Reading Time: 5 minutes This cake is delicious,” Elaine told her mother-in-law. “It always tastes better when someone else makes it,” Donna said, licking the last smear of icing off her plastic fork. “Open your present, Mommy!” Connor nagged for the third time. “OK, OK,” Elaine said. She set her plastic plate on the hood of her SUV and […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Another generation, another lesson
In which Jeff discovers an unexpected cost of “local” food
Highlights of Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show 2015
Old favourites were aplenty but some of the new demanded more attention
Reading Time: 6 minutes Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show makes us expect to see “something new.” Everything from multi-hybrid planters to robotic milkers and the latest in all-terrain vehicles have made their debuts at the Woodstock, Ont. show. This year’s 22nd annual edition was no exception. Below, we discuss some of the launches and announcements that caught our attention. First, […] Read more
Hanson Acres: ‘It’s my crop too’
Elaine wonders, why are they all headed toward my SUV?
Reading Time: 5 minutes We’re 65 per cent done harvest tonight,” Jeff said as he came in the door at 10 o’clock, a trail of durum kernels falling out of the leg of his blue jeans and onto the porch floor. Elaine’s eyes widened. Sixty-five? She was feeling 100 per cent done these days. “That’s great,” she said. Jeff […] Read more
John Deere lays down some new tracks
Machinery Guide: The four-track John Deere 9RX tractor makes its official debut
Reading Time: 3 minutes At a dealer convention way back in August of 2014, John Deere gave farm media a glimpse of what was then its pre-production prototype 9RX tractor, a 9R Series articulated model that rode on four tracks instead of tires. It made me ask, why break with standard practice? Why reveal a machine not yet ready […] Read more
Digital pursuits in the world of agricultural technology
The list of tools to collect, manage and transfer farm data is growing. Here’s a look at some of the recent additions
Reading Time: 4 minutes Lehmann If your focus is on gathering more data rather than managing it, drone technology may be for you, and a new contender has recently stepped up with a high-tech offering. France’s Lehmann Aviation made a move to break into the North American data-gathering market this spring with the launch of what it calls “an […] Read more
AGCO and New Holland combines see updated designs
Machinery Guide: New Holland CX8 and AGCO's Gleaner combines
Reading Time: 4 minutes Editor’s Note: With this instalment, Country Guide machinery editor Scott Garvey begins a new chapter for MachineryGuide with his industry-leading reporting on machinery innovations that can make a difference for you, both in the field and on the balance sheet. This month, Scott goes deep into combine design with this exploration of the 2015 launches […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Just get in that combine and drive
The big milestones don’t always come with brass bands
Reading Time: 4 minutes What are you waiting for?” Jeff asked his father. “Get in the combine and let’s get going. These peas aren’t going to harvest themselves.” Dale stood with Jeff, looking up at the cab. “You go ahead. You can make the first round this year.” Jeff looked surprised. “But you always combine the first round […] Read more
Back to work building better diesels
Now that we’ve met the Tier 4 Final emissions standards, can we finally get back to designing better diesel engines?
Reading Time: 5 minutes At last, we’ve crossed the finish line. January 1, 2014 marked the implementation date for the very last level of phased-in emission reductions for off-road diesel engines above 175 horsepower, as called for in joint standards issued by the U.S. and the European Union. The last set of regulations — called Tier 4 Final in […] Read more
Genuinely in business: How Dow Agro built its company culture
Guide Insight: OK, so it’s a cliché that business means people working with people. It’s also how you create success. Just ask Dow’s Brad Orr
Reading Time: 5 minutes Of all the global ag input suppliers, Dow AgroSciences has arguably changed the most, transitioning from a company whose Canadian presence was dominated by Treflan, a herbicide that nobody sprays today, into a diversified operation with a strong national presence and significant market share in crop protection, plant genetics, traits and more. There’s just as […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Who ordered the parade?
“You OK?” Jeff asked his dad. “You look kind of pale.”
Reading Time: 4 minutes Dale parked the sprayer beside the dugout at the west end of the Hansons’ yard to fill. Before he got started, he walked to the house to refill his water bottle and hunt for a snack. With Donna away camping — for the second time already this summer, Dale grumbled to himself — he wasn’t […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
