…cotton, rice, sorghum, oil crops, dry beans, potatoes, and sugarcane/sugar beets are forecast to rise by at least 1 percent in 2016. Direct government farm program payments are forecast to…
Next Steps Towards Mechanized And Robotic Harvesting?
What are some of the new technologies under development to improve efficiency and safety in harvesting tree and produce crops? Rod Bain reports. Next Steps Towards Mechanized And Robotic Harvesting…
The Western View: Carbon Farming
…food and cover crops throughout the growing season. When the growing season is done, some use cattle, sheep, hogs and chickens to eat the remnants of the crop and trample…
Keyhole Garden
…rows of mono-culture crops could not be more at war with nature. Oddly, it’s also a massive waste of planting space with each row of crops being border by a…
The Homeless Garden Project in Santa Cruz
New Beginnings Spring from the Homeless Garden Project by Suzanne Pender, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Field crops on the Homeless Garden Project. NRCS photo. The Homeless Garden Project (HGP)…
Agri View: El Niño
…which leads to different outcomes. However, this particular data set used for the initial conditions has unrealistically cold temperatures in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. This smells fishy so it is…
New GroupGAP Program for the Produce
…scale and increasing efficiencies, GroupGAP improves market access for small and midsized farmers and benefits the entire produce industry. The AMS Specialty Crops Inspection Division (SCI) performs Good Agricultural Practices…
Agri View: Feral Hog Efforts
…Workshop in Burke County to learn more about USDA efforts to curb damage to peanuts and other crops. (Photo courtesy of The Augusta Chronicle) “In the future, we need to…
Funding Supports Local Food and Specialty Crops
…competitive grants to help strengthen local and regional food systems, develop new market opportunities for producers, and support farmers growing fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, flowers and nursery crops (known collectively…
Estimated Corn Acres Planted Up This Year
The highest total of estimated corn acres planted since 2013 – that’s one of the highlights from USDA’s Prospective Plantings Report for 2016 Spring crops. Estimated Corn Acres Planted Up…
Almond Growers to Play Critical Role in Solving Bee Loss Puzzle
…pollen, risking exposure in adjacent crops as well as inside the orchard as normal post-pollination activities occur. The Honey Bee BMPs specify that bees can be removed when 90% of…
The Western View: Fake Science
…American and Swedish scientists, have discovered a gene from the barley plant which, when injected into rice, can eliminate the rice crop’s methane emissions – which accounts for about 17…
Produce in the Checkout Aisle
…natural things often require refrigerator or freezer space, which costs money. However, statistics have shown that demand for organic food has been steadily rising over the past decade. These statistics…
California Leopold Conservation Award® Seeks Nominees
…California Farm Bureau Federation. “There is no blueprint for growing the unique and diverse cornucopia of crops California is known for, in equally unique and diverse geographical regions throughout our…