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Better Farming
August 2016
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Brenda Lammens
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get more. And when my wife goes
shopping, she gives them my email
address.
Hours a day on a cell phone?
Fewer than two hours, but that might
comprise 20 to 50 phone calls. Some
days it’s delightfully quiet.
What about your smartphone?
I have an iPhone – I can receive
email on it. And I have Twitter,
Instagram and email and text on my
phone, so my phone is my primary
communications device.
I use the phone to link to a GoPro
camera which I have mounted on a
little drone. I’ve been doing some
scouting. I was looking at the wheat to
see if there’s much green in the wheat.
But you can also see tile drainage; you
can see holes in the crop. And you can
see a 20-acre field in five minutes or
less, including flight time. Walking it
would take a lot of time and you only
see what you’re really standing in. So I
see it as an opportunity to see some
things that I might want to investigate
further on foot.
Email or text?
I don’t really have a preference. It’s
more about the timeline when the
communication needs to happen. If
you want to send me an email I
might get it tomorrow or the next
day if I remember to check. Texting,
on the other hand, rings in my
pocket or in my hand, so I’m more
likely to respond much faster or even
instantaneously.
Any favourite apps?
Weather app, Instagram, Twitter, a
couple of games “for mental health
breaks,” CBC, Maclean’s, and The
Economist, for world and Canadian
issues.
Hours a day on the Internet?
One to three hours a week. I use it as
a resource for knowledge but also for
parts lookups, spray-label lookups.
Where did you last travel to?
Sudbury in May for the Ontario high
school final for gymnastics.
Number of hours in the office each day?
About three weeks a year. My wife
and I do the books – she does most
of it but I do some of it, which keeps
me very involved and aware about
what’s going on in the finances on an
ongoing basis.
What do you like best about farming?
The independence of being self-em-
ployed is a huge thing, especially for
family time and commitment. I have
a great diversity of things that I do,
from sitting in a tractor seat for a
week or two at a time, to cutting,
building, welding – I like doing that
stuff. I like solving problems.
What is the single most important advice
you've received or lesson you've learned?
One of Dad’s mantras, and it’s
something that I really subscribe to
fully: the seed in the bag has 100 per
cent potential and everything that
you do after that can only take away
from the potential yield. So you’ve
got to manage all of the things that
you can manage, to the best of your
ability.
What’s your management philosophy or
guiding management principle?
Lead from the front. I believe in
leading by example.
Are you involved in any committees, boards,
associations, or volunteer efforts?
Hastings, Lennox and Addington Soil
and Crop Improvement Association,
former president of the Ontario Soil
and Crop Improvement Association,
Lennox and Addington Federation of
Agriculture board member, Greater
Napanee councillor.
What are your hobbies or recreational
activities?
For the last 18, 19 years it’s been
family but that includes a variety of
things that we enjoy together, from
downhill skiing in the winter to
water-skiing and wakeboarding in the
summer.
What was the last book you read?
A Tom Clancy novel.
What does your family think of farming?
Rob, the oldest, wants to be here and
take it over.
Jessica enjoys a lot of things about
it that I enjoy – the variety, the
opportunity for the kids, the opportu-
nity for us to do things and have
some freedom that way.
The girls, the youngest one doesn’t
Trait Stewardship Responsibilities Notice to Farmers
Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship
®
(ETS).
Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization
of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. These products have been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from these products can only be exported to, or
used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted.
Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for these products. Excellence Through Stewardship
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ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready
®
technology
contains genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, an active ingredient in Roundup
®
brand agricultural herbicides.
Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans
contain genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate and dicamba. Agricultural herbicides containing glyphosate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate, and those containing dicamba will kill crops that are not tolerant to dicamba. Contact your
Monsanto dealer or call the Monsanto technical support line at 1-800-667-4944 for recommended Roundup Ready
®
Xtend Crop System weed control programs. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for canola contains the active ingredients difenoconazole,
metalaxyl (M and S isomers), fludioxonil and thiamethoxam. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for canola plus Vibrance
®
is a combination of two separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients difenoconazole,
metalaxyl (M and S isomers), fludioxonil, thiamethoxam, and sedaxane. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for corn (fungicides and insecticide) is a combination of four separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active
ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, and clothianidin. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for corn (fungicides only) is a combination of three separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl,
trifloxystrobin and ipconazole. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for corn with Poncho
®
/VoTivo™ (fungicides, insecticide and nematicide) is a combination of five separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients
metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, clothianidin and Bacillus firmus strain I-1582. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for soybeans (fungicides and insecticide) is a combination of four separate individually registered products, which together contain
the active ingredients fluxapyroxad, pyraclostrobin, metalaxyl and imidacloprid. Acceleron
®
seed applied solutions for soybeans (fungicides only) is a combination of three separate
individually registered products, which together contain the active ingredients fluxapyroxad, pyraclostrobin and metalaxyl. Acceleron
®
, Cell-Tech™, DEKALB and Design
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, DEKALB
®
,
Genuity and Design
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, Genuity
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, JumpStart
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, Optimize
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, RIB Complete
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, Roundup Ready 2 Technology and Design
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, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™, Roundup Ready 2 Yield
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, Roundup
Ready
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, Roundup Transorb
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, Roundup WeatherMAX
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, Roundup Xtend™, Roundup
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, SmartStax
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, TagTeam
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, Transorb
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, VaporGrip
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, VT Double PRO
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, VT Triple PRO
®
and XtendiMax
®
are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. Used under license. Fortenza
®
and Vibrance
®
are registered trademarks of a Syngenta group company. LibertyLink
®
and the Water Droplet
Design are trademarks of Bayer. Used under license. Herculex
®
is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Used under license. Poncho
®
and Votivo™ are trademarks of Bayer.
Used under license. ©2016 Monsanto Canada Inc.