Spring seeding is well underway out in Vulcan County now that the weather has started to cooperate.

The County's Director of Agricultural Services, Kelly Malmberg, says farmers are heading out to their fields in growing numbers.

"Things have really picked up here. It was a surprisingly slow start, but these last two weeks, boy the weather has really changed. I'd say general seeding is just starting now. Some of these guys out east in Lomond and the South Country, you know, they'd have two or three weeks in, but they're just getting going now."

Malmberg says there were a few producers who picked up some Canola left over from last year over the past couple of weeks, but he says that's all done and everyone's moved on to planting.

He says Farming during a pandemic can provide it's own set of unique challenges.

Malmberg, says with seeding just getting going in the East Country, farmers are boning up on the "do's and don't's" of farming during COVID-19.

"They've been very proactive on the conditions set forth by Alberta Health. They're cleaning their cabs down and they're following the protocol and I think it's been working. People have been taken this pretty seriously and they're following through on it, they're not just jumping into vehicles. There's been some courses at the County shop on the proper clean down of vehicles. So, yeah, everybody's following the rules."

Malmberg says seeding is pretty solitary for most farmers, so keeping social distancing is easy.

He says some larger operations will need to pay more attention to the protocols as they have more workers.

 

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