One of the emerging trends to improve soil tilth, and to scavenge available nitrogen to prevent its loss from the field, is to utilize cover crops. A simple demonstration has been put out at the Hartsburg Field to demonstrate a few examples of self-terminating (meaning it is killed by the cold...

While it may seem a little bit off topic, there have been many questions concerning eligibility for exhibition in the Junior Show at future State Fair Opportunities. Many questions have come to us concerning livestock exhibition, particularly for youth who are beyond the 4-H enrollment age. Here is...

2015 Logan Co. Field Crop Scouting Workshop Series Date Host Educator SW NM IPM CM Wednesday June 3 Blair Hoerbert 2506 100th Ave. San Jose, IL 62682 (309)247-3547 Russ Higgins, Extension 1 1 Wednesday June 17...

2015 Logan Co. Field Crop Scouting Workshop Series Date Host Educator SW NM IPM CM Wednesday June 3 Blair Hoerbert 2506 100th Ave. San Jose, IL 62682 (309)247-3547 Russ Higgins, Extension 1 1 Wednesday June 17...

The National Ag Statistics Office has released 2014 corn and soybean yields by county on February 19. The state average corn yield was 200 bushels per acre, compared to the 178 bushel average of the 2013 season. Logan County averaged 230.8 bushels per acre and Sangamon County averaged 226.8. Menard...

In the courts, two of the three federal district court judges in Georgia and West Virginia refused to block WOTUS from taking effect. One of the cases was brought by a coal company, the other by a group of 12 states. A third federal court judge in North Dakota issued a preliminary injunction...

ILLINOIS PUMPKIN DAY - 2015 PLACE: Vegetable Crops Research Farm at Champaign, IL DATE: September 2, 2015 TIME: 10:00 A.M. – 2:00 P.M. PRESENTATIONS: All at Research Plots Varieties Herbicides & Weed Control ...

Here is a set of updated photos from the Hartsburg Field cover crop strip demonstration taken October 16, 2015. Below is the seeding information from the September 17 seeding. Lack of moisture is severely impacting some of the seedings. Cover Crop # Seed used # Oats used Acres Applied...

Crop budgets for 2016 have been revised. Primarily because of lower corn and soybean prices, the revised budgets have lower operator and land returns than those released in June 2015 budgets. The complete set includes budgets for corn, soybeans, wheat, and double-crop soybeans grown in northern...

Farm pond weed control seems to the the hot topic - when it is usually too late to do much about it without affecting fish populations. One of the keys it to begin early, so decaying algae doesn't affect oxygen levels in the water, leading to a fish kill. If you already have had a significant algae...

Most corn producers have planned their spring nitrogen program for 2015, and many have already started to implement their program. Such plans might include fall ammonia application, early spring application of ammonia or another form of nitrogen, or plans to apply all of the nitrogen at or after...

As wheat has become less common as a crop, it is harder to find the "fly free date" in publications. For those who are not familiar with the term, this comes from the date after which damage from the Hessian fly is negligible. It is also the planting date range which typically gives the best yields...

Last week, symptoms of sudden death syndrome (SDS) began to appear in April 15-planted soybeans at the University of Illinois's Northwestern Research Center in Warren County, according to a U of I Extension educator. Angie Peltier explained that weather during the 2015 growing season has been...

The newest Costs of Operations for machinery costs have been posted to the farmdoc website. These were calculated this summer and recently posted.Here is a link to the sheet:http://www.farmdoc.illinois.edu/manage/machinery/...

Commercial cow-calf producers and seedstock breeders interested in purchasing a total performance-tested bull will want to attend the 2015 Illinois Performance Tested Bull Sale scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 19, at 11 a.m. at the Livestock Center on the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. The...

With increasing concern about avian influenza (bird flu), a set of fact sheets has been developed by Extension Specialists and Educators to help producers and consumers to prepare for the situation. These resources are located at:...

Last week, I visited all of the University of Illinois corn variety trials in the northern half of the state. Gray leaf spot and northern leaf blight were beginning to appear in most of the locations, but were the most obvious at the trial located near Perry, IL (Pike County)....

The 2015 Yield Trial information has now been added to the variety testing program information website. You simply click on the tab for the crop you want, and select the type of file by the region of the state and year.The site is at: http://vt.cropsci....

Recent reports indicate that payments from the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) or...

Although no intense flights (nine or more moths caught over a two-day period) of black cutworm moths have been reported, captures of this species have been common in several Illinois counties and states, said a University of Illinois Extension entomologist. Mike Gray said that impressive flights...