Mark Parker: The Top 10 things farm couples can do to reduce marital conflict

Mark Parker:  The Top 10 things farm couples can do to reduce marital conflict

FarmTalk

10. Cowboy sign language from the far end of the sorting pen doesn’t cut it.

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The ranch plan: Evaluate records first

The ranch plan: Evaluate records first

Gayle Smith

The Cattle Business Weekly

As much as I hate bookwork, it is important to tackle jobs like this when you are at your best, not after you have spent the day hard at work and are tired,” says Aaron Berger, Nebraska extension educator.

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Decisions Made Now Can Impact the Entire Grazing Season

Decisions Made Now Can Impact the Entire Grazing Season

Chris Penrose

Ohio Beef Cattle Letter

Considering how early our forages broke dormancy this year, we will soon reach a stage where our forage management decisions can affect grazing for the entire season. In 2012 when we also experienced a very early spring our forages were finishing up their “reproductive” stage of growth with grasses setting seed heads and legumes blooming by late April.

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Focus on Getting Cows Bred Early in the Breeding Season

Focus on Getting Cows Bred Early in the Breeding Season

Travis Meteer

University of Illinois

I was speaking at a meeting one evening and I was talking about how nutrition affects reproduction. I got to the portion of the talk discussing how post-partum interval affects cows getting bred in a 60 day season. I asked the members of the crowd to raise their hand if they maintained a 60-day calving season. Very few hands went up.

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8 Critical Cover Crop Best Practices

8 Critical Cover Crop Best Practices

Ben Potter

AgWeb

More farmers are using cover crops on their operation, notes Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey. That also means it’s as important as ever to share best practices so they can gain the maximum benefits from this production practice, he says.

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China Lifts Ban on U.S. Beef

China Lifts Ban on U.S. Beef

Greg Henderson

Drovers

President Donald Trump’s weekend summit with Chinese president Xi Jinping could have major implications for the U.S. beef industry. Several news outlets are reporting the two reached an agreement to lift the barricade against U.S. beef exports that has been in place since 2003.

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Stockpiled forage is not just a fall thing

Stockpiled forage is not just a fall thing

Sydney Sleep

Hay and Forage Grower

“We have learned to overcome some of the wintertime forage shortfall by shifting part of the late summer and early fall forage growth to winter by creating stockpile forage,” says James Rogers, forage researcher at The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. “The same process can be used to help overcome the summer forage slump.”

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Soil testing critical for warm season grasses

Soil testing critical for warm season grasses

On the Farm Radio

Knowing what type of grass is in your yard, coupled with the scientific results of a soil test, can help homeowners know when the best time to fertilize is and what products are most appropriate to use. While fertilizer will be needed, potassium and phosphorous may not be.

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Subcommittee Examines Farm Policy in Advance of the Next Farm Bill

Subcommittee Examines Farm Policy in Advance of the Next Farm Bill

US House of Representatives

Today, Rep. Rick Crawford (AR-1), Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management, held a hearing to evaluate the effectiveness of farm policy in advance of crafting the next farm bill. Members heard from producers who discussed the importance of both commodity policy and crop insurance. This hearing continues the committee’s hearing series to set the stage for the next farm bill.

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CME: Beef Export Tonnage Up 20%, Imports Down 17%

CME: Beef Export Tonnage Up 20%, Imports Down 17%

The Cattle Site

From January into late March of this year cattle prices generally increased, which is a rather normal seasonal occurrence. Still, cattle prices for the first quarter were the lowest for the first three months of any year since 2011.

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