What’s the key to growing resilient crops that can survive tough conditions? Researchers at the University of Missouri are getting to the root of it — literally.
- Crystal Reed
With an increase in severe storms and high winds, row crop farmers are looking for new ways to work with Mother Nature.
As input costs remain top of mind for growers across the country, innovation can help farmers increase productivity while cutting expenses.
Editor’s note: The following was written by Eric Yu and Ryan Miller, University of Minnesota Extension crops educators, for the Minnesota Crop News website Feb. 17.
- Tim Kenyon
Multiple days of much warmer than usual conditions in late January and February might have nudged Midwest farmers eager to get ready for planting.
- By Tim Kenyon, Iowa Farmer Today
The USDA released its first look at planting expectations for 2026 on Feb. 19 at its Agricultural Outlook Forum as farmers brace for a fourth straight year of losses or small profit margins.
BOONVILLE, Mo. — Pesticide handling remains one of the most hazardous tasks on the farm, says Todd Lorenz, University of Missouri Extension agronomist.
- By Michael Phillis, Associated Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Environmental Protection Agency on Feb. 6 reapproved the weed killer dicamba, a pesticide that has raised widespread concern over its tendency to drift and destroy nearby crops, for use on genetically modified soybeans and cotton.
Editor’s note: The following was written by Joe Janzen, agricultural economist and assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, for the farmdoc daily website Feb. 9.
- Crystal Reed
With over 12 million tons of nitrogen fertilizer applied annually, according to the EPA, the biggest challenge is how much never makes it into the crop and is lost to volatilization, leaching and runoff.
Corn bred with genes from wild relatives can reshape soil microbial communities and reduce nitrogen loss — with no yield reduction — according to new research from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Looking ahead to another growing season, Extension weed scientists and agronomists are focused on efforts to control waterhemp, combat resistance to herbicides, and balance the cost of weed control in a time of high inputs and tight profit margins.
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Haymaking is a game of threes, University of Missouri Extension Forage Specialist Carson Roberts said.
- Sue Roesler
Maximizing the efficacy of glufosinate becomes important for managing resistant weed populations, as well as always using best management practices to keep what herbicides producers have left to use for post-emergent use in soybeans.
- Crystal Reed
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Conservation practices affect different farms in unique ways and make different demands of the farmer depending on their operation.
- Crystal Reed
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — With last year’s export volatility for soybeans still affecting prices, market development was a hot topic at this year’s Illinois Soybean Association Soybean Summit in Champaign Jan. 27-28.
- Katelyn Winberg
Are insects are simply an unavoidable threat or are they telling growers something important about plant health?
- Katelyn Winberg
“We have to think about soil as a living system, not just dirt we push around with equipment."
Editor’s note: The following was written by Scott Irwin, chair of agricultural marketing at the University of Illinois, for the farmdoc daily website Dec. 22.
Editor’s note: The following was written by Aaron Hager, University of Illinois Extension weed science specialist, for the farmdoc daily website Jan. 9.
In recent years, substantial progress has been made in understanding biological and genetic sources of variation in feed efficiency of growing cattle consuming energy-dense mixed diets during the post-weaning phase.
Editor’s note: The following was written by Doug Houser, Iowa State University digital agriculture Extension specialist, for the Integrated Crop Management website Jan. 13.
- Sue Roesler
Using tillage tools in less aggressive ways for water management will still help with managing residue, but it will also keep more of the soil structure in place, and that will allow more water to infiltrate into the soil and produce better crops, according to Jodi DeJong-Hughes, University …
- Tim Kenyon
A smoother economic ride through 2026 would ease some nerves in U.S. agriculture.
- Kristen Sindelar
Run into a farmer at the local coffee shop or parts counter, and conversation invariably turns to the weather. But in 2025, discussions gravitated to the surmounting problem in fields: fungal disease.