Agriculture

Sutton’s FFA Alumni Winter Extravaganza hosted a number of people for food, wine, beer and music Friday, Jan. 27. The funds raised from the event will be given to FFA members in the form of scholarships to attend Washington Leadership Camp. The event was catered by the Sutton FFA Alumni and refreshments were provided by Red Path Gallery and Tasting Room of Seward.

By Brandy VanDeWalle

As I drove into town this morning, I saw three trucks hauling tree branches out of town. When the ice storm was over, we had lots of branches of our own at our house that fell down and have to deal with. I asked Nicole Stoner, Extension horticulturist covering our region on information impacting the trees, so this week I’ve included her information in my column.

Many people do not like winter due to cold weather and the bad driving conditions such as snow and ice. Our plants are not much different in this respect; snow and ice can cause problems to our plants. The recent ice storm we saw covered our trees and shrubs in a thick layer of ice.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will invest about $8 million in the Ogallala Aquifer Initiative this fiscal year to help farmers and ranchers conserve billions of gallons of water annually while strengthening agricultural operations. Interested producers have until Jan. 20, 2017, to apply for Fiscal year 2017 funds. NRCS launched the Ogallala Aquifer Initiative in 2011 to reduce aquifer water use, improve water quality and enhance the economic viability of croplands and rangelands in Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas, South Dakota and Wyoming.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack issued the following statement today on the Farm Income and Financial Forecasts for 2016, released by USDA’s Economic Research Service. “Today’s forecast continues to show that the health of the overall farm economy is strong in the face of challenging markets. After reaching record highs in 2012-2014, net farm income declined in 2015, and is forecast to decline in 2016, but the bigger picture shows that farm income over the last five-year period reflects the highest average five-year period on record. The comprehensive farm safety net provided by the 2014 Farm Bill will continue to help America’s farmers and ranchers respond to market conditions and provide financial stability for producers. Farm Bill program payments are forecast to increase over 19 percent to $12.9 billion in 2016, primarily through Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) payments. 

Cornerstone Bank and the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District will be sponsoring the “13th Annual CROP-TIP Field Day” on December 14, 2016, from 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. at the Holthus Convention Center (York). The public is invited to attend this free event. The following speakers are featured and will cover these topics: Keith Berns, Producer/ Researcher (Bladen, NE): “Cover Crops: What’s the Big Deal?” Michelle Rook, Farm Director-WNAX Radio (Yankton, SD): “Commodity Prices: Review 2016-Preview 2017.”

Lincoln, NE—Three Nebraskans were honored for their service and dedication to agriculture at the Nebraska Agribusiness Club’s 50th annual awards banquet November 3rd at Hillcrest Country Club in Lincoln. The 2016 honorees for Public Service to Agriculture are Dr. Jim Specht of Lincoln and Victor Bohuslavsky of Brainard. The club also recognized Jenny Rees of Clay Center as the New Horizon Award honoree.

A group of those that came out to help with the harvest bee gather for a lunch just north of Sutton during Tuesday’s event that took place near Sutton and Grafton.