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ii SADE 18 - "WEEKEND STAR" FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 2001 ARI rr a in Te or Ri" 3 rE Area Visitor's Gude 2000 The Port Perry Star is pleased to announce preparations are underway for Discover Scugog 2001. Copies of last year's ction of Discover Scugog are all but depleted and the next edition of Scugog's tourist information booklet is scheduled to be available for groups and tourist offices by early March. To make sure it's the best publication to date, we need the help of everyone in the commu- nity! If your organization or group has listings of any events planned throughout 2001 details must be submitted in writing to the Port Perry Star office no later than Feb. 23, 2001. Events published in Discover Scugog should be open to the general public. (e.g. fairs, bazaars, strawberry socials, etc.) Sorry, no extensions of this deadline due to production and printing schedules. Anyone wishing to promote their events, activities or services with advertisements, is asked to contact Janet Archer at the Port Perry Star, 985-7383. Deadline for advertising is Feb. 23, 2001. Last year, at Trade Shows, Information Booths and local outlets, Discover Scugog was one of the most asked for pieces of information by people wanting to know more about our communi- ty. This is your chance to make sure visitors to Scugog Township know about your business, or group's activities during 2001. Call today!! Fill out the enclosed Activity Listing form and drop it by D : S The Port Perry Star effice with a description of any events i cover Hey g your §foup has planned for 2001. We'll do our best to ) 00 1 have it included. Activity Listing forms are available at the Star Office. Call today for more information EAS AAEAIE Mmmm Mm @ OO @ DT @@E EET EEE ee EE EE es eS SR Ee Ee en ee Es em ey 985-7383 ] i) |] : Group/Organization .......... I LJ EVBIIL one vmsms ns ns sn sen inmn stn awn nnn ame mam nn. - } Brief Description of activities ................... : P Date(s) Lo. " V TIME y Locationof event :............. i Contact for Information ................................. y Phone # a 5k 5% £4 nn an em nnn nn Address .................... PEPE | ' Other points of interest™ . .................................. : PorT PERRY DTAI a Ont. 191 187 / ph: 905-985-7383 / fx: 905-985-3708 / com / www.portperrystar.com 188 St., Port Mary 31.0 Dave Larmer of Blackstock is off to an international forage competition in the U.S. in the spring after being named the winner of the Ontario Forage Masters' Competition. He faced 11 competi- tors from across the province. Blackstock man is off to Arkansas for US Forage Master Competition By Heather McCrae Farm & Rural Life This spring Blackstock dairy farmer Dave Larmer will be competing in Springdale, Arkansas at the American Forage & Grassland Council's Forage = Spokesperson Contest. The opportunity to compete at the meet came after Mr. Larmer won the 13th annual Ontario Forage Masters competition at the Royal "Ontario. Winter Fair in Novembér. It wasn\t the first time Mr. Larmek has won at a forage contest. Last sum- mer he "dflso won the Durham East Forage Masters Competition, competing against seven other farmers from Durham East. At the county meet Judges came to the field during growing season, to do a visual appraisal of a field of hay. After harvest Mr. Larmer sent in a sample of haylage to the Agri- Food Laboratory in Guelph, where it under- went a nutrient analysis. The results were sent to the judges. Based on the visual and nutrient analysis Mr. Larmer received the highest marks, which allowed him to compete at the Royal. There he gave a I2-minute talk during a slide presenta- tion. Competing against 11 other competitors from across Ontario, Mr. Larmer was proclaimed the provincial winner of the Ontario Forage Master 2000 competition. Presented by Novartis Seeds, Agri-Food Laboratories and the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association, the event promotes excellence in forage management. The runner-up was Ron Millen of Omemee. Now that he's won at the Royal, Mr. Larmer now will be proceeding south of the border. When asked what his secret for producing high quality forage is, he said he just tries to do things right. Taking off three cuts of hay, the first cut is dry hay, and the rest is hay- lage. Forages are the core ingredient for the TMR ration that is fed to Mr. Larmer's cows, so he said getting top-quality feed is critical. He also does regular soil testing, and monitors the quality of his forage at all times. 'This is the key to get- ting good production from the cows," he said. Larco Farms, owned and operated by Mr. Larmer and his wife Ingrid and sons Robert, 15, and Steven, 12, is a 500-acre dairy and cash crop operation. With 80 acres of land under pro- duction in forages, this commodity is an integral part of their operation. The all-expenses paid U.S. forage competition, which is being planned for April 22 to 24, is an event Mr. Larmer is look- ing to. "As long as | can get someone to milk the cows, I'll be going," he said. The farming business is one the entire family pitches in to help. While Mrs. Larmer feeds the calves in the morning before heading out to work, Steven and Robert help out after school and on weekends. While farming is a viable enterprise for the family, Mr. Larmer is unsure if this will be a way of life for his sons. "I don't know," he said. "It's still too early to tell if they are going to farm, but they are both keen on helping out now."