Wisconsin Christmas Tree Arrives At White House

Lizzy Schultz November 28, 2016

First Lady Michelle Obama and her nephews with Dave and Mary Vander Velden at the White House

While close to 350 million Christmas trees are growing on farms throughout the country, a Christmas tree from Wisconsin made its way to the White House Friday where it was presented to First Lady Michelle Obama. The 19-foot Balsam-Veitch fir was presented by Dave and Mary Vander Velden, owners of Whispering Pines Tree Farm in Oconto, Wisconsin.

The Vander Veldens won the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual contest this year, when a group of White House officials visited Whispering Pines and selected their tree as the contest’s top contender.

“You have to have a very good tree to win this competition,” said Vander Velden. “We’ve been doing research on different strains of trees to find one that would grow the best, and a lot of work goes into growing the trees. We even picked imperfect needles off of our winning tree with a tweezers before the competition.”

Christmas Trees are grown in all 50 states on approximately 350,000 acres of land. Wisconsin is a top producer of Christmas trees, along with Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. It takes an average of 16 years for a Christmas tree to grow to its full size from a seed, and each tree that is harvested must be replanted with anywhere from one to three new seeds.

Vander Velden explained that supporting local Christmas tree farms offers several environmental benefits to a community. Among his considerations are the fact that Christmas trees are a renewable resource, unlike plastic trees, and the ability of Christmas tree farms to preserve green space and improve the air quality of an area.

Dave tells us more about this tree and the Christmas tree farming business in this interview:
Interview with Dave Vander Velden, Whispering Pines

There was apparently a little change up in the trees at the last minute, however, and while the Vander Veldens did get to present the tree, the “official” White House Christmas Tree being displayed in the Blue Room this year is actually a 19 foot Douglas Fir donated by a tree farm in Pennsylvania, according to the official White House video of the presentation. Weather conditions in Wisconsin this fall reportedly impacted the fullness of the Vander Velden’s tree so a replacement had to be arranged to meet White House specifications, but the Wisconsin tree will still be displayed elsewhere in the White House.

Ag Groups, Audio, Farming

#ARA2016 Starts Tuesday

Chuck Zimmerman November 28, 2016

I’m heading to Orlando for the 2016 ARA Conference and Expo after a family and food weekend in South Florida. The Agricultural Retailers Association is getting together for a conference that offers everything from golf to educations sessions and speakers to awards and of course the expo hall. It is a big opportunity to network with people in the industry and coverage will be found right here on AgWired, thanks to our friends at ARA and FMC Agricultural Solutions.

Online registration is closed but there is no penalty for showing up and registering on site. If you’d like to check out the full schedule you can find it here.

There is an app for the conference which you can find to download here.

Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by

ARA

CNH Autonomous Tractor Concepts Win Awards

Cindy Zimmerman November 28, 2016

The autonomous tractor concepts revealed this year from CNH Industrial brands Case IH and New Holland Agriculture are receiving Silver Innovation medals from the SIMA Organization which hosts the bi-annual international farm machinery exhibition to be held February 2017 in Paris, France. These awards recognize new developments which “demonstrate design and innovative features that have the potential to offer significant user benefits.”

Both the cabless Case IH Magnum CVX and the cabbed New Holland T8 NHDrive™ autonomous concept tractors, which were on display at the 2016 Farm Progress Show, were awarded Silver Innovation medals.

CNH Industrial’s Innovation Group has proactively developed concept autonomous technology to help farmers and agribusinesses sustainably boost production and productivity through the ability to make the most of ideal soil and weather conditions, as well as available labor. This technology is the next step in the Company’s innovation roadmap and holds significant promise for the sustainable and productive future of farming.

New Holland Agriculture also received a Special Mention for its High Efficiency Heat Rejection System, a system which features a high temperature loop to cool the engine and a low temperature loop to cool the vehicle systems locally to average the heat rejection requirements.

Case IH, New Holland

AEM Announces “I Make America” Awards

Cindy Zimmerman November 28, 2016

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) honored 2016 recipients of the “I Make America” advocacy awards during their recent annual meeting.

The awards recognize AEM member companies that have achieved the highest level of support in the program to build grassroots advocacy for pro-manufacturing policies that create and sustain jobs across America. AEM honored 32 companies for achieving Gold status, and six of these companies also received recognition as Legacy supporters after maintaining Gold status for five consecutive years.

“I Make America’s success depends on the strong support of member companies and their employees to help our elected officials understand the critical importance of the off-road equipment industry and manufacturing to economic prosperity and quality of life across America,” said AEM President Dennis Slater. “We appreciate their hard work and are pleased to publicly acknowledge their outstanding commitment and efforts.”

The 2016 I Make America Legacy award winners are:
CLAAS of America Inc.
CNH Industrial
General Kinematics
Kondex Corporation
Volvo Construction Equipment
Wolf Robotics LLC

Agrible Working with Deere Ops Center

Cindy Zimmerman November 28, 2016

At the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk we learned that Agrible’s Morning Farm Report is now available through the John Deere Operations Center.

“I have yet to met the grower who wants to enter the information twice – and quite honestly, most of them don’t even want to do it once,” said Agrible’s Jason Little. “We have a number of integrations that are done, with My John Deere, with ADM and their system, so we can pull information from there and pre-populate that grower’s account for them. And it just makes it easier.”

Growers who sign up for the Morning Farm Report can click through to the John Deere site, chose Agrible as a “trusted partner,” and have information uploaded for them. The Morning Report offers a wide variety of programs to help make farm decisions. The Field Forecast tool give a two week weather forecast for a specific field, including a field history report. Tractor Time is a logistics tool that offers information about the load bearing capacity of a field- helping growers see what they can get in and do. The Yield Engine is a virtual crop, providing yield projections by July and Spray Smart gives hour-by-hour wind conditions for three days out.

