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9 top tips for a safe farm shop By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/05/2013 @ 9:42am
A shop is the hub of the farm, but it’s a potential safety and health hot spot. Creating a safe and healthy work space is a critical risk-management strategy.“There always are hazards where tools are used ...
Home Away from Home By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/10/2013 @ 2:34pm
Nancy Kayton Hansen's stories about how she spent her summer vacation were a little different than the other kids in her Naperville, Illinois, school. Every year, for about six years, her parents ...
Pressure Cooking By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/10/2013 @ 2:31pm
Ever have a song stuck inside your head? Recently I find myself humming Everything Old is New Again. Written by Peter Allen, the song was featured in the 2003 Broadway musical The Boy from Oz. The lyrics ...
Crafty Getaways By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/10/2013 @ 2:11pm
When the thermometer dips below 0°F., there's no better coping mechanism than seeking out the warmth of kindred souls.Women's craft retreats are a hot, year-round trend. Women enjoy learning in the ...
Clutter Busting 101 By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/10/2013 @ 2:08pm
Much has been written about the difficulty of new college graduates finding jobs. It is a serious problem. One bright side of our consumer-driven U.S. economy is that it's created demand for a new career: ...
Wanted: New safety recruits By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/04/2013 @ 11:39am
LaMar Grafft has visited many farms where the safety risks blend into the landscape like a pair of camouflage fatigues. Grafft, a safety specialist for the Iowa Center for Agricultural Safety and Health ...
Get a Leg Up on Bin Safety By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2013 @ 9:55am
Grain handling is more than a matter of logistics and cubic feet of storage. The bottom line comes down to what best management practices are you implementing to minimize a worst-case safety risk ...
Managing for continuity By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/14/2013 @ 10:37am
The Conants are seasoned players in the ag arena. In 2009, their Riverside Farm weathered depressed dairy prices and a family buyout, followed in 2011 by flooded crops in the wake of Hurricane Irene.Today ...
Homeworth hits home run By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/14/2013 @ 9:43am
Thursday, July 19, was a typical day for Ed Schaefer. That changed as the Salem, Ohio, farmer was emptying a grain bin later in the day. When the auger plugged, he crawled up to loosen the corn.“I knew there ...
Mark These Dates for Women in Ag Events By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:49am
Enjoy this full menu of Women in Agriculture Conference events. Midwest Women in Agriculture, February 21-22. Clarion Hotel and Conference Center; Columbus ...
Tube Is New Rescue Tool By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:44am
The Winside (Nebraska) Volunteer Fire & Rescue Department has a new piece of equipment that its members hope they’ll never have to use. But if a grain entrapment does ...
Ties That Bind By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:42am
Time travel is a popular topic of best-selling books and blockbuster movies, from Star Trek, to Back to the Future, to the more recent Time Traveler’s Wife. Characters go ...
Reenlist in Operation FarmSafe By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:38am
Farming is a high-risk business. But many farmers develop tunnel vision when it comes to the shadowy danger zones lurking inside their farm’s perimeter. Larry and Susan Castle ...
Save Your Breath By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:31am
Lowell Forristall is no stranger to the uncomfortable, and potentially chronic repercussions of agricultural airway hazards. After an incident or two, the Carson, Iowa, farmer ...
Maximizing Social Media By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:26am
Above: Farmers Ron Moore (far left) and Deb Moore (far right) host Field Moms Amy Rossi, Amy Hansmann, Julie Barreda, Farrah Brown, Betsie ...
Bookin’ it By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:12am
As a kid, I read anything I could get my hands on. I devoured Reader’s Digest condensed books and Zane Grey westerns. I borrowed Grandma’s copy of Gone with the Wind ...
It’s a Stretch By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/12/2013 @ 11:07am
Planning and preparation are essential to execute critical farm operations. But few farmers ever pause to make sure their body mechanics are up to a physical task. Lincoln ...
Maximizing social media By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/04/2013 @ 10:45am
A steady diet of unappetizing stories and Internet posts about food production has sent farmers to the test kitchen to find a new recipe for reaching consumers.The lean, finely textured beef (LFTB) food fight ...
Mastering conservation By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2013 @ 3:43pm
Farmers looking to update their résumés may soon be able to take credit for their conservation skills.The trend toward more absentee, nonoperator landowners is carving a larger role for tenants. Iowa State ...
Farm grows from liability to asset By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2013 @ 12:07pm
Change is a given, and the agricultural arena is fertile ground for it. So 20 years ago, when Doug and JoAnn Lawrence saw that their Coon Rapids, Minnesota, farm business would be forced into a tight spot by ...
Crossing the finish line By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/09/2013 @ 10:35am
Other women can be a great source of support in achieving balance, especially when life throws you a curve ball. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. More than 207,000 women were diagnosed ...
Balancing act By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/09/2013 @ 10:02am
A slower pace on the farm in January offers time for taking stock. Just as farmers head to the shop in winter, this may be a good month to do some personal maintenance. Almost 90% of Americans say that ...
