The largest rodent in North America is the beaver. It lives in nearly all 50 states, and it’s the official mammal of New York State. Their strong jaws allow them to decimate trees quickly, and just one animal can chew down several hundred trees every year. Beaver dams flood farmland, timber and road...

Fertilizer burn is seedling injury caused by high concentrations of salt, nitrogen or ammonia in fertilizer applied too close to the seed or in-furrow. This causes dehydration, yellowing, stunted growth and delayed maturity. Nature boasts two ways for getting rid of surplus moisture. The most common...

Many dairy cows go on to a second career as beef, and it’s the responsibility of everyone on the farm to care for them properly until they leave the farm. Veterinarian Dr. Julia Herman, who consults on animal health for the National Cattleman’s Beef Association (NCBA), says dairy farms have a lot to...

For many small processors, getting beef officially graded can be a challenge. USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has developed a Remote Beef Grading Program (RGP) that is removing much of that burden by allowing plants to submit carcass information digitally rather than relying on in‑person...

A recently published study assesses the feasibility of creating a Northeast value-added dairy training center to support makers of dairy products. The findings were summarized by Shayna Cohen and Liz Thorpe in a presentation hosted by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets’ Northeast Dair...

Sean Birkel, Ph.D., Maine's climatologist and Cooperative Extension team member, introduced the state’s new 26-station weather monitoring network to many farmers and foresters at the state's Agricultural Trades Show in Augusta. "The mesonet will fill existing networks and observational gaps and prov...

It’s been a hard winter so far, with lots of snow and frigid temperatures. We’ve seen many days of wind chills well below zero, and so having a few days in the 30s is always a welcome respite! However, there is still more winter to come – and it’s a good time to utilize any break in the weather to p...

According to Steve Culman, Ph.D., soil scientist at Ohio State, cation exchange capacity (CEC) is a fundamental soil property used to predict plant nutrient availability and retention in the soil. It is the potential of available nutrient supply, not a direct measurement of available nutrients. Soil...

Colleen Teresa Kielbania raises large breed Polish chickens. She is also a huge fan of British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, who has sold 200 billion records worldwide, with hits like " Shape of You ," " Perfect ," " Bad Habits " and " Don't ." So much so, she named one of her Polish chickens Egg Sh...