What is the best course of action when an invading noxious weed threatens to attack crop yields and assault grazing land? Invite a friend to dinner. In this case, the friend is a plant-eating insect – the stem-mining weevil.

The current issue of the journal Rangelands presents a study of insect biocontrol agents in North Dakota. Fighting weeds with herbicide, tillage and mowing can be costly and labor intensive, while the weevil is a natural enemy.

Aflatoxins are highly toxic carcinogens produced by several species of Aspergillus fungi. But not all Aspergillus produce aflatoxin. Some, in fact, are considered beneficial. One such strain, dubbed K49, is now being recruited to battle these harmful Aspergillus relatives, preventing them from contaminating host crops like corn with the carcinogen.

In collaboration with University of Bologna (UB) scientists in Italy, USDA scientists Hamed Abbas and Bob Zablotowicz (retired) have devised a new method of applying K49 as a frontline defense against aflatoxin contamination in corn, which causes an estimated $200 million annually in U.S. losses alone.

Green Lake County farmers Jim and Val Hebbe have been chosen to receive the Leopold Conservation Award from Sand County Foundation and the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation.

The award announcement was made during the Nov. 14 meeting of the state Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Board. The Hebbe family, from Princeton, will receive the $10,000 award and a Leopold crystal on Dec. 2 at the WFBF Annual Meeting in Wisconsin Dells.

The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) urges producers to ensure their farm or ranch is counted in the 2012 Census of Agriculture, a crucial tool that provides farmers with a voice in the future of their community and operation.

Conducted every five years by NASS, the Census is a complete count of the U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them.

Nikkel Iron Works recently presented its DARF Hay Rake Top Dealer Award to Doug Ottersberg, general sales manager of Agri-Service.

Agri-Service, which has nine locations in Idaho, Utah and Oregon, has carried the DARF hay rake for more than a decade.

“Our customers like the concept of the DARF hay rake,” Ottersberg said.

The National Alfalfa & Forage Alliance (NAFA) has released the 2013 edition of its popular “Winter Survival, Fall Dormancy & Pest Resistant Ratings for Alfalfa Varieties.” This publication provides a current and comprehensive listing of winter survival, fall dormancy and pest resistance ratings of alfalfa varieties eligible for certification by seed certifying agencies. All varieties listed can be purchased in the U.S.

DuPont Pioneer recently prevailed in a major European patent challenge to its bacterial strain used in the Pioneer brand inoculants portfolio. The decision in favor of Pioneer by the European Patent Office (EPO) means that the key bacterial strain designed to improve fiber digestibility for livestock is patent-protected and covers all Pioneer fiber technology as silage inoculants.

New Holland Agriculture has been honored with six AE50 Awards by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). The AE50 awards are presented for the fifty most innovative product ideas to enter the market in 2012 – ideas ranked highest in innovation, significant engineering advancement, and impact on the market served.

KUHN Krause, Inc. has announced the grand opening of its previously announced expanded manufacturing facilities in Hutchinson, Kansas.

Construction ground breaking for the high-bay, 70,000-square-foot building expansion began in April 2012 and was recently completed.

Alfalfa is a productive and vigorous forage crop. Alfalfa is high-quality forage commonly fed to beef cattle, sheep and horses, and it can be also used for green chop and silage. Alfalfa is a cool-season perennial legume with up to 36 inches of growth and a deep taproot well adapted to dry conditions. Most tillers arise from the crown. Leaves are trifoliloate with serrated leaflets at the tip.