ACRES speaker Ben Hartman stressed management  as the means to make a good living on his 1-acre farming operation near Goshen, Indiana. He raises fresh garden produce for local retail customers, farmers’ markets and restaurants. Dec. 1, 2016 By Blake Carlson  Part of Ben’s production comes from four 9,000 square foot greenhouses. He focused strongly on the aspect of simplicity on

“The standard American diet is the most disease-causing diet in the world. If you bring people from other cultures to the U.S., they will have the same chronic diseases as Americans.” Dec. 1, 2016  By Jerry Carlson — That statement was just one of the challenges which Dr. Arden Andersen presented to a packed lecture

Not many soil and crop consultants can show you 45 years of field experience based on consistently applying the proven principles of soil life and fertility pioneered by legendary University of Missouri scientist William Albrecht.  Dec. 1, 2016  By Jerry Carlson — Neal Kinsey is the only agronomist we know with those credentials. So when

Dean Craine, general manager of AgriEnergy Resources, opened the ACRES USA conference in Omaha this afternoon with a challenge: “Grow the largest population of benefical soil organisms you can. A living soil is the most productive, cost-effective soil.” Nov. 30, 2016 — by Jerry Carlson  Dean told farmers that after building up populations of good

Even though we prefer field trials with multiple replications, an experienced farmer can often discern a crop’s response in ways that don’t show up statistically. That’s the case in this split-field trial with foliar-sprayed Vitazyme and WakeUP, applied on soybeans in Iowa in 2016. The yield map from the combine monitor shows a fairly consistent higher

One of our 2016 yield trials on soybeans showed that adding WakeUP Spring to an in-furrow mix of two biological yield boosters added another 2.63 bushels, a 6.2% yield benefit. That doesn’t sound like much of a yield gain — but even at the $9.13 per bushel we got for the beans at our local co-op,

Our little 40-acre WakeUP research farm is located close to ground zero for a new “Culture of Conservation.” We can see it greening up the Midwest landscape more each fall. But cover crops are just the beginning of what we hope is a new era. Nov. 17, 2016    By Jerry Carlson — That realization hit home yesterday

The 2016 corn yield contest winners typically foliar-fed and side-dressed nutrients through the season to keep corn healthy and adding kernel depth and nutrient density late into the season. Here’s an example of an Iowa grower on rolling ground who does the same — with high-yielding results. Nov. 24, 2016 — On Sept. 24 we