Crops
Producers stuck on the hemp sidelines may be able to take advantage of HempHub USA, a push by two companies to transport a decortication machine into states with legal hemp programs. Essentially, the processing machinery will leapfrog perpetual infrastructure roadblocks and enable farmers to bring crops to market.
Robotic harvest is knocking on the door of traditional row crop production and cotton growers may bring in the first fruits. A massive technological push steered by Cotton Incorporated aims to deliver automated harvest via fleets of swarm robots to U.S. fields within 10 to 15 years.
Teach a boy to farm and he feeds others for a lifetime. When 12-year-old Evan Kirkpatrick worked his first five acres of soybeans in 2017, harvest represented a big link in a chain connecting past and present.
Beaten by a day’s harvest by rain and wind, producer Scott Flowers lost 200 acres of his best corn. With a 260-plus bushel crop on the ground, it was time to bring in a corn reel.
Moisture levels are going to be all over the board when combines roll this fall. In high-moisture situations, a few simple combine adjustments can minimize grain damage.
Whether you need a last-minute costume idea or just a cute pick-me-up, take a look at some of these ag related Halloween costumes.
Corn head adjustments help prevent cracked or chipped kernels in the grain tank, grain lying on the ground after a pass and whole stalks and trash moving into the machine.
No component on a combine functions independently; the header, feeder house, thresher, separator, cleaning fan and straw chopper all interact with effects that can reach all the way to planting.
Put these practices to work to improve your corn harvest outcome.
Too much corn is not making it to the bin in central Illinois as harvest season nears the finish line. If you’re still combining, consider Ken Ferrie’s recommendations to bolster results.
Manufacturing meltdowns are hitting the U.S., as semiconductor shortages expand into other components. Supply chain woes now pose a threat to the food supply and farmers’ ability to get crops out of fields.
A variable year means the managing the grain in your bin could be equally challenging.
With supply chain disruptions, what investments are you considering to ensure you have the inputs and flexibility you need?
Have you tried calling your local grain bin dealer over the past few months and gotten a busy tone? Grain bin manufacturers say demand is through the roof, driven by a variety of factors.
Here are a few helpful management tips to keep your herbicide applications on-target and you out of hot water.
When Mikey Taylor broke the century mark with dicamba-tolerant soybeans, yielding over 100 bu. per acre, he did so in straight-laced fashion, in direct contrast to the dicamba debacle of 2016.
Illegal use of dicamba was a devil in 2016 and begs the question: With EPA’s labeling approvals on new dicamba formulations, how might the off-target scenario play out in 2017?
A robotic pigweed killer may provide a 90% reduction in chemical use, maintenance of tractor speed at 6 mph, and the polar opposite of broadcast spraying.
Cotton isn’t king in Kansas, but it’s a fine prince for many Jayhawk growers, boosted by the arrival of new 2,4-D technology.
Kentucky farmer Aaron Reding will be the first to admit 2019 hasn’t been easy, but his ability to adapt to a recent diagnosis with technology, that’s allowing him to continue to farm.
Don’t waste expensive chemicals. Learn how to select the right sprayer nozzle for drift control, coverage, and efficacy, plus tips for checking nozzle wear.
The arrival of a precision, pellet-slinging, automated rover may provide almond growers with a cutting-edge NOW control weapon. Welcome to the age of robotic mummy removal.
BASF and Bosch are developing new technology for weed management. Their system photographs weeds, signals nozzles to spray and records the data in milliseconds. Farmers then get a map printout for easy reference.
The ‘it looked good from the road’ trend continued into western Iowa on Wednesday. In Illinois, scouts found a good crop, but maybe not the bumper crop they did last year.
The rapidly worsening water supply crisis has prompted governments to try remedies with uncertain success rates through cloud seeding. Does it actually work and what’s China’s track record? John Phipps weighs in.
Choosing hybrids for their ability to overcome the stresses in individual fields is several steps removed from simply looking at neighborhood plots and talking to neighbors, says Farm Journal Field Agronomist Ken Ferrie.
USDA trimmed both corn and soybean yield forecast in the September report earlier this week. One commodity trader says USDA’s yield move in September also indicates more yield changes could occur in the October report.
Volatile weather patterns are not lost on U.S. seed companies, who are intent on developing corn genetics that deliver high yields despite an uncooperative Mother Nature.
Is your operation in the sweet spot for owning a sprayer? Of course, every decision has downsides (and a price tag). But, investing in a sprayer for your farm could offer a clear upside.
Jeff Pybus is farming’s invisible grim reaper, slaying rats in the dark as he shoots and films for an addicting, no-frills YouTube channel.