Minimal rain during the previous week enabled farmers to make considerable progress as they harvested row crops and planted winter wheat, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Minimal to nonexistent levels of precipitation were observed in southern and western portions of the State, which contributed to ongoing soil dryness. Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 20 percent very short, 11 percent short, 66 percent adequate, and 3 percent surplus. Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending October 2 was 53.7 degrees, 6.2 degrees below normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 0.51 inches of precipitation, 0.20 inches below average. There were 5.4 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending October 2.

Corn dented progress was 93 percent complete, 59 percent of the crop was mature, and 7 percent of corn was harvested for grain. Corn harvested for silage was 85 percent complete. Corn condition was rated 64 percent good to excellent. … Continue reading

By Matt Reese

It’s all about relationships — even your farm. Whether it is with the brother, son, or daughter you work side-by-side with, the neighbor at the coffee shop, the mechanic you trust to work on your equipment, the seed dealer, the agronomist, the banker — it all boils down to relationships. On a farm, it is easy to get bogged down within the boundaries of the ground you farm, but there is so much beyond those borders that has a direct impact upon it. Relationships matter there too.

For this reason, relationships formed through involvement in farm organizations and advocacy also matter. This is at the heart of the recent trip by the Ohio Farm Bureau to Washington, D.C.

Finally, after the trip was cancelled last spring due to COVID restrictions, the Ohio Farm Bureau county presidents were able to meet with legislators and lobby for Ohio agriculture in our nation’s capital.… Continue reading

By Jon Scheve, Superior Feed Ingredients, LLC

Currently the corn harvest is about 13% complete nationally. As the new crop crosses the scale, the futures market likely adjusts based on how many farmers are selling. Early indications suggest landowners on share crop and farmers with limited storage capacity could be satisfied with prices around $7 and will likely move forward with spot sales. As harvest continues this trend could intensify and push prices lower.

Also, as harvest continues throughout the Midwest, basis values are coming under pressure. There may still be some short-term opportunities where harvest is not as far along yet, but those basis bids will fade fast over the next 10 days. 

What to store, corn or beans?

Every year as harvest starts farmers ask me which crop should be stored if they do not have 100% on farm storage.

Analyze interest cost by crop

The first step to maximize profitability is to analyze the cost per bushel per month to store each crop. To… Continue reading

By James Hoorman, Hoorman Soil Health Services, Adapted from Fall Nutrient Management webinar, David Miller/John Kemp.    

Crops flourish and grow quickly in the spring.  The first cutting of hay may be 50% higher than any other cutting.  It’s not just due to more water.  Increased spring growth comes from plant available nutrients (PAvN) from dormant microbes.  Usually, this spring flush lasts 30-45 days, but with good management, this growth (and yield) flush may last all summer.  However, it starts with fall nutrient management.

All soil nutrients are part of a biological system.  Each element is like a component or part in an engine.  If one component is lacking or missing, the engine may not run as well or even stop running.  Soil nutrients, especially micronutrients, are the activators to many biological processes.  Over the winter; microbes release nutrients when they die, are consumed by others, but also when they are active. … Continue reading

The start of this year’s row crop harvest was accompanied by above-average temperatures and limited precipitation, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Dry conditions were observed in southern and western portions of the State, which pushed row crop dry
down rates. Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 8% very short, 19% short, 69% adequate, and 4% surplus. Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending September 25 was 64.7 degrees, 4.0 degrees above normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 0.70 inches of precipitation, 0.03 inches below average. There were 5.7 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending Sept. 25.

Corn dented progress was 87% complete and 45% of the crop was mature. Corn harvested for silage was 77% complete. Corn condition was rated 60% good to excellent. Soybeans dropping leaves reached 56% and 3% of soybeans were harvested; 61% of soybean plants were reported as being in good to excellent condition.… Continue reading

Ryan Hiser

Everybody is getting ready to get started with harvest. We’ve got a lot of guys who did get stuff planted early and they are hitting it pretty hard, mostly shelling corn but there are some guys cutting beans in the area. Everything is moving right along. We’re pretty close to getting out to the field. We’re itching to be there just like everybody else, but stuff just isn’t quite ready yet. 

We’re planning on getting this little bit of corn started that we were able to plant on May 4. Then we can switch over to beans. Harvest is going to take a little bit, but as long as we catch some dry weather we should be in good shape. 

