Good-bye 2019, Hello 2020

By:  Stephanie Karhoff

CalendarI try not to wish away time, but it felt good to turn the calendar over, and say good-bye (or maybe good riddance) to 2019. An unprecedented amount of acres were left unplanted in Northwest Ohio, including over 85,000 acres in Williams County alone (Data:  USDA Farm Service Agency). This led to a domino effect, as growers battled weeds, endured tariffs, and navigated ever-changing policies.

In response, Ohio State University Extension formed a task force to address these concerns at go.osu.edu/AgCrisis. As part of this statewide effort, Ohio farmers were surveyed to identify short and long term research and programming needs. There were a total of 290 respondents, representing 62 of Ohio’s 88 counties. Weed pressure and compaction were the top two production concerns going into the 2020 cropping season. Beyond 2020, respondents were most interested in programming focused on reducing input cost, and improving grain marketing strategies.

Do these identified needs mirror your own? If not, what topics in your opinion should future OSU Extension programming address? As always, I invite your feedback, and look forward to continuing to work with you in 2020!

To keep up-to-date with upcoming OSU Extension events throughout the state, refer to the “Events” tab at https://u.osu.edu/williamsag/events/.

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