With the unusual heatwave we experienced over the past week or two, everyone was scrambling around to come up with ways to stay cool – and for horse owners, it was equally important to do the same for our trusty steeds. In addition to taking a break from hard work and making sure they have plenty of...

Carbon may be element 6 on the periodic table, but it’s number one for farmers – and all life on the planet. While it’s widely distributed in nature, carbon is not particularly plentiful, making up only about 0.025% of Earth’s crust – but it forms more compounds than all the other elements combined....

The last day of school for Holland Patent High School in Oneida County, NY, was June 13; there was 14 tractors, three four-wheelers, one payloader and one side by side in the parking lot. It was a sight to see with lots of makes, models and sizes. For many years the school’s Agriculture program was ...

Dairy farmers might describe their ideal dairy cow as early maturing with a first lactation before 24 months, easy calving, good milk production, easy to breed back, good udder, good feet and legs and disease resistant. “These traits turn into longevity and keep cows around for a long, productive li...

According to USDA-NRCS, sunn hemp – which is not related to that other kind of hemp – can improve soil properties, reduce soil erosion, conserve soil water and recycle plant nutrients. When it’s grown as a summer annual, sunn hemp can produce over 5,000 lbs. of biomass and 100 lbs. of nitrogen/acre....

Farmers need to take care when taking care of their cows. That’s the message Dr. Julia Herman, beef cattle specialist veterinarian for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association , wants farmers to take to heart. Products are only as good as how they’re handled, and proper practices for processing cat...

Every June, we celebrate both cows and farmers with Dairy Month. Those of us who like to put some miles under our feet also celebrate Global Running Day on June 5. I didn’t really begin running seriously until my senior year of college, but since then I’ve tackled some pretty big races, including th...

Discussing how to nurture resilience in grasslands as part of the 2024 NOFA-Vermont and the MOFGA Climate Forums was Jaime Garzon. Garzon is an assistant Extension professor and dairy forage educator at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. A Different Perspective on Soil “People, when they...

There are a number of native warm-season grasses (NWSGs) that are well-adapted to growth in the eastern U.S. They are highly productive in summer months, a period when commonly used cool-season grasses are less productive. But in spite their productivity, concerns with forage quality and early seaso...

A number of fast food companies have committed themselves to an ambitious set of carbon goals for 2030. What implications does that have for producers? According to Belinda Richardson, manager of U.S, sustainable sourcing for McDonald’s , it can mean profit opportunities. In an effort to meet their ...

NY FarmNet supported National Mental Health Awareness Month this May by hosting a webinar shedding light on farmer mental illness and advocacy. The event, “Farmer Mental Health in New York State: A Story of Crisis and Advocacy,” took place on May 29 and garnered participation from 101 individuals. A...

Rob Cook, chair of the National Grazing Lands Coalition, outlined what he called the “tools, techniques and strategies to improve grazing” earlier this year at CattleCon . Cook, who is also the director for business development for Bamert Seed Company in Muleshoe, Texas, said that his work has him f...

Despite a popular talking point, teenagers are motivated – it just might look a little different from what motivates you. A recent session from the Business, Entrepreneurship & Economic Development Team at Penn State Extension unpacked this idea: teenage workers are a crucial part of seasonal farm w...

At the American Forage & Grassland Council meeting earlier this year, a series of sessions focused on renewable energy and resources. One of the them was appropriately titled “Farming the Sun.” Led by Robert W. Hoffman of Roundstone Native Seed Company of Upton, KY, the session looked at “where agri...

Life is stressful, and it’s important to learn ways to manage it. However, it’s no secret that farming is a particularly stressful career, as a lot of factors are out of your control – such as weather. Carole Soule, from Soule Coaching and Miles Smith Farm , led a discussion at the New Hampshire Far...