The credit for the invention of the boomerang goes to the Aborigines. Prehistoric man would throw stones or sticks at prey. Eventually, they r…
As we run headlong into the spring planting season, there are quite a few agronomic issues you’re facing, including seed bed prep, soil temper…
How are you spending your COVID-19 days? Do you feel isolated from others? Are you content to just wait until things improve?
If I were a carpenter...
When it comes to farm equipment, there’s a tendency to focus on what’s new and exciting in tractors, combines, planters and hay equipment.
Although some people prefer the same foods every day or must eat the same items daily because that’s all they have available to them, most of …
The very first column I ever wrote was about a retired U.S. Navy fighter pilot who was shot down over Vietnam at age 24. After 75 combat missi…
History has a way of repeating itself. That’s especially true when it comes to ag equipment company mergers and acquisitions.
What family traditions do you have? Did your grandparents pass down traditions to your parents that you now follow? Have you started some of y…
Reflecting on the holidays and the upcoming new year feels a little different this year as COVID-19 remains a primary force in our lives.
If I were to describe this past year in one word, I would have to say “difficult.”
Few things in our lives are so deeply steeped in tradition as our observance of Christmas. At a very young age, we become accustomed to Christ…
This holiday season stirs farmers to reflect on this year’s productivity and to consider if there are good reasons to be optimistic about the …
As farmers, we prepare for next season through the winter months. We prepare for tax season by deciding how much income to defer and discoveri…
Editor’s note: This a continuation of the previous Money Today column.
Sometimes, time and labor savings don’t come from equipment, but rather how and where you store and maintain that equipment, along with parts …
My maternal grandfather, Opa Gelder, was a teenager when he came to the United States from East Friesland in northwestern Germany. Although he…
Last month, two military veterans wrote to me. The first asked me to write about the origins of Veterans Day; the second professed his appreci…
Not every piece of ag equipment is going into hibernation over the winter. Utility tractors, scrapers, snow blowers, skid steers and trucks ar…
George considered himself a good farmer, or at least better than most of his neighbors.
One of the most important concepts in understanding relational struggles, and how to overcome them, is the concept of attachment.
Many years have passed since my John Deere 4X2 Gator utility vehicle sat new at a dealership, ready to become a go-to machine for carrying bru…
Ben Franklin might just as well have been talking directly to today’s farmers when he famously said, “In this world, nothing can be said to be…
Most people are familiar with the prayer, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I…
As harvest continues to finish up across the Midwest, it might be a good time to take a hard look at your current combine.
If you want to strike up a conversation with a kindergartner, just ask, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Most 5- and 6-year-olds wil…
On most farms, respiratory protection is a necessity at some point. Whether you’re working in a grain bin or livestock barn, handling chemical…