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Soybean plants with wilting, cupped leaves as the result of dicamba herbicide damage.

South Dakota Herbicide Damage

As the spray season starts, it is always good to be aware of resources and testing facilities where you can send in possible herbicide-affected plant samples. SDSU Extension offers suggestions on how to handle possible herbicide damage situations as well as recommended labs that receive plant matter samples to test for herbicide residues.

an image of red and yellow cherry tomatoes

Founding a Farmers Market: Form a Planning Team

The first step to forming a new farmers market is to form a planning team. Keep the team small enough so that it is simple, small and manageable.

an image of a field of soybeans

Soybean Production: Cost-effective pest management practices

Chemicals were one of the most expensive individual costs in soybean production, behind only to seed in the non-land cost category. The average cash-rent soybean production farms incurred a crop chemical cost of $39/ac in 2015, an 88% increase from 2010.

an image of fresh tomatoes

Farmers Market Food Safety: Health & Hygiene

Health, hygiene and hand washing apply to all stages of production, processing and marketing. Ill food handlers can easily contaminate fresh produce with disease-causing microorganisms. Many of these organisms have the capability to survive on fresh fruits and vegetables for an extended time, from several days to weeks. Once the organism is established on fresh produce, it is very hard to remove.

Sand Bagged home in surrounded by flood water. FEMA News Photo

Managing Flooding Around Home Structures

As South Dakota and our surrounding neighbors begin to deal with the consequences of spring snowmelt and the dramatic flash flooding that came about from the region’s most recent winter storm, we can only hope that conditions begin to improve quickly.

aerial view of a flooded farm in late winter. FEMA News Photo

Inundaciones: sugerencias útiles

La primavera en el Medio Oeste siempre trae el riesgo de inundaciones, sea por la nieve que se derrite o por lluvia en exceso.

red cattle feeding at a small bunk

Limited Forage: What Are Some Alternatives?

Research has shown that a variety of feedstuffs can be utilized to meet the cows’ nutrient requirements with similar performance to hay or hay plus supplement ration.

rancher observing cattle at a feedbunk

Making Use of “Ugly” Feeds

Feed does not have to be perfect to be useful. The key to making smart feeding decisions is knowing what the imperfections are and adjusting accordingly.

small group of cattle resting near feed bunk

Liver Abscesses: The Unseen Profit Thief

Liver abscesses are a great example of an important value robber in feedlot cattle that’s not immediately apparent.

small group of cattle at hay feeder

Herd Management: Keep or Cull During a Drought?

Drought forces unexpected changes so it’s critical to have a strategy to keep only the “right” females that will benefit the operation.