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It also has a feature like several of the Australian varieties have, called a butterfly hole, that wraps around the shell of the nut as it gets close to harvest, then dries up and backs away, leaving the nut to dry faster on the tree and separate from the nut at harvesting. Water a concern With the water issue being of paramount concern to orchard managers, Duarte noted: "We've got several root stock we think might help almonds to use less water. [Extracted from the article]

Consider the impact He says realtors and developers do not consider the impact those wells have on the farm economy. "Land close to Lubbock is some of the best-irrigated acreage in the region", says Slaton farmer Heath Heinrich. [Extracted from the article]

Some of the land auctions being conducted by BigIron Realty are setting new highs. Tract 1 and Tract 2 are both individually 160 acres of dryland crop ground each that are nearly level, with possession taking place for fall 2022 planting. Commodity prices are holding steady, so many sellers are choosing to put land up for auction now, according to BigIron. [Extracted from the article]

Pressure chambers University of California farm advisers who've been promoting the pressure chamber in recent years say it's essentially a blood pressure test for tree leaves. Talks on tree nuts at the upcoming Innovations Conference at an Oregon State University research farm will include two emerging technologies that will help growers - pressure chambers and electric weed control. [Extracted from the article]

Beck had plans of turning the James Valley farm into a dryland farm and running Dakota Lakes as an irrigated farm. B I Editor's note: i b This is the second of two parts on the Dakota Lakes Research Farm, previously managed by Dwayne Beck, and now headed by new manager Sam Ireland. Beck and his fellow researchers at Dakota Lakes study various crop rotations, and the worst results are the corn-soybean rotations, he says. [Extracted from the article]

After tracking reports from 1960 through 1980, he discovered that in years with summers on the cool, wet side, USDA monthly corn estimates tended to go up from August through the final estimate. Crop reports and weather Another lesson Newman taught me concerned USDA crop reports. Taking lower crop prices doesn't sting as much if it's because yields are good overall, and your yields are good too. [Extracted from the article]

No-till switch Jess and Laryce were able to use Jess' father's equipment. Jess and Laryce Schwieterman, of Syracuse, Kan., like so many other newlyweds, started out with a plan for their life together. They were renting much of their farm ground - and getting landowners to sign on to a change in farming methodology, let alone raising corn on historic wheat ground - took some effort. [Extracted from the article]

Kansas land values, especially for highly desirable cropland, are growing stronger, as evidenced by the sale of 300 acres of Lane County land that sold at auction April 29. All of the seller's interest in the mineral rights transferred to the buyers at closing, except the seller reserved 100% of the current royalty production perpetually. [Extracted from the article]

In Shackel's case, it's a so-called pressure bomb device, sort of a blood-pressure cuff for tree crops, that monitors a tree's internal moisture levels to understand real-time water needs, then asking the plant to produce normally while giving it less water. "Torture Orchard" pushes deficit-irrigation limits Essentially dry farming Professors Kenneth Shackel, Thomas Gradziel, and Pat Brown have, in essence, become dry farmers as they utilize new technology like sensors monitoring soil moisture or smartphone apps that control irrigation schedules. [Extracted from the article]

"For dryland producers with high reniform or root-knot nematode populations, these PhytoGen W3FE varieties offer a game-changing solution that is even more important during seasons with less annual rainfall", Fuchs said. Scott Fuchs is a PhytoGen cotton development specialist south of Lubbock where nematode populations are high and dryland cotton acres are prevalent. Legé and the team of PhytoGen cotton development specialists across the Southwest work with producers to help them navigate the inherent challenges of growing cotton in a semi-arid environment. [Extracted from the article]

Tract 1 included 80 acres on a high-quality farm that is nearly all flat and has good gravel road access. Land prices are up about 25% over last year, according to BigIron Realty. According to the Farm Service Agency office, there are 396.75 acres of grass, 238.05 acres of dryland crop ground and 7.47 acres of Conservation Reserve Program land that expired Sept. 30, 2021. [Extracted from the article]

Both Corzine and Sandbothe produce dryland wheat and cotton. Sandbooth said, "Dollar cotton is great, if you look at the fertilizer cost increase, even with dollar cotton, that's really still not on the same scale. Fertilizer prices Fertilizer prices have increased and are rumored to continue to rise in the next year. [Extracted from the article]

