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Category: Farming

  • Pumpkinmania

    In Search of Great Pumpkins

    It’s hard not to feel a little sorry for Linus, standing alone with his blue blanket, silhouetted by the full moon, hoping his pumpkin patch is “sincere” enough to attract the Great Pumpkin. While Linus’ Great Pumpkin never does appear, Linus lovers everywhere can take heart. Half a century after It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie […]

  • apple fest. seaquist. apples.

    Apple Fests and Cider Press This Weekend

    Pumpkins’ time is coming with Halloween and Thanksgiving, but apples will be the star this weekend with the Fall Fun Fest and Cider Pressing Party at the Washington Island Farm Museum and Apple Festival at Seaquist Orchards Farm Market. Activities at the Farm Museum will run from 10 am to 4 pm on Oct. 10 […]

  • By the Numbers: Women in Agriculture

      To help women in Wisconsin connect with other women leaders in agriculture all across the country, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has established a Women in Ag mentoring network. Join the conversation by emailing [email protected] or check out #womeninag on Twitter. 31 Percent of American farmers who are women. The same percentage applies to […]

  • Deadline Extended for Dairy Margin Protection Program Enrollment

    Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently announced that the deadline to enroll for the dairy Margin Protection Program for coverage in 2016 has been extended until Nov. 20, 2015. The voluntary program, established by the 2014 Farm Bill, provides financial assistance to participating farmers when the margin – the difference between the price of milk and […]

  • New Agricultural Enterprise Areas Available Jan. 1, 2016

    Wisconsin will hit the one million-acre mark with the designation of new and expanded agricultural enterprise areas for 2015, Sec. Ben Brancel announced. The new acreage will become official Jan. 1, after Brancel signs orders creating two new agricultural enterprise areas, or AEAs, and expanding an existing one. Wisconsin will then have 31 AEAs totaling […]

  • del faust pumpkin

    Pumpkinmania! Results

    Giant pumpkins and squash glistened in the sun at the 2nd annual Pumpkinmania competition held Sept. 26 at the Lodge at Leathem Smith in Sturgeon Bay. Sanctioned by the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth (bigpumpkins.com), the contest attracted 17 big pumpkin entries from growers in Wisconsin and Minnesota (two of those were for exhibition only so were […]

  • Pink Pumpkins at Schopf’s Hilltop Dairy

    It started three years ago, when the Schopf family was thinking of a way to support cancer research and people being treated for the disease that had taken their family members and friends. Dennis Schopf suggested combining pumpkins, a traditional part of autumn, with the color pink, the international symbol of the fight against breast […]

  • USDA Loans Available during Harvest-Time Lows

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Wisconsin Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Executive Director, Warren Hanson reminds producers that USDA offers interim financing at harvest time to help producers meet cash flow needs without having to sell commodities when market prices are at harvest-time lows. The programs, known as Marketing Assistance Loans (MALs) and Loan […]

  • Cow of the Year Hilda

    2015 Cow of the Year Produces 56,780 Pounds of Milk

    Excellent-95 Gold Medal Dam, Siemers Dundee Hilda, has been selected as the 2015 Cow of the Year by the Wisconsin Holstein Association. Hilda was bred and developed by Siemers Holsteins located in Newton, Wis., and is owned by Jordan Siemers. Each year, the Wisconsin Purebred Cattle Association selects a cow to represent her breed as […]

  • parallel 44 harvester

    Grape Harvesters Needed at Parallel 44

    Parallel 44 Vineyard and Winery has announced a call for harvesters. This opportunity is a lot of fun and only happens once a year. This year, Parallel 44 will harvest on Sept. 26, Oct. 3, 5 & 10. They’re looking for about 15 to 20 people to help on each of the three days. Harvesting […]

  • FSA Encourages Farmers to Enroll for ARC, PLC and MPP-Dairy

    U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Val Dolcini reminds farmers and ranchers that they have until Sept. 30 to enroll in several key Farm Bill safety net programs – Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC), Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy). “These programs provide important risk protection […]

  • By the Numbers: Kewaunee County CAFOs

      1/3 Number of cows per acre in Kewaunee County.   1 Kewaunee County’s state ranking in cattle density.   15 Number of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations in Kewaunee County.   30 Percent of wells in Kewaunee County that do not meet safe drinking water standards due to E.coli and nitrate contamination.   47 Percent […]

  • Lynn and Nancy Utesch

    Lynn and Nancy Utesch Named DCEC Citizens of the Year

    Lynn and Nancy Utesch of Kewaunee were recognized as the Door County Environmental Council’s Citizens of the Year at the organization’s annual summer meeting held at Baileys Harbor Town Hall on Sept. 9. In introducing the award, DCEC board member Paul Leline said the organization took a look at “the many people who work hard […]

  • Wisconsin Agriculture book Jerry apps

    Jerry Apps Details the Facts and Figures of Farming in New Book

    Discover the rich and diverse history of farming in Wisconsin – from the story of cranberry growers and Christmas tree farmers to the harvesters of honey and hops – with celebrated rural historian Jerry Apps in his new Wisconsin Historical Society Press book Wisconsin Agriculture: A History. Wisconsin has been a farming state from its […]

  • Commentary: Time to Change Business as Usual in Dealing with CAFOs

    By John Ikerd I am a retired professor of agricultural economics of the University of Missouri. I grew up on a small farm in south Missouri and have spent my entire 45-year professional career working with farmers and people in rural communities. My wife Ellen and I moved to Fairfield, Iowa, almost three years ago, […]

  • For Jacksonport Family, No Indication Water Was Contaminated Till Too Late

    When Leona Lysne’s son used the tap water at his parents’ home to mix formula, there was no indication that he was mixing with toxic water.

  • Groups Demand Investigation of CAFO Contamination

    Citizen organizations and environmentalists urged federal and state authorities to investigate and take all necessary enforcement actions against a massive dairy factory farm in northeast Wisconsin that may be contaminating local residential wells and polluting a stream that feeds Lake Michigan.

  • Len Villano

    Homesteading in Door County with Artist Pamela Murphy

    A day in artist Pamela Murphy’s life isn’t just wrapped up in canvas, paint and brushes. Instead, she starts each morning milking her Nigerian Dwarf goats, feeding her chickens, geese, rabbits, ducks and turkeys, then moves on to weeding and watering her vegetable gardens before finding time for the studio. Murphy and her husband John […]

  • Len Villano, Jesse Johnson, goats

    New Kid on the Block: Door County Creamery

    T hree generations of goats greet Jesse Johnson with bawling entreaties for brunch as he arrives at the barn for the first of two daily feedings. “It’s second-cutting hay, which is usually the best cut of hay. It has alfalfa in it,” Johnson said as he spread two bales of the still-green hay in the […]

  • Len Villano, Gray family

    Fresh and Local at the Gray-Aire Dairy Farm

    Growing up on a farm is definitely not what it seems. It certainly has its perks, but when it comes down to the nitty-gritty it’s a lot of hard work and dedication. My name is Madalyn Gray, more commonly known as Maddy. It amazes me how much I have gained from growing up in this […]