From Across the Field – Feels Like Fall

Fall is here officially and the drop in temperature, certainly seems to confirm so. For the first time since spring, I threw a jacket in the truck, just in case the wind decided to blow. It would be nice for things to dry out so the crops can continue to mature, for a somewhat timely harvest. While it may have come too fast for some, I tend to enjoy autumn for many reasons, harvest occurs, leaves change, and Big 10 football just to name a few. Continue reading

Northwest Ohio Field-Scale Barley Yield Results

By: Eric Richer CCA, Garth Ruff, Sarah Noggle
Previously published in OSU Extension C.O.R.N. Newsletter

Many growers have heard the discussions of growing winter barley.  Small plot data is available from Ohio Agriculture Research and Development Stations (Western, Wooster, Northwest), but little field-scale data has been published.  While growing a newly re-introduced crop could be a consideration on your farm, it may not be for everyone.  This article is not intended to endorse growing barley or review best management practices for growing winter barley. The intent here is to simply present the one-year, simple averages of several test fields in the upper Northwest region of the state. Continue reading

Pork Powerhouses® 2018: Ramping Up

By: Betsy Freese, Previously published by Successful Farming online

New sow barn going up.

A plague of locusts is about the only thing that hasn’t afflicted the swine industry this year, but if you were wondering whether the largest producers are selling sows and closing farms in light of the challenges, don’t hold your breath.

The exclusive Pork Powerhouses® ranking of the 40 largest pig producers in the U.S. shows that 192,980 sows were added in the past year. That brings the total to more than 4.2 million sows, or two thirds of the breeding herd in the U.S. (Download the table with specific sow numbers here.) Continue reading

China’s Acreage Gap

By: David Widmar, Previously Published by Agriculture Economic Insights

A significant driver of the farm economy boom was China’s surge in soybean consumption. This impacted U.S. and global markets as China relied on imports to meet domestic demand.  While we have previously examined these trends for soybeans (here and here), this week’s post considers the broad impact of China’s production and consumption trends across thirteen commodities. The results reveal a large acreage gap between China’s production and domestic consumption. Continue reading