There will be two opportunities in Trenton on Friday, January 15, for private pesticide applicator training. Sessions begin at 10 o’clock Friday morning or at 2 o’clock Friday afternoon, with both sessions at the Grundy County Extension office located in the basement of the NCMC Alexander Student Center. Other dates and locations are to be […]
Category: Farm News
Audio: University of Missouri releases report on 2020 survey regarding crop and pasture land
University of Missouri extension has a report on the 2020 survey regarding crop and pasture land. MU Specialist in agriculture and the environment, Jackie Spainhauer, reports the average cropland values for eight area counties. Jackie Spainhauer noted the average 2020 land values are based on surveys among ag lenders and others in the […]
Research shows harvesting solar would benefit farmers and the climate
If a small fraction of farms captured solar energy, it could produce a large slice of the country’s energy needs, and boost farmers’ bottom lines. New research from Oregon State University finds 1% of farmland in the U.S. could provide 20% of the country’s electricity needs through solar power. Co-author of the paper Chad Higgins, associate […]
Audio: Missouri Director of Agriculture says supporting small processors a priority in 2021
Missouri’s Director of Agriculture says funding for small meat processors will continue to be a priority in 2021. Chris Chinn tells Brownfield roughly $20 million of Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act funding for the state went towards improving existing small and medium processors and building new ones. “We could also see, approximately, maybe […]
Missouri Farm Bureau Chief Administrative Officer retires after 24-years of service
Chief Administrative Officer Dan Cassidy has retired after serving the organization for 24 years. Cassidy made the announcement after the organization’s annual meeting on December 6. Cassidy has served as CAO since April 2003. From 1996 to 2002 he was the organization’s director of National Legislative Programs. Prior to his career at Missouri Farm Bureau, […]
Crop review for December 2020
Grain bids surged throughout December. Overseas feed demand, the worker strike in Argentina, and weather conditions in South America were significant factors in soybean and corn prices gaining so much ground. Dry conditions in key growing areas in South America have put yield potential into question, however, the true range of crop loss is still […]
USDA Announces Commodity Credit Corporation lending rates for January 2021
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation announced interest rates for January 2021, which are effective January 4-January 31. These rates are used for a variety of farm credit options available through USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA). The CCC’s borrowing rate-based charge is 0.125%, the same as December. The interest rate for crop year commodity […]
Conservation Reserve Program general signup begins today and ends February 12
Agricultural producers and private landowners interested in the Conservation Reserve Program can sign up for the popular program beginning today, Jan. 4, 2021, until Feb. 12, 2021. The competitive program, administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), provides annual rental payments for land devoted to conservation purposes. “This signup for the Conservation Reserve Program gives producers […]
Audio: COVID-19 relief Bill signed by President specific on how funds can be spent within agriculture
The latest COVID-19 relief Bill passed by Congress and signed by the President includes specific instructions on how the money will be spent within agriculture. Gary Crawford reports for the Department of Agriculture. Net income for farmers was up in 2020, but what about next year? Department of Agriculture reporter Gary Crawford provides […]
Audio: Beef check-off encourages consumption and drives demand
Under the Beef Check-off program, producers and beef importers pay a $1-per-head assessment on animals they market and equivalent on beef they import. Missouri retains half of each dollar collected for marketing and research in state as identified by the Council’s board. On this episode of Driving Demand, a content partnership with Missouri Beef Industry […]
Audio: Farmers will have options when renewing Private Pesticide Applicators License in 2021
When the calendar changes to 2021, it’ll be time for farmers to either renew their Private Pesticide Applicators Licenses or to obtain certification for one. Valerie Tate is an MU Extension agronomist in Linn County. She tells there will be a limited number of face to face opportunities in Grundy, Livingston, and Linn counties to […]
United States hog inventory down 1 percent
As of December 1, there were 77.5 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, down 1 percent from December 2019 and down 1 percent from September 1, 2020, according to the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Other key findings in the report were: Of […]
University of Missouri Research looks at technology to kill weeds
If it’s a weed, spray it. That’s the mindset that most in the agriculture industry held for years, however, that thinking no longer works as more weeds become resistant to herbicides, says Kevin Bradley, University of Missouri Extension weed scientist. Bradley uses waterhemp as an example. Waterhemp is one of 14 herbicide-resistant weed species in […]
University of Missouri Extension entomologist lists pests farmers should watch for in 2021
University of Missouri Extension field crop entomologist Kevin Rice says Missouri soybean and corn growers should be on the lookout for growing populations of yield-robbing insects in 2021. Soybean gall midge MU Extension found soybean gall midge in two northwestern Missouri counties in 2019. Soybean gall midge larvae feed internally in the base of soybean […]
Tar spot found in northeast Missouri cornfields
Missouri corn growers should scout for an emerging crop disease, tar spot, in 2021, says University of Missouri Extension plant pathologist Kaitlyn Bissonnette. She identified tar spot in four far northeastern Missouri counties: Scotland, Lewis, and Clark in 2019 and Marion in 2020. She expects it to spread in the northern half of Missouri and […]
Adoption of farming technology, or precision ag, varies across generations
Farmers who fear they are falling behind in farm technology might not be as behind as they think. Kansas State University cropping system economist Terry Griffin explains that a recent Kansas Farm Management Association study of farm technologies dispels the myth that all farmers use all of the latest technology. Griffin was one of the […]
EPA proposes registration of Trifludimoxazin, a new herbicide active ingredient
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposes registering pesticide products containing the new active ingredient trifludimoxazin, a vital additional tool in managing resistant weeds. Trifludimoxazin is an herbicide intended for pre-and/or post-emergent control of broadleaf and grass weeds. It can be applied by aircraft on citrus fruits, pome fruits, cereal grain (except rice), tree nuts, peanuts, […]
Beef producers sought for GrowSafe system research at MU
Researchers at the University of Missouri’s Southwest Research Center are inviting beef producers to take part in a program to identify beef cows that use feed efficiently. MU Extension researchers will mine data from the GrowSafe system to help producers select breeding stock cows that eat less than other cows while producing calves with similar […]
Research shows heavier drift damage from dicamba and 2,4-D more likely when sprayed in stable air.
Research findings from the University of Missouri show heavier drift damage from dicamba and 2,4-D is more likely when those herbicides are sprayed in stable air. MU Extension weed scientist Mandy Bish says those synthetic auxins tend to hang in the air when there’s no wind, “So what happens is, when you get these herbicides […]
EPA releases draft biological evaluation for Glyphosate
EPA is taking the next step in its regulatory review of glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the United States, which is used to control a variety of grasses and broadleaf weeds. Glyphosate is used on about 298 million acres of agricultural cropland every year and is effective and affordable. Building on EPA’s January […]