As corn and soybeans are harvested, fields become available for fall manure application. Manure is a good source of both macro and micro nutrients as well as organic matter. This podcast covers some best management practices to ensure nutrients in manure are effectively utilized by next year’s crops while protecting water quality. Risk of manure movement off-site is minimized by considering soil test P levels, application rate, application method and weather forecasts.

Good communication with farm employees helps to keep a farm operation running efficiently and profitably. This podcast describes some strategies to use both verbal and written communication methods more effectively. Developing a farm employee handbook can improve and provide guidance for both verbal and written communication with farm employees. Other communication methods covered include email, bulletin boards, white boards, one-on-one conversations, farm meetings and telephone calls.

Due to persistent rains, there was a lot of first cutting hay that was not dry baled until the end of June or early July in 2019. The result is poor quality hay. This podcast covers how to use a lab analysis to evaluate forage quality, how to find information regarding livestock nutrient needs and how to match forage quality to livestock needs.

This podcast covers practices and principles necessary to achieve high quality silage with an emphasis on how to manage the portion of the 2019 silage crop that was planted late and will be harvested as an immature corn plant. Immature corn silage will not have the grain and starch content of conventional corn silage. Producers will need to carefully monitor plant moisture before harvest and possibly consider a cut and wilt rather than field chop harvest method.

The goal of hiring a farm employee, whether part-time or full-time, seasonal or year-round, is to hire the right person for your farm situation. Putting thought and effort into recruitment and interviewing are key factors in making the right hire. This podcast discusses some practical steps and applications including writing a job description, how to structure the job interview and what types of interview questions to ask.

The goal of hiring a farm employee, whether part-time or full-time, seasonal or year-round, is to hire the right person for your farm situation. Putting thought and effort into recruitment and interviewing are key factors in making the right hire. This podcast discusses some practical steps and applications including writing a job description, how to structure the job interview and what types of interview questions to ask.

Farm culture plays an important role in the profitability and success of most farm businesses. Farm culture affects and determines how a farm does business, how communication takes place on the farm, how family members, farm employees, service personnel and visitors to the farm are treated. Understanding farm culture aids in developing an effective human resource program on the farm. This episode examines components of farm culture and how to build a productive farm culture where people...

Growers who need supplemental forage can utilize cool-season annual crops planted in August. This episode covers the use of traditional cool-season annuals such as oats, spring triticale, oat/pea, oat/cereal rye, and annual ryegrass. The podcast concludes with non-traditional forage options of soybeans and buckwheat. These forages will all be harvested 50 to 80 days after planting. The episode covers potential yield and forage quality along with management tips.

Potato leafhoppers (PLH) are one of the major economic pests of alfalfa capable of causing both yield and quality losses. This podcast covers the biology and life cycle of PLH as well as the proper scouting procedure involving the use of a sweep net to determine PLH numbers. Sweep net sampling allows a grower to determine if PLH are present at economic treatment levels. Rescue treatment options are discussed.

Clean in Place (CIP) systems are a crucial component of producing high quality milk. This podcast discusses the factors involved in ensuring that the cleaning and sanitizing process is effective. Key factors that need to be monitored include: water temperature; timing of cleaning and sanitizing cycles; volume of water; velocity of water through the system; drainage effectiveness and the chemical balance between cleaning products and the farm’s water supply.

Successful farm transition to the next generation requires planning and is a process that requires effort, good communication, and legal assistance. Farm transition or farm succession is concerned with passing on an economically viable business operation to the next generation. This podcast discusses some of the important steps and considerations in farm transition planning.

Baleage involves wrapping a high moisture forage bale in plastic. This podcast discusses keys to making high quality baleage, including forage maturity, moisture content at baling, bale density, timing of wrapping and number of layers of plastic wrap to use. Depending upon the conditions, a baleage production system could reduce the time between mowing and baling by one-third to fifty percent compared to a dry hay system.

Baleage involves wrapping a high moisture forage bale in plastic. This podcast discusses keys to making high quality baleage, including forage maturity, moisture content at baling, bale density, timing of wrapping and number of layers of plastic wrap to use. Depending upon the conditions, a baleage production system could reduce the time between mowing and baling by one-third to fifty percent compared to a dry hay system.

In farm business meetings there is the possibility that there will be difficult, awkward, or undesirable topics that have to be discussed to move the business forward. Additionally, there are difficult conversations that need to take place outside of farm business meetings, in those day-to-day interactions among farm family members and between non-family farm employees. The focus is on communicating with persons who are under stress, communicating when there are...

In today’s farming environment, we have to account for the nutrients in manure and sampling manure for analysis is the only way to get a good idea of the nutrients contained in manure. Manure nutrients have value. This podcast covers why manure should be sampled for nutrient analysis, when to collect a manure sample and some tips on how to collect a representative manure sample.

Severe heaving injury has been observed on many alfalfa fields this spring. This podcast focuses on annual forage options in situations where an entire alfalfa field or significant patches of an alfalfa field have been lost due to winter injury. Small grains, annual ryegrass as well as some warm season annual grass and legume options are discussed.

Winter weather impacts the survivability and health of the alfalfa stand. Forage growers should plan to spend time assessing winter damage and evaluating stand health to determine if the stand can remain in production or needs to be rotated to another crop. This podcast covers assessing alfalfa heaving damage and evaluation of stand health through stem counts and digging roots.

Economical and productive heifer management is based on keeping the heifer growing into her second lactation. Managers need to monitor heifer weight and use benchmark goals based on percentage of mature weight. Failing to meet benchmarks has economic consequences. This podcast provides benchmark goals and discusses the management necessary to reach those goals.

Managing calves to allow them to reach their genetic potential begins at birth. Feeding colostrum up to four days before switching to a milk replacer, understanding calf nutrient requirements and managing human factors are all partof good calf management. The goal is to double body weight between birth to weaning at 56 days of age. Calves have a high efficiency of gainso managers need to optimize nutrition and strive for high average daily gains.

Farm business meetings can build the type of communication and trust that is necessary for a farm business to function more smoothly and that can help a farm succeed into the next generation. This podcast covers how to start and plan farm business meetings, presents some guidelines and ground rules that can help to facilitate orderly communication, and answers some basic questions regarding farm business meetings.

Distinguishing between contagious vs. environmental mastitis is an important component of effective mastitis management that includes the prudent and judicious use of antibiotic therapy. This podcast covers distinguishing characteristics of contagious vs. environmental mastitis, on farm milk culturing, and some strategies and tools to use in the management of mastitis.

Calculating a cost of production for a market unit of any product sold off the farm is useful to answer questions regarding breakeven costs, and to determine how competitive your farm is in the market place. This podcast examines what is needed to calculate a cost of production and how that figure can be used to answer important financial questions.

The ideal employee is both productive and passionate, and while those are personal characteristics, the farm owner/manager also has a responsibility in developing productive and passionate employees. This podcast discusses the role of recruitment, providing clear job responsibilities and expectations, defining job/farm direction and providing positive leadership and supervision in developing and managing productive and passionate employees.

Farm stress due to the current economic conditions in many agricultural enterprises is real. Chronic stress causes physical, mental and emotional damage. It is important that farmers and farm families learn to recognize symptoms of stress. While there are certainly times when professional help is needed, this podcast covers some commonly recommended strategies for managing and coping with stress.

Many dairy farms use a nutritionist to formulate specific rations for their cows, but the actual mixing of that ration and delivery to the cows is done by someone on the farm. A Total Mixed Rations, or TMR, audit reviews and examines the steps involved in gathering, preparing, mixing and delivering the formulated ration and determines if any changes or improvements are needed.