Bob Sprunger of Raygor Farms crops 450 acres in northeastern Ohio with his son Scott and son-in-law Mark Ostarchvic. This operation puts up more than 2,500 tons of corn silage each year. Corn silage is stored in bunkers and haylage is stored in upright silos.

A new generation of pasture-based dairy producers combine U.S. and New Zealand farming techniques. These innovators refine systems to overcome many obstacles that relegated pasture dairies in the U.S. to “alternative dairy models.” Some thought them only for smaller dairies, organic producers, niche markets and microclimates.

I have been involved in the international dairy world since 1994, and in this period I have lived in the Netherlands, Australia, and since last year, in New Zealand. My knowledge of grass-based dairying has been built during my time in Australia and especially in my role as grass-based product manager for CRV.

Most people assume that all anaerobic digesters – whether they are above-ground round tanks or towers, below-ground square, rectangular or octagonal vessels – are essentially doing the same thing in the same way.

The anaerobic digester system at Dallmann East River Dairy in Brillion, Wisconsin, does more than digest waste from the farm. A nutrient-recovery system after the digester not only helps to clean the biogas but also removes excess nitrates and converts them into a saleable fertilizer.

Very good agitation might be the most important step in utilizing liquid manure as a nutrient to grow a crop. If every gallon is homogeneous throughout the pump-out, we have a better opportunity to be successful year after year using manure as fertilizer.

Fall is a busy time on the dairy. Crop harvest means that a new manure application season is upon us. A safety reminder for anyone handling manure is a good idea.

I just started teaching first grade again after 30 years. When I looked in the faces of those sweet children, I told them that I taught first grade many, many years ago.Some of my students became dentists, UPS drivers, teachers, loan officers and policemen.

In the last several decades, climate change has gone from an abstract theory to something farmers all over the world now feel the effects of.The characteristics of production are changing in accordance to latitude, and in general, agriculture is getting harder as the weather becomes more volatile and swings between extremes.