Spring or early summer is one of the best times of year to test your well. Iowa gets most of its rainfall April through June. During this wet period excess water picks up bacteria, nitrate and recently-applied lawn and crop chemicals as it percolates through the soil. If the upper part of your well is leaky, this contaminated water may enter your well through these defects, bringing contaminants with it.
Rates for custom machine work and services are showing a steady increase again for 2015, according to the 2015 Iowa Farm Custom Rate Survey.
Forgoing mowing in spring and delaying summer mowing allows sufficient time for Iowa’s breeding pheasants, quail, meadowlarks and 16 other common species of grassland-nesting birds to raise their young in nests they build during this time of the year.
Iowa Learning Farms, in cooperation with farmer partner Tim Smith and the Soil Health Partnership, will host a cover crop field day Thursday, Aug. 25, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
The recent issue of Acreage Living is available online and contains articles covering late summer topics.
One of the oldest regional cooperative efforts of land-grant universities in the United States, MidWest Plan Service (MWPS) continues to provide research-based, peer-reviewed and unbiased publications that supports the outreach mission of Iowa State University.
Families with land in 13 northern Iowa counties shared their family stories at the Iowa Land Grant Legacy celebration at the Clay County Fair Sept. 16. These families are the first in Iowa to know of their connection to Iowa’s Land Grant Legacy – a project initiated by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.
A new report from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach examines the financial performance of Iowa farm businesses in 2015. Economist Alejandro Plastina used farm level data for the analysis of farm income, wealth, financial liquidity, farm size, enterprise mix, financial structure, financial performance and efficiency and farm program payments.
ISU Extension and Outreach will host seminars during November and December to provide participants with a concise evaluation of current market conditions, expected trends in crop and livestock income potential, and management implications.
The 2015 median household income in rural Iowa was $60,223, almost 11 percent higher than urban incomes ($51,705). Rural Iowans also have become wealthier than rural residents in other states.
