Comments about the large size of the U.S. corn crop have eased from the first round of reaction last fall, but there are still questions of "How did that happen?" That's no surprise; after all, there's a huge pile of grain now to work through.

As I write this column in early December, we don't know the final outcome of tax reform. We have a House version and Senate bill with significant differences, and no guarantee that passage will occur, much less how the two versions will be reconciled. If this legislation does...

USDA's set of January reports is set for Friday, Jan. 12. My usual comment on this particular set of numbers is that it's the Super Bowl, Daytona 500 and Kentucky Derby all rolled into one. It has the hype of the Super Bowl and the noise of the Daytona 500, and has come...

Q: We have a cow/calf operation, with one group of cows calving in the fall and the other in the spring, allowing us to use one bull. For the past four years, in the fall-calving herd, we have consistently found 1- or 2-week-old calves with a skin condition that resembles...

In almost every family business I know, there have been cycles of negativity, conflict or mistrust among family members. I have also been privileged to witness several instances in which this cycle of conflict or pain has been changed through specific, albeit difficult, choices...

Q: My father has farmed with John Deere tractors since his father traded in a good set of mules at the John Deere dealer for a 1936 John Deere unstyled Model B, which we have restored. He got a little careless last week and topped off the cooling system with diesel on...

Many more animal-feeding operations will soon be required to report emissions. At press time, the new requirement was set to begin Jan. 22, 2018. Known as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the rule requires emissions from...

Science From the Field highlights DuPont Pioneer's industry-leading research to help growers find profitable agronomic solutions for their farming operations.

Caterpillar is synonymous with big, rugged construction equipment. Yet, for its latest product launch, think smaller but with the same Cat quality, durability and, of course, color scheme. The company invited journalists to the company's Edwards Demonstration and Learning...

This fall during harvest, Indiana's Kyler Laird will be able to look over from the seat of his combine and watch the tractor with grain cart pull along beside him to take another load. The difference is that the cab of that tractor will be empty--Laird will be driving the...

Dive below the soil surface, and you'll find millions of microbes hard at work. Just like you, they do many different jobs. Some can cause crop disease, but the vast majority of microbes are laboring away to deliver minerals, vitamins, nitrogen and amino acids that feed and...

When Steve Briggs's father died seven years ago, he had doubts about keeping the 540-acre farm in the family. The Briggs farm is set down near Winona, in southeast Minnesota. About 100 acres is tillable, much of the rest is in timber.