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Saskatchewan government and family ranch use field days to improve pasture farming

Jul 5, 2018 | 10:00 AM

The Government of Saskatchewan and Burnt Out Creek Ranch have partnered up to host pasture farm field days.

As the partnership grows in its second year, the provincial government is hoping pasture producers throughout the province can pick up some new knowledge during the educational events. Jordan Kowal, who took over the pasture farm in Crooked River, hosted a number of pasture producers July 4 to discuss new agricultural technologies such as solar water systems and other relevant topics.

“We grow a lot of legumes and different types of grass,” Kowal said. “We’re always experimenting to see what will give us the best gains and look after our animals the best.”

A few years back, Kowal said he and his wife Janelle began conversations with Alicia Sopatuk, a livestock and feed extension specialist for the provincial government, on various topics such as dugouts and fencing. As the talks rolled on, both parties realized they could learn a lot from one another and decided to host the field days to pass along their knowledge to even more producers.

“It’s all about extending that knowledge and new technologies onto the farm and with producers,” Sopatuk said. “Working with Jordan and Janel in this partnership has really provided an avenue to do that, to reach more producers, and especially out in the field as opposed to a classroom setting.”

Sopatuk said she wants the field days to attract Saskatchewan pasture producers to learn and bring ideas back to their own operations while sharing their own knowledge with others.

Burnt Out Creek Ranch doesn’t receive additional funding for hosting field days, though Kowal said meeting other producers and continuing to learn what works best for pasture farming is something his family has gained from the partnership.

Along with spreading knowledge, Sopatuk said one of the main focuses of future field days is to continue discussions on water quality and improve its development with pasture systems.

 

aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow