Perth County sheep farmer loses leg in auger accident

Dec 01, 2023

MONKTON — A 34-year-old Perth County sheep farmer suffered life-altering injuries in what a family member said was an auger accident. One leg was lost in the accident and the farmer’s other leg was broken.

Lucas Stock was caught in a sweep auger, which are most commonly used at the base of a grain bin to clean and maintain it. Emergency crews responded just after 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 6 to the rural address near Line 49, south of Monkton. Stock was flown by air ambulance to a trauma centre.

“He’s in tough shape,” John Kolkman, uncle to the injured man’s wife, told Farmers Forum on Nov. 28. “His one leg is off and they are trying to save the other. The other leg is broken with the artery cut.”

Local Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario director Tom Diemand said that he understood that the accident involved the use of a sweep auger. “The power was supposed to have been off but … activated. Clothing gets caught in those augers very badly, fast.”

Stock works with his father-in-law and brother-in-law on the farm, Diemand said. “I was led to believe that his spirits are good and was optimistic towards the future and thankful to be alive.”

Diemand said that his Stratford-area parish would be reaching out to the family. “Sometimes our prayers are the strongest thing we can start out with.”

Source : Farmersforum

Video: Winter Canola Trial in Mississippi | Can It Work for Double Cropping? | Pioneer Agronomy

Can winter canola open new opportunities for growers in the Mid-South? In this agronomy update from Noxubee County, Mississippi, Pioneer agronomist Gus Eifling shares an early look at a first-year winter canola trial and what farmers are learning from the field.

Planted in late October on 30-inch rows, the crop is now entering the bloom stage and progressing quickly. In this video, we walk through current field conditions, fertility management, and how timing could make this crop a valuable option for double-cropping soybeans or cotton.

If harvest timing lines up with early May, growers may be able to transition directly into another crop during ideal planting windows. Ongoing field trials will help determine whether canola could become a viable rotational option for the region.

Watch for:

How winter canola is performing in its first season in this Mississippi field

Why growers chose 30-inch rows for this trial

What the crop looks like as it moves from bolting into bloom

Fertility strategy, including nitrogen and sulfur applications

How canola harvest timing could enable double-cropping with soybeans or cotton

Upcoming trials comparing soybeans after canola vs. traditional planting

As more growers look for ways to maximize acres and diversify rotations, experiments like this help determine what new crops might fit into existing systems.