Sorted by date Results 26 - 48 of 48
Owned by North Dakota State University, the Williston Experiment Station, now known as the Williston Research Extension Center, was established by House Bill 240 on March 13, 1907. It originally sat on 160 acres north-east of Williston along the Little Muddy Creek. In 1953 the legislature permitted relocation of the Station and the sale of 80 acres of the original 160 acres. The 80 acres retained by the State of North Dakota is now the site of Williston State College. Money from the sale of the...
The Montana Newspaper Association and Montana PBS have joined together to sponsor the first United States Senate and United States House of Representatives candidate debates of the political season. The debates will be held in the Library Auditorium at Montana Tech in Butte on Saturday afternoon, June 14, 2014. The U. S. Senate debate will begin at 1:30 p.m., followed by the U. S. House debate at 3:30 p.m. The debates will be recorded and broadcast on MontanaPBS on Sunday, June 15, 2014: House at 5:00 p.m. and Senate at 6:30 p.m. The debates...
A trio of wrestlers will visit Watford City, all of them having many ties to the Olympics. The Wolves Wrestling team will be hosting their second annual Bootcamp Wrestling Camp from June 4-6 and camp director Dwight Griffin has lined up an all-star cast of clinicians to headline this event. Each day of the three-day camp, a different clinician will be featured. Kicking off the camp will be one of the most decorated wrestlers in the history of the United States, Bruce Baumgartner. Baumgartner...
Record crowds of supporters of the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP) attended the public meetings in Glendive and Sidney hosted by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) two weeks ago. Both venues were changed from cafeterias to gymnasiums to accommodate the 500 plus people in Glendive and 400 plus in Sidney. In conversations after the meetings, LYIP manager James Brower was told they were the largest endangered species public meetings ever seen by USACE or BOR. He expressed his deepest gratitude...
The Sidney FFA Club held their annual banquet on May 1 at the Sidney High School. Club advisor Ted Fulgham recognized each FFA member to congratulate them on their work throughout the year. Fulgham also expressed a special thanks to the Sidney High School Cafeteria/Janitorial staff, the Sidney FFA Alumni, Vanessa Pooch, Colin Gartner, James Brower, Tractor Supply Company and Border Steel for their contributions to the club throughout the year....
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that Montana will receive more than $986,000 from the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBG). Montana’s increase in funding is largely due to the additional acres of dry peas and lentils planted. The previous award amount was $305,000. The application deadline remains 5 p.m. on May 21, 2014. Specialty crops are fruits and vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs, horticultural, and nursery crops, including floriculture. Eligible plants must be intensively cultivated and used by people for food, m...
I attended the meeting regarding Intake Dam and the fish bypass last Thursday evening at the Sidney High School, and I left that meeting shaking my head in disgust. The pallid sturgeon mess is just one more project in a long series of events that seem designed to ensure the extinction of one more species in our country: the American farmer. The American farmer is supposed to step aside for everything and anything: the farmer is to take a back seat for the pallid sturgeon, the American farmer is expected to step aside while Mt Fish and Game...
Nortana Grain Company’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce Shane Keller has accepted the position of General Manager. Shane is replacing Rondel Beery, who is retiring. Shane has been with Nortana for about seven years, most recently in charge of the fuel department. Shane brings a broad understanding of all areas of Nortana’s business enterprises and was instrumental in Nortana’s purchase of Sweley Oil Company. The board is confident that Nortana will continue to grow under Shane’s leadership as it has under the leadership of Rondel...
No-till crop production provides benefits through reduced soil erosion and soil moisture loss, which potentially increases yield. However, no-till fields with wheat stubble may need a nitrogen boost in the spring above that required under conventional or minimum tillage. Tillage breaks up plant residue and increases the rate of residue decomposition, which increases the rate at which nitrogen becomes available. A study by Chengi Chen, research scientist at the Central Agricultural Research Station in Moccasin, Montana, found soil nitrate...
R-CALF USA may be defined as a non-profit producer organization, but our work benefits anyone who eats meat and lives in an economy that includes agriculture. We’re more than a producer organization, we’re your organization! Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL): The fight’s not over. The decision we wrote about last month by the D.C. Court of Appeals has been vacated. Now, an En Banc hearing – a hearing with all 11 judges seated at the D.C. appellate court instead of the 3 at the initial hearing – has been scheduled for mid-May. This hearing w...
Owned by North Dakota State University, the Williston Experiment Station, now known as the Williston Research Extension Center, was established by House Bill 240 on March 13, 1907. It originally sat on 160 acres north-east of Williston along the Little Muddy Creek. In 1953 the legislature permitted relocation of the Station and the sale of 80 acres of the original 160 acres. The 80 acres retained by the State of North Dakota is now the site of Williston State College. Money from the sale of the 80 acres was used to purchase 640 acres of land,...
