Country Folks
Posted on March 11, 2026
University of Wisconsin Biological Systems Engineer Dr. Joseph Sanford recently discussed the types and benefits of manure separation during the university’s Separator Week. Manure separation efficiency can be improved with storage, added treatments such as sand and/or solid removal, digestion and o...
Country Folks
by Sally Colby 
Posted on March 11, 2026
With all eyes still on avian influenza, it’s easy to forget about another disease that’s inching closer to the U.S. Nearly everyone who raises pigs should be familiar with the possibility of African swine fever (ASF) eventually arriving in the U.S. With approved biosecurity measures in place, produc...
Country Folks, Crop Comments
Crop Comments
Crop Comments A12 
Posted on March 11, 2026
I have begun rewatching the TV series “Band of Brothers.” The series’ title comes from William Shakespeare’s “Henry V.” There’s an underlying agricultural theme to the English bard’s play. That theme supports the military overtones of a 15th century battle that occurred Oct. 25, 1415. That military ...
Country Folks
by Sally Colby 
Posted on March 4, 2026
As African swine fever (ASF) inches closer to the U.S., many countries are already dealing with the devastating disease that can shut down both large and small pig producers. For countries like the U.S. that are currently free of ASF, all it will take is a single pig, wild or domestic, to initiate t...
Country Folks
ning of different colors. Go out every by Karl H. Kazaks 
Posted on March 4, 2026
Over 650 people attended the 2026 North Carolina Commodities Conference. One of the highlight speakers was Alex Harrell, farmer from southwest Georgia and current soybean world record holder (218.2 bu./acre in 2024). “The number one limiting factor I’ve seen on corn and soybeans is the planter,” Har...
News
Courtney Llewellyn 
Posted on March 4, 2026
Stepping out of the dairy business doesn’t mean your barn has to sit idle. In the “From Dairy to Pork: Barn Conversion in Action” video series on YouTube, the New York Pork Producers teamed up with Strategic Planning Specialist Tim Terry of Cornell University’s Pro‑Dairy program to show how former d...
Country Folks
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant 
Posted on March 4, 2026
The dams you breed today will influence the herd you own in the future. Daryl Nydam, DVM, Ph.D., and Julie Adamchick, DVM, Ph.D., presented “Breeding Today for the Herd You Want Tomorrow: Tools to Support Semen Choice Tradeoffs” as a webinar in Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine’s “Boots in th...
Country Folks
by Enrico Villamaino 
Posted on March 4, 2026
Influenza A virus continues to challenge pork production. It mutates. It reassorts. It exploits management gaps and thrives on opportunity. New field data now show that everyday barn level decisions directly influence how genetically diverse and complex this virus becomes inside a herd. The data cit...
Country Folks
by Enrico Villamaino 
Posted on March 4, 2026
Sweet sap seasons are sacred in the sugarbush. Yet a speckled sapsucker is stirring stress among syrup producers. The spotted lanternfly (SLF), first detected in Pennsylvania in 2014, has spread swiftly and is now established in at least 19 other states. This invasive Asian planthopper prefers tree-...
Events
Courtney Llewellyn 
March 13, 2026
Though this writer brings almost 100% Old World genetics to the table, sadly, that doesn’t include any ancestors from the Emerald Isle. Still, St. Pat...
Lifestyle
Courtney Llewellyn 
March 11, 2026
Grangers across the nation have a powerful opportunity to share the heart of agriculture with the next generation during the National Grange’s Agricul...
Lifestyle
Courtney Llewellyn 
March 9, 2026
I don’t know about you, but I have a particular spot for my mixing bowls, sifter, pots, pans and measuring cups. In fact, I have specific places for a...
Lifestyle
Courtney Llewellyn 
March 7, 2026
Soup is a staple anytime the weather is chilly or when a person feels like they are coming down with a cold. The warm, therapeutic effects of a delici...