Screening Saves Lives By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/09/2013 @ 9:24am
Bryon Hock's friends don't bat an eye when he asks if they've had a screening for colon cancer. They'd be more surprised if he quit asking them. "I tell them if I can do it, they can do ...
Temple Grandin doesn’t pull any punches By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/07/2012 @ 10:12am
Temple Grandin would prefer to focus on livestock. “I’d rather talk about handling swine and cattle,” the Boston-born professor of animal science at Colorado State University told members of the Iowa ...
ROPS program is a lifesaver By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/05/2012 @ 2:12pm
Farming is a family affair. Selina Rooney, a registered dietician, along with her twin sister, Siri, works at their parents' 800-acre farm near Morrisville, Vermont.The tradition is being carried on by ...
Safeguard home base By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/05/2012 @ 1:53pm
Norbert and Delbert Soltwedel know that farming together for 40 years takes teamwork. The Shumway, Illinois, brothers, along with their wives, Linda and Bev, raised their families across the road from each ...
On-the-go chargers By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/05/2012 @ 1:25pm
The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy is a painfully fresh memory for many, and the prospect of winter storm power outages looms large for others. The need to stay connected to electronic devices – cell phones ...
Harvest of Opportunity By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/19/2012 @ 12:07pm
Giving thanks for a plentiful harvest is a tradition dating back to the first Thanksgiving in 1621. This year's drought-ravaged harvest is likely to fall short of record yields by any historical ...
Reduce pricing risk By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/16/2012 @ 3:11pm
Dale Hadden's 2011 growing season was marred by 21 inches of rain in June, followed by drought.The Jacksonville, Illinois, farmer had followed the fundamentals of selling between March and July, aiming to ...
Corn quality control By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/16/2012 @ 3:00pm
The most uniform characteristic of the 2012 crop was its jaw-dropping variability.Although some farmers face major financial setbacks, most yields fell short of worst-case scenarios. But fighting downed ...
Grain tug of war intensifies By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/16/2012 @ 1:27pm
The drought-stricken 2012 U.S. harvest ignited a blowtorch beneath simmering supply concerns.As ethanol and its coproducts surpass feed as the top use of the U.S. crop, producers of livestock, dairy, and ...
Grants spur safeguards By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/14/2012 @ 9:57am
Christina Winch traded her life as a vo-ag instructor 11 years ago for the life of a Fennimore, Wisconsin, dairy producer. She and husband Peter grow corn and alfalfa hay and rotationally graze 180 cows on 405 ...
Fall grain quality control By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/18/2012 @ 3:21pm
The most uniform characteristic of the 2012 crop was its jaw-dropping variability.Although some farmers face major financial setbacks, most yields fell short of worst-case scenarios. But fighting downed ...
Buffett drafts farmers to fight hunger By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/17/2012 @ 7:51am
"Farmers are in the front line against hunger," Howard G. Buffett told 600 participants today at the sixth Iowa Hunger Summit in Des Moines, Iowa. “Hunger in the U.S. Is hidden behind closed doors,” he ...
Farmers talk safety risks By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/16/2012 @ 9:51am
Technology may help farmers minimize the ever-present dangers. Easier could mean safer. Reducing farming's top rank in occupational fatalities and injuries may seem as daunting as slowing methane gas ...
Quilting a Rural Fabric By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/15/2012 @ 11:32am
When you open the door of the Hen & Chicks Studio in downtown Conrad, Iowa, get set to cross over the threshold into an oasis of creativity and unbridled adventure. Beyond the colorful quilt displays ...
The Keepers By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/15/2012 @ 11:27am
Photographs capture life's fleeting moments, allowing us to stroll back in time and retrace the intersection of our past and present lives. Families forced to flee from their homes after ...
Pressing on after a disability By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/04/2012 @ 11:02am
David Diehl was a 35-year-old rancher tending to his crops and cattle in 1991 when a virus attacked his spinal cord. The result, an autoimmune condition known as transverse myelitis, paralyzed him, making him ...
The overcomers By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/02/2012 @ 9:45am
When Oscar Pistorius crossed the finish line in last place in the 400-meter event at the 2012 Summer Olympics, his fans were elated.Pistorius, a South African who runs on carbon fiber prosthetics, made history ...
New rules impact broadband users By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/01/2012 @ 1:18pm
The impact of new FCC rules may cause tremors in rural communities.For some farmers and rural residents, it may mean finally gaining access to broadband. According to a U.S. Department of Commerce report ...
'Pink slime' case moves forward By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/17/2012 @ 1:55pm
The $1.2 billion defamation lawsuit filed by Beef Products, Inc. (BPI) against ABC News may face an uphill battle.BPI, the maker of lean, finely-textured beef is suing ABC news anchor Diane Sawyer and other ...
