TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 9, 1993
Forest Service sponsors bird contest
Nelsons host crowd for state conservation tour
Photo by J o y c e H u g h es
Winners front row l-r: Sally Calvert, Dan Jepsen, Chelsea
Bredemeier, Brianne Wishart. Back: Matt Setness, David Piper,
Tylynn Smith, Brad Adams
*
The Heppner Ranger District
recently presented a program in
the schools on neotropical
migratory birds and sponsored a
contest for area school children
in celebration of International
Neotropical Migratory Bird Day
on May 9.
Neotropical migratory birds
winter in southern Mexico, Cen
tral America and South America
and breed in the U.S. and
Canada. The birds include the
Vaux’s swift, the yellow warblers
and the western tanagers Around
200 species of birds will live in
the Umatilla National Forest this
summer. More than half are con
sidered migratory birds, although
not all come from as far away as
the tropics.
Students at Heppner Elemen
tary School were introduced to
some of the colorful birds during
an assembly on May 3. Whitney
Weatherford, a wildlife specialist
with the North Fork John Day
Ranger District spoke about
neotropical migratory birds, Lyn
Tompkins, a raptor rehabilitator
from Pendleton displayed several
live raptors, a red-tailed hawk, an
American kestrel and baby short
eared owls.
Sixty-four children in first
through fourth grade participated
by drawing and coloring pictures
of neotropical migrants. Prizes
included birdiug field guides and
colorful posters of the neotropical
migratory birds. Each participant
received his choice of a U.S.
Forest Service wildlife poster.
The children’s pictures will be
displayed at Murray Drugs.
Winning first place in grades
one and two were Sally Calvert,
Daniel Jepsen and Chelsea
Bredemeier. Second place win
ners were David Piper, Tylynn
fourth grade first place went to
Matt Setness. Second place win
ners were David Piper, Tylynn
Smith and Bradley Adams. First
place winners each received a
bird book and second place win
ners received posters.
United Methodist to convene in Salem
The Oregon-Idaho conference
of the United Methodist Church
will meet at the Willamette
University in Salem from June
9-13.
The annual conference is a time
of church business, inspiration
and fellowship. Each church is
represented by its pastor and a lay
member. Bishop William Dew
will preside.
Two hundred twenty-two chur
ches from Oregon and southern
Idaho comprise the conference.
Voting members attending
from Heppner will be the Rev.
Bob Dowrey, Cara Osmin and
the Rev. Grace Drake.
Fire Extinguisher Service Day
Wednesday - June 16
Starting at 9 a.m. at
Morrow County
Grain Growers
Lexington, OR
Bring in your fire extinguishers for recharging or
recertification.
Technician on duty for same day service of:
Dry Chemical — C02
Halon & Water Pressure
Grain Growers
Phone 989-8221
1-800-452-7396
Phone 989-8221
Photo by Jo y c e H u g h es
Doug Drake (I) with Chuck Nelson and Bruce Adrews
A warm sunny day greeted a
large crowd from several counties
that gathered on June 2 at the
Nelson Farm to honor the Chuck
Nelson family as Oregon State
Farm Conservation winners.
A noon barbecue at the
Nelsons' shop building was
hosted by the Morrow County
Wheat League. An afternoon
farm tour via vehicles provided
an overview of the farm’s winn
ing conservation methods and the
well-man¡cured tall green wheat
that holds a promise of a bumper
crop.
As caretaker of the 3,200 acres
that he farms. Nelson said he was
that reduce the tillage operations
to two instead of the conventional
four passes. And there has been
an expansion of terraces, so that
none of the acreage was placed
in the Conservation Reserve Pro
gram as set aside farm ground.
Speaker Bruce A ndrews,
Oregon’s director of agriculture,
said it had been a privilege to be
a part of the selection committee
that logged around 2,OCX) miles to
look at all the farms that had been
nominated.
“ Farming is more than a
business,” Andrews said, when
you look at century farms that
have been passed down through
five generations. “ It’s a loving,
caring, relationship with the land.
And this farm is a good example
of farmers who work to protect
that rescource,” he said.
Gleen Stonebrink, executive
director of the State Agriculture
and Soil Conservation Service,
also noted that “ the Nelsons are
symbolic of farmers across the
nation that as caretakers of the
land have practiced conservation
before there was any com
pliance.” And we have to keep
telling the story that farmers
aren’t ruining the land while pro
viding abundant cheap food.
