Nicole Heslip

Michigan farmers were able to make planting progress last week because of drier weather. The USDA says winter wheat remains rated 68 percent good to excellent with 34 percent of the crop jointed, which is ahead of last year and the five-year average. Sugarbeets are now 18 percent planted, oats are at 17 percent, and […]

Warmer and drier conditions helped Ohio farmers start fieldwork. The USDA says 69 percent of winter wheat is jointed and the condition declined two points to 68 percent good to excellent. Oats are now 27 percent planted, still behind last year and the five-year average. Topsoil moisture in Ohio is 44 percent in surplus while […]

A Michigan State University researcher says strong biosecurity practices on dairy farms have limited the transmission of highly pathogenic avian influenza in cattle.

A Michigan young farmer says this planting season will be a new beginning for his family. Fourth-generation farmer John Bowsky tells Brownfield his father passed away last year after a long battle with cancer. “The fall harvest last fall was flying solo for myself and the family, and then this is the first planting season […]

A lifelong beef producer says Wagyu is helping her family’s business stand apart from other direct-to-consumer farms. Elizabeth Stonecipher says she and her husband grew up raising Angus cattle, but a new business concept was born after trying Wagyu beef at a family dinner party. “Most of our feeder calves are F1, so they’re half-blood […]

An extension educator says cash rental rates increased slightly during 2023 reflecting higher farmland values. Farm Business Management Educator Jon LaPorte with Michigan State University Extension tells Brownfield the trend in Michigan is similar to other midwestern states. “Even though there may be different levels of productivity, we all still have to deal with the […]

An ag economist says cropland expansion in other countries could put U.S. farmers at a disadvantage.

Michigan lawmakers will decide if the state should restructure the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) during its full appropriations process this summer. State Senator John Cherry, Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriation Subcommittee Chair, says his committee is recommending moving funding for technicians from local conservation districts to Michigan State University Extension to improve employee […]

A recent survey of Ohio farmers shows a wide adoption of agricultural best management practices and technology in the Sandusky watershed. Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Brian Baldrige tells Brownfield, “That is the beginning process to making sure our nutrient management plan, our nutrients that we’re putting on our fields are precise.” “That initial soil […]

Planting has started in pockets of Ohio based on soil conditions Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Brian Baldrige tells Brownfield drier weather in the southern part of the state has helped farmers. “A lot of guys are kind of putting some crops in,” he says. “Down home this week we only got 1/10 of an […]