John E. Wipf – field farm boss

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When you first enter Verdant Valley Colony, you are greeted by a beautifully manicured farm yard and shiny, new, red equipment. A quick tour through the new hog barn shows the innovation, skill, and capability of the families there. On the colony are 60 dairy cows, 150 beef cows, 20,000 broiler chickens, and 500 sows, and like the new hog barn, all operations are automated and use state-of-the art technology, including two milking robots. On top of that, they grow canola, wheat, barley, peas, and lentils, and are entirely self-sufficient, producing all the grain to feed the farm.
John E. Wipf was part of the colony when it was established in 1974. He has been the Field Farm Boss for 14 years now. Prior to the field, he was the hog Farm Boss for six years. When we asked him which job he preferred, he quickly joked, “the field … it smells better.”
He added that there is a relaxing and peaceful aspect to working in the field that he loves. He also likes that he gets to work with more people in the field.
John first got involved with DEKALB® after he met DEKALB® Territory Account Manager, Mitch Nesbitt at a tradeshow in Red Deer about six years ago.
“We got talking about the new hybrids DEKALB® was offering and Mitch told me I should try DEKALB® 74-44 BL, so I did my first DEKALB® Market Development (MD) plot that year,” John explained.
John likes doing MD trials because it gives him the opportunity to try out new hybrids on his land to ensure he gets a good return on his investments.

This year will be his fifth year doing MD trials, and every year he says he grows more and more 74-44 BL canola.
When it comes to canola, John’s number one priority is always yield. He keeps it very simple – he buys the hybrid that yields the most in his MD trials. Last year, DEKALB® 74-44 BL out-yielded the other hybrids in his trial, so he keeps growing it.
“For my own peace of mind, I even grow it in different locations every year to test its consistency – and every year it still comes out the winner,” John told us.
John also chooses to straight cut 100 per cent of his canola. He sprays a combination of harvest aids and desiccants to dry down and clean up his fields. John explained that “harvest is the best time to kill thistles. So, on top of savings on equipment costs and time, I use straight cutting as an opportunity to clean up my fields before harvest.”
For John, all the hard work that gets put in throughout the season by him and his 25 working men is all worth it when he sees the bushels in the bin.
We thank John for choosing DEKALB® brand seed for his farm and wish him and the field crew at Verdant Valley Colony a safe and successful harvest this year and for many generations to come. Check out the results of the Verdant Valley Colony canola trial and other farm-managed Market Development trials on DEKALB.ca this fall.