Volunteers have been at the heart of the Common Ground grow project for 15 years, and this latest effort was no different.
Local growers showed up at the field Tuesday with nine combines, a handful of grain carts and semis to take off and deliver 300 acres of Canadian Northern Hard Red Spring Wheat for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank.
It all started in 2010 when the Penner family reached out, looking to have their land used for this purpose.
"They actually rent their land to the CHUM group out of Plum Coulee as well. That often, as we understand, is the challenge - for groups to find land," said project spokesperson, Kevin Nickel, who has been involved with the Common Ground project from the very beginning. "They give us a good rate on rent, and they're very committed to the cause, and they love having their land used for this purpose."
Nickel added, getting the field seeded and sprayed usually isn't a big deal. It's finding the help to take off the crop come harvest time.
"Trying to find a time when it's going to suit enough people to come out, and that enough people will have finished what they're doing at home, or will they want to take a day off and do that anyway? It's always kind of like, let's try to pick a day and make some calls and see if we can round up a critical mass of people and, even though sometimes it comes right down to the wire [...] it has a way of working out."
Heading into Tuesday's harvest, Nickel was optimistic for this years' crop, noting it looked good.
"Cereals, in particular, everybody was talking about them all spring and summer, just about how lush they looked," he said. "And even though there are some drown-out spots here and there, they seemed to power through most of that excess moisture that came at certain times. The yields we've been hearing have been strong. I guess they just like the weather this year."
Heading into this years' harvest, the Common Ground project had raised about $900,000 for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank since its inception, according to Nickel. Despite his optimism for the 2024 crop, Nickel wasn't quite confident they'd hit the $1 million mark this year.
"We have significant expenses each year and, even if there's a strong crop here, the prices have come down a long way," he explained. "Based on the bills we have yet to pay, it will be tough to raise $100,000 net but we should put a good dent in that, so maybe next year will be the year."
Submitted photos
