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Friday Funny

The website has been quiet because someone across the great big ocean decided to block me from it!!  Thank you to tech support for rescuing us.  While we didn’t get in this weeks crop report – I am back for the Friday Funny.

THESE ARE ACTUAL COMPLAINTS RECEIVED BY “THOMAS COOK VACATIONS” FROM DISSATISFIED CUSTOMERS:

  1. “They should not allow topless sunbathing on the beach. It was very distracting for my husband who just wanted to relax.”
  2. “On my holiday to Goa in India, I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don’t like spicy food.”
  3. “We went on holiday to Spain and had a problem with the taxi drivers as they were all Spanish.”
  4. “We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our own swimsuits and towels. We assumed it would be included in the price.”
  5. “The beach was too sandy. We had to clean everything when we returned to our room.”
  6. “We found the sand was not like the sand in the brochure. Your brochure shows the sand as white but it was more yellow.”
  7. “It’s lazy of the local shopkeepers in Puerto Vallartato close in the afternoons. I often needed to buy things during ‘siesta’ time — this should be banned.”
  8. “No-one told us there would be fish in the water. The children were scared.”
  9. “Although the brochure said that there was a fully equipped kitchen, there was no egg-slicer in the drawers.”
  10. “I think it should be explained in the brochure that the local convenience store does not sell proper biscuits like custard creams or ginger nuts.”
  11. “The roads were uneven and bumpy, so we could not read the local guide book during the bus ride to the resort. Because of this, we were unaware of many things that would have made our holiday more fun.”
  12. “It took us nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England. It took the Americans only three hours to get home. This seems unfair.”
  13. “I compared the size of our one-bedroom suite to our friends’ three-bedroom and ours was significantly smaller.”
  14. “The brochure stated: ‘No hairdressers at the resort.’ We’re trainee hairdressers and we think they knew and made us wait longer for service.”
  15. “When we were in Spain, there were too many Spanish people there. The receptionist spoke Spanish, the food was Spanish. No one told us that there would be so many foreigners.”
  16. “We had to line up outside to catch the boat and there was no air-conditioning.”
  17. “It is your duty as a tour operator to advise us of noisy or unruly guests before we travel.”
  18. “I was bitten by a mosquito. The brochure did not mention mosquitoes.”
  19. “My fiancée and I requested twin-beds when we booked, but instead we were placed in a room with a king bed. We now hold you responsible and want to be reimbursed for the fact that I became pregnant. This would not have happened if you had put us in the room that we booked.”

 

 

 

Would you like to be an AG Reporter?

The Crop Report has relied on an impressive number of volunteers for information since 1974, and now is your chance to be part of it.

The Crop Report provides critical information to not only the Ministry of Agriculture, but also to many agricultural companies, organizations and individuals from around the world. The publication has fallen under a few different names and jurisdictions in the past, but the value of the report and its contributors has stayed the same. In fact, the Crop Report remains the Ministry’s most popular publication.

Volunteer farmers, retired farmers and those interested in primary agriculture provide Saskatchewan Agriculture with information during the growing season, including precipitation amounts, seeding progress, crop damage along with the progress, yields, and grades of harvest and haying. Each week from seeding to harvest, over 200 crop reporters use phone, fax or an online survey to submit timely reports. The Ministry then compiles the information into the weekly Crop Report that is in turn used by radio, television, newspapers and other media outlets to discuss cropping conditions.

There are still many R.M.s without crop reporters. To provide the most accurate information across every R.M., we need more crop reporters out there. The Crop Report has a reputation as being one of the best cropping condition reports, and we would like at least one crop reporter in every R.M. to help us continue with that reputation.

If you are interested in becoming a crop reporter for the Ministry of Agriculture, give us a call. A valued crop reporter may be needed in your R.M.!

For more information, contact the Agriculture Knowledge Centre at 1-866-457-2377 or visit the Ministry of Agriculture website.

