Sorted by date Results 1344 - 1368 of 2265
Helena, Mont. – Spring is a busy time of year for Montana farmers, with field preparation, planting decisions and seeding. It is also a time to start thinking about protecting crops from hail damage until fall harvest. The Montana State Hail Insurance program has provided hail insurance coverage to help Montana farmers manage hail risk for 98 years. For the 2015 season, producers can insure crops against hail damage at the maximum coverage rate of $75 per acre for dryland and $114 for irrigated land. Rates charged are a percentage of the i...
Helena, Mont., Last Friday, Governor Steve Bullock announced the publication of the first edition of the ‘Grown in Montana’ magazine at the Made in Montana Trade Show. The announcement was made in conjunction with the Main Street Montana Project to promote Montana agricultural products to local, national, and international markets. “This is part of our efforts with the Main Street Montana Project to promote agricultural products grown right here under the Big Sky. It covers some of the mainstays of Montana agriculture like beef, wheat, and b...
Every year the Jr. Leaders plan and host a dinner and dance for the community to attend. This year the event was held on April 17th at the Elks. The event was well attended with over 100 community members attending the event. The dinner and dance is not only a way to promote 4-H, but is also one of the biggest service learning activities that the Jr. Leaders take part of during the 4-H year. Every year all the proceeds from the dinner and dance are donated to a person, group or charity that is i...
Helena, Mont., The Montana Department of Agriculture collected 29,853 pounds of waste pesticides from 95 participants in western Montana in 2014. The annual event has collected more than 485,500 pounds of waste pesticides since it began in 1994. “This program allows anyone who has waste or unusable pesticide to dispose of it properly and safely. The majority of participants have under 200 pounds of waste pesticides and are not sure how to get rid of it without going to the dump. People want to do the right thing and dispose of it a...
Mark your calendars to celebrate 131 years for Montana Stockgrowers Association at the organization’s MidYear Meeting, June 4-6 in Bozeman. This year’s MidYear event will be highlighted by Cattlemen’s College workshops, a tour of area businesses and live music with Ringling 5 and Crazy Mountain Express! Mid-Year is one of two major meetings MSGA holds annually where members will gather to discuss the issues facing Montana ranching families and set interim policy to guide the association through the rest of the year. Policy Committee meeti...
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency today announced that nearly 2,700 applicants will begin receiving disaster assistance through the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) for losses experienced from Oct. 1, 2013, through Sept. 30, 2014. The program, re-authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill, provides disaster relief to livestock, honeybee, and farm-raised fish producers not covered by other agricultural disaster assistance programs. Eligible losses may include exc...
Helena, Mont., Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) has been confirmed in chickens in Judith Basin County. This is the first case of HPAI reported in domestic poultry in Montana and comes less than a week after the disease was detected in a captive gyrfalcon in Flathead County. Avian influenza is an infectious viral disease of birds that can cause high mortality rates in domestic flocks. Avian influenza viruses rarely cause clinical signs in wild waterfowl, although raptors and wild game birds (pheasants, quail, turkey, and grouse) may be...
Montana State University officials announced this that Chengci Chen, professor of cropping systems for the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and MSU College of Agriculture, has been appointed the new superintendent of the Eastern Agricultural Research Center (EARC) in Sidney. As superintendent, Chen will be responsible for management of the center’s irrigated and dryland farming research profile, including research on sugar beets, barley, durum, winter and spring wheat, oil seeds and pulse crops, including peas, lentils and c...
After thirty exceptional years of serving the area agricultural community, the Eastern Agricultural Research Center's (EARC) superintendent and agronomist Dr. Joyce Eckhoff, will retire from the MSU university system, effective May 15. She and her husband will move from the area to begin their retirement years in Dayton, Washington. Throughout her three decades at the EARC Eckhoff never lost her enthusiasm for the work at hand and she dedicated herself to providing outstanding science and...
WASHINGTON, March 18, 2015 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 25 counties in North Dakota as a primary natural disaster area due to damages and losses caused by the combined effects of frost, colder than average winter, cooler than normal spring temperatures, excessive rainfall, ground saturation, frost, freeze, severe thunderstorms, hail, high winds, drought, weather-related insects, diseases and sprout damage that occurred from Jan. 1, 2014, and continues. Those counties are: Adams, Billings, Bottineau, Burke, B...
(MALTA, Mont.) – The Bureau of Land Management Malta Field Office is seeking public input for an environmental analysis regarding a grazing permittee’s application to change their class of livestock and to change the livestock use and management on the Flat Creek Allotment (15439). The American Prairie Reserve has applied to change the class of livestock from cattle to indigenous bison on their permit to graze public lands on the Flat Creek Allotment in south Phillips County. In addition, they are seeking permission to remove interior fen...
Once again, the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP) is in dire need of community support. The US Army Corps of Engineers is allowing public comment on the proposed concrete weir and fish bypass at Intake. A copy of the public notice is available at http://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/RegulatoryProgram/Montana.aspx. Support for the project, which will protect the economic vitality of the entire area, is critical. The loss of LYIP would be devastating to the entire valley from Glendive...
