Aug. 27 2019 Driving down a county road recently, I noticed a farmer meticulously placing his newly made round bales side-to-side in a neat row under a tree line. A little farther down the trail, on a differe
Aug. 13 2019 Until recently, it’s been a challenging year on the crop side of the ledger. In the rearview mirror are events such as widespread alfalfa winterkill in some regions and relentless rain events in...
Aug. 6 2019 Much gets written and discussed about making high-quality alfalfa. In fact, there could be an entire volume of Encyclopedia Britannica dedicated to the topic. If we were to list the factors involved
Aug. 6 2019 It’s not unusual for hay prices to retreat in late spring and early summer with the onset of a new crop. Such was the case for average June 2019 prices of both alfalfa and other hay types. Th
July 30 2019 John F. Kennedy, in his 1962 State of the Union Address, said, “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” This little bit of wisdom is good advice for living our lives, but...
July 23 2019 Seeding spring oats for a fall harvest is a beautiful thing. It’s rare to hear about a bad experience with the practice. We’re now approaching the optimum time to seed oats for fall forage...
July 23 2019 The savvy livestock producer is always thinking ahead. Those with short inventories of hay will want to get the most grazing possible out of their fall pastures. For tall fescue, that means a shot of
July 16 2019 Our understanding of corn silage has come a long way in the past 20 years. That’s probably a good thing because it has emerged as a dominant feed source in most dairy and many feedlot beef rations
July 9 2019 If you grow alfalfa, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of Aphanomyces root rot. It’s a disease that has dogged me my entire working career and it can take out a new seeding field in...
July 2 2019 There’s an old saying that goes something like this: “You can’t get blood out of a turnip.” It often is used in context with trying to get money out of someone who is either excessively...
July 2 2019 It was back in early February, when the average alfalfa hay price was $180 per ton, that we offered this prediction: “Given where the market currently stands and the hay stocks situation, it’s...
June 25 2019 The record rainfall that has impacted a wide swath of the U.S. this spring and early summer has resulted in a large number of prevented planted acres. Many grain farmers, and no doubt some dairy and b
June 18 2019 If ever there was a year that prompted the strong desire to disregard alfalfa autotoxicity and write it off as a bad dream, this is it. The problem: It’s not a bad dream. This spring has provided
June 11 2019 It was nearly 10 years ago when I attended an agronomy field day in Arlington, Wis., and heard John Grabber speak about some initial research he was doing that entailed establishing alfalfa under sila
June 4 2019 Remember dust? That’s the stuff that develops when soils are dry. It has been missing in action this spring across a good chunk of the U.S. Last week, I had the chance to travel across several...
June 4 2019 The average price paid for both alfalfa and other hay types continued to climb during April, according to USDA’s latest Agricultural Prices report. Premium and Supreme alfalfa hay also moved higher
May 28 2019 A week ago, I emailed the manager at our company’s Hoard’s Dairyman Farm and asked him if they had contemplated cutting alfalfa yet.His response: “We’re going to cut some today,...
May 22 2019 Synergy. Our longtime friend Webster defines it as a mutually advantageous conjunction or compatibility of distinct participants or elements. Every farm or ranch has a story
May 21 2019 He’s a farmer. An educator. A learner. A world traveler. And also a Yooper. That latter résumé-building item puts Ben Bartlett into a hearty and exclusive class of people who call Michigan’s...
