For the first time in its nearly 60-year history, CFAES’ Farm Science Review trade show, scheduled this year for Sept. 22–24, will not be held in person. Instead, because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the show will be held as a virtual event.
farm profitability
Use science to make your farm work even better
CFAES’ eFields program, whose motto is “connecting science to fields,” has published its 2019 findings, which come from 88 on-farm trials in 30 Ohio counties. The report, its webpage says, can “help farmers and their advisors understand how new practices and techniques can improve farm efficiency and profitability.”
Continue reading Use science to make your farm work even better
Tour: Their sunny change to specialty crops
Guy and Sandy Ashmore, owners of That Guy’s Family Farm in southwest Ohio, transitioned in the late 1990s from traditional row crop production to certified organic production. In the process, they diversified into specialty crops, including produce and cut flowers; reduced the acreage they need to turn to a profit; and diversified their business network by partnering with their son and daughter.
How did they do it? What did they learn? Find out on Sunday, Aug. 11, as part of the Sustainable Farm Tour and Workshop Series.
CFAES is one of the series presenters. (Photo: Getty Images.)
Because a pillar of sustainability is economic …
Even if the United States eventually reaches a trade agreement with China, the damage done from the ongoing trade war could take years to undo, a CFAES agricultural economist says.
Save inputs, protect water with new app
A new app is helping farmers save money while also protecting water quality. Developed by Ohio State experts including from CFAES, the Field Application Resource Monitor, or FARM, uses advanced weather forecasting — specific to a geographic area as small as 1.5 miles wide — to advise farmers on when to apply fertilizers and pesticides so rain doesn’t wash them away.
Read the full story. Visit the app’s website.
Big drop in cost of solar: Get help deciding if it’s right for your farm
An upcoming webinar series will How small-, medium-sized farms can diversify for greater success
CFAES holds its 2017 Agricultural Diversification Research Tour from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. this Thursday, Aug. 17, at OARDC’s Mellinger Research Farm, 6885 W. Old Lincoln Way, in Wooster. The focus is on how small- and medium-sized farms can widen their product range and increase their profitability without having to get bigger in size. Free. Learn more. OARDC is CFAES’s research arm.
It’s actually pretty refreshing
Discover new and better ways to manage manure — methods that boost soil fertility, crop yields and farm profits while protecting water and the environment — at the annual Manure Science Review on Aug. 2 in western Ohio.
CFAES’s outreach arm, OSU Extension, is a co-host of the event.
It’s good for your farm. It’s good for everyone’s water
If you live and farm in Ohio and apply fertilizer to more than 50 acres of land, you need to earn your agricultural fertilizer certification by Sept. 30 of this year. Learn more about the requirement here. See the training dates and locations here. The next training session is May 10 in Cortland in northeast Ohio.
Farm bankruptcy rate has ticked up, may keep doing so
Declining farm income and farmland values will likely lead to an increase in the number of farmers who are delinquent on their loans and eventually a rise in farm bankruptcies, two CFAES agricultural economists predict …