Getting caught up in government regulations and red tape is something any farmer wants to avoid, and attendees of the recent Conservation Technology Information Center tour in Livingston County, Ill., heard how they can avoid more of that with voluntary programs, such as the one on display on the tour. Marcia Willhite, the Chief of the Bureau of Water with …
CTIC: Soil Health Key to Crop Health
Attendees of the recent Conservation Technology Information Center tour in Livingston County, Ill., heard about the importance of soil health and how it can pay big dividends back to producers … and the consequences of not taking care of the soil. “We have really degraded our soils in the Midwest,” explained Hans Kok (on the right, pointing to his demonstration …
High Flying Seeds Ground Cover
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 …
John Deere Introduces FlexFuel Mower
John Deere has introduced a brand new riding mower that can run on up to 85% percent ethanol blended fuel. The mower is a new Flex Fuel model of John Deere’s popular line of ZTrak mowers. The new, industry exclusive, Z925M Flex Fuel gives landscape contractors and customers with large acreage to mow a new alternative fuel option for their …
House Republican Talks Farm Bill & Budget
Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) is a member of both the House Agriculture Committee and the House Committee on the Budget, plus she’s a farmer, so her perspective on what’s happening right now to try and get a farm bill passed is important to hear. You may recall that we spoke with her just about one month ago, before the bill …
Senators Question Smithfield Deal
The Senate Agriculture Committee on Wednesday took a look at the proposed sale of Smithfield Foods to Shuanghui International, which would be the largest acquisition of an American company by a Chinese company in history. Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) says the sale raises many questions about issues such as food safety, protection of intellectual property, and increased foreign ownership …