Sept. 12, 2023
Really dry or really wet — it doesn’t matter because both conditions can be lethal to new spring alfalfa seedings. Depending on where you hang your hat, weather extremes on either end of the spect...


Aug. 29, 2023
The critical fall period for alfalfa has been said to start roughly six weeks before the first killing frost, which is roughly around the first week of September for most of the Midwest. This hard sto...


Aug. 22, 2023
As I sit here in the Bozeman, Mont., airport waiting for the Boeing 737 with my name attached to it, I’m pondering the fact that once again orchardgrass has been a big part of this trip. Both the co...


Aug. 15, 2023
Enduring a drought is depleting for forages as well as farmers. Not only did the lack of rainfall through mid-summer limit yield and quality in hayfields across the country, but the dry weather has le...


July 25, 2023
With the turning of the calendar to August next week, the window opens for Northern regions to begin seeding alfalfa and alfalfa-grass mixtures. That window progresses to later dates as we move south...


July 4, 2023
In many cases, alfalfa tends to take the cake when it comes to a farmer’s favorite forage...


June 27, 2023
Dry weather — to varying degrees — has beset a large swath of the U.S. during the beginning of the 2023 haymaking season. In the Midwest, I have never seen so much first-cutting hay get baled...


June 13, 2023
Source: U.S. Drought MonitorThe abundant rain and snowfall in the West put a temporary Band-Aid on many areas that were either devoid of moisture or had their irrigation spigots shut off...


May 23, 2023
It’s a guarantee that cool-season grass pastures will take a break this summer when hot, dry conditions set in...


May 15, 2023
The first “Alfalfa Conference,” which was later to become the North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference, took place in Washington D.C. on January 13, 1930...