Columns

Submitted by
Ken Boshcoff M.P.

By Melanie Mathieson Gardening Guru This is the time of year when many gardeners are out planting spring-flowering bulbs. Let’s face it, planting bulbs is a time-consuming job that involves a fair degree of effort and nothing is more frustrating than watching your local squirrel population digging around, undoing your hard work and running off with their cheeks stuffed full of tulip bulbs! If you have a lot of squirrels in your neighbourhood, you may want to consider avoiding planting both tulip and crocus bulbs.

By Al Lowe Contributor Buteos are our largest hawks. There are five of these birds in Canada, but only three of them would normally be seen here in the Northwest. They are typically large birds, and stocky ones, too. They have wide, rounded wings, and tails which are rounded at the ends (not squared off). When looking for food, they usually soar high in the sky in big, lazy circles. Two of these species make their homes here, and another can be seen during migration. Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis). This is a big hawk, and the one you are most likely to see.

By Jack Elliott Contributor Jumping to conclusions is not only unfair to the other party; it can also be downright dangerous. Recently my wife, the Pearl of the Orient jumped to two conclusions. First she concluded the wet pool floor was not slippery, and second that jumping into the concrete block wall would not be too hard on her head. She was wrong on both counts. This started off a whole chain of conclusion jumping as, post incident, we walked down the street, the Pearl with her beautiful shiner that no amount of makeup could disguise.

By Gary Sliworsky Ag. Rep. Boise Cascade of International Falls is looking to bring wood ash from its paper mill into the Rainy River District to spread on agricultural land. The ash contains potassium and other nutrients and elements that can be beneficial to agriculture. It also contains an appreciable amount of liming material which can be beneficial in raising soil pH. This ash program has been going on in Northern Minnesota for the last 8 years, providing lime and fertilizer to more than 10,000 acres in a 70 mile radius of International Falls.

Submitted by Ken Boshcoff M.P. Over the past year, we have heard the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice criticize the Official Opposition for “delaying” or “stalling” their justice legislation. In his speech on October 18, 2007 to introduce Bill C-2: The Tackling Violent Crime Act, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said, “Although we accommodate many of the opposition’s amendments, the bills were held up in opposition-controlled house committees or the Liberal majority in the Senate for a total of 976 days”. So, what’s the real story?

The hunting season has now totally open across the Rainy River District. Our newest reporter Ron Wolf discovered how plentiful the deer population is when going to attend the cattle sale on Saturday, his vehicle was struck by a deer causing considerable damage. One employee last Friday counted 34 deer on his drive to work from Clearwater. On Saturday, driving to and from Dryden, I noticed at least one successful party with a deer down just off the highway. Employees have told me of sightings of large wolves in the area that seem not to be afraid of humans or cars.

By Al Lowe
Contributor

By Jack Elliott
Correspondent

By Gary Sliworsky
Ag. Rep.

This is the time of year to review your cow inventory and identify candidates for culling. Following are some culling tips.