The forecast is looking pretty dry with cooler temperatures, nothing down below the mid- to lower 40s so that’s a good sign. Hopefully we don’t have to deal with the f-word, I don’t even want to say it. … Continue reading

Abundant sunshine and warm daytime temperatures extended throughout Ohio, providing farmers with favorable conditions for pre-harvest fieldwork, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 4% very short, 22% short, 68% adequate, and 6% surplus. Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending Sept. 18 was 66.5 degrees, 1.5 degrees above normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 0.35 inches of precipitation, 0.52 inches below average. There were 5.9 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending Sept. 18.

Farmers took advantage of last week’s favorable weather conditions by making substantial progress in harvesting corn for silage. Additional activities included manure applications and preparing combines for harvest. Corn dented progress was 78% complete, and 27% of the crop was mature. Corn harvested for silage was 68% complete. Corn condition was rated 59% good to excellent. Soybeans dropping leaves reached 31%. Fifty-nine percent of soybean plants were reported as being in good to excellent condition.… Continue reading

By Jon Witter, Jessica D’Ambrosio, and Justin McBride

A grant program through H2Ohio was recently announced by the Ohio Department of Agriculture to support the installation of two-stage ditches in counties draining to the Western Lake Erie Basin. The program will be administered by the Ohio Department of Agriculture through county Soil and Water Conservation Districts and County Engineer offices in Northwest Ohio. Contact your local Soil and Water Conservation District or County Engineer for more information on the program.

This program represents a significant investment in infrastructure that integrates conservation benefits and water quality protection with the need for reliable drainage.  We briefly describe ditch management approaches in the following article along with some very basic information on potential tradeoffs when considering a conservation channel design over a traditional (trapezoidal) ditch design.

Ditch design options 

The traditional trapezoidal ditch design is a good solution for surface drainage and works well in most applications if it remains well-vegetated, provides adequate tile drainage capacity, and doesn’t undergo frequent maintenance. … Continue reading

By Peggy Kirk Hall, director of agricultural law, Ohio State University Agricultural and Resource Law Program

Farm neighbor laws have been around nearly as long as there have been farm neighbors. From trees to fences to drainage, farmers can impact and be impacted by their neighbors. In the spirit of managing these impacts and helping everyone get along, our courts and legislatures have established a body of laws over the years that allocate rights and responsibilities among farm neighbors. Explaining these laws is the goal of our new series on farm neighbor laws. 

Here’s a timely farm neighbor problem that we’ve heard before: Farmer’s soybeans are looking good and Farmer is anxious for harvest. But some neighbors drive their ATV into the field and flatten a big section of Farmer’s beans. What can Farmer do about the harm? 

Ohio’s “reckless destruction of vegetation law” might be the solution. The law, Ohio Revised Code Section 901.51, states that “no person, without privilege to do so, shall recklessly cut down, destroy, girdle, or otherwise injure a vine, bush, shrub, sapling, tree, or crop standing or growing on the land of another or upon public land.”… Continue reading

By Greg LaBarge, CCA, Ohio State University Extension agronomist

Making sound agronomic decisions give wheat a well-established root system as a foundation to maximize yield. Wheat is an annual crop, but there are ten months between planting and harvest. Here are seven practices to establish your wheat for its long growing season.

1. Variety selection is of utmost importance. The Ohio State University Wheat Performance Trials shows yield and other important agronomic data for 79 varieties at four sites at https://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/wheattrials/. The OSU trials traditionally included disease ratings, but weather wiped out the 2022 disease rating site. The 2021 disease rating data is still helpful and is archived at https://go.osu.edu/21wheatdisease. Company trials are another information source. The more information you look over, especially from your region, the higher your confidence will be about your choice. 
2. Plant a high-quality seed and use a seed treatment. You take on that responsibility if you plant saved seed from the farm.

September 14, 2022 -- We are sunny, warmer and dry from today through next Thursday. Temps will gradually climb to above normal levels, and we will be quite warm from this weekend through next week...

September 13, 2022 -- We get full sunshine starting tomorrow, then sunny and dry conditions hold through the rest of the week, the weekend and the first half of next week...

Farmers across the State welcomed timely rains and seasonable temperatures as crop development progress accelerated during the previous week, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office.

Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 2% very short, 13% short, 77% adequate, and 8% surplus. Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending Sept. 11 was 69.7 degrees, 2.1 degrees above normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 1.07 inches of precipitation, 0.55 inches above average. There were 4.7 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending Sept. 11.

