Home News Livestock Crops Markets Hay, Range & Pasture Home & Family Classifieds Resources This week's Journal
High Plains Journal News Home Page


High Plains Journal online store


2008 Farm Publication Editorial Poll

Place HPJ classified ad

Reader Comment:
by farmboy2011
"I am thinking about getting this system for some of the gates at our farm"....Read the story...


Breaking News

Secretary Schafer


USDA Secretary Schafer recommends audit, investigation of National Soybean Checkoff

The United States Department of Agriculture informed the American Soybean Association Jan. 7 that Secretary Schafer has signed a memorandum recommending that USDA's Office of Inspector General conduct an audit and, as appropriate, investigation of the National Soybean Checkoff Program based on the petition filed by the ASA on Dec. 10, 2008. ASA's petition calls for an investigation of the United Soybean Board and the U.S. Soybean Export Council to ensure that soybean checkoff dollars are being managed and invested as prescribed by law. [Read more]

Top News

 

Brent Rendel no till

No-till is a tool like a disk or a plow

"Some farmers park their plows and disks and go strictly no-till, but that is not our farm," Rendel said.

No-till farming is a tool, nothing more and nothing less, according to Brent Rendel. A disk is a tool, a plow is a tool and no-till is a tool.

"Some farmers park their plows and disks and go strictly no-till, but that is not our farm," Rendel said.

Brent Rendel said his dad started planting no-till soybeans in the 1970s, but the chemicals available at that time were not as effective as what they have today. Improvements in chemical products and in no-till equipment have made no-till a better option but not the only option on Rendel's northeast Oklahoma farm. [Read More]

 

 

 


Fertilizer prices continue to rise

Fifth annual Ark Valley Farm/Ranch/Water Symposium and Trade Show coming Feb. 5

Financial, communication training for ag companies Jan. 23

Food for Progress project brings 21st century biodiesel facilities to Guatemala

ISU Biobased Industry Center studies carbon emissions, other industry issues



News

DHS approves $450 million biothreat lab at Kansas State

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP)--The Department of Homeland Security has approved a site at Kansas State University for a $450 million lab to study livestock diseases and some of the world's most dangerous biological threats. The agency's final record of decision--a document obtained by The Associated Press--confirmed a decision announced in December to build the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility at the Manhattan, Kan., campus to replace an aging... [Read More]

Texas headed back into drought conditions

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP)--Longtime rancher Barbara Mazurek remembers watching her father fall into despair while trying to keep their Central Texas spread afloat during the state's worst drought in the 1950s. Now, looking across her parched ranch near the one where she grew up, those days don't seem so long ago. "It's beginning to look like that," the 72-year-old rancher said. [Read More]

USDA plans to tighten farm program payment rules

Many operations will need to review their business structure, certify AGI By Sara Wyant When USDA officials finally issued an interim final rule on new farm program payment limitations last month, the document was hailed as a substantial tightening of the rules governing how farm program payments will be distributed. [Read More]

Western Farm Show holds something for everyone

The 2009 Western Farm Show on Feb. 20 to 22 features equipment and exhibitors to draw interest from everyone from large crop and livestock farmers to rural landowners interested in learning more. Held at the American Royal Complex in Kansas City, Mo., the Western Farm Show is the Midwest's premier indoor farm show. It highlights the latest in farm and livestock equipment and resources ranging from large farm equipment and implements to compact ... [Read More]


Cash Grain Prices




Harkin help kept Postville plant open

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)--The Agriprocessors Inc., kosher meatpacking plant in Postville might have closed four years ago if Sen. Tom Harkin hadn't helped the company get a nearly $8 million grant to build a water treatment plant. The grant came from an environmental program that Agriprocessors would normally not qualify for. It is intended to help small towns improve their sewage systems.




No-till on the Plains Winter Conference--pursuit of the ideal

The premiere crop production conference in the Midwest comes to the Bicentennial Center in Salina, Kan., Jan. 27 and 28. The 13th annual No-till on the Plains Winter Conference has evolved into the most respected "continuous no-till" conference and trade show of its type in North America. Take advantage of the early discount of $150 ($200 after Jan. 15) to reserve your spot at the 2009 Winter Conference, where you will have the ...




Farm Bureau members found financial advice, voted on new leaders and celebrated unifying strength at

Lolo Jones and hero from 'Black Hawk Down' inspired members Iowa A growing world population's demands for food, fiber and energy combined with volatile market prices for farm commodities, fertilizer and farmland, made for lively discussions at the 90th Iowa Farm Bureau annual meeting held Dec. 3 to 5 in Des Moines.




