Hay and forage supply is improved over the 2011-2013 time frame, when regional droughts and Upper Midwest winter survival affected forage supplies. With current increased forage supplies, the price of hay has declined somewhat from the highs of the past few years, but not as much as one might expect given the decline in the commodity groups of grain and grain byproducts.

Two things every farmer should know about his or her farm business are cash flow and profitability, says Paul Dietmann, emerging markets specialist for Badgerland Financial. He defines cash flow as, “The ability of the farm to generate enough cash to cover all expenses and loan payments, pay for family living costs and income taxes, and have enough cash left for re-investment in the farm and to put some in savings.”

There is a lot of time and money invested when seeding in a new alfalfa crop. The plan is for that crop to pay that back with profits for years to come, but sometimes it doesn’t work out as planned.

Tornado warnings, winter storm warnings and severe thunderstorm warnings – these weather events are familiar to all of us. But have you ever heard of a ‘drought’ warning? Drought is sneaky. You know it’s going to happen; you just don’t know when. All is going well; you have a little dry period; and before you know it and without warning, you’re in a drought.

The basis for high crop yields comes from a proper crop nutrition program and fundamental soil testing. Recent surveys indicate that 20 percent of the fields in Pennsylvania do not have a current soil test. With high crop yields, the plant food contained in the soil is depleted more rapidly.

The purpose of this article is to discuss how producers should view forage trial data and what to look for when studying the numbers. Some trials are useful and some aren’t; the question is how to tell the difference.