cow and calf on pasture

Kirkella Community Pasture receives conservation trust funding

MFGA and RM of Wallace-Woodworth partnership among conservation projects announced by Province

Partners of the Kirkella Community Pasture Association’s Grassland Habitat Enhancement Project received great news from the Province of Manitoba’s new Conservation Trust after their project received $100,000 for a two-year pasture improvement project on the community-owned pasture. Kirkella Community Pasture was among more than 40 projects and $2.2 Million that Premier Brian Pallister and Sustainable […] Read more

A teaspoon of productive soil generally contains anywhere from 100 million to one billion bacteria, says Dr. Elaine Ingham, microbiologist and founder of Soil Food Web Inc.

Building healthy soil for forages

Research group targets five basic principles to improve soil health

Feed the soil and everything gets better, says Brian Harper, Manitoba beef producer and 2018 Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA) winner. Harper’s focus has moved from the livestock, down to the plants and now to the soil and the below-ground activity. “I have realized the cattle are just a tool.” Many ranchers are starting to acknowledge […] Read more


Manitoba alfalfa growers wanted for sampling program

Manitoba alfalfa growers wanted for sampling program

Forages: News Roundup from the April 2019 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

The Manitoba and Forage Grasslands Association (MFGA) is looking for alfalfa growers to submit alfalfa samples in May and June as part of its Green Gold program. Hay fields must be fairly new, mostly alfalfa and in good condition. Producers must sample fields every Monday and Wednesday, and courier the alfalfa to Central Testing Laboratory. […] Read more



Hay in the swath in northwestern Saskatchewan.


A systems approach to cutting hay

Forages: News Roundup from the April 2019 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

Deciding when to cut hay often comes down to a gut feeling. “And lots of times, that can get you into trouble,” said Ryan Sommerfeld of RPS Gelbvieh, based near Medstead, Sask. Sommerfeld outlined his simple methods for cutting and baling hay at a regional agricultural update in Turtleford, Sask., in early March. Sommerfeld avoids […] Read more

Pilot projects in each province will determine the best management practices for local areas.

Leaving the grass – and the carbon – in the ground

National project will show how forage and grassland owners can use high-performance management to boost yields and store carbon

Canadian forage producers know the value of the land they are responsible for — all 33.8 million acres of cultivated forages and 36 million of native or improved pastures. This land has a direct economic impact of $5.09 billion, but studies on the value of its environmental impact, or “ecological goods and services,” suggest it’s […] Read more


Making good hay

Making good hay

If you follow the principles of making hay, you can also grow good pasture

If you follow the principles of making hay, you can also grow good pasture

My wife and I recently attended the Alberta Organic Conference in Fort Saskatchewan. It was a fantastic event and she made a great comment to me on the way home. We attend a lot of events like this and we are constantly reminded about the principles of regenerative agriculture. It’s “the normal” in our circle. […] Read more

“Once trust is broken in a business arrangement, get out... Trust is the most important part of any relationship.”

The other side of the fence

Grazing with Steve Kenyon

Your neighbour is not perfect, even if it may look like he has it all together. The same is true here at Greener Pastures. I will be the first to tell you of our struggles and of the issues that we have endured. I have had more than my share of discouragement on this ranch. […] Read more


Kris Ringwall is the director of the newly minted Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence near Saskatoon, Sask.

Kris Ringwall takes the reins at Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence

Extension’s role is “always to make producers think,” says former NDSU extension director

It’s a foggy November morning south of Clavet, Sask. Cattle grazing bales gradually emerge from the mist to eye strangers. Near the grazing cattle is the Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence. The recently opened centre is focused on research, teaching and working with the livestock and forage industries. It comprises 27 quarters of land […] Read more

Round bales sitting in a field

Bale grazing. ‘What a waste of feed!’ NO

Grazing with Steve Kenyon

I still receive this comment quite often when I speak about bale grazing. Our industry is hung up on being efficient. We don’t want to waste anything. I know we have all been trained to target 97 per cent efficiency in everything we do. But I would rather be effective. Most of our efficiencies come from looking at […] Read more