Crop Report fo May 5-11, 2015

For the Period May 5 to 11, 2015

One year ago
Seven per cent of the 2014 crop had been seeded. The southwest region had 20 per cent in the ground.
Follow the 2015 Crop Report on Twitter @SKAgriculture
Seeding Progress in SK
Per cent seeded
All Crops
May 11, 2015
34
May 12, 2014
7
May 13, 2013
8
May 9, 2011
5
May 13, 2010
5
5 year avg.
(2010-2014)
9
10 year avg.
(2005-2014)
17

Significant seeding progress was made this past week. Thirty-four per cent of the 2015 crop is now seeded, according to the Saskatchewan Agriculture Crop Report. The five-year (2010-2014) average for this time of year is nine per cent seeded.

Producers in the southwest are most advanced, with 61 per cent of the crop seeded. In the southeast, 45 per cent is seeded; the west-central region has 26 per cent seeded; the east-central region 16 per cent, the northeastern region 13 per cent and northwestern region has 31 per cent seeded.

Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as 10 per cent surplus, 76 per cent adequate and 14 per cent short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as six per cent surplus, 74 per cent adequate, 16 per cent short and four per cent very short. Moisture conditions vary throughout the province.

In parts of the southwestern and west-central regions, some moisture would be beneficial to get crops off to a good start. Some areas in the southeast and in the east-central region, however, still have surplus moisture. Cool weather has resulted in slow emergence of crops. Some farmers have reported frost damage to emerged crops and alfalfa.

East-Central Saskatchewan (Crop District 5 – Melville, Yorkton, Cupar, Kamsack, Foam Lake, Preeceville and Kelvington areas; Crop District 6A – Lumsden, Craik, Watrous and Clavet areas)
East-central Saskatchewan
Crop District
% Seeded
(May 11, 2015)
5A
26
5B
14
6A
9
Region average
16

Sixteen per cent of the 2015 crop is in the ground. Although seeding is progressing, spotty rain showers over most of the region resulted in short seeding days. Producers are spending time traveling between fields, testing them out to make sure the soil is capable of holding equipment. Seeding ranges from five to 75 per cent complete. Precipitation ranged from nil to 15 mm (Watrous area). A large amount of water is lying in many fields, making road access an issue.

Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are reported as 22 per cent surplus, 73 per cent adequate and five per cent short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as 16 per cent surplus, 75 per cent adequate and nine per cent short. CD 6A is reporting that 34 per cent of cropland has surplus topsoil moisture.

Temperatures dipped well below freezing for some areas, but fortunately, most seeded crops have yet to emerge. Producers are indicating that there has been some frost damage to alfalfa. There are a couple of reports of farmers finishing up last fall’s harvest. Warm weather would be appreciated by all.

Reminder – May 24 is the last day to file an Assessment Appeal

Wondering if you should appeal?  Here are some frequently asked questions.

What is Assessment?

An assessment is the act of determining a property’s value.

 What is the relationship between property assessment and taxes?

Formula for calculating Property Taxes
The key difference is that assessment – determining assessment values for all properties – is SAMA’s responsibility while the task of setting property taxes belongs to municipal governments.

The relationship between assessment and taxes comes from the fact that municipal governments levy taxes as a “mill rate” that is charged as a proportion of a property’s assessment value.

Since the starting point is the assessed value, it is important to make sure that each property’s value is assessed fairly by SAMA.

Why did the value of my property change?

The real estate market may have changed. Market forces are the usual cause of a change in assessments. These changing market forces are seen every four years when SAMA does a “revaluation” that updates assessments using a new base year.

A property may also have been changed. For example, the buildings may have been upgraded. This change in physical data can happen at any time.
 
Why is it that my assessment value may not match what I just paid for a property, or what another appraiser said my property is worth?

To create an equitable system, SAMA determines assessments that reflect long-term values, and avoid short-term market fluctuations. The selling price for any individual property is always subject to short-term, local market conditions, and to the negotiations of each buyer and seller.

As for fee appraisers, they also focus on immediate, actual, local market conditions, not on long-term fair value. Even their assessments, however, may not be the same as what an individual buyer and seller may agree upon when selling a property.

What happens if I disagree with my property’s assessed value?

