It is spring and soon it will be time for farmers to head to the field and start another year. For over 6 months grain prices have rallied higher, to prices that have not been seen for quite a while. Purchases of corn and soybeans for export to China have Read more…
Nine years ago in March during National Agriculture Week I sat down and wrote my first weekly column for this paper. But first, let’s tie up some loose ends about dry hands. And for you Chicago Cub fans, do you remember what Moses Alou allegedly did to strengthen his hands? Read more…
Why does water expand when frozen yet almost every other substance shrinks when it gets colder? Why are Illinois roads so bad? Why did I want the ground to freeze after wanting the snow to melt for the last month? It was about 1987 when I was working as a Read more…
It was a little crisp Saturday, February 24th, at 8:00 a.m. when I tended to my chickens and heard the familiar drone of snowmobiles. I rarely hear snowmobiles so early in the day. Minutes later on the way to the hay barn I passed two separate groups of riders, about Read more…
Did you know the ground is not frozen under the snow right now? How can that be when we have had over 20 days with temps below freezing? While pushing snow with my loader recently, I dug up some sod. The thick blanket of snow on the ground has insulated Read more…
I have fielded many questions about the safety of GMOs, genetically modified organisms, and their use in agriculture. Even though GMO technology was used to create synthetic Insulin for diabetics and Rennet for cheese production decades ago, some questioned GMO technology being used in farming. The scientific community has overwhelmingly Read more…
My recent writings have brought several suggestions from readers. I am not the only one who has thrown knives away at public venues and become frustrated with slow mail service. I have been advised on how to make electronic payments, to use foot and hand warmers and to wear moisture Read more…
Will County is going to the birds, more specifically, the geese. They seem to be taking over. For years I was not concerned. Now they are appearing on my farms, and it makes me wonder if it is time to act. I can remember 20 years ago when I would Read more…
Have you noticed how slow the mail delivery has been? Have you ever tried to be so smart you did something stupid? The grain markets have finally appeared to have slowed or stalled their upward trajectory. Who could have seen or predicted such a rally? While most of America ponders Read more…
Many farmers use an immense amount of technology and computer skills in their everyday farming operation. Computers help drive the tractors straight even in the dark and blinding dust. Farmers can reduce seed, fertilizer and herbicide costs with prescriptive computer programming while doing field operations. They can remotely monitor grain Read more…