Prescribed Grazing System and Watering Facilities Keep Cattle Farm Running through Drought

The Oliphnants have 60 cows, as well as calves, on 200 acres in Benton County. They received assistance from NRCS to install new watering facilities and implement rotational grazing practices, as well as install underground piping, all of which, they say, saved them from having to sell off all their cattle during the drought. Two of the three ponds on their property dried up from the lack of rain, but with NRCS’ help, the brothers were able to continue watering their cattle and pastures.  Click here to read the full story.

Record-High Food Prices Boost Farmers' Bottom Lines

Thanks to high commodity prices and surging productivity, U.S. farmers earned a net income of nearly $98 billion last year — a record, according to the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute.

Those strong earnings are helping boost the demand for farmland. In the past year, even as most Americans struggled with falling home prices, farmers saw spikes in the price of land used for agriculture.  Click here to read the full story.

Farmers Face Tough Choice On Ways To Fight New Strains Of Weeds

Farmers are fighting one of the most irrepressible of the new superweeds. It's called Palmer amaranth, known to the locals here as pigweed.
Palmer amaranth can grow 3 inches a day. A single plant can release close to a million seeds. It's a bully; if you let it grow beside cotton seedlings, the poor cotton doesn't stand a chance. Click here to read the full story.

The 2012 Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference

The 2012 Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference will take place at The Peabody in downtown Memphis, Tennessee.
This biennial conference features 3 keynote presentations, over 40 hours of individual concurrent session presentations, a networking reception which includes a poster session, and a pre-conference seminar. Click here to see full schedule of events and register.