EMPOWERING PRODUCERS OF FOOD & FIBER
Friday, February 26, 2021
Volume 94, Number 9
CapitalPress.com
$2.00
WAG-RICULTURE
FOR THE LOVE OF FARM DOGS
By SIERRA DAWN McCLAIN
Capital Press
RAND RONDE, Ore.
— “Away!”
At the command,
Marc, a 3-year-old Bor-
der Collie, bounded left,
driving a flock of Polypay
sheep across the hill’s ridgeline.
Water droplets dappled pastures
and low-hanging clouds formed a
garland around the trees. The morn-
ing air smelled earthy.
“Down. Good boy.”
The voice belonged to Piper
Klinger, Marc’s owner, who runs this
sheep ranch with her husband, Bob
Klinger.
Bob, 77, has worked with sheep
more than 50 years and made his
name as Oregon State University’s
sheep herdsman for decades before
retiring to full-time ranching.
Publicly, the Klingers are known
for high-quality Polypay sheep, inno-
vative pasture management and “agri-
voltaics,” meaning grazing sheep
under solar panels; privately, they say
one of the most significant features of
their farm is their dog, Marc.
Capital Press readers are a diverse
bunch, emblematic of agriculture.
Organic and conventional. Large
and small. Readers represent a wide
range of crops and livestock species.
But one common thread many farm-
ers share is their love for dogs. The
farm dog, some say, is the “unsung
hero,” “part of the family” and one of
the most important parts of rural life.
In December and January,
the Capital Press solicited sto-
ries from readers about their dogs.
G
Courtesy of Robin Loznak
See Dogs, Page 9
Lily, owned by Robin Loznak of Oakland, Ore., shakes off after swimming in the Umpqua River.
Unlawful irrigation uncovered Nearly a year into COVID-19,
seed industry is booming
on Oregon hemp farms
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Suspicions about unlawful
hemp irrigation in Southwest
Oregon proved to be well-
founded after an audit uncov-
ered violations at one-third of
the grow sites visited.
Officials from the state’s
Water Resources Department
reviewed 187 hemp farms
in the region last year and
determined nearly 33% ran
afoul of water laws.
“There is a large part of this
that’s education and outreach
— folks just didn’t know,”
said Jake Johnstone, OWRD’s
southwest region manager,
during a Feb. 18 meeting of
the state’s Water Resources
Commission.
Most of the violations —
46 out of 61 — related to hemp
farmers who irrigated with
well water despite lacking
water rights, including some
who had valid surface water
rights. Domestic usage of well
water is allowed without a
water rights permit in Oregon,
but not commercial irrigation.
More than one-third of the
violations identified by the
agency resulted in enforce-
ment action, such as having
to install water measurement
devices on their wells, John-
stone said.
The agency is planning
to conduct further reviews in
2021, which will determine
whether compliance improved
after the initial audit, said Scott
Prose, an assistant watermaster
in the region.
“What we will see this time
around is how valuable that
education really is,” he said.
About 42% of the hemp
growers visited claimed
they’d been trucking in water
from municipal sources,
which required a “big time
commitment” to verify with
receipts and contracts, John-
stone said.
“This can be difficult
when the individuals on-site
don’t keep any of the finan-
cial records,” he said, noting
that state agencies are work-
ing to better maintain contact
See Hemp, Page 9
March is about Honoring our
Ag Producers.
THANK YOU!
How a global
pandemic lifted
U.S. seed
companies’ profits
By SIERRA DAWN McCLAIN
Capital Press
Almost a year into
COVID-19, the domestic
seed industry is flourishing.
“A lot of seed companies
are selling out. Some ware-
houses are empty of seed.
They’re having an incredi-
ble year,” said Angie Smith,
executive director of the
Oregon Seed Association.
Industry leaders say when
the pandemic hit last March,
there was an alarming lull in
sales. But from about April
on, experts say sales took off
in most seed sectors and the
momentum has continued
into 2021.
The specialty seed sec-
tor, including vegetable
Courtesy of Territorial Seed Co.
Territorial Seed Co. workers package and ship seed.
and flower seeds, is bloom-
ing on the retail level. Last
year, Americans nationwide
planted a record number of
gardens. Extension agents at
the time wondered whether
people’s interest in garden-
ing would carry into 2021.
So far, the answer appears to
be “yes.”
“The season started off
awfully strong again,” said
Tom Johns, president of Ter-
WE UNDERSTAND YOUR WORK
AND DEDICATION. WHAT YOU
NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL.
TO EACH OF OUR AG PRODUCERS.
ritorial Seed Co. in Cottage
Grove, Ore. “When our cat-
alog came out around Janu-
ary, we had a very high vol-
ume of orders that was equal
to or surpassed the peak of
the pandemic last year.”
Territorial has had so
many orders, Johns said,
that he and his wife, who
usually take off Sundays,
See Seed, Page 9
Bank of Eastern Oregon’s Mission
has always been to provide
Financial Support for the Ag Industry.
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IONE
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