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High tunnels, or large hoop houses that provide seasonal extension for growing plants and herbs, have generated a lot of interest in our region. These tall structures covered with strong weatherproof plastic can extend a growing season an extra two to four months, giving users the opportunity to try diverse crops and to add value to a farming operation. "These high tunnels are just big hoops covered by plastic," says Bruce Smith, Dawson County extension agent. “These structures can range from 1...
The MonDak has always stood out as an agricultural area, which is the prime reason many of us chose to make this region our home. We liked the farming way of life and preferred the peace of the country to the bustle of commercial centers. Well, our cherished way of life has practically vanished as agriculture and its lifestyle has had to move aside for the oil industry. The oil boom continues to trump agriculture in numerous ways and many area farmers feel that in the coming years, agriculture i...
Sometimes a person can realize two goals by building a structure that satisfies a need and a want all at the same time. We already had a one-car garage attached to the house, but we wanted a second shelter to protect our other vehicle from the weather. As well, I’ve always dreamed of building an upper level deck on my home, with access only through an interior upstairs door. Last summer, we began working on a project that will give us not only an enclosed space for a vehicle but that will ultima...
From Thursday through Saturday, March 24-26, Sidney will host a three-day learning session for this year’s Leadership Montana class. Leadership Montana, a state-wide intensive nine-month program, attracts participants from all walks of life and from all points in Montana. These participants join together to learn leadership skills that each individual can use in his or her respective community to help improve and strengthen that locality. The group visits different Montana towns throughout the n...
I guess there is a reason why I ended up putting words on paper for a living. Word games, puns, anagrams, palindromes and pencil puzzles that require unscrambling letters or phrases and turning them into a readable form that makes sense have always intrigued me. I can create a multitude of variety word puzzles, but I won’t even attempt palindromes, so I admire those people who have minds that can create these words, phrases, or sentences that read the same forwards or backwards. The classic p...
My eyes have never provided me with crystal clear sight, and even as a child, darkness and shadows presented problems. I had difficulty distinguishing objects in the dark, and I tended to crash into whatever happened to be in my path rather than have the ability to successfully maneuver around these obstacles. Judging distances after sunset also could not be called one of my strong points. Now that I am a woman of a certain age, the situation has gotten completely out of hand. In spite of...
As we age, we realize the importance of our roots: where we came from, and what forces and events shaped us into who we are today. The sense of heritage and the desire to honor those who came before us can express itself in everyday life, as Carmen Roberts, Sidney, discovered. Roberts wanted to resume her hair styling career and she decided to build a shop on her property to accommodate the business. However, in the process she also wanted to honor her ancestry and to remind people of the early...
Every issue has its positives and negatives. Oil has changed the face of the MonDak region forever, it has caused serious problems with housing, infrastructure, the ability of natives to conduct daily business, and it has forced people to rethink individual values and priorities. For those farmers without mineral rights, farming only gets more and more difficult as input costs soar and the available land becomes increasingly more expensive to buy or to rent. However, those farmers who do have...
Every year we celebrate National Ag Week to recognize the huge contribution agriculture makes in our lives, to understand how farmers produce food and fiber, to remind ourselves that without a strong agricultural base the economy and the security of our nation founders, and to appreciate the safe, abundant food products we enjoy in the U.S. Even though each American farmer feeds approximately 144 people, an increase from 25 people each farmer could feed 40 years ago, many people fail to...
The MonDak has always stood out as an agricultural area, which is the prime reason many of us chose to make this region our home. We liked the farming way of life and preferred the peace of the country to the bustle of commercial centers. Well, our cherished way of life has practically vanished as agriculture and its lifestyle has had to move aside for the oil industry. The oil boom continues to trump agriculture in numerous ways and many area farmers feel that in the coming years, agriculture i...
The 2007 Census of Agriculture pointed out some inescapable facts that will affect the next few generations if we don’t take steps to reverse the trend. According to the Census, “Our agricultural landscape continues to change, but behind the numbers is also a story – a story of stewardship, hard work, and the unending fight to protect the working lands that sustain us. Every minute two acres of farmland are lost to development. Fewer and fewer farmers are able to stay on the land, and farms are...
Boys never grow up; their toys just get bigger and more expensive. Or so says Dave Vanek, Billings, who delights in acquiring old tractors and then restoring these antiques to working condition. Vanek recently sold one of his three restored ‘toys’, a 1912 Case Steam Traction Engine, to Jerry Satra, Crane. “I bought this Case Steam Traction Engine (tractor) in 1987 from a family estate sale near Medicine Hat, Alberta,” Vanek remarks of the tractor now in Crane. “I restored it in 1989 and took...
This year the Girl Scouts celebrate 100 years of an organization that builds leadership skills and fosters independent, self-reliant women. The organization dedicates itself to the promise to help people at all times, and to build character, confidence and courage in its membership. It all started because one self-possessed capable woman who refused to crawl away when times got tough fell in love with the wrong man. Juliette Gordon, a Savannah, GA, debutante, fell madly in love with and married...
