The saddest day I have spent on my parents’ farm was April 16 — the day the last of the milking cattle left the farm after 101 years. Knowing it would be a long day getting the cattle to the sales barn, I took the day off from work to help.
Sunshine. Lilac blossoms. Occasional showers. Emerging corn. Fluffy baby chicks. A flood of new calves. May is full of joys, both big and small. We had two sets of healthy twin heifer calves …
What’s the difference between adapt and adopt? Both are action verbs with the change of one little vowel creating a special moment. Think of this: Adapting old ideas by adopting new …
A mild winter, periods of warm, dry weather and early south winds have led to reports of high bug pressure in alfalfa fields. Many types of insects are found on alfalfa. The beneficial insects …
It’s time for us to gird our gardening loins and wage war against a relentless army of evildoers. Yes, it’s weeding season once again. They say that a weed is just a plant that has …
While you may not be able to predict a crisis on your farm, you can and should prepare for one. Anticipation and preparation will help your business recover. Should you ever experience a crisis on …
In a perfect world, My house would be clean My dishes all done The floor would gleam In a perfect world There would only be flowers Yet, I don’t mind weed pulling …
I can quickly make a list of things that irritate me, like that piece of straw that is stuck in my sock. I sit down, take off the sock and look through it, searching to find that poking piece that …
Rabobank senior dairy analyst Lucas Fuess said the cheese market has been squeezed, supporting Class III milk prices. “What I think has happened lately is a combination of weaker cheddar …
When you picture Wisconsin’s top agriculture products, what comes to mind? For many, it may be cheese, cranberries, snap beans or even ginseng. Did you know that Wisconsin is also …
I first came to Cambridge, Wisconsin, almost 30 years ago. I remember the downtown resembling a Norman Rockwell painting. The population was at 900 for a long time. There was only a Main Street …
It struck me this past weekend as I was crawling around in my garden trying to spot new life (that wasn’t a weed) that I had forgotten to write about how our wild garden plans came out last …
As a former Tri-County Beef Queen, it is my duty to continue to promote my favorite source of protein and iron: beef. As dairy farmers, we are fortunate to support two commodity check-offs with one …
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the April federal order Class III benchmark milk price at $15.50 per hundredweight, down 84 cents from March and $3.02 below April 2023, brought down by …
Spring is perhaps our favorite season on the farm. After the long doldrums of winter, most northerners can attest to the anticipation and excitement that accompanies spring. There is much to be done …
It’s wedding season. I honestly have no idea if there’s actually a defined best time for weddings when you’d be most likely invited to attend one. I was going to Google it when my …
I was doing housecleaning the other day and revisited an old book that my brother gave me years ago. It was published in 1918 with this rather long title: “Farm knowledge: A complete …
The timeworn phrase, “Kids sure have it good nowadays!” has never been truer than it is nowadays. I blame the so-called digital age, which led to the advent of the so-called …
Hello, readers. I am Sarah Middendorf, daughter of Steve and Julie Middendorf. I started working for Star Publications in the middle of February as the special sections coordinator and recently …
Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry Sen. Debbie Stabenow said it must be a bipartisan bill to get a farm bill done. When unveiling her farm bill plan, the …