Farming Methods
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...
Cattle: The Ultimate Upcyclers
I have had a love for animals and a desire to live on a farm since I was a child. Little did I know my adult life would be spent caring for animals on a farm as I raised a family with my husband. For the past 41 years I went from knowing very little about raising...
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...
Hailed Crops and Dad’s Advice
The older I get, the more I realize how smart my parents are. My dad has always had little tidbits of wisdom that he periodically sprinkles into conversations, and it is absolutely amazing to me how many times he is right. Recently we had a horrible hail storm here in...
Planting Tomatoes for a Bountiful Harvest
https://youtu.be/XcioVPw1e2Y Pure Nebraska interview about planting tomatoes. As gardening time approaches, here are a few tips for getting the most from your tomato planting experience. Seed selection is the first decision. Look on the seed packet or the plant...
Prescribed Burning: Why Farmers Do It
Prescribed burning. It may sound like an oxymoron, but a prescribed burn is a valuable tool for farmers and ranchers as they manage grass and rangeland for grazing. By definition, a prescribed burn is a planned fire; it is also sometimes called a “controlled...
High-tech Chicken Barns? You Bet!
While most of us are aware of the latest and greatest technologies available for our homes, such as Wi-Fi thermostats and video doorbells, would you believe that a lot of this same technology is available in modern livestock barns? When we decided in 2016 to...
Marching Towards Planting Season
March is one of my favorite months. First, March reminds us spring is just around the corner. Second, I get to celebrate another birthday! With a birthday at the end of the month, I have enjoyed many celebrations with spring-like weather, but I have had...
Upcycling: Cows Do It!
“Upcycling.” Most often we think of this word in connection with home furnishings or clothing. On our farm we think of upcycling whenever we get our cow herd out on cornstalk fields after harvest. As soon as possible after our corn is harvested, we put up temporary...
Needed – All Farms, Great and Small
Although I am not a life-long farmer, I am fortunate to have had intimate experiences with where my food comes from. I spent most of my childhood on an acreage outside of Lincoln, Nebraska. I remember issues of Mother Earth News being devoured by my parents, so my...