Until six years ago, Cassie Wipperfurth and her family were living on five acres in central Minnesota. Each year, the lawn became smaller and the gardens larger. She was a math teacher but longed to be gardening and spending more time with her three young children. When her husband’s job relocated i...

Consumers want to purchase the perfect Christmas tree. Growers want to grow perfect trees. Unfortunately, a problematic disease threatens many Christmas tree nurseries and fields. Dr. Gary Chastagner of Washington State University recently discussed research gaps in managing Phytophthora root rot (P...

Wholesaling farm products has its own set of variables when compared to other marketing channels like farm stands, CSA programs or farmers markets. At a Vermont Vegetable & Berry Growers Association meeting, Rose Wilson and Annie Harlow gave an overview of what farms need to consider before jumping ...

Plants eat light. Animals eat plants. And we humans eat plants and animals, so sunlight – or a really good substitution for it – is essential for life. One important plant in a healthy human diet is spinach. It’s high in vitamins A, C and K and iron and magnesium. But to get the most from those mine...

Will farmers, nonprofits, ag service providers and other rural organizations across America be kissing their federal funding goodbye before 2027? The Office of Management & Budget (OMB) published a new rule in the Federal Register on May 29 to allow them to change the terms of a loan agreement after...

Livestock manure is a plentiful, renewable resource. Nearly 1.4 billion tons of it is created each year in the U.S. alone. Much of it is utilized as fertilizer on commodity crops, but what about using it on vegetables that often go straight from the fields and into hungry mouths? A team from Morehea...

As Michigan tart cherry growers grapple with stiff competition from imported products, researchers are exploring how export markets could provide a valuable path forward. While demand abroad may offer new opportunities, reaching those markets requires growers to meet a complex set of standards that ...

“’There’s money in the account’ is not an effective business strategy,” Penn State Extension’s Carla Snyder joked during a recent “Lunch & Learn.” As a farm business owner, it’s important to know the status of every cent of cold, hard cash, not just your assets or investments. Effective planning can...

Some farmers look forward to collecting Social Security as part of their retirement, but there are other avenues to boost retirement income. Many retired farmers find themselves wishing they had done more retirement planning for more secure income. Those working through farm transition or succession...