Landowner communication By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/05/2012 @ 3:45pm
Farmers wouldn't dream of neglecting to schedule routine machinery maintenance prior to harvest. Yet they often overlook the need to make sure their landowner relationships are firing on all cylinders.As ...
This land is her land By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/05/2012 @ 11:34am
It's been 65 years since Irene Reynolds was her dad's chore girl on their Colo, Iowa, farm. But her memories remain untouched by time.“I was the only help Dad had,” she says. “I started out ...
What's in a successful business plan? By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/16/2012 @ 3:59pm
Fifty young, beginning farmers gathered at the DuPont Pioneer headquarters in Johnston, Iowa, July 8-14 to glean kernels of wisdom from a faculty of ag financial, production, and industry experts.Creating a ...
Time out! By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/06/2012 @ 1:47pm
You're right – the work is never done. But all of the work will never be done. Isn't it time for a break? “One farmer told me he had a time-share for 30 years before he ever went there with his ...
Conservation change-ups By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/02/2012 @ 2:43pm
More focus is shifting to landowners today, as we approach a massive changeover in land ownership that is likely to involve more non-farm heirs. Today more than 50% of the agricultural land owned in Iowa is ...
Success strategy report card By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/02/2012 @ 2:29pm
An effective succession plan utilizes the same skill sets that farmers employed during their school days to make the honor roll. In fact, Dave Specht’s work as a family business consultant has led him to ...
Generating Success: The Continuity Quotient By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/02/2012 @ 2:27pm
As a young boy growing up in Nebraska, Dave Specht saw how a poorly-planned farm transfer determined the success or failure of a farm business. Today, he coordinates family business programs in The Center for ...
Hollywood & the farm By: CHERYL TEVIS 06/26/2012 @ 1:14pm
Farmers, ranchers, ag economists, and food advocates took center stage recently at the U. S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance Dialogue in Hollywood, California. There was no shortage of dialogue when panelists ...
Families step up safety effort By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/03/2012 @ 3:59pm
Spring is a fun time for Karter Knipper. The 2½-year-old loves to shed his winter coat and mittens and play outside. As the pace of spring planting picks up, he's excited to see and hear the roar of farm ...
Skin in the game By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/03/2012 @ 2:36pm
Here comes the sun! Farmers welcome that yellow orb in the spring sky after months of enduring Old Man Winter's stingy dose of daylight hours.But more than 1.2 million new cases of skin cancer are ...
Reinvesting in the future By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/03/2012 @ 2:20pm
The Zimdars family has farmed near Ripon, Wisconsin, for five generations. Like most dairy producers, David and his wife, Audrey, have had both good and bad years. Today their most valuable crop is reaching ...
No middle ground on youth farm labor By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/01/2012 @ 3:54pm
Government, farm organizations, safety advocates, and legislators share blame for failure to update safeguards for young teens hired to work on farms.Many farm groups and farmers welcomed the news last week ...
A farewell to Farmer By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/30/2012 @ 2:17pm
Say it isn't so! That's how longtime readers of Val Farmer's weekly syndicated "Family Life" newspaper column reacted when he recently announced his retirement. For the past 28 years ...
April is the cruelest month By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/30/2012 @ 2:01pm
Is April the cruelest month? American poet T.S. Eliot thought so. If you were a high school student the last time you read his words, spring fever may have distracted you from the source of the Missouri-born ...
Wanted: New Safety Recruits By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/29/2012 @ 4:40pm
LaMar Grafft knows that farming is a high-risk business. Grafft, a former farmer, knows it’s easy to underestimate the shadowy danger zone lurking in a farm’s perimeter. Over the past decade as a ...
Work smarter, not harder! By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/16/2012 @ 12:16pm
Farmers need to adapt strategies for reducing work-related wear and tear and for maintaining safety. Recognize the man pictured here? Does he remind you of your dad? Your husband? Your brother? Maybe ...
Keeping kids safe By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/16/2012 @ 12:01pm
Marilyn Adams still recalls the beauty of the sunrise she saw from her kitchen window on October 15, 1986. She never imagined that 24 hours later, she would watch the dawn of a new day from the window of a ...
Kids cook up new skills By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/05/2012 @ 2:45pm
When you're living in a college dorm for the first time, the next best thing to eating comfort food is talking about it.My younger daughter, Alexa, and her dorm friends have been teaming up to cook a few ...
Attacking ag's danger zone By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/05/2012 @ 2:32pm
Phil Winborn has farmed long enough to earn ag veteran's benefits. At 66, the Kalona, Iowa, farmer is the beneficiary of phenomenal advances in production and technology that have transformed the business ...
1st Course Whets Appetites By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/05/2012 @ 12:40pm
Cooperative Extension set out in the early 1900s to teach women on farms how to use domestic science to improve their lives and the nutrition of their families. By the mid-1960s, many ...
E-books catch on By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/05/2012 @ 11:50am
E-readers are no longer a novelty. The growth in products, in tandem with sizeable price drops, caused sales to surge over the holidays. You can buy a basic dedicated e-reader at Best Buy, Walmart, or online ...