BOZEMAN - A group of scholars and agricultural specialists who are considered some of the world’s top experts on food production, food safety and solving hunger across the globe will gather in Bozeman April 9 and 10 when the United States Agency for International Development‘s (USAID) Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD) meets at Montana State University. MSU President Waded Cruzado, a member of the board appointed by President Barack Obama, will host the meeting of fellow board members. This is only the second tim...
Helena, Mont., Following an official announcement by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, Montana agriculture will now have $1.3 million in federal grant funding available through the Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) program. With the announcement of additional funding available, the Montana Department of Agriculture is extending the deadline to submit an application to April 22, 2015. “With this additional funding from USDA, Montana can continue to develop specialty crops grown in our state, expand their markets, and create jobs. Based o...
Montana farmers know well the “shoulder seasons” – those few months before summer and during fall, when predicting the weather is a guess at best and harvest might be a gamble. For many of the state’s commercial vegetable growers, unpredictable weather during these months can damage produce and threaten a farmer’s seasonal income. That’s when high tunnel greenhouses prove beneficial. The free-standing greenhouses have frames, ground posts and plastic walls that protect crops for early or late season production. High tunnels – which differ...
Abortions can be a major concern for cattle producers. An “abortion” is the discharge of the fetus prior to the end of the normal gestation period, according to Gerald Stokka, North Dakota State University Extension Service veterinarian and livestock stewardship specialist. Many abortions occur in the first 45 days of conception (called early embryonic death), and the embryos or fetuses are so small that they may not be seen. Other abortions may occur near normal calving time, and determining whether the cow has aborted or given birth premature...
WILLISTON: Danielle Steinhoff, formerly of Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, and now a resident of Williston, ND, recently began her employment with the NDSU Extension Service as the new Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Agent. Steinhoff graduated from NDSU in December 2014 with a Natural Resources Management degree and a minor in Range Science. During the summer of 2012 she worked at Lewis and Clark State Park in Epping, ND as the park interpreter. In addition to being NEPA concepts certified,...
Helena, Mont., Governor Steve Bullock welcomed a Capitol full of people to celebrate National Ag Day with state legislators, the department of agriculture, state agriculture organizations, and agriculture advocates. The all-Montana meal with items such as beef brisket, baked ham, roasted lamb and potato salad with local potatoes fed hungry legislators. "It's a great day to celebrate National Ag Day in Montana, and remember all that farmers and ranchers do to ensure that we have abundant, safe,...
The big 60 means that 60 percent of the cows calved in the first 21 days of the calving season. That is achievable, doable and good. Sixty percent was the goal. The evaluation of the cattle business is ongoing, and producers always should take advantage of the quick and easy ways to evaluate the operation. Calving time is here or soon will be, so it’s the best time to make the mental note and paint it on the barn wall. What was this year’s number? In this case, start by counting the number of cows kept for calving. I mean all the cows kept for...
Spring burning season is here. Burning is a great way to clear dead vegetation and clean up. Before you light up this spring, take the necessary precautions to ensure your burn does not become the next wildfire. Obtain a permit or contact local authorities, burn early in the day and check weather for afternoon or next day wind conditions. Be sure to have adequate equipment, assistance and water supply with you and always make sure the area is cold to the touch before leaving. Checking the following day is also important as stumps or roots may...
Only 7 percent of soil samples show a moderate to high risk for wheat midge infestation. Soil samples in North Dakota indicate decreased levels of overwintering wheat midge larvae (cocoons) for the 2015 season, according to Janet Knodel, North Dakota State University Extension Service entomologist. A total of 196 soil samples were collected from 21 counties in the fall of 2014 to estimate the regional risk for wheat midge. The distribution of wheat midge in 2015 is based on unparasitized...
WASHINGTON – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today provided farm owners and producers one additional week, until April 7, 2015, to choose between Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC), the safety-net programs established by the 2014 Farm Bill. The final day to update yield history or reallocate base acres also will be April 7, 2015. “This is an important decision for producers because these programs help farmers and ranchers protect their operations from unexpected changes in the marketplace,” said Vilsack. “Near...
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced a proposed rule to limit farm payments to non-farmers, consistent with requirements Congress mandated in the 2014 Farm Bill. The proposed rule limits farm payments to individuals who may be designated as farm managers but are not actively engaged in farm management. In the Farm Bill, Congress gave USDA the authority to address this loophole for joint ventures and general partnerships, while exempting family farm operations from being impacted by the new rule USDA u...
(MINOT, ND) – Stockholders of Farm Credit Services of North Dakota, ACA elected two directors at their annual meeting which was held at the Holiday Inn in Minot on Tuesday, March 24, 2015. Rollin Tonneson, Souris, ND and Bryan Ankenbauer, Bowbells, ND were both re-elected to four-year terms. Stockholders also re-elected Mark Birdsall – Berthold, Barry Scheresky – Des Lacs, Dean Schoenberg – Mohall, and newly elected Tom Alveshere, Harvey and Alan Effertz, Velva, for one-year terms on the nominating committee. “FCS had a very successfu...
WILLISTON: On Sunday, April 19th, the 4-H Communication Arts Program will be hosting an arts contest at the Broadway Commons Building at 302 E. Broadway in Williston. The 4-H Communication Arts program helps participants develop communication skills that are useful throughout a lifetime. It provides participants an opportunity to practice their skills before a group and to gather and organize information, equipment and props for public presentation. It develops participants' confidence in...
