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Connecting our youth with information and understanding of our local foods is the goal of the National and Montana Farm to School Programs. In 2018 staff and FFA and FCCLA students of Fairview High school decided to move forward with adopting and managing this program. The structure of Farm to School is in the program's core elements: Education, School Gardens, and Procurement. According to Montana State University's website (montana.edu/mtfarmtoschool/) detailing the program, it "enriches the...
Bozeman – A pair of new winter wheat varieties soon to be released by Montana State University breeders are designed to help address two issues that plague wheat farmers across the state, sawflies and stripe rust fungus, while improving crop yields. The Bobcat and Flathead varieties will be released this fall from the Montana Foundation Seed Program, according to veteran breeders Phil Bruckner and Jim Berg. The new varieties will be used to produce registered and certified seed through certified growers across Montana and should be available f...
BOZEMAN – Montana ranchers are encouraged to donate a steer for the benefit of the learning and development of next generation agricultural producers. Montana State University's College of Agriculture is seeking donations of steers for its Steer-A-Year program. The program accepts donated steers, monetary support and feed. The donated steers allow students in the program to engage in hands-on learning of the beef industry. Students participate in applied learning experiences and courses such a...
The sign-up period for the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program decision under the 2018 Farm Bill has started and will run until March 15, 2020, though Andrew Swenson, NDSU Extension farm management specialist, advises producers to wait. “Producers have the opportunity to get more clarity on prices and yields by waiting,” Swenson says. Producers have the option of selecting either PLC or ARC-County on a crop-by-crop basis within each Farm Service Agency (FSA) farm unit, whereas the ARC-Individual program opt...
You have a job to do when you go to the Harvestfest & Junkapalooza in Glendive at the Dawson County Fairgrounds October 13. Either enter the salsa contest or sample the salsas in a blind taste test and vote for your favorite. There are three categories to enter: traditional fresh, traditional canned and any other, like corn or mango salsa. To enter the salsa contest Sunday, October 13 bring two pint jars or a quart container of salsa to the tables set up along the midway by the free stage at...
Ag In The Classroom Took Place, Thursday, September 16 At The Richland County Event Center In Sidney Ag In the Classroom has been an event for several years and teaches second and third graders about farm safety, how food grows, and where it comes from. Ag committee chair Hannah Jepsen said it's an important event to have because it teaches students farm safety. She went on to add that these students are the next generation of famers and even bankers. Tim Fine explained that they offer...
Kim and Casey Schlothauer are one of many rural farm families residing east of Fairview, ND affected by the flooding of the Yellowstone River earlier this spring. On their 780 acre farm the couple is raising a young family while supporting the production of wheat and beet crops for the year. "Wheat crop harvest is delayed but only due to recent rains," Kim states. "The farm ground in our area dried quickly after the flood waters receded in the spring not causing much delay in planting for us."...
On Thursday, September 26th, the NDSU Williston Research Extension Center (WREC) will be hosting its first-ever Perennial Field Day. The event will start at 9:00 a.m. central time and conclude with a provided lunch at 12:00 p.m. Topics that will be discussed at the event include: Kernza Management and Research, Developing the Kernza Supply Chain with Chris Wiegert of Healthy Food Ingredients, Saline Seep Formation and Management with Jane Holzer of the Montana Salinity Control Association,...
McKenzie County Extension will be having an educational and informative in-crop weed forum. We will be working in conjunction with the Williston Research Extension Center as well as many reputable guest speakers. We will cover topics such as biology of a few select weeds affecting producers, non-chemical control and regulation of infestations, identification of upcoming or new weeds; maintenance of a weed problem and control of an infestation. This is a free event with free lunch provided by the McKenzie County Crop Seed Improvement...
As the summer draws to a close and harvesting season is upon us; canning, pickling, and preserving season is here too. The number one priority when preserving your harvest is the safety of the finished product by destroying any bacteria, and molds that might cause foodborne illnesses, one of them being botulism, caused by a toxin in bacteria. The bacteria can grow, especially in improperly processed home-canned foods. Have no fear, home-canning foods is still a great way to preserve your harvest. It is recommended to use recipes that have been...
The sign-up period for the 2019 Market Facilitation Program is now open, says Bryon Parman, North Dakota State University Extension agricultural finance specialist. The program provides aid to farmers growing specified crops in the form of a county-wide payment rate as determined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The county payment rates were released at the end of July and varied from a minimum of $15 per acre to a maximum of $150 per acre. Many North Dakota counties in the...
Helena, MT - The Montana Department of Agriculture’s annual Pesticide Disposal Events will be held in several locations across Montana during September. The collection events will be held September 17 in Wolf Point; September 18 in Sidney; September 19 in Miles City; and September 20 in Billings. The annual events have collected more than 638,000 pounds of waste pesticides since it began in 1994. The program was designed to help individuals dispose of any pesticides that are unusable as originally intended and cannot be used for any other p...