There is an appeal process you can follow. Contact your local municipal office or SAMA regional office.

I’m not sure if I should appeal. How can I find out if the assessment of my property is accurate?

First, contact your local municipal office and ask if an assessment open house or information meeting has been scheduled. That will be an important source of information.

You can also contact the nearest SAMA office. We would be happy to discuss the methods used to arrive at the value of your property.

Who decides how assessments are done?

The policies, procedures and standards for assessment are determined by SAMA, and must be followed by all Saskatchewan municipalities. This job is mandated to SAMA by provincial legislation titled “The Assessment Management Agency Act”.

Ministry of Agriculture Crop Report to May 4

For the Period April 28 to May 4, 2015

One year ago
Seeding had just started for some areas of the province. The southwest region had two per cent of the crop seeded. Cold temperatures with significant moisture events delayed seeding.
Follow the 2015 Crop Report on Twitter @SKAgriculture
Seeding Progress in SK
Per cent seeded
All Crops
May 4, 2015
14
5 year avg.
(2010-2014)
2
10 year avg.
(2005-2014)
4

Fourteen per cent of the 2015 crop is in the ground, according to the Saskatchewan Agriculture Crop Report. The five-year (2010-2014) average for this time of year is two per cent seeded.

Thanks to the dry weather in the southwest, farmers in that region have 34 per cent of the 2015 crop in the ground. In the rest of the province, seeding has started for most farmers. In the southeast, producers have 14 per cent seeded; west-central producers have eight per cent seeded; northwestern producers seven per cent; east-central producers three per cent and northeastern producers two per cent. In some areas of the province, spotty rain showers throughout the week have caused some delay in seeding.

Thirty-two percent of the field peas have been seeded, 29 per cent of the lentils, 33 per cent of the mustard, 25 per cent of the durum and eight per cent of the spring wheat and canola.

Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as 16 per cent surplus, 74 per cent adequate and 10 per cent short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as eight per cent surplus, 75 per cent adequate, 14 per cent short and three per cent

East-Central Saskatchewan (Crop District 5 – Melville, Yorkton, Cupar, Kamsack, Foam Lake, Preeceville and Kelvington areas; Crop District 6A – Lumsden, Craik, Watrous and Clavet areas)

Seeding is just getting underway for farmers in the region, which has three per cent of the 2015 crop seeded. Rain showers were reported across most of the region, resulting in short seeding days. Precipitation ranged from nil to 13 mm (Abernethy area). Crop District 5A has seven per cent seeded; 5B one per cent and 6A two per cent. A large amount of water is lying in many fields and there has been some localized flooding of roads, limiting access to fields in some areas.

Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are reported as 30 per cent surplus and 70 per cent adequate. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as 19 per cent surplus, 79 per cent adequate and two per cent short. CD 6A is reporting that 36 per cent of cropland has surplus topsoil moisture.

Farmers are busy pre-working fields, applying fertilizer and seeding. There are a couple of reports of farmers picking up harvest from where they left off last fall.

Farm Business Development Initiative

Farm Business Development Initiative
 The Farm Business Development Initiative (FBDI) is an initiative that is delivered by the Ministry of Agriculture as part of Growing Forward 2. FBDI helps farmers obtain information, training and consulting services that will enhance their ability to make sound business decisions. There are two components to the FBDI: Information and Training & Consulting.

The information portion covers farm business management practices and the Ministry of Agriculture also holds workshops and seminars relating to farm business management. The training & consulting portion allows farmers to apply for financial support for training and consulting services that fall within any of the 8 progressive farm business management practices.

 The 8 business management areas are as follows:
  • Business strategy
  • Marketing
  • Production Economics
  • Human Resources
  • Financial Management
  • Succession Planning
  • Business Structure
  • Environmental Strategy
 Eligible farmers may be reimbursed 75 per cent of eligible training costs up to $10,000 to offset the costs of training and reimbursed 50 per cent of eligible consulting costs up to $5,000.
 Please visit http://www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca/GF2-FBDI for more information regarding the FBDI.