Is your behavior making you sick? By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/20/2012 @ 12:01pm
If someone asks why you became a farmer, you may say, “Farming is in my blood.” If so, you may not be too far off the mark. Psychologist Michael Rosmann says the drive to farm may be linked to a ...
Ag on the menu By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/20/2012 @ 11:46am
More consumers today are going online to enjoy hearty servings of kitchen-table conversations. They’re asking questions like, “What’s safe and healthy? How do food labels relate to the health of my ...
What women need to know about heart disease By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/20/2012 @ 9:08am
There’s more to women’s health than the anatomy that makes them female. Recent studies reveal that the same diseases affect men and women differently. Genes, hormones, and lifestyles play a role.For ...
Plug the rural brain drain By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/16/2012 @ 2:59pm
Winter is a great time to curl up with a good book. This past year, individuals in 15 rural South Dakota communities have been focused on the same page.These South Dakota communities are part of the Great ...
Lungs for life By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/16/2012 @ 2:47pm
Farmers regularly encounter an array of hazards that trigger respiratory problems. The list includes dusts, biological particles, pesticides/chemicals, and toxic gases. “Compared to other occupations ...
Agriculture's promised land? By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/16/2012 @ 11:16am
Selling a farm doesn't often stir public controversy beyond the local coffee shop. But what if the farm is part of your land-grant university? Recently, 10,000 people joined a grassroots campaign ...
Ag on the menu By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/31/2012 @ 10:02am
More consumers today are going online to enjoy hearty servings of kitchen-table conversations. They're asking questions like, “What's safe and healthy? How do food labels relate to the health of my ...
Grooming the future By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/30/2012 @ 2:41pm
Andy Rynsburger always knew he'd follow in his family's dairy tradition. “I enjoy being around cows and working outside,” he says. “There's always a new challenge, and I like that.”Andy ...
Is your behavior making you sick? By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/30/2012 @ 2:37pm
If someone asks why you became a farmer, you may say, “Farming is in my blood.” If so, you may not be too far off the mark. Psychologist Michael Rosmann says the drive to farm may be linked to a cluster of ...
Sizing it up By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/12/2012 @ 11:19am
Ken Kunz says that life is good. He's content to be on the home farm near Elmwood, Nebraska, where he and his wife, Chris, are raising their two children.He's grateful for last year's ample ...
Dear John for Rural P.O.s By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2012 @ 1:58pm
There it was on the bulletin board – right next to the ham ball supper poster, just below the lost dog flyer, and beside the missing persons bulletin: Notice of Proposed Closure.The post office in Pilot ...
Low-impact ag By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2012 @ 10:56am
Composer Eubie Blake once said, “If I'd known I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself.” Blake played and recorded ragtime music until shortly before his death at the ...
Dairy duo By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2012 @ 10:52am
Rick and Gwen Dado dated briefly in high school before splitting up. They were juniors at University of Wisconsin-River Falls and serving as state FFA officers when Rick used the winnings of a dorm cribbage ...
High-tech workout tools By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/06/2011 @ 2:43pm
Farming isn't the high-intensity, aerobic workout characterized by the daily chores of earlier generations of farmers.If you're like the majority of farmers today, you'll have to create your own ...
I grew up in an Iowa where our family was blessed with a similar income and lifestyle as our neighbors: No one had much. We were farm kids, and our town friends weren't much better off.A few kids were ...
Rural road survival skills By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/06/2011 @ 10:56am
George Hebl has spent 17 years fine-tuning his defensive driving skills.The Solon, Iowa, farmer says, “I've had a school bus pass me in a no-passing zone. One time a vehicle passed me when I was driving ...
Payroll software pays off By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/06/2011 @ 10:42am
Processing payroll is an increasingly complex task in a farm business. Computerized software is a basic tool for paying employees and filing taxes. Payroll data also is becoming a critical resource in business ...
Family farm team By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/06/2011 @ 10:19am
When the Johnsons are running against the clock, the game plan for their Floyd, Iowa, farm doesn't rely on one person to call the shots.“We work together and try to make sure that any of us can step in ...
Website hosts and builders By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/06/2011 @ 10:13am
Wes Knepp needed a website to showcase his Shorthorn show cattle. The 20-year-old farms with parents, David and Lisa, near Plymouth, Indiana.“We set it up with a friend's help,” he says. “Our photos ...
Managing market scenarios By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/17/2011 @ 2:53pm
For many farmers like Roy Wendte, 2011 has been the best of times and the worst of times. Commodity prices generally have maintained lofty peaks, but volatility was part and parcel of these higher ...
Walk the Walk, Talk the Talk By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/14/2011 @ 11:34am
Family can be a powerful foundation of a business. But more is needed if you plan to pass on the family operation beyond the second generation.Five generations of Humms have farmed near ...