Corn dough progress was 96% complete, corn dented progress was 64% complete, and 16% of the crop was mature. Corn harvested for silage was 53% complete. Corn condition was rated 62% good to excellent. Soybeans pod setting progress reached 98% and 14% of soybeans were dropping leaves. Sixty-one percent of soybean plants were reported as being in good to excellent condition. Second cuttings of other dry hay were 92% complete.… Continue reading

By Shelly Detwiler, berry farmer and dietician

Millions of Americans are disconnected to agriculture with more than three generations removed from the farm. They are turning to urban gardening, farm to door delivery services, local farms/farmers markets and even foraging in an attempt to regain that connection. They yearn for control, involvement and hygge where their food comes from. 

 Foraging. It has become the new bougie term for those who are focused on environmental and sustainable eating. I was talking with a friend just the other day about her son who lives in an inner metro area and had taken up foraging. She was so excited she was almost jumping up and down that he had foraged in the neighborhood and parks to find incredible edible treasures. First off, my hubby hates mushrooms so the way to my man’s heart is to avoid mushrooms. Bottomline, I had no idea what she was talking about. … Continue reading

September 7, 2022 -- Drier weather settling in over Ohio today, and we should stay dry through the rest of the week. Temps will get gradually warmer as we move through the end of the week and weekend...

By Tim Reeves, initial editor of Ohio’s Country Journal

            While the first edition of Ohio’s Country Journal was unveiled in September of 1992 at the Farm Science Review, the seeds of the OCJ were actually planted in spring 1976 in the Agri-Broadcasting Network offices on Riverside Drive, Upper Arlington. The late Ed Johnson had been operating the ABN for several years and had built the ABN into Ohio’s premier radio farm and agricultural news network. I was just getting ready to graduate from The Ohio State University in March 1976 with a dual degree in agricultural economics and journalism. Since The Ohio State University did not have an agricultural communications major at the time, those of us interested in a career in ag communications had to major in something else and take journalism/communications courses as our “minor.” I actually graduated with as many journalism/communication courses as I had ag econ courses!… Continue reading

Scattered showers replenished soil moisture levels across central and eastern portions of the State during the previous week, but the impacts of continued dry weather persisted elsewhere, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 6% very short, 11% short, 63% adequate, and 20% surplus. Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending September 4 was 72.4 degrees, 2.9 degrees above normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 1.32 inches of precipitation, 0.50 inches above average. There were 4.4 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending Sept. 4.

Farmers reported increased crop stress in areas of the State which have received limited rain in recent weeks. Corn dough progress was 92% complete, corn dented progress was 48% complete, and 5% of the crop was mature. Corn harvested for silage was 41% complete. Corn condition was rated 58% good to excellent. Soybeans pod setting progress reached 94% and 5% of soybeans were dropping leaves.… Continue reading

By Dusty Sonnenberg, CCA, Ohio Field Leader, a project of the Ohio Soybean Council and soybean checkoff

Becks PFR Research investigates many production practices that farmers face and provides valuable information back to growers considering these practices.

“PFR Proven means a product or practice has been tested for three years and has shown a positive yield response and positive return on investment for all three years,” said Steve Gauck, Regional Agronomy Manager for the East for Becks.

Gauck recently presented at Becknology Days and discussed the attributes of foliar feeding soybeans.

“Just seven to eight years ago foliar feeding crops did not always have consistent results and the term snake oil was often used to describe the products used. Over time we have learned that there can be some advantages to correctly foliar feeding a crop. Foliar fertilization should not be used as a substitute for good soil fertility management. Foliar feeding can be a good addition however,” Gauck said.… Continue reading

September 2, 2022 -- A couple more fully dry days before we get some moisture back into Ohio. Today features sunshine, a warmer afternoon and a bit more humidity, but we still are in the realm of comfortable...

By Leisa Boley Hellwarth

Willa Cather said, “When people ask me if it has been a hard or easy road, I always answer with the same quotation, the end is nothing, the road is all.”    

            Shirley Boley lived on the same road her entire 87 years, in the same farmhouse. Rural Route 2 Box 38 became 3815 Kuhn Road, but the road remained the same. Seasons came and went, and agriculture became more and more mechanized, and the farm prospered on Kuhn Road.

            My grandmother, Shirley’s mother, Doris, loved to tell about the wonderful spring of 1935 when Shirley was born. She recalled there were new lambs, new pigs, new calves, new kittens, new bunnies and new chicks on the farm, as well as a new daughter. This was the middle of the Great Depression.

            My mother was a tomboy, likely due to being a younger sister to her brother, Bud.… Continue reading