Minnesota Crop News

Ed Usset, Grain marketing economist at the University of Minnesota Center for Farm Financial Management, was the guest for episode 39 of Minnesota CropCast. Since 2001, Ed has been writing and executing marketing plans for two virtual farms; a corn and soybean operation in southwestern Minnesota and a wheat farm in the Red River Valley of northwestern Minnesota. Throughout the discussion, Ed emphasizes the importance for grain growers to forward price their grain based on an understanding of seasonal market patterns after harvest, especially during times of lower commodity prices. He also reviews some of the common mistakes in marketing in terms of timing grain sales. Finally, the discussion covers how national production and international demand factors may impact the 2024-2025 marketing year. Listen to the podcast What is Minnesota CropCast? Hosts David Nicolai and Seth Naeve discuss the progress and challenges of Minnesota's agronomic crops in this new podcast. They are joined

The University of Minnesota Manure Team is reminding Commercial Animal Waste Technicians (CAWT) that recertification for licensure in 2024 is now accessible through an online course. This digital offering allows CAWT professionals to meet their mandatory training requirements from the convenience of their homes. The course, covering a variety of critical topics, will remain available until November 17th, 2024. Key focus areas include: Program Updates from MDA Environmental and Regulatory Issues Concerning Phosphorus in Manure Manure Characteristics and Sampling Precision Manure Equipment Safety Considerations for Manure Gas Emissions The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) emphasizes that anyone who fails to complete the course, whether in person or online, by the November deadline, will need to retake the certification exam to renew their licensure. With a growing focus on environmental sustainability and safe manure management practices, this course is crucial for staying infor

This episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast is our annual fall fertilizer outlook for 2024. After such a challenging growing season throughout most of the state, how do things look headed toward harvest? Since most of the state went from being too dry last year to too wet this year, how should this affect the approach to fertility management? What role will fertility play in sound financial management this fall? What advice do our panelists give growers as we head into the fall? TRANSCRIPT Guests: Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Jeff Vetsch, U of M researcher (Waseca) Fabian Fernandez, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Additional resources: Are you overspending on fertilizer? 2024 Certified Soil Testing Laboratories Nitrogen Fertilizer BMPs for Agricultural Lands --- For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and

Harvest of the winter and spring small grain performance evaluations wrapped up earlier this week.  The preliminary results of the individual trial locations and across locations have been posted on the University of Minnesota's varietytrials.umn.edu website. It's a treasure trove of data with some eye-popping numbers. The links below direct you directly to the individual crop page. Scroll down to the embedded Google Sheets for this year's yield data. Barley  -  Oats  -  Spring Wheat  -  Winter Rye  -  Winter Wheat  

By: Chryseis Modderman, Extension educator As we begin to think about fall manure applications, it is important to keep safety in mind. Working with manure presents some special safety challenges beyond the basic farm dangers of working with large machinery, stress, and fatigue. One of those challenges is harmful manure gases. Manure gas safety risks The first step to manure gas safety is to understand the risks. In most operations, hydrogen sulfide and methane are of the biggest concern. Other gases such as ammonia, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide can also cause health concerns but can be more easily managed through ventilation and equipment upkeep. Hydrogen sulfide is a colorless gas created during anaerobic (low/no oxygen) decomposition of manure which is most commonly found in liquid storage pits. It accumulates in the manure and is then released during agitation and pumping. Though it can smell like rotten eggs, you can’t solely trust your nose since your sense of smell become

In the 8th episode of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series, we’re taking about timing. What makes understanding timing so important to using nitrogen efficiently? Should growers apply in fall, and if so, what source should be avoided? Between which growth stages does corn take up the bulk of a field's N? What do weather extremes teach us about optimal timing? Do some timing decisions negatively affect farmers' finances? In what ways? TRANSCRIPT Guests: Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Additional resources: Understanding nitrogen in soils Nitrogen Fertilizer BMPs for Agricultural Lands Does fall urea application reduce sugarbeet stand loss? --- Click here  to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes. For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast . And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newslett