Country Folks, Farmers First
Posted on April 1, 2026
Hello, farm family! Have you ever walked by a weedy bench and thought, “I’ll just pull a few weeds,” only to realize you then worked for over an hour? Me too. The positive side of that is that I got lots of weeds pulled rather than just a few. The drawback is I now have less time to do the other thi...
Country Folks, Crop Comments
Crop
tecnavia 
Posted on April 1, 2026
According to the American Meteorological Society’s Glossary, “Spring snow, also called corn snow or granular snow, is a coarse granular, wet snow, resembling finely chopped melted ice.” Wet snow falling on tall, sturdy trees can break branches; the problem is even worse on immature trees. With lanky...
Country Folks
by Sally Colby 
Posted on March 25, 2026
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) isn’t the primary news story today, but the virus is here to stay. Veterinarian Eric Gingerich, technical services specialist, Diamond V/Cargill, promotes biosecurity, but he’s hoping for vaccine approval. Gingerich recently provided an HPAI review and an upd...
Country Folks
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant 
Posted on March 25, 2026
A panel of both new and wizened farmers kicked off the recent New York Corn & Soybean Growers Association 2026 Winter Expo, discussing soil health to farm survival strategies. David Whitaker and Corey Hillebo with the “Farm4Profit” podcast based in Slater, Iowa, formed the panel with Tom Corcoran, k...
Country Folks
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant 
Posted on March 25, 2026
Can AI help your farm’s workforce development? Wolfgang Heuweiser, DVM, Ph.D., professor and director of Quality Milk Production Services in the Department of Population Medicine & Diagnostic Sciences in Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine, presented on the topic as part of Cornell’s “Boots in ...
Country Folks
by Sally Colby Think A8 
Posted on March 25, 2026
In a presentation hosted by Bal Chem, Andrew Rose of the nonprofit organization Bioeconomy Information Sharing & Analysis Center (BIO-ISAC), discussed a critical and timely question: Could your operation survive a cyberattack? Rose refers to himself as an “accidental expert” in cybersecurity. He was...
Country Folks
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant 
Posted on March 25, 2026
What can you expect in the market for 2026? Mike Meisenzahl, representing Clover Ag Risk Management in Honeoye Falls, NY, presented a snapshot of the ag markets and recent farm-related legislation at the New York Corn & Soybean Growers Association Winter Expo. “Every analyst is probably saying that ...
Country Folks, Crop Comments
Crop Comments
Crop Comments B6 cale, which is shorter and denser than rye, and can be expected to produce superior crude protein while still standing. 
Posted on March 25, 2026
There are five days left of winter as I’m writing this column. Winter has been colder than normal for most of the Northeast, a fact reflected in our electric bill and fuel oil consumption. Utica’s official snowfall has been about a third higher than normal, a claim which our village of Hartwick (35 ...
News
Courtney Llewellyn 
Posted on March 23, 2026
In time for National Ag Day on March 24, the nonprofit Rural Minds announces the launch of the new Farmer Mental Health Resilience Program in support of mental wellness for farmers and farm families. This critical new initiative aims to support the ag community by providing farmers and the individua...
News
by Laura Rodley 
September 1, 2026
Rod Wert has been growing Christmas trees since 1986. He named his operation Blue Ridge Christmas Tree Farm as it was in the Blue Ridge Mountains in P...
News
by Sally Colby 
September 1, 2026
The Transition to Organic Partnership Program (TOPP), organized by USDA’s National Organic Program , has helped farmers navigate the transition proces...
News
by Enrico Villamaino 
September 1, 2026
A farm bonfire has a certain magic. Hayrides roll in from the fields, boots crunch across the ground and a crackling blaze gives families a warm place...
News
by Sonja Heyck-Merlin 
September 1, 2026
“One thing I’m not going to tell you today is that as a founder or as a producer that you need to start recording more videos and being on social medi...