Banded tundra swans taking a break in Val Marie before heading north to nesting grounds

Spring is in the air at Grant Ranch!  We have spotted the first robins of the season, as well as an increasing number of northern birds migrating through to their summer nesting grounds.

Spring also means new life!  Our first calves of the season were born yesterday! Twins! We brought the first-time mom, and her babies back to the yard to keep a watchful eye, and make sure everyone is up and running!  We have supplemented both calves until we are sure that Mamma has enough milk for both.  You can tell she is nervous, just like any new mom!

First calves of 2016!

The warmer temperatures also create a surge of energy as we gear up for seeding. The air seeder has been pulled up to the shop where it will be thoroughly checked and tuned up for the many hours it will work in the next few weeks in an effort to prevent breakdowns.

In the past few weeks, all seed has gone through germination tests to ensure it will grow strong once it is planted in the ground.  Because the ranch is in the southwest area of Saskatchewan, we do have  a relatively short growing season in comparison to a lot of Canada.  We must wait for the soil temperature to reach a minimum of 5 degrees celsius for the seed to germinate (we will talk more about this later).

Air seeder tune-up

This spring is also the beginning of our dive into the online world!  We hope to create a transparent view of what we do, how we do it and why it is important.  As well, we want to enter the discussion on the agricultural issues that we face as producers, that effect you as consumers.