Anthrax continues to be a concern for cattle producers in North Dakota. "Recently, a case of anthrax was positively identified in a southwestern North Dakota county," says Gerald Stokka, North Dakota State University Extension veterinarian. "This is a reminder to our cattle producers that the threat of anthrax is still present. It appears that during times of high rainfall and/or very dry conditions, the spores are uncovered and cattle are at risk of infection." Anthrax is a disease in cattle ca...
Planting cover crops is increasing in popularity each year, and this is not surprising considering the benefits. However, those potential benefits will be quickly negated by the use of untested or unlabeled seed says Jason Goltz, North Dakota State Seed Department regulatory programs manager. North Dakota seed law requires that all agricultural seed offered for sale, or sold for planting purposes, must be labeled. Proper labeling requires seed testing and without proof of testing, there is the...
A significant part of North Dakota's history begins around the time when settlers came across the prairie in wagon trains. These trains reached places that eventually became homesteads, towns, and cities. Although the days of the wagon trains are long gone, you can still experience what it was like long ago on the Long X Wagon Train - a train of covered horse-drawn wagons and riders based out of McKenzie County. This year the Long X Wagon train is celebrating 50 years of keeping the pioneer...
The NDSU Williston Research Extension Center's (WREC) employees and farmers in the MonDak trade area are excited about the good news the WREC received in late April. This good news was that the WREC received $750,000 in funding from the North Dakota State Legislature to build a brand new seed cleaning facility. This new facility will benefit not only the WREC and its employees but also MonDak area growers who purchase seeds from the WREC on a regular basis. Kyle Dragseth, Farm Manager at the...
Industrial hemp farming has become increasingly popular. Farmers that are growing hemp are seeing both a demand and profit increase, while farmers who have never grown hemp before are rushing to plant it in their fields. The production of industrial hemp in the United States was made possible in December 2018 when President Donald Trump signed the Farm Bill into law; the legislation removed hemp from the government's controlled drug category, stimulating a surge in demand for cannabidiol (CBD),...
This year's Sidney Chamber Ag Appreciation Golf Tournament was held on Monday, July 8. There were 97 golfers in total....
Adequate nitrogen is essential for optimum growth and development of sugarbeets and is known to be the most important nutrient in sugarbeet production. However, excessive uptake of nitrogen can stimulate excessive canopy growth and reduce sugar content in sugarbeet roots. To combat this issue, researchers at the Montana State University Eastern Agricultural Research Center, Dr.Chengci Chen, Superintendent and Cropping Systems Agronomist, and Dr.Apurba Sutradhar, Postdoctoral Research Associate,...
Devan Leo joined McKenzie County as the new Agricultural and Natural Resource Agent in April 2019. So far Leo has enjoyed her time in McKenzie County. She said, "I really enjoyed my job thus far! I am still in the learning curve but am quickly picking up important information. It has been a wonderful experience, and I hope to continue this type of work for many years to come!" Leo is fresh off the press, so to speak, so she has plenty to learn. Leo added, "In the short time I have been here, I...
Washington – A new online tool can help farmers and ranchers find information on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) farm loans that may best fit their operations. USDA has launched the new Farm Loan Discovery Tool as the newest feature on farmers.gov, the Department’s self-service website for farmers. “Access to credit is critical in the agriculture industry, especially for new farmers,” said Bill Northey, Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation. “This new interactive tool can help farmers find information on USDA farm loan...
Washington – Signup are open for the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program to assist farmers who continue to suffer from damages because of unjustified trade retaliation from foreign nations. Through MFP, USDA will provide up to $14.5 billion in direct payments to impacted producers, part of a broader trade relief package announced in late July. The sign-up period runs through Dec. 6. “Our team at USDA reflected on what worked well and gathered feedback on last year’s program to make this one even...
It is now that time of year where research centers are planting seeds in the ground and getting ready to present new ideas and studies for the public to analyze.The NDSU Williston Research Extension Center (WREC), located 4.5 miles west of Williston, will be hosting their annual Dryland Tour on Wednesday, July 10th. Registration will start at 3:00 p.m. and the tour will begin at 4:00 p.m. During the tour, NDSU Extension specialists and researchers will be discussing different topics including...
The first days of summer have come and gone. Now, it is time for the field days, the Montana State University Research Center Field Days. Every year, through June and July, the MSU Eastern Agricultural Research Center in Sidney, Montana participates, along with other MSU Research Centers across Montana, in the Field Days program. During a Field Day, farmers and the general public are invited to come to the research station to go on a tour of the facility, learn about the researchers, places and...
During the Williston Research Center's Dryland Field Day, Wednesday, July 10th, Tom DeSutter, will be giving an update on the Pipeline Reclamation Project that the Williston Research Center has been conducting since the spring of 2015. Dr. DeSutter is an Assistant Professor and Soil Scientist at the School of Natural Resource Sciences. He obtained his Bachelor's and Master's of Science degrees from South Dakota State University and received a Ph.D. from Kansas State University in 2004. He acquir...
