Koshels of Neepawa living the conservation dream

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Published on Monday, January 15, 2018

Submitted Photo
Larissa and Paul Koshel on their farm with daughters Ella, Rhea and Kira.

Submitted
Neepawa Banner & Press

The Whitemud Watershed Conservation District is pleased to nominate Paul and Larissa Koshel for the 2017 Conservation Award. Growing up on a fruit and vegetable farm in The Pas, Paul has always found himself out in nature. From an early age, catching and collecting insects and pond creatures, feeding birds, building birdhouses, planting trees as well as hunting and fishing allowed Paul to develop an affinity, love and respect for nature.

Pauls’s father, who emigrated from Ukraine, had instilled some simple values about nature and farming; to only use what you need and leave the rest alone to enjoy by viewing. He always believed this, as a result of the decline he saw in the amounts of creatures, such as butterflies and birds, from the 1930’s to present.

It has been eleven years since Paul and his wife Larissa, moved from The Pas to Neepawa. Originally living in the Town of Neepawa, Larissa and Paul had three children, Ella, Rhea and Kira. It was also during these first seven years that Larissa and Paul tried their best to help nature by feeding birds, building birdhouse, and growing milkweed, which amazingly led to 75 monarchs hatched one year! This event, and others since, have educated Ella, Rhea and Kira about the importance of nature and the job we have as humans to protect it.

In 2012, the Koshel family was fortunate enough to purchase a 125 acre farm two miles east of Neepawa. With a Saskatoon u-pick already established on the land, other orchard trees were put in to help with the pollinators in the area. In the first winter on the farm, a winter feeding program for birds was started to help the native bird species that stay for the winter.  In 2013, several short shelterbelts of mixed trees for wildlife were also planted.

In 2014, to help the insect pollinators, a ¼ acre native prairie has been put in by collecting a large group of native grasses and forbs from a 30 mile radius around the farm. This will allow the Koshel family to produce seeds for future native prairie plots that will eventually cover over most of the farm in far the future.  A small bluebird trail of about 12 birdhouses was also added just south of the farm, and there are plans to expand it in upcoming years.

Environmental Farm Plan setup

Finally, in 2014 Paul completed the environmental farm plan for the farm, with intentions of improving the farm for wildlife even further. This was the first step in looking toward converting a seasonal drainage area that flows into the Whitemud River into a 3-acre wetland, thus holding back spring runoff water at a time when the river is prone to flooding. After collaborating and coming to an agreement with the Whitemud Watershed Conversation District, the project was approved, and construction was finished in 2017. The final part of the project will be completed over the next few years, as non- native species are being eliminated so that native grasses, sedges and flowers can be seeded around the marsh.

This is not the last project planned by the Koshel family, as the future will look towards returning much of the cropland back to native prairie, and the possibility of raising elk as a retirement project for both Larissa and Paul. For now, they plan to teach their daughters about respecting the land and using it to raise your own food and run a viable fruit and vegetable operation, while at the same time, sharing the land for wildlife to survive and thrive.