Agriculture will always be the
foundation of this country’s com
merce and industry, he added.
ySndstrom 's and
Father's Day.
One terrific tie-in.
Fair and Rodeo court keeps busy
The Morrow County Fair and
Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo Court
wrapped up a busy May taking
top parade honors at the Arl
ington Rodeo on May 1 and
another first place May 29 and 30
at the Spray Rodeo.
The girls remain busy pro
moting the fair and rodeo and will
soon be pre-selling Oregon Trail
Pro Rodeo tickets. June 11-13 the
girls will travel to central Oregon
for the Sisters Rodeo.
Plans underway for wagon train visit
By Anne Morter
Organizers are requesting that
vendors wishing to sell their
wares at the two-day stop of the
official Sesquicentennial Wagon
Train at Cecil to complete
registration form by June 15.
Forms are available from Nancy
Brownfield at Wheatland In
surance in lone. Interested parties
may call her at 422-7410 or stop
by the office.
The Wagon Train will arrive at
the Krebs Ranch in Cecil on
August 18 in the afternoon. An
old-fashioned box social lunch is
tentatively planned for that day.
The train will also stay the night
of August 19, which will feature
4-H News__
Two-Trackers
School is finally out and it’s
time to start getting those horses
out for the summer. Sunday,
August 1 is the 4-H fair horse
show. “ That’s less than two
months away,” said a 4-H horse
spokesperson. Saturday, June 19
will be a Morrow County pre-fair
tune-up clinic at the fairgrounds
at 10 a.m.
The Two-Trackers will meet at
the fairgrounds Sunday after
noons at 3 p.m. from now until
fair. The time may be changed
depending on the group.
/CHEVROLET ¡
m
actually farming for five separate
landlords including land that
belongs in the family. Honors are
not new for this family since the
1956 Morrow County Conserva
tion farm title was bestowed on
Nelson’s father, Norman Nelson
and his uncle, Alfred Nelson,
when they were in business
together. After the farm operation
was divided in 1974 Alfred
Nelson’s son, Kenneth Nelson,
received the conservation award
in 1985.
Nelson, his wife, Lisa, children
Justin and Courtney and Nelson’s
mother, Jean are active partners
in this farm operation. During the
past 10 years there has been an
average yield of 50 bushels of
wheat per acre. These current
operators have been successful in
the business since Chuck Nelson
began farming with his father in
1974.
“ It’s actually showing off the
work of three generations,”
Nelson said. Since his grand
father came from Sweden in 1913
farming methods have shifted
from horses to efficient
machinery. And each generation
has added more efficient methods
with modern technology.
Nelson said his father, Nor
man, now deceased, was ahead of
his time by building diversion dit
ches and seeding grass waterways
before there was any conservation
compliance. The Nelson farm
was one of the first to use
nitrogen fertilizer to boost wheat
yields and the use of moldboard
plows was discontinued in 1918.
Farm operations under Chuck
Nelson’s management include
stubble flailing after harvest to
break down the residue and leave
cover as protection against ero
sion. Volunteer cheatgrass and
weeds are treated with a herbicide
in early spring. Chisel plows and
a cultiweeder are used on the 100
to 150 foot wide sloping terraces.
A modern practice includes fer
tilization while using cultiweeders
Over the years some things never
change at a quality dealership
HONESTY-INTEGRITY-RESPONSIBILITY-SERVICE
Doing business for over 45 years
in the same old fashioned way
a lamb barbecue from 5-7 p.m.
The event will be open to the
public. Tickets will be sold in ad
vance with locations to be an
nounced later.
Organizers hope to have a wide
variety of food, crafts and other
unique offerings with an Oregon
Trail theme available for the two
days. Sellers should expect to
operate from noon until evening
on Wednesday and from 10 a.m.
until evening on Thursday. The
wagon train will move on at 7
a.m. on Friday. It is expected that
a larger number of people will be
on hand while the train is stop
ped at Cecil.
A $15 registration fee will be
charged to cover the necessary
expenses of staging this stop.
Vendors from lone, Heppner,
Lexington and the surrounding
area are encouraged to display
their goods.
Beautifully crafted tie tacks, money clips,
rings and more. Contact us for one terrific
^/andstromV. Father's Day gift.
Vandstrom's
ORIGINAL BLACK HILLS GOLD CREATIONS
4
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t
Peterson’s
_______
Heppner
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