Putting the farm business plan first By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/01/2011 @ 3:30pm
They set their GPS for Des Moines, Iowa, mapping diverse routes from family farms in Washington, Texas, and 10 other states, to converge at a singular destination: the 2011 Generating Success ...
Healthy ears By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/01/2011 @ 10:28am
It's no secret why farmers suffer a high rate of noise-induced hearing loss. “They don't use hearing protection enough to be effective,” says Marjorie McCullagh, University of Michigan assistant ...
Long-range succession plans By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/01/2011 @ 10:12am
Family can be a powerful foundation of a business. But more is needed if you plan to pass on the family operation beyond the second generation.Five generations of Humms have farmed near Breckenridge, Michigan ...
Managing for success By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/01/2011 @ 9:13am
Maurice and Steve Grogan live the good life: raising quality cattle and caring for the land, while enjoying easy access to fine hunting and fishing. And the father and son manage to do it all within the shadow ...
4-H, DuPont partner in rural Africa By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/17/2011 @ 10:46am
The National 4-H Council and DuPont announced a partnership at the World Food Prize Symposium to strengthen youth development in rural African communities. A $2 million initiative over the next two years will ...
Rural girls linchpins to food security By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/17/2011 @ 10:44am
“If you want to change the world, invest in an adolescent girl.” It’s the thesis statement of Girls Grow: A Vital Force in Rural Economies, a 147-page report released just prior to the World Food Prize ...
Riders go rural route By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/30/2011 @ 1:17pm
What would you do if 10,000 guests from across the U.S. and around the world arrived on your doorstep for an hour or possibly overnight?Iowa communities of all sizes met the challenge once again this summer ...
Broadband hits a hurdle By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/30/2011 @ 11:19am
A battle is brewing over rural broadband. Few disagree that rural areas are underserved or would gain from broadband access in education, telemedicine, economic development, and civic involvement.“It's ...
Team Toay By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/30/2011 @ 10:44am
The Toays could write a playbook on the art of how to work hand in glove. Dan, 42, and Jim, 74, are two generations of a Dodgeville, Wisconsin, family farm tradition dating back over 152 years.“They work so ...
Gifting may make cents By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/30/2011 @ 9:37am
It was good news last December when Congress passed a generous estate tax exemption. The bad news was that the gift was only a temporary extension, set to expire again December 31, 2012.This lack of permanency ...
Avoid estate tax traps By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/19/2011 @ 3:11pm
Myron Friesen has seen the fallout when families fail to pave the way to a smooth transition with a well-designed plan. Friesen, who grew up on a Minnesota farm, co-owns Farm Financial Strategies, Inc., Osage ...
Bill Fortin says his memory of that day six years ago is “like it happened yesterday.” The Danville, Iowa, farmer lay face down in the gravel outside the hog barn, unable to lift his head.“I was vividly ...
Ag's untimely harvest By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/31/2011 @ 2:37pm
During National Farm Safety and Health Week September 18-24, there's cause for celebration regarding agriculture's most precious crop: children. But there's no reason for complacency.In 1987 ...
Avoid estate tax traps By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/31/2011 @ 2:12pm
Myron Friesen has seen the fallout when families fail to pave the way to a smooth transition with a well-designed plan. Friesen, who grew up on a Minnesota farm, co-owns Farm Financial Strategies, Inc., Osage ...
Let's eat! By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/31/2011 @ 2:04pm
Alice Lauritzen farms near Weeping Water, Nebraska, with her husband, Ken. During planting and harvesting, you'll find her working side by side with him. But when it's mealtime, she takes charge ...
Bill Fortin says his memory of that day six years ago is “like it happened yesterday.” The Danville, Iowa, farmer lay face down in the gravel outside the hog barn, unable to lift his head.“I was vividly ...
Youth make the case for ag By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/30/2011 @ 3:07pm
Kelli Fulkerson is an energetic and outgoing college student who lives and breathes agriculture. The 20-year-old Union City, Michigan, native enjoys connecting with nonfarmers, especially children and other ...
Do less in the garden By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/07/2011 @ 6:14pm
If you wonder what should be done in the garden during the month of August, Louisiana State University horticulturist Dan Gill has a standard response: “As little as possible,” he advises.Instead ...
Maintaining the momentum By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/07/2011 @ 6:06pm
Peer support is a powerful influence, especially when it comes to health. Studies show that maintaining motivation and consistency is easier if your buddies also value healthy activities and lifestyles.Jim ...
Farm families post safety gains By: CHERYL TEVIS 08/07/2011 @ 5:59pm
Kimberly and Mark Oldfather knew they had their work cut out for them when they moved with their young family into an older brick farmhouse near North Manchester, Indiana, three years ago.The ...
Teachers: The apples of this pupil's eye By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/28/2011 @ 1:43pm
My eighth-grade English teacher, Mrs. Kuhler, had bright blue eyes, a peaches-and-cream complexion, snowy-white hair, and a regal bearing. She reigned over my homeroom class with stately poise and ...
