34 Story Idea? Email Paul.Nolan@Farms.com Better Farming | March 2024 USING DATA TO FARM SMARTER ‘Long gone are the days of just working hard to be successful.’ By Emily Croft UP CLOSE Clayton and Jesse Williams balance farming with working full-time jobs and raising their children. The family still finds the time to continue evolving to improve the management of their cattle and their land. Whiskey Creek Ranch is near Hanna, in the Special Areas of Alberta. The Williams family have 150 cow-calf pairs and run around 1,100 acres of dryland in Palliser’s Triangle. The unique and often challenging characteristics of the land they farm has called for an adventurous approach to management. “We are primarily cow-calf and also have some cultivated acres, perennial forages, and tame and native pastures, but it is all to feed the cows,” says Jesse, who works as an agricultural fieldman for the Special Areas Board. “Usually, in drought years, we get to utilize a lot of our neighbours’ salvage crops. We do a lot of stubble grazing in the fall and use everything we can to extend grazing as long as possible. When you don’t have feed, you have to find it.” Clayton adds that they are willing to be creative when it comes to feed ingredients. “We use canola straw and cereal straw, as well as kochia and other weeds with forage value that we can control later with in-crop herbicides in corn,” explains Clayton. “There’s no forage we won’t use. We use ingredients to give the cows what they need, but also use them to build our soil and organic matter to mitigate problems with low moisture.” Jesse and Clayton both grew up on family ranches and have been involved in agriculture as long as they can remember. With parents that are young enough to continue farming and older siblings, they realized that if they wanted to farm, they would have to create their own opportunity. “We decided to take farming on and grow as much as we reasonably could. We stuck our shovel in the ground and decided to build our own farm and base,” explains Clayton. Jesse adds that it has taken dedication to develop the ranch. “We’ve made a lot of sacrifices, but we are both quite happy we did.” Whiskey Creek Ranch is located close to family ranches, which has been beneficial for the couple as they develop their own farm. They knew what to expect from the land and weather, but also have nearby family when needed. They attribute their success to support from their parents. The challenging soils of the Hanna area mean that risk management plays an important role on the ranch. “I think we are just like any other farm. We are trying to be profitable and productive with what we have,” Jesse, Clayton, Harper, and Barrett Williams on their farm in Alberta. Jesse Williams photo
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