Soil is the Earth’s second-biggest carbon-storage locker after the oceans. And a research collaboration has shown it’s moisture, not temperature or mineral content, that’s key to how well soil carbon storage works.
Introducing pollinator habitat can improve bee abundance and diversity, but the quality of that habitat matters, according to researchers at North Carolina State University.
SUN PRAIRIE, Wis. – Building a farm business – and soil health – on a shoestring budget is what keeps Ryan Erisman of Odyssey Farm motivated. The Sun Prairie-area farmer said he’s proud of that as well as being able to make what he calls “steampunk Amish technology” work on his small farm.
The use of plasma technology to capture methane in barn air and break it down into carbon dioxide is being led by researchers in Finland. The methane emissions generated in milk production account for about 50 percent of milk’s carbon footprint in Finland, according to Valio, a dairy-product…
About 99 percent of farm bill outlays go to nutrition, crop insurance, commodities and conservation titles. The “Other” category comprises the remaining 1 percent of all projected outlays. Figure 1 provides the breakdown of all projected outlays as a percentage of total outlays under the Agr…
Drought is one of nature’s costliest disasters. Across the world, more frequent and prolonged droughts have increased by about a third since 2000.
The use of biochar to reduce ammonia emissions and odors from manure storage is being studied by three students at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Biochar is a carbon-based material produced by heating biomass at hot temperatures with limited oxygen.
Plant breeders have traditionally measured leaves by hand to measure leaf angles. The process is time-consuming and labor intensive so researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a way to automate it.
A surrogate virus for African swine fever virus recently was developed and validated by researchers at the University of Minnesota. Their work represents a breakthrough in efforts to develop effective mitigation strategies to control the virus and keep it from entering North America.
Americans eat more potato chips than any other nation – more than 4 pounds per person per year, according to Potatoes USA. About 22 percent of the U.S. potato crop – about 7,500 million pounds annually – is made into chips. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service …
Climate change isn’t just making the world warmer. It’s also changing when and how much rain falls. That leaves more corn farmers at risk of facing drought during part of the growing season. Not all droughts are created equal. If one strikes at the wrong time, an entire field can be lost.
Claudia Lenz said she doesn’t want to wait for things to become worse before taking action to help farmers become more resilient in the face of climate change. That’s why she participated March 6-8 in the Farmers for Climate Action: Rally for Resistance in Washington, D.C.
It's that time of the year again. Agri-View offers a list of available agricultural scholarships.
Agri-View offers a schedule of events of special interest to our readers. Some events and activities might require advance registration. Email agriview@madison.com with calendar submissions.
It seems like such a simple question.
Chicken and farmed salmon have similar environmental footprints. The key is in the feed, says Ben Halpern, a marine ecologist and director of the University of California-National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis in Santa Barbara.
MONTANA, Wis. – Sugaring season is the highlight of the year for Arick Pronschinske, who collects and processes maple sap on his parents’ dairy farm in eastern Buffalo County, Wisconsin. Pronschinske works his sugarbush with help from his mom, Susan Pronschinske. This is their eighth year in…
Crop-protection development studied
The first part of this article was published in the March 9 issue of Agri-View.
EAST LANSING, Michigan – Michigan State University researchers recently showed how to more accurately evaluate soil-carbon stock changes. Their calculation has significant implications for measuring the actual environmental benefits of regenerative-agriculture practices and economic conseque…
The December-February period tied with 2018 and 2022 to rank fifth-warmest on record. Europe had its second-warmest winter while Africa experienced its fourth-warmest December-February period.
OAKFIELD, Wis. – Jerry Huth and Josh Scharf were recently recognized by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. The organization named their connected businesses – Huth Polled Herefords and S&H Livestock Enterprises – as a regional winner of its 2022 Environmental Stewardship Award Program.
The W.K. Kellogg Biological Station Long-Term Ecological Research program at Michigan State University is one of 28 such National Science Foundation sites in the country. It’s the only one dedicated to understanding the ecology of agricultural systems.
Forty-three Sauk County, Wisconsin, students in grades kindergarten through 12th recently created posters for the National Association of Conservation Districts Conservation Awareness Poster competition. The Sauk County Land Resources and Environment Department sponsored the program locally,…
Sjur Testhal and his father, Erik Testhal, must have been amazed in 1855 when they arrived in Iowa from Norway, to see wide prairies of black fertile soil filled with wildflowers and high grass. Sjur Testhal bought 80 acres in 1884 to start farming in the new paradise.