Putting road safety on a fast track By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/28/2011 @ 1:31pm
Daryl Hodel was towing a large wagon behind his tractor on U.S. 24 near El Paso, Illinois, in the fall of 2008. His wife, Deb, followed him in a pickup.As he reached the field a half mile down the road, Hodel ...
Ohio team gains rescue training By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/28/2011 @ 10:34am
Ask Albert Johnston and he'll tell you that it pays to read Successful Farming magazine. He opened his October 2010 issue and read about an opportunity for a free grain bin extrication training and rescue ...
Ask me, I'm a farmer By: CHERYL TEVIS 07/27/2011 @ 11:18am
If you've ever doubted that farming could be the life of the party, you've never visited Lapeer County, Michigan. Consider booking your next trip there in March, during National Agriculture Week, and ...
Elanco and Heifer International have announced a new partnership to end hunger for 100,000 families across the globe."Today, one in six people globally are hungry," said Jeff Simmons, Elanco president and ...
Although rural America's economy outpaced its urban counterpart in 2010, weather-related disasters in 2011 may stall the recovery. A new White House Rural Council was announced last week to help meet ...
Look, Mom, you're an empty nester By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/23/2011 @ 12:09pm
All eyes have been riveted upon an 80-foot-high perch in a cottonwood tree near the Mississippi River in northeast Iowa. Thanks to live video streaming, people from 130 countries have visited the nest of two ...
Rx for retrofits By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/05/2011 @ 9:15am
Lynn Hageman doesn't complain about his to-do list when he gets out of bed each morning. That's because the Calmar, Iowa, farmer recently gained a new appreciation for life.In November 2009, Hageman ...
What's your baseline number? By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/04/2011 @ 3:00pm
When Phil Jahde entered his farm shop eight years ago, he didn't realize that his brother-in-law was calibrating the SmartBoxes filled with corn insecticide.A few hours later, he was having trouble ...
Starting from scratch By: CHERYL TEVIS 05/04/2011 @ 11:12am
Nick Echard grew up in town, but he loved helping his grandparents and uncles on their farms. During high school, he worked for local livestock farmers.He dreamed of farming, but he felt it was out of his ...
What's for lunch? By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/15/2011 @ 8:34am
School lunches haven't been getting a good report card. Studies show that kids get about one third of their calories at school.That percentage needs to decline, advises USDA Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack. "The ...
Mom liked you best! By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/05/2011 @ 2:35pm
Five lines in my daughter's public address speech tug at my heartstrings. The selection, called Kurt Vonnegut's Commencement Address at MIT, mixes offbeat and genuine advice.“Get to know your ...
Farming is in their genes By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/05/2011 @ 2:27pm
If you're looking for Charlie Pitigliano, you can catch up with him and his three sons tomorrow at the farm office about 6:30 a.m.“We talk about what needs to be done to cover our equipment and labor ...
Lifesavers By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/05/2011 @ 1:44pm
As farmers head back to the field, an all-consuming push to plant may prepare the seedbed for a new crop of medical emergencies.Farming consistently ranks as one of the most hazardous U.S. occupations. When a ...
Finding common ground By: CHERYL TEVIS 04/05/2011 @ 10:26am
It's Saturday morning and Suzanne Shirbroun is at the grocery store –again. Today, instead of scanning a shopping list for husband Joe and their three sons, the Farmersburg, Iowa, farmer is scanning the ...
Hub of the home By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/17/2011 @ 8:53am
On cold winter days, you may spend cozy hours in the kitchen, searching for your favorite rib-sticking recipes, or just warding off the chill with fresh refills of coffee.Or maybe you escape winter's ...
Niche pork partners By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/16/2011 @ 10:08am
When Bob Uphoff joined his dad on the Madison, Wisconsin, farm in 1974, he was the fourth generation to raise hogs there since 1866.But he and his dad positioned their new business partnership for the future ...
Gotta run By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/15/2011 @ 3:16pm
A lofty experience in the Colorado mountains in 2004 brought Jim Cooper back down to earth.“Hiking would have been a lot more fun if I had been in better shape,” he says.A 2003 four-wheeler injury ...
Annie's Project Hits Its Stride By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/15/2011 @ 10:56am
Annie's Project, a series of workshops to help women farm business partners build management skills, has grown from an Illinois program launched in 2003 to 28 states. In 2008, it gained an expanded role ...
Stop! Leave Me Out of It! By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/15/2011 @ 10:49am
Some days it seems that everyone comes to you when help is needed. The cows are out, the tractor is stuck, the 4-H fair livestock forms are missing, and there's a website you need to access to retrieve ...
National Agriculture Week is prime time to get out the word about the vital role that American farmers play in U.S. food security and around the world. This year's theme is "American Agriculture: Your ...
Bottom-Line Business By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/15/2011 @ 10:29am
Lynn and Ed Lambert often start their day headed in opposite directions. But despite their busy schedules and the one-hour time zone separating their workdays, the North Judson, Indiana, farm couple share a ...