Can winter field peas, planted in September and harvested in the middle of the following summer, work as part of the dryland cropping rotations in the Nebraska Panhandle? Incorporating winter peas into a wheat-based dryland crop production system in the Panhandle has the potential to increase the crop production sustainability and economic viability of dryland farming in the Nebraska Panhandle and High Plains in general. Winter peas are less susceptible to heat and drought conditions during flowering time, which frequently limit yield in spring-planted peas. [Extracted from the article]

The land market is robust, especially with online auctions that expose the land to more buyers, according to BigIron Realty. This farm was offered in three tracts or as a whole unit, and it contains dryland cropland, irrigated cropland and pasture with improvements. The meadowland produces about 200 round bales of hay annually. [Extracted from the article]

Certainly, systems, seed genetics, equipment and technologies in planting, growing and harvesting alfalfa have changed so much, this producer may not recognize them today. B Editor's note: b In our column, Then and Now, we look at farm technologies, strategies, equipment, livestock, crops and treatments from our back issues of Nebraska Farmer, and discuss how things have changed and how they have stayed the same. [Extracted from the article]

About Frank B. and Mabel (Wray) Leu Frank B. and Mabel (Wray) Leu were married in 1901 and first lived in Danbury, Neb. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture in Curtis announced the university has received a gift of 2,147 acres of ranchland in northeast Hayes County. About David and Sande (Clark) Scholz David and Sande Scholz met while attending Nebraska. [Extracted from the article]

Growing lettuce has its challenges, but consumers want it and when demand gets ahead of supply and the systems designed to move it to market work as designed, it can be profitable for growers like John Boelts. The late summer lettuce crop may benefit from warmer days and all the right conditions to grow fast, but university researchers also know that the high soil temperatures that time of year can also harbor pathogens that cause fusarium wilt, which can kill a lettuce crop. Boelts appreciates the work from researchers at the Yuma Center of Excellence for Desert Agriculture to find answers to save his late summer lettuce crop. [Extracted from the article]

Land sales are robust, with prices steady to higher compared to a year ago, according to BigIron Realty. This productive 80-acre farm is gently rolling dryland crop ground in an area where land is rarely offered for sale. This productive pivot-irrigated farm lies flat, and most of the soil is Hastings silt loam. [Extracted from the article]

Desert region lettuce growers know well the struggles related to early-season lettuce crops and the impacts of Fusarium Wilt. Stephanie Slinski, a plant pathologist with the Yuma Center of Excellence for Desert Agriculture, said Fusarium Wilt is "a huge problem for lettuce growers, particularly those who grow iceberg lettuce." For some desert growers, the disease has been blamed for destroying half of some growers' lettuce crops. [Extracted from the article]

Rodney Wolgemuth spends lots of time on the road working for his father and uncle out west. Lots of wear and tear The farm comprises several thousand acres of corn, soybeans and wheat in and around Elizabethtown. [Extracted from the article]

Cover crops are credited for reducing erosion, increasing nutrient absorption and adding organic material to soil. "Our research has shown that in an environment where you have sandier soils with limited irrigation capacity, you may see a yield decrease when you implement a cover crop", says Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Soil Scientist Katie Lewis. Lewis says at their field trial in Lamesa they've compared conventional till to no-till with a rye cover crop and conventional till and no-till with a mixed species cover crop. [Extracted from the article]

If your grain drying system can't keep up with the flow of grain coming in from fields in the fall, now is the time to evaluate how to upgrade. Woodruff is a district manager and grain conditioning expert with GSI, a major manufacturer of grain dryers and handling systems. [Extracted from the article]

This "pasture cropping" - integrating crops and livestock to regenerate soil health - maintains perennial grasses in a pasture for livestock to graze while simultaneously growing annual crops. Dryland cover crops for grazing In eastern Washington, dryland farmers work with the Okanogan Conservation District and the Washington State Department of Agriculture to integrate cover crops and livestock grazing. Graph WINTER FOOD: Dryland farmers near Okanogan, Wash., intercrop a cover crop with their cash crop for winter livestock grazing. [Extracted from the article]

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service announced today that it is investing $1.4 million in Kansas for a partner-driven conservation project through its Regional Conservation Partnership Program. The Kansas effort, the Playa Lakes Joint Venture, will connect several existing conservation efforts targeting Ogallala Aquifer conservation. [Extracted from the article]

