After 30 years spent growing grass seed, Dave Wuthrich is looking at what the future has to offer for him and other seed growers in B.C.
Dave Wuthrich has spent his life growing grass seed in the Peace River Region of the British Columbia. The northern production area straddles the border with its Albertan counterpart and is a small but mighty region.
I have been growing seed “since I was legally 19. Before that as a kid, we did all the rogueing and helped my parents with their seed production…30 years I’ve been a seed grower,” Wuthrich says in a phone interview.
PW Farms Ltd. is located near Cecil Lake, B.C. on 5,000 cultivated acres. Wuthrich grew up on the farm, which his parents, Paul and Susan, started in 1965 after immigrating to Canada from Switzerland. They started in the grass seed growing business in the mid-1970s, and then expanded into grain later.
“The thing we like with the grass seed, it breaks up your harvest cycle, it gives you nice rotations,” he explains. “We’ll have a field in Fescue or Timothy for five, six, seven years and then you can roll it back into cereals or oilseeds or whatever you want. So, you get that nice break.”
Wuthrich has worked on the seed farm his whole life. He started working fulltime on the farm after attending post-secondary schooling for agriculture and working in the oilfield.
Over his 30 years in the industry, Wuthrich has been involved in the seed industry as a director of the B.C. Seed Growers, the B.C. national rep for the Canadian Seed Growers Association (CSGA), a Canadian Food Inspection Agency crop inspector, and a Canadian Seed Institute auditor.
On Wuthrich’s farm, they also grow pedigreed barley, oats and peas, and for a while had a seed cleaning plant. He farms with his wife Karen and son Miles. His son recently finished his post-secondary schooling for agriculture and is now back working on the farm. They also hire seasonal workers when needed.
The Art of Grass Seed Growing
Growing grass seed is slightly different than growing other pedigreed seeds.
“The majority of the grass seed that we grow, is multiplied and then it goes off to a processor, they clean it, they sell it, they do everything. So, it’s a little different,” Wuthrich says.
Growing grass seed is a multiple year endeavour. The seed is planted and the following year there is a clipping crop, Wuthrich explains. There will then be two or three crops in years following. After that the grass becomes sod bound and is no longer good for seed production, it must then be rejuvenated or taken out.
“Timothy is a little different. We had one Timothy field that we had 20 crops in a row on. But after about seven years, you lose your pedigreed status on that field,” he says.
Most grass seed varieties come from the United States, and there aren’t many new varieties to grow Wuthrich says. The seed is also not sold by Wuthrich or other seed growers, it’s bought by companies such as DLF Pickseed or BrettYoung, who then sell and market the seed into the U.S. or international markets.
In Wuthrich’s area, the grass seed growing is important for the environment also. During the 1950s and 1960s there were forest fires which burned through the area and depleted the soil. The grass growing is helping to rejuvenate the burnt soil.
“Timothy does a great job building up the soils organic matter. And you can get rid of a lot of, some weeds that like to stay dormant in the soil for a long time. If you have a really nice long cycle of grass seed, it can basically make those seeds inert. It’s a different world,” Wuthrich explains.
There are other challenges with growing grass seed though, Wuthrich says. In B.C. it is not covered by crop insurance.
The Future of the B.C. Seed Growers
For the B.C. Seed Growers, around half of its members are grass seed growers. Over the years, overall membership in the organization has dwindled which is why the group is now looking into merging with the Alberta Seed Growers (ASG). The association used to have 50 to 60 members and is now down to around 24 members.
“A lot of our members aren’t active, and there’s not a lot of people to draw from. And as I said, I’ve been on the board for 30 years. A lot of the other guys on the board have been on there as long if not longer. And there’s just no new people coming up through the ranks to keep our association going,” Wuthrich explains.
When the Seeds Canada merger was proposed, the plan was for there to be eight regions. Originally the B.C. seed growers thought they could possibly be a region with the Alberta Peace River area, which would give them enough people for national representation. After CSGA voted not to amalgamate the B.C. Seed Growers thought joining ASG might be a good idea.
“We’re having a hard time maintaining a functioning board. And are we really providing any useful information or support to our members… we don’t bring in enough money to hire a coordinator or do the research or really bring value to our membership,” Wuthrich explains. “We look across the border, and Alberta has the seed guide, have regular meetings, lots of information, are involved with research projects.”
The B.C. Seed Growers have approached ASG and the possible merger is currently being considered.
Nick Sekulic is a former ASG board member and current Seeds Canada board member. His seed farm, Prestville Farms, is located near Rycroft, Alta. in the Alberta Peace River region. He sees the merger as a logical move since the Alberta and B.C. Peace regions are next to each other.
“Economically, the B.C. Peace is very much integrated to the to the Peace River area in Alberta. I mean, we view the B.C. farmers and the oil and gas people, and the forestry and mining people as our neighbours and a part of our region,” he explains in a phone interview. “Things do change when you cross that border, license plates are different, crop insurance rules are different, and all that. But production issues don’t change.”
The merger will be looked at closer by both the B.C. Seed Growers and ASG over the winter. Wuthrich plans to help see the B.C. Seed Growers through the change and after wants to still be involved in the seed industry but not as a director with the association.
“Karen and I are going to continue to grow pedigreed grass and cereals with our son to continue the future success of our family farm,” Wuthrich says about the future of PW Farms Ltd.
Header photo: A crop is harvested on PW Farms Ltd. is located near Cecil Lake, B.C. Photo: Dave Wuthrich