Experts estimate that by 2050, nine billion people will live on planet Earth. These extra people will require farmers to produce more of everything, including animal products, yet available agricultural land will continue to shrink as developers gobble it up for far less important uses. Farmers will have to produce more using less, which means increasing efficiency and production with each passing year. For years, farmers and ranchers have done an outstanding job in bettering their production...
The Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP) Board of Control has hired James W. Brower, Milton-Freewater, OR, to take over the responsibilities of manager. Brower, who officially began his duties as manager of the irrigation project on Feb. 17, replaces Jerry Nypen, who retired from the manager position effective Feb. 16. Brower unofficially began work Feb. 8 however as he wanted to familiarize himself with all aspects of the Project prior to Nypen’s departure so he could gain insights a...
If the MonDak experiences a summer as above normal in temperatures as we’ve enjoyed this winter, hot humid summer days will carry the potential to cause a lot of stress in animals. Heat stress affects performance levels and if left untreated, the stress can lead to death. Carl Dahlen, NDSU Extension beef specialist, explains that heat stress is caused by an animal’s inability to keep its core body temperature at normal levels. “Animals have internal body temperatures, thermo neutral zones that...
The Montana State University has appointed agronomist Dr. Joyce Eckhoff as interim superintendent for the Eastern Agricultural Research Center (EARC), Sidney. Eckhoff takes over the position vacated by Dr. Jerry Bergman, who retired from the EARC to accept the position of director at the Williston Research and Extension Center. Eckhoff’s duties include 25% administration, 60% research and 15% outreach activities. Administrative responsibilities include general oversight of new construction or re...
The International Safflower committee honored Dr. Jerry Bergman, longtime safflower breeder and pioneer in developing new safflower varieties used in a wide variety of products, as the guest of honor at the 8th International Safflower Conference held in Hyderabad, India from Jan. 19-23. The conference, held every three to four years, seeks to gather together safflower breeders from around the world to discuss strategies and share new information. “I didn’t know I was to be the guest of hon...
Major pipeline company, Enbridge, recently announced plans to build a Bakken oil pipeline crossing from one side of Lake Sakakawea to the other, but will need an environmental go ahead from several federal agencies before it can be built. Enbridge, a Canadian pipeline company, is already a major transporter of North Dakota oil. The pipeline would be built 36 miles east of Watford City, boring under the lake, to a point 9 miles southeast of Tioga. From there oil would go into a second east-west...
Some ranchers, as well as those who operate feedlots, often use containment ponds to prevent excessive nutrient laden water waste from contaminating streams, ditches, or surface water. Chris Augustin, NDSU Extension area nutrient management specialist, explains that with last year’s wet weather, those with containment ponds need to check them for possible erosion and to repair any damage now, before the pond collapses. “Most containment ponds are designed for evaporation,” says Augustin. “Last...
The last of the water may leave the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP) main canal at the finish of the irrigation season, but this does not signify the end of the work for LYIP employees. In fact, many major repairs and a lot of maintenance work must wait for winter’s arrival as crews need dry ditches to move dirt, repair banks, and replace or improve structures and underground pipes within the system. LYIP employees spend a lot of time during the winter making these repairs. One s...
The Montana Ambassadors, a group of businessmen, educators and professionals that seek to further the best interests of the State of Montana, has selected Leslie Messer, Richland Economic Development (RED) executive director, as this year’s recipient of the Ambassador of the Year Award. The Ambassadors chose Messer based on her dedicated work with businesses and individuals involved with the Bakken development and in the growth of eastern Montana to thrive and expand. Her selection for this p...
We move through our entire lives facing change: interests may change, relationships come and go, health problems may crop up, abilities and needs shift, relocation may become necessary, careers change, social status alters; and the list goes on. Despite all the major changes a person experiences as he or she moves through life, some things remain constant. The love a person feels for particular family members, the affections we have for the dogs that spend their short lives with us, the beauty...
Holiday seasons nowadays tend to blend together for one continuous shopping spree, starting in September when merchants feel obligated to start pushing Halloween, and lasting right through Easter the following spring. When I was a kid, admittedly quite some time ago, this behavior on the part of shopkeepers didn’t exist and we as consumers didn’t demand it. Stores began stocking shelves with Halloween treats and costumes the first or second week of October. We didn’t even begin thinking about...
Retirement can lead to a whole new life, one that allows a person to embrace dreams and develop interests. Dale Dombrosky, Sidney, discovered that fact when he retired from a long career as a plumber and turned his attention to his hobby of creating everything and anything from wood. He produces marvelous scrollwork, builds birdhouses and furniture, manufactures wind spinners, jar lid openers, key chains, plaques and signs, and creates a whole host of other specialty items. “I make a little b...
