MANAGEMENT

As temperatures rise, many producers are revisiting pest management strategies and practices after a record number of herbicide drift-impacted acres were reported from 2017’s growing season.

One of the primary strategies for managing risk is transferring risk outside the farm or ranch through insurance products or other mechanisms.

As a Wisconsin farm kid, one of my most loved and despised memories of growing up happened during haying season – the love of the smell of hay and the dislike of repeatedly losing the hay mow stacking competition to my much taller brothers.

In the Northern Great Plains, 70 to 75 percent of annual precipitation is received between April and the end of June. Rainfall during this period is critical in order to have a “normal” or “above normal” year in terms of forage production.

Forage plant improvement programs in ryegrass, small grains and forage legumes have been and continue to be an integral part of beef production research.

It is amazing the difference in animal health on different pastures. In many cases, this can be attributed to plant health, which is a product of healthy soil. In the major commodities, there is lots of talk of cover crops for several reasons; one is soil health. With a healthy soil, there is less plant diseases and in some cases, even less insect pressure.