If you think "tread is tread" and you don't need to know more than that to select a tire, you could wind up with tires on your tractor, combine or other machines that don't perform in your conditions as well as they could. B FI. b This is a free-rolling, multi-rib tire with the same tread pattern as an I1 tire, Sloan says. [Extracted from the article]

Land selling on BigIron's online platform is exceeding sellers' expectations by 10% to 15%, according to BigIron Realty. BigIron Realty of Columbus, Neb., a licensed real estate broker in eight states, compiles the reports for this column, but not all sales are handled by BigIron each month. [Extracted from the article]

University of Arkansas cotton specialist Bill Robertson urges growers to select cotton varieties by the numbers: North Carolina State University cotton specialist Guy Collins compares cotton variety selection to managing a financial portfolio. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service cotton specialist Murilo Maeda urges growers to consider several things in selecting varieties for 2020. [Extracted from the article]

BigIron Realty of Columbus, Neb., a licensed real estate broker in eight states, compiles the reports for this column, but not all sales are handled by BigIron each month. Tract 2, containing 37.9 acres, is a nice, dryland farm with great access and is very productive. This farm is pivot-irrigated with excellent soils. [Extracted from the article]

"Corn and soybeans hit by frost before full maturity should be stored and managed separately from crops that reached maturity prior to frost", Hurburgh says. Dry low-test weight corn and corn with damaged kernels to 1% lower moisture content than normal. High-temperature drying should be limited to 160 degrees F for frost-damaged corn and 130 degrees for soybeans, to limit damage in the dryer. [Extracted from the article]

"Vegetable crop irrigation is so efficient today that it leaves a lot of salts behind that build up in the root zone. "Since the Fall of 2016, we've been deploying eddy covariance instruments in Yuma agricultural fields to measure crop water usage and resultant soil salinity", says French, who wants to add satellite capabilities to improve the spatial mapping of evapotranspiration. [Extracted from the article]

This year's corn and soybean crops require special attention for harvesting, handling and storage. "You need to isolate your grain as much as possible, keep the lower-quality grain separate from the higher-quality grain right away at harvest - before you put it in the bin. As with corn, remove the center core of soybean grain in the bin as soon after harvest as possible. [Extracted from the article]

Interest in selling and buying land is robust in Nebraska, with a nice mix of sellers and buyers. BigIron Realty reports that when a farm is listed for sale at market price, it generates a lot of interest, and online land auctions have been a big hit, with several scheduled for winter. This farm consists of dry cropland, pasture and building improvements to include a 900-square-foot Butler metal storage building, with full concrete floor; a 896-square-foot barn; an 8-by-10-foot well house; and a 1,032-square-foot older home that is considered uninhabitable. [Extracted from the article]

Highlights from the article: A 65-year comparative analysis between U.S. yields of irrigated and rainfed crops has sounded a message to farmers, land managers and policymakers: Mind the gap. The unique growing season of winter wheat meant that its yields rose only 25% with irrigation, the smallest gain among the nine crops. By contrast, Irmak conceded that he regularly encounters irrigation-related pushback from colleagues who study environmental issues, including irrigation's role in ferrying nitrogen and other fertilizer components into groundwater.

Highlights from the article: It's testing time for Bryan Harnish. Harnish is adjusting his nutrient management as harvest is approaching.

Highlights from the article: Dryland farming presents a special range of challenges for farmers, and keeping up on the latest information about key crops and management practices can give your operation a leg up for the future. McGee is a researcher who has studied a range of winter crops and done work to develop winter peas resistant to key crop diseases. Koenig, also interim chair of the departments of Crop and Soil Sciences and Horticulture, WSU, is part of the panel as well.

Highlights from the article: B I Editor's note: i b This is the fourth and final story in a series on ranch and farm estate planning. Those were the words of Steve Riggers in 2012, when Western Farmer-Stockman interviewed him and his brother, Nate, for a six-part series following the Riggers family through an entire farming season. "About 15% of our farm is in grass seed production, and a combination of good yields and good prices have allowed us to stay profitable", Steve says.

The article presents the views of Jared Whitaker from the University of Georgia department of crop and soil sciences when he spoke at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences about the potential benefits of subsurface drip irrigation (SSDI) for cotton production in southeastern U.S. He notes the significant increase of irrigation in Georgia since the 1970s and cites the efficiency of SSDI. He also discusses dryland production, overhead irrigation systems, and the possible disadvantages of SSDI.