June 2018

If you’ve accumulated just too many old totes, don’t shuttle them off to the old totes home. Turn them into an easy-to-manage garden, with unmatched drainage and no way for rabbits to invade. June 29, 2018, Updated July 30   Weekend essay by Jerry Carlson — I’m not the brilliant grower on thousands of acres like Hal […]

Here at Renewable Farming, we’ve field-trialed many in-furrow fertility products since 2008. Visual crop response is usually so subtle it’s hard to see. Growth differences tend to fade as the season progresses. It usually takes a trial with four or five random replications to confirm a yield gain of 4 to 6 bushels. June 28, 2018 — But

When crop consultant Dr. Michael McNeil tells us of promising results in a field test, we listen. This morning he reported seeing clear-cut growth gains in Minnesota corn where early-season soil fertility was applied — carried in water treated by a complete Pursanova system. That means the energizing tube which we’ve used for years, plus a new

As of today, June 26, most cornfields in Pocahontas County, northwest Iowa, are only three to four feet high following persistent rains since mid-April. The field pictured below is an exception. Almost all farmers in this region were forced to plant the last half of May, usually into soil that was too wet. And this week, many fields have widespread ponding following as

You’ve probably enjoyed one of America’s most encouraging experiences: Watching or even participating in a local July 4 parade. This July, hundreds of small-town parades will see Moms Across America banners carried by mothers and their kids — urging families to choose healthy, non-toxic food. June 25, 2018 — Moms Across America, now a nationwide force, is quickly taking

For two generations, the U.S. ag fertilizer industry has taught farmers that fertilizers are a settled science. A formula. Name the yield you want, and the soil lab prescribes how much NPK and trace elements to apply. Here’s a plant physiologist who upends that formula. June 23, 2018  By Jerry Carlson — When I joined Farm

A detailed analysis of Midwest soil nutrient deficiencies by research agronomist Jim Porterfield indicates that soybean growers may be losing $24 per acre by overlooking nutrient deficiencies which have crept up on them the past several years. June 22, 2018 — A summary of Jim’s study will appear in an August issue of No-Till Farmer, but Jim is

Corn growers who’ve seen saturating rainfalls this month have accelerated their soil nitrogen tests and followed through with streaming or dry nitrogen applications. Here’s what some top agronomic advisors recommend now, so you can make the most of a strong seasonal start. June 21, 2018 — Here are their key points to keep corn vigorous and

“The most profitable, fertile soil is the one with the largest population of beneficial microorganisms and a vigorous soil food web.” June 19, 2018 — That quote from AgriEnergy Resources founder Dave Larson was a typical opening theme for his seminars — in the mid-1980s. He urged farmers to build living soils long before today’s agronomic firms, researchers and Extension