One of the “high”lights of the recent Conservation Technology Information Center tour in Livingston County, Ill., was a demonstration of using a crop duster to seed ground cover on a field still growing corn. Eric Smith with Pontiac Flying Service explained shortly after one of his pilots (in fact, Scott Petersen, the company’s owner/operations manager) flew over the field and …
GROWMARK: CTIC Support is Being Good Stewards
The Conservation Technology Information Center tour just completed with a theme of “Community 4 Conservation” this year. Dan Maggart with GROWMARK (pictured to the right, talking to bus load on the tour about what GROWMARK offers in way of agronomic services) explained why his company sees itself as such a good fit as a sponsor for the tour and its …
Finding Solutions From the Land
Prior to the start of the 2013 Conservation in Action Tour attendees learned more about Solutions From The Land from Project Coordinator Ernie Shea. This was part of the pre-tour seminar. Here’s what SFL is all about: “A national dialogue led by agriculture, forestry and conservation thought leaders to help landowners and managers make the most of the land’s potential.” …
CTIC Tour Fosters EPA Watershed Understanding
Talk about some inter-agency friendliness. Here’s EPA’s Denise Keehner, Director, Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds and Acting Chief Jason Weller, USDA-NRCS. They were attending the CTIC Conservation in Action Tour and met after luncheon remarks by Denise. I spoke with Denise after her remarks and on the subject of inter-agency cooperation she says it is the best she’s ever …
Welcome to CTIC Community 4 Conservation
Community 4 Conservation is the theme of this year’s Conservation Technology Information Center tour that just completed. To provide an overview of what the 2013 Conservation in Action Tour would cover I spoke with CTIC Board Chair, Dave Gustafson, Monsanto. Here’s Dave getting things started at our first stop of the day. Dave says about this year’s tour, “It’s going …
Farmers Need Conservation & Research
How important is conservation to farmers? John Hardin, Indiana grain and hog farmer, says that it is the last thing to cut in the farm bill and that coupled with research, they are the most government functions to help farmers! That’s saying a lot. Here’s a farmer who has real bottom line experience in how important being a good steward …
Conservation Resources Vital to Farmers
The Acting Chief of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Jason Weller, welcomed attendees to the Conservation Technology Information Center, 2013 Conservation in Action Tour, being held in Illinois. We got to talk for a few moments this evening and hopefully will have another chance tomorrow on the tour. I asked him how important a farm bill is to a …
AFBF Files Suit to Protect Farmers’ Privacy
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) is taking legal action to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from publicly releasing personal information about thousands of farmers and ranchers and their families. The lawsuit was prompted by the expectation that EPA will be responding this week to several Freedom of Information Act requests, so AFBF is seeking a temporary restraining order before …
Hereford Events App
If you’re a Hereford fan then download the Hereford Events App and keep up-to-date with events like the upcoming Junior National Hereford Expo and the American Hereford Association Annual Meeting. “With our new app, Hereford breeders and other enthusiasts will have access at their fingertips to the latest Hereford event information,” says Angie Stump Denton, AHA director of communications. “We’re …
Groups Call on House for Farm Bill Now
The American Farm Bureau Federation and more than 532 other organizations today called on House leadership to bring the farm bill back to the House floor for a vote as soon as possible. The groups also urged against splitting the nutrition title from the legislation. In a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the vast group encompassing agriculture, conservation, nutrition, …