land was badly infested with weeds. Of those acres, most received 1 litre of glyphosate and were then cultivated. The rougher acres weren't sprayed, only cultivated. The areas that received both treatments were much cleaner and therefore the grass establishment this spring was much better than in the area that was only cultivated. Dick said, "We'll be sure to kill everything prior to seeding again!"
The Coombs didn't direct seed any of their forages mainly because they don't have the capability with their own equipment. They both see the value in direct seeding but don't expect to use it on their operation. "We don't grain farm and we don't plan to seed this land very often so we'll continue to use our own drills but protecting the soil and seed with the previous crop's stubble sure seems to be a good thing for the guys with the right equipment," explained Dick. He then went on to explain that near Vanderhoof, range land was direct seeded using a disc with packers pulled by a D8 cat!
The Coombs firmly believe in the value of fertilizing their hay and pasturelands. Back in B.C., their first attempt at fertilizing was on an old stand that was giving them about 25 bales on 70 acres. They weren't very happy with the results from granular fertilizer but they were very impressed with liquid. Once they made the switch to liquid fertilizer, they were able to take off 250 - 300 bales on those same 70 acres and the protein in the hay usually ran over 11%. After haying, the grass plants re-grew so well that they were then able to put the cattle out to graze in the fall until the snow got too deep. The Coombs will apply fertilizer to the stands they seeded in 2001. They intend to once again use liquid fertilizer which will be a blend of lots of nitrogen, some phosphate and some sulphur.
Once the Coombs get the ranch set up the way they want it, the next step will be to provide strategic shelter for the cows using shelterbelts. "Cows need protection from the wind", said Dick. "We'd like to set up little plots of trees around the ranch so that no matter which way the wind blows, the cows can go for shelter". The Coombs approached the PFRA Shelterbelt Centre at Indian Head for some ideas. After meeting with the Coombs and viewing the fields, the Centre came up with a plan for a series of 2 acre shelterbelts, 10 rows deep.
Dick and Diane have been ranching at Wroxton for only a couple of years but they are settled into the area. Diane said, "This is such an awesome cattle area. It's great to have so much available moisture for the grass and the permanent wetlands". Dick agrees. "Out here, we can run 200 - 300 head on just 8 or 9 quarters. Back where we come from in B.C., we would have needed about 3 times as much land for the same size herd".
As Dick & Diane Coombs have converted a grain farm into a ranch, they have initiated a conservation program that enables them to blend their concern for the wetlands and their desire to provide the best possible feed and water to their cows. That shows that conservation isn't just for the combine jockeys.