The American farmers' share of the food dollar is shrinking. A recently released report by USDA states that only 11.6% of every dollar spent on food goes to the farmer.USDA issues a food dollar series to ...
Don't Hold Your Breath By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/15/2011 @ 10:20am
Craig Woodford can count on a physical workout when he empties grain bins. Recently, the 59-year-old Greenville, Iowa, farmer had a lung function screening to see if his lungs were up to the job."The test was ...
Stay safe and sound By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/02/2011 @ 11:30am
Covering the basesDuring the off-season, you're likely to find Ray Boswell busy with machinery maintenance and repairs. “It saves downtime in the long haul,” he says.Earlier this winter, the Selma ...
A healthy game plan By: CHERYL TEVIS 03/02/2011 @ 10:07am
Think of it as spring training. You're a member of the farm team, and you have eight weeks until the season opener (also known as planting). Here's your game plan:• Work out weekly for 150 minutes ...
Stop! Leave me out of it! By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 2:36pm
Some days it seems that everyone comes to you when help is needed. The cows are out, the tractor is stuck, the 4-H fair livestock forms are missing, and there's a website you need to access to retrieve ...
Paying it forward By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 2:30pm
The secluded county road off Route 111 leads through a wooded landscape punctuated by gently rolling green pastures. It's easy to see how the verdant splendor of this countryside 5 miles from Canada earns ...
Generating success! By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 11:23am
Nothing beats the experience of face-to-face interaction and learning in an exciting, resource-packed venue with other farm families.If you're ready to address the decisions facing your family business ...
Head of the class By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 11:15am
Financial management isn't something farmers can master in school and then simply rest on their laurels. Owning and operating a small business requires continuing education.That's why Janet and Jerry ...
Don't hold your breath By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 10:17am
Craig Woodford can count on a physical workout when he empties grain bins. Recently, the 59-year-old Greenville, Iowa, farmer had a lung function screening to see if his lungs were up to the job.“The test ...
Bottom-line business By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/28/2011 @ 10:12am
Lynn and Ed Lambert often start their day headed in opposite directions. But despite their busy schedules and the one-hour time zone separating their workdays, the North Judson, Indiana, farm couple share a ...
Prairie Partners By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/18/2011 @ 12:12pm
Seven years ago, after a long, hot day of moving irrigation systems, Brad and Monica Anderson ducked into the office in their farm shop to get a drink of water and to cool off.At the time, the St. Cloud ...
Take the Long Road Home By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/18/2011 @ 10:18am
As long as there are families, young people will leave home. But we all know that many high school seniors rushing to apply to college this month won't be in the same rush to return after graduation ...
Farm Preps This Pro By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/18/2011 @ 9:47am
Carl Foemmel has never shied away from the heavy lifting. "I've always had excellent strength," says the fourth-generation farmer from Chile, Wisconsin."When I was young, I never watched TV. I purchased a ...
A salty conversation By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/14/2011 @ 1:54pm
When the topic of food comes up, Lindsey DeWall knows all too well that the spice of life is not salt. As a registered dietician at the Spencer Hospital in Spencer, Iowa, she says farmers, like many ...
Talk about food issues By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/14/2011 @ 11:12am
I’ve been urging farmers for three decades to make food issues a main entree on the communications menu.“The importance of people in agriculture communicating their own message can’t be ...
Precision partnership By: CHERYL TEVIS 02/14/2011 @ 10:56am
Brent Johnson is a farmer at heart. While earning a degree in agronomy at Iowa State University, he daydreamed about planting corn. Later, working at an ag co-op, he imagined a future raising cattle and ...
Take the long road home By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/26/2011 @ 10:31am
As long as there are families, young people will leave home. But we all know that many high school seniors rushing to apply to college this month won’t be in the same rush to return after graduation ...
Farm preps this pro By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/26/2011 @ 10:21am
Carl Foemmel has never shied away from the heavy lifting. “I’ve always had excellent strength,” says the fourth-generation farmer from Chile, Wisconsin.“When I was young, I never watched TV. I ...
A first-rate farm business By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/26/2011 @ 9:46am
Bryan Kirkpatrick couldn’t wait to go back home to farm. “I was sitting in a History of Western Civilization class, and all I could think about was how I wanted to be planting corn and beans,” he ...
Prairie partners By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/25/2011 @ 2:49pm
Seven years ago, after a long, hot day of moving irrigation systems, Brad and Monica Anderson ducked into the office in their farm shop to get a drink of water and to cool off.At the time, the St ...
Women play lead role in global food fight By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/13/2011 @ 4:29pm
In most American homes, women shop for and prepare the food that feeds their families. No easy task on a farm when time is short and seasonal work crowds out mealtimes.But it doesn't compare to the ...
Hands-only CPR is a lifesaver By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/12/2011 @ 2:40pm
Dan Neenan is a medical paramedic. He knows that when people call 911 to report a medical emergency, time stands still while they wait for help.“Three to four minutes is an eternity,” he says.Nearly ...
