“If it’s on the farm, we teach you how to fix it.” Technical schools train students for some in-demand ag careers.
A California company, with offices in Nebraska, is changing the way growers look at irrigation – literally.
There have been many stressors on alfalfa fields this year, from early weevils to drought and hail and now fall armyworms and cutworms. Can fa…
“We are on the cutting edge of being able to track how water moves through soil.”
Southeast Missouri has seen some stretches of wet weather, as well as some hot summer days, but overall the fertile soil and widespread use of…
Here's the latest update from our youth Producer Progress Reporter, Erin Oldemeyer:
In a challenging, dry year when farmers have needed to irrigate more than usual, farmers have an additional monitoring tool to avoid using too…
"Every time the phone rings we add another name to the growing silage chopping list." Producer Progress Reporter Krista Podany and Carl Dobias begin their busiest season in the field.
"We have a 24-hour orchestra right outside our kitchen window." Our Youth Producer Progress Reporter gives an update on irrigation, grain fill and preparing for fall calving.
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| People take pictures of Lake Mead near Hoover Dam on Aug. 13. The lighter layer of minerals shows the high-water mark of the reservoir. (Associated Press photo by John Locher) |
"Low water in the Colorado River’s largest reservoir triggered the first-ever federal declaration of a shortage on Monday, a bleak marker of the effects of climate change in the
drought-stricken American Westand the imperiled future of a critical water source for 40 million people in seven states,"
reportKarin Brulliard and Joshua Partlow of The Washington Post. "Water in Lake Mead, the
mammoth reservoircreated by the Hoover Dam that supplies the lower Colorado basin, is projected to be 1,065.85 feet above sea level on Jan. 1, nearly 10 feet below a threshold that requires Arizona, Nevada and Mexico to reduce their consumption in 2022. On Monday, it was
just under 1,068 feet, or about 35 percent full, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which manages the water that states and Mexico have rights to use." The lake hasn't been that low since it began filling after completion of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s."
The water-supply cuts triggered by the declaration will mostly affect Arizona farmers—at first. "Beginning next year they will be cut off from much of the water they have relied on for decades. Much smaller reductions are mandated for Nevada and for Mexico across the southern border," Henry Fountain reports for The New York Times. "But larger cuts, affecting far more of the 40 million people in the West who rely on the river for at least part of their water supply, are likely in coming years as a warming climate continues to reduce how much water flows into the Colorado from rain and melting snow."
The mandatory cuts "are part of a contingency plan approved in 2019 after lengthy negotiations among the seven states that use Colorado River water: California, Nevada and Arizona in the lower basin, and New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Wyoming in the upper basin. American Indian tribes and Mexican officials have also been involved in the planning," Fountain reports. "The shortage announced Monday affects only the lower basin states, but the Bureau of Reclamation may declare a similar shortage for the upper basin, perhaps as early as next year."
Corn country landscape - painted late summer - high clouds, heavy with moisture waiting for afternoon to thicken and darken and start raising Cain.
The past two weeks can be summed up in a single word: Wow! We have been crazy busy.
Over the last three years, Montana State University’s Northwestern Ag Research Center (NWARC) has been growing less dormant alfalfa as part of…
"Our irrigated corn looks excellent as usual on a hot and dry year."
Across Kansas, farmers wrestle with the quandary of when to water thirsty crops – and how much of the precious resource they should use.
The Meyring family works hard to coordinate work and kids' activities during a busy time of year.
The commitment of generations of dedicated soil scientists in maintaining and managing the historic Knorr-Holden Plot near Scottsbluff for mor…
I remember when I was writing about the extreme cold that we were experiencing back in March, and now I am writing about the extreme heat that…
Alfalfa is a relatively drought-tolerant forage, but irrigation makes it possible to produce higher yields. This perennial crop does not have …
"Between the heat and wind this week, the oats and alfalfa are burning up," reported Andrea Hipke of Spencer, Nebraska.
Agricultural producers have been looking for simple and affordable products to remotely monitor and control their irrigation wells and pumps. …
"Our area has had a quarter of an inch since the first of April. This is hardly enough precipitation to get the crops out of the ground."
Taking advantage of any rainfall that comes throughout a growing season is key for maximizing yields, but effectively managing the water can t…
Low soil moisture levels in many areas across the state may mean irrigating alfalfa before the first cutting. Have you considered irrigating early?