As most dairymen know, the dairy industry is coming under increasing pressure to address comprehensive environmental concerns.

Although many vertebrate pests cause problems in alfalfa, the most frequent offenders are often pocket gophers (geomyidae) and meadow voles (also known as meadow mice; Microtus spp.). Pocket gophers are short, stout burrowing rodents, usually 6 to 8 inches in length.

Some of the more panicked calls I receive during summer months are from silage corn growers who have suddenly discovered they have a spider mite infestation in their fields. In many cases, it seems the mites that weren’t there yesterday have multiplied an hundredfold overnight.

The arid climate and open spaces of our Western states create the perfect combination for providing low disease pressure, which allows us the ability to produce high-quality forages.

Each summer, nearly every farmer spends weeks making hay or silage and then during the rest of the year either feeds it to animals or sells it to willing buyers.

Although vertical tillage equipment has been around for many generations, aerators have become very popular as an efficient way to retain more moisture, alleviate compaction and hardpan and stimulate plant growth.

The past year has seen some interesting, and frankly troubling, developments in the world of commodity pricing.

There are two schools of thought when it comes to adding nitrogen to mixed stands of legumes and grasses. The first school of thought is this: legumes provide all the nitrogen that the accompanying plants need, so additional nitrogen fertilizer is not needed.