With nitrogen fertilizer prices somewhat unsettled, Montana State University scientists caution dollars may be blowing away with the spring wind due to the phenomenon of volatilization loss. Recent research has shown some surprising results on how much nitrogen from broadcast urea is going into the air rather than to the crop. In an effort to better serve its constituents, MSU would like to know if growers have been staying informed of the latest research. Clain Jones, Extension soil fertility specialist, and Rick Engel, associate professor,...
Montana WIFE (Women Involved in Farm Economics) announced the winners of their twenty-eight “The Art of Farming”, calendar art contest. WIFE received 445 student entries and we thank the students and their teachers for sending some excellent art that made judging them a challenge. Cash prizes and certificates have been awarded to first, second and third place winners, and certificates for the honorable mention places, in kindergarten through eighth grades. Only 25 drawings can be used on the 2015 calendar that will be ready for dis...
Today, Governor Bullock, the Montana Department of Agriculture and the Agriculture Development Council announced the recipients of $333,404 in funding for agricultural related projects. “We are pleased to announce the Growth Through Agriculture award recipients. These 17 projects aim to enhance agriculture, grow our rural economy and create jobs. When we add value to our agricultural products in Montana, more money stays in the local community and on Main Street,” said Governor Steve Bullock. The Growth Through Agriculture (GTA) program provide...
Despite concerns about the future of reliable irrigation, Sidney Sugars agricultural manager Russ Fullmer reports a little over 29,000 acres have been contracted for this season, down only about 1000 acres. “The water concerns haven’t altered plans,” he said. Approximately 20,000 of those acres had been planted before the rain and snow hit on April 27. “The farmers saw the forecast and pushed hard to plant,” Fullmer said. “We’re ahead of last year and should see beets popping up this week.” Sidney Sugars is into normal springtime activities, wi...
Sidney High School's FFA Chapter is now being run with a new advisor. Ted Fulgham of Libby accepted the position in January and has been busy ramping up the program and implementing some new ideas. "My short term goal is to get the students really active in the community and my long term goal is to have a balanced and successful chapter that is strong in all aspects of the program," Fulgham said. Some of the categories the students participate in include speaking, horticulture, mechanics, and...
As the 2014 fair season begins, Montana Pork Producers Council is pleased to announce the top honors for light and heavyweight youth carcass hog projects in Montana in 2013. Kyleigh Salois of Conrad had the top heavyweight hog and Kyle Hamm of East Helena received top honors in the lightweight category. Recipients all were honored with plaques at the annual meeting of MPPC in Great Falls in January. Montana State University Extension Service and MPPC were sponsors of the 31st annual Symbol of Excellence (SOE) program. To earn top lightweight ra...
Richland County has been approved to implement the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) due to floods. Producers need to file an ECP application with the FSA before starting work on land damaged by flood water. Emergency Conservation Program is a cost share program which assists producers with damage caused by excessive rain and the floods that have occurred. Signup for the program begins on May 1, 2014 and ends May 30, 2014. A producer qualifying for ECP assistance may receive cost-share levels not to exceed 75%of the eligible cost of restorat...
Montana’s animal health officials are encouraging equine owners to consult with their veterinarians about vaccination for West Nile virus after a spike in the number of cases last year. “We had 32 cases last year, the most since 2007, and the third highest total in the nation,” said assistant state veterinarian Dr. Tahnee Szymanski. “That’s concerning because the disease is highly preventable.” Based on MDOL data, no equines that were current on vaccinations have ever contracted the disease in Montana. In contrast, one-third of the non-vaccina...
Pesticide applicators can save money by inspecting their spray equipment, calibrating their sprayers and testing the quality of their water before spraying, said Montana State University Extension Pesticide Education Specialist Cecil Tharp. “It’s easy for applicators to focus on purchasing pesticide products while neglecting to calibrate the output of their spray equipment or test the quality of their water being used for spray applications,” Tharp said. Offering three tips for spring spraying, Tharp recommended first that applicators inspe...
The Montana Department of Agriculture announced the award of over $1.4 million in grant funds for the development and implementation of noxious weed management programs. “We all have a stake in combating the spread of noxious weeds at a statewide level. The Noxious Weed Management Advisory Council has a unique opportunity to look holistically at the state’s noxious weeds and fund areas that are going to be the most effective. This year the council reviewed over $2 million in proposals and awarded more than $1.4 million in funds for edu...
A Montana district court recently ruled that Montana laws dealing with the wild or domestic status of bison are “ambiguous.” Those laws certainly are complicated, and for good reason. The Montana legislature has purposely given joint jurisdiction over bison to our state’s livestock and wildlife agencies because bison pose a unique management situation. They pose a dire threat to Montana’s livestock industry because much of the Yellowstone bison herd carries the dangerous disease brucellosis. But more than that, bison have the capacity to do a...
Researchers from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and the University of Montana released preliminary results today of a new technique for estimating wolf numbers in Montana. The study was developed to produce a less expensive and more accurate population assessment that accounts for wolves not actually verified in the state’s annual wolf count. Statewide wolf population estimates were derived for the years 2007 through 2012 via a mix of rigorous statistical evaluations; wolf observations reported by recreational hunters during the annual hunter-h...