Women play lead role in global food fight By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/12/2011 @ 2:32pm
In most American homes, women shop for and prepare the food that feeds their families. No easy task on a farm when time is short and seasonal work crowds out mealtimes.But it doesn’t compare to the ...
Profit manager expands tool kit By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/12/2011 @ 1:58pm
Chris Barron needed a better handle on pinpointing his costs and maximizing profits.Barron, who farms near Rowley, Iowa, knew that managing costs was a key factor in achieving profits.“I was looking ...
Young hands grow global green thumbs By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2011 @ 3:06pm
In underdeveloped countries, it’s not unusual for children to tend and harvest crops. More than 1 billion people are chronically hungry; 70% of these people are rural.But it’s a head-turning sight ...
Ag tag team By: CHERYL TEVIS 01/11/2011 @ 3:00pm
Their corn and soybeans were nearly in the bin when John Ryan and his sons – Shawn, 43, and Tom, 35 – took time out for a postharvest huddle. The Springfield, Minnesota, farmers reviewed the past ...
Too sweet By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/17/2010 @ 11:02am
Bud Myers always assumed his good heredity and physical farmwork would keep him healthy and fit. But three years ago, his daughter noticed he was short of breath."My daughter's a nurse," he says. "She ...
Consider a gift of grain to 4-H By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/17/2010 @ 8:07am
You can't wrap it up and put it under the Christmas tree, but gifts of grain are a direct way for farmers to show their support for the 4-H program.As budgets have been cut, Extension and 4-H programs in ...
A growing experience By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/16/2010 @ 8:55pm
At some moment during this holiday season, you may sense that the message of conspicuous consumption is drowning out the spirit of Christmas.In fact, you may fear that your children are self-absorbed ...
4 reason to own an external hard drive By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/15/2010 @ 10:45am
It’s a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach when your computer is unresponsive – no matter what you do. It typically occurs before a 4-H record book deadline or tax appointment.If it has ever ...
An apple a day: 101 By: CHERYL TEVIS 12/15/2010 @ 9:31am
Apple-picking time at Minnetonka Orchard is a rite of autumn for families looking forward to a weekend getaway from the 2.5 million residents who live and work nearby in Minnesota’s Twin ...
Consider a gift of grain By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/11/2010 @ 2:49pm
You can’t wrap it up and put it under the Christmas tree, but gifts of grain are a direct way for farmers to show their support for the 4-H program. As budgets have been cut, Extension and 4-H programs ...
Ticked Off With Lyme Disease By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/09/2010 @ 12:09pm
Carolyn Sheridan's family isn't surprised when she brings her work home. In fact, her husband, John, a Greenville, Iowa, farmer, and their children sometimes encourage her to do it.Sheridan's ...
Culinary Half-Pints By: CHERYL TEVIS 11/09/2010 @ 11:20am
The kitchen is the hub of the Hadden home. "The table is where everything happens," Carolyn Hadden says.But in millions of American homes today, the kitchen table may be simply for show.The Haddens are ...
Beating West Nile Virus By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/14/2010 @ 3:04pm
Bryan Kroeker wasn't going to let the flu get him down. So after the July 2007 wheat harvest, the 48-year-old tried to ignore his mild symptoms."They didn't go away," the Grant, Nebraska, farmer ...
Changing Faces In Agriculture By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/14/2010 @ 12:04pm
Krista Lottinville and Samantha Werner have their sights set on agri culture. The two University of Illinois seniors were one step ahead of the other 126 participants at the first annual Women Changing The ...
A new study in the Annals of Neurology suggests that a spinal tap can detect a biomarker signaling Alzheimer's before any symptoms appear. Today Alzheimer's is only positively confirmed ...
Who Will Rescue Rural America? By: CHERYL TEVIS 10/14/2010 @ 11:46am
Volunteers are the lifeblood of rural America. Nationally, 72% of fire departments are all volunteers. It's even higher in rural states. Many, like Lynn Kirschbaum, Glen Haven, Wisconsin ...
Grain bin safety: Training, awareness is key By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/24/2010 @ 3:57pm
On a hot, humid July day in Glen Haven, Wisconsin, fire department volunteers trained for an unprecedented emergency: a grain bin extrication.Just two hours to the south, the Lanark, Illinois, fire department ...
Training, awareness key to grain bin safety By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/24/2010 @ 11:20am
On a hot, humid July day in Glen Haven, Wisconsin, fire department volunteers trained for an unprecedented emergency: a grain bin extrication.Just two hours to the south, the Lanark, Illinois, fire department ...
Don't Let Safety Lapse Sideline You By: CHERYL TEVIS 09/22/2010 @ 2:49pm
After six months of sitting on the sidelines, David Stoner is back in the combine. The 62-year-old Mt. Vernon, Iowa, farmer knows that he is lucky to be alive. Stoner was loading corn out of the ...