Helping canneries make better use of leftover water

With the help of a well-stocked kitchen cupboard, a can opener, and a microwave oven, a steaming-hot bowl of your favorite tomato soup can be ready to savor in just minutes. For decades America's canneries have helped make soups--as well as vegetables, fruits, juices and other familiar foods--more convenient for us to enjoy. Now, Agricultural Research Service scientists are helping canneries tackle the tough problem of what to do with the ...








Farm bill informational meeting set for Enid at KNID Agrifest Farm Show

Oklahoma American Farmers and Ranchers will hold a farm bill informational meeting at the 13th Annual KNID Agrifest Farm Show. AFR invites everyone that is interested in learning more about the new farm bill to attend the free meeting on Jan. 9 at 11 a.m. at the Chisholm Trail Expo Center in Enid, Okla.




Customers stew as kosher meat gets scarce

MIAMI (AP)--Rabbi Moishe Silverman stood taking inventory of a meat freezer at South Florida Kosher, the supermarket and butcher shop where he works. Dressed in a yarmulke and tie and wearing a plastic apron over his white butcher jacket, he surveyed the piled boxes of chicken and beef. "Normally, this, on a Monday, this would be stacked up to here," he said, pointing to a mark on the wall above his head.




Soybean Expo in Topeka Jan. 7

Kansas Soybean producers will meet in Topeka, Jan. 7 for the Kansas Soybean Expo sponsored by the Kansas Soybean Commission and Kansas Soybean Association. The annual event is held in conjunction with the Topeka Farm Show.




National FFA Convention will rotate between Louisville, Indianapolis

The National FFA Organization announced Dec. 12 that its annual convention will rotate between Louisville, Ky., and Indianapolis, Ind., for the foreseeable future. Starting in 2013, Louisville will share hosting duties with Indianapolis on a three-year rotational basis. Louisville will host the convention 2013 through 2015.





FROM OUR WRITERS
Holly Martin

Holly Martin

A new year


The start of the new year always gives me hope. It is like a new beginning-a chance to make some changes in my

More from the archives of Holly Martin
Larry Dreiling

Larry Dreiling

Shop, sheds, hold place for enthusiast


By Larry Dreiling A farm shop can be many things to many people. It's a workspace, certainly.

More from the archives of Larry Dreiling
Ken Root

Ken Root

Resolve to evolve


Simple to say but tough to do, as we tend to believe we've gone far enough and now the world either needs to stop

More from the archives of Ken Root
Sara Wyant

Sara Wyant

Time to relax Cuba's trade and travel restrictions?


Key lawmakers urge Obama to make more open trade an early priority For the first time, since Fidel Castro took power in Cuba

More from the archives of Sara Wyant
Jennifer Latzke

Jennifer Latzke

More fun than a platypus


Every time someone tells me God has no sense of humor, I am reminded of A) the platypus, and B) my brother's impending fatherhood.

More from the archives of Jennifer Latzke
Kylene Orebaugh

Kylene Orebaugh

Restoring old tractors to their prime gives retiree job securit


VanderGiesen and his sons buy, sell and trade tractors and parts, as well as collect two-cylinder tractors. But for the elder VanderGiesen, restoring two-cylinder

More from the archives of Kylene Orebaugh
Jennifer Bremer

Jennifer Bremer

Researcher: Soybean aphids continue to cause problems for farmers


"By 2003, aphids had spread all across Iowa and have been known to reduce yields by as much as 50 percent," said Iowa State

More from the archives of Jennifer Bremer
Doug Rich

Doug Rich

No-till is a tool like a disk or a plow


"Some farmers park their plows and disks and go strictly no-till, but that is not our farm," Rendel said. By Doug Rich No-till

More from the archives of Doug Rich
Trent Loos

Trent Loos

Ratio maker


I recently had one of those days that make all the others seem tremendous. It is like that one bull that should have been

More from the archives of Trent Loos
Jerry Nine

Jerry Nine

Just a scoop full


(Dec. 10)--I bought some December corn futures not terribly long ago. On Tuesday, we were in the middle of our cow sale and my

More from the archives of Jerry Nine
Crop Protection Plus from Dupont


Market Snapshot

Inside Futures

Editorial Archives

Browse Archives

1232135445078