Ag Technology
A Tale of Two Corns
As the warmer temperatures gradually made their way into February, I found myself in my garden, clearing away excess organic material from the previous year. Among my favorite vegetables to grow are sweet corn, cucumbers, tomatoes and pumpkins. Living in a region...
Living The Life I Love
One comment my husband makes that triggers immediate panic is, “On your way home, can you stop at…”. Despite its apparent simplicity, I have realized over our almost 38 years together that our understanding of geography differs significantly. Whether it is a...
It’s Calving Season
It's currently calving season on our farm, and many other farmers have either begun or are approaching the start of their own calving seasons! Although it involves hard work, this period is exceptionally rewarding for every cow-calf producer. This is the moment we've...
Facing Challenges and Embracing Resilience: The Importance of Crop Insurance
Is anybody else looking forward to putting 2023 in the rearview mirror? The recent farming year posed challenges for us and numerous other farmers in our region. We experienced a severe ongoing drought and summer storms that brought the "great white combine" of the...
From Pantry to Pasture: A Rancher’s Guide to Cattle “Meal Planning” and Feeding Methods
I'm sure that many of you have sat down to begin creating a meal plan. It can feel overwhelming at first, but once you get into a rhythm, it is a great way to provide a tasty meal, help with your budget and make the best use of your pantry items. However, there isn't...
Carbon Confusion
There is talk about large corporations pledging to become net zero or carbon neutral by a certain year. While this can be confusing, we may be asking ourselves, “what do these commitments mean to me, the consumer?” Nebraska...
Facts not Fear: Meatless Movement
As a registered dietitian and chef, I am often asked about plant-based diets and the rising popularity of the meatless movement. With new meat substitutes now more readily available in grocery stores and the development of public campaigns that discourage meat...
Soil Investor: Stop that Soil
If people could see one thing about our farm, I wish they could see how much we care. I think about our crops all the time. I think about it at the gas station when I fill up my tank with E151. I think about our corn when I diaper my 11-month-old daughter. There are...
Recycle, Repurpose and Reuse!
The agriculture industry has always been concerned about waste. I think it boils down to the fact that as farmers, we are efficiency-minded and economically oriented. We reuse parts of machinery and always have a stash of parts that may or may not have any future...
Caring for Cattle Through the Seasons
As farmers, we care about our cattle, and their welfare is very important to us. We want our cattle to be healthy so they are productive and aid in our goal of providing high quality beef to tables across the state. The weather is a big factor in how often our cattle...
The Three Rs: How They Keep Our Farm Healthy
R is for resolutions and Ready (my last name) as well as “reduce, reuse, recycle.” Those three Rs are our resolutions for this year and every year on the Ready farm. Not only are they our resolutions, but they also lead to a fourth R, and that is “regenerate.” Reduce:...
What to Expect, When You’re Expecting – Sheep Edition
There isn’t a “What to Expect, When You’re Expecting” book for sheep producers, but we have started to create our own book. On our farm, we practice an accelerated lambing program, which means we are lambing every eight months. Since we are lambing more frequently, it...