Customers already using the Morning Farm Report say it’s a simple process. Learn more in this interview: Interview with Jason Little, Agrible

NAFB Convention Photo Album

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

Audio, data, John Deere, NAFB

3RIVE 3D™ Application Tech Interest Growing

Cindy Zimmerman November 28, 2016

The trends toward bigger planters, using less water, and being more efficient in the field are all contributing to increased grower interest in 3RIVE 3D™ application technology.

FMC Product Development Manager Terry Mize was at NAFB Trade Talk recently talking about this new way to deliver crop protection products for seedling defense and yield enhancement. “3RIVE 3D™ is a unique application system for in-furrow application products,” said Mize, explaining that the system is mounted on the planter that takes a special formulation, such as FMC’s Capture 3RIVE 3D insecticide, and converts it into a “foam rope.”

“That essentially places the product into the furrow as an uninterrupted rope of chemical in a foam form that expands into the furrow after it’s covered in the planting operation,” Mize said.

Mize says interest is growing in 3RIVE 3D because of the efficiency of the unit, to save time and money in the field. Learn more in this interview and listen to what early adopters have to say in the video below: Interview with Terry Mize, FMC 3RIVE 3D

3RIVE 3D is distributed through Micro-Trak® Systems, Inc.

Audio, FMC

Brownfield Rolls Out Great Lakes Ag Report

Kelly Marshall November 25, 2016

The Great Lakes region is home to agriculture products like tart cherries, blueberries, dry beans, cucumbers, asparagus, blackberries, floriculture products, nursery and landscape production, vineyards, orchards and well over 300 other specialty crops. While field crops and livestock provide the greatest economic impact on the area, the specialty produce market is still an important factor.

That’s why Brownfield Ag News, the oldest and largest agricultural radio network, is rolling out the Great Lakes Ag Report. Anchor and reporter Nicole Heslip will cover important news and information specific to the area.

The program airs daily, Monday through Friday on Brownfield affiliated stations.

Journalism

Thanksgiving Blessings to Our Friends

Cindy Zimmerman November 24, 2016

At this time of Thanksgiving we pause to count our blessings.

The freedom of this great country in which we live
Its opportunity for achievement and freedom to worship
The friendship and confidence you have show in us

For this and so much more we are deeply thankful.

Best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving from the ZimmComm/AgWired team.

Uncategorized

Industry Pleased with EPA Biofuels Rule

Cindy Zimmerman November 23, 2016

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced final renewable fuel volume requirement increases under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program.

“By implementing the program enacted by Congress, we are expanding the nation’s renewable fuels sector while reducing our reliance on imported oil,” said Janet McCabe, the agency’s acting assistant administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation.

Under the rule, total renewable fuel volumes grow 1.2 billion gallons from 2016 to 2017, a 6 percent increase. EPA has increased conventional renewable fuel volumes for 2017, meeting the 15 billion-gallon congressional target and the standard for biomass-based biodiesel has been increased by 100 million gallons to twice that of the minimum congressional target.

“Today the EPA moved in the right direction by increasing the 2017 ethanol volume to statute,” said National Corn Growers Association president Wesley Spurlock. “This is critical for farmers facing difficult economic times, as well as for consumers who care about clean air, affordable fuel choices, and lowering our dependence on foreign oil.”

Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen says the industry, farmers and consumers can all have something extra to give thanks for tomorrow. “The move will send a positive signal to investors, rippling throughout our economy and environment,” said Dinneen. “The final RVO rule helps put consumers in the driver’s seat when it comes to fuel choice at the pump and we thank EPA for listening to the public’s demand for lower cost, higher octane fuels, recognizing the rising demand for gasoline and abiding by the statute.”

Dinneen discusses the decision more in this interview – RVO Interview with Bob Dinneen, RFA

Corn, EPA, Ethanol, NCGA, RFA

Sustainability was GROWMARK Topic at #NAFB16

Cindy Zimmerman November 23, 2016

Lance Ruppert is the Director of Agronomy Marketing for GROWMARK. Among his many other responsibilities, Ruppert participated in the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk event in Kansas City earlier this month, talking about the GROWMARK Endure sustainability platform and how higher yields are being attained more sustainably with better agronomics.

With the genetic potential for crops is on the rise, technology and connectivity make it possible for growers to manage details, and understanding the levels of nitrogen and where they are in the field is a huge part of that.

“As we learn more and can manage nutrients better, especially nitrogen, spoon feeding the crop a little bit more and understanding how it all works, that helps tremendously to get to that genetic potential,” he says.

The 2016 growing season was a great example. Winter was warm and wet, leaving growers concerned about nitrogen applications. Soil samples proved that nitrogen had converted a little, but generally was still in fields and didn’t need another application. A dry spring meant quick planting for most, and rains beginning after the 4th of July into August built great yields. A good management system again became crucial late in the season, when warm temps until August prevented diseases from taking hold until late in the year. Growers adding a fungicide to crops saw between a 10 and 15 bushel boost, showing off the power of data-driven decision making.

This increase is technology and “smart” farming will certainly be the direction of the future, Ruppert says. “Five years from now we’ll probably look back and say ‘Wow, what a revolution with technology and smarter farming’.”

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Lance Ruppert, GROWMARK

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

Audio, GROWMARK, NAFB, Sustainability

Page 565 of 2,374
←
1
...
564
565
566
...
2374
→