Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Amber Friedrichsen

The author is the managing editor for Hay & Forage Grower. Amber Friedrichsen joined the Hay & Forage Grower staff as an associate editor in May 2023. As of July 2024, she has assumed the role of managing editor. Friedrichsen also served as the editorial intern in 2021 and 2022. She graduated from Iowa State University in May 2023 with a double major in agricultural communication and agronomy. Friedrichsen grew up and worked on her family’s diversified crop and livestock farm in eastern Iowa near Clinton.

Grazing heifers are the new cash cows
Forage Flash

March 18, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Raising replacement heifers can be costly for a dairy farm, with feed costs for these animals typically comprising the biggest chunk of that expense. One solution is to let heifers harvest forage them...
It pays to play with alfalfa
Hay Crop

March 4, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Corn silage has the advantage over alfalfa when it comes to average yield per acre. Considering the former feedstuff only warrants one harvest a year, it may have a leg up on alfalfa in terms of manag...
Nine of their best forage decisions
Forage Flash

March 4, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
An agronomist, a beef farmer, and a dairy farmer walk into a bar . . . or in this case, the breakout session at the Midwest Forage Association Symposium. What ensued during the panel discussion last m...
Be on alert for alfalfa heaving
Forage Flash

Feb. 25, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
With a week of warmer-than-average temperatures displayed on my weather app following a sub-zero cold snap, I’m a little concerned about alfalfa injury and winterkill. This isn’t the first time te...
Don’t play the bale weight guessing game
Forage Flash

Feb. 25, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Unless you’re putting your round bales on a scale, you’re probably guessing bale weight all wrong. The key word here is “guessing,” which spells trouble in terms of feed expenses and hay suppl...
Farmers made more hay on less land in 2024
Hay Quality

Feb. 21, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
According to the USDA’s Crop Production Annual Summary released last month, the nation’s forage production appeared to have ended on an overall positive note in 2024...
Hay exports flatlined in 2024
Hay

Feb. 18, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Hay exports in 2024 totaled 3.179 million metric tons (MT). According to the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), this was down less than 1% from the previous year. Despite a strong start to t...
Seed alfalfa green this spring
Forage Flash

Feb. 18, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Alfalfa seedbeds are typically prepared with tillage and a cultipacker to reduce residue and create a smooth soil surface, but this can leave fields more susceptible to erosion. One alternative is to...
Here’s what La Niña could bring
Hay

Feb. 11, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Why are we always talking about La Niña? Doesn’t she get tired of thwarting crop growth with dry weather and threatening farmers with drought conditions? According to Matt Makens, the c...
Hot topics in hay and forage
Grazing

Feb. 4, 2025
BY Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor
Hot topics, current issues, controversies, trends — whatever buzzwords grab your attention, the intention is to generate discussion. Though what qualifies as a hot topic to one person may be irrelev...
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