“He’s probably one of the most successful farmers I know,” says Kyle Rupp of his dad, Gary. “He started from the ground up and made all of this possible.”

Resting a pasture for two growing seasons postburn is a common recommendation in the Intermountain West since at least the ’80s. “The question is, ‘Is there a real reason two full years rest are needed after fire?’” says University of Idaho (U of I) area extension range educator K. Scott Jensen. “Can it occur sooner than that without delay or harm to postfire recovery? We wanted to put some science to it.”

Whatever the combination of market, forage and cow health conditions emerge as the year wears on, says Brackenbury, “That’s the beauty of livestock – you always have to be prepared and have a willingness to adapt. You never know what kind of event will come.”

Idaho conservation districts are locally led and meet the unique needs of a specific area, whether those needs are education, watercraft inspection, invasive species management, irrigation improvement, healthier soils, fuel reduction, tree planting or fish habitat improvement.

With the third and fourth generations at the helm today, Wittman Farms is as committed to the vision of stewardship and intentional business management as ever.

“The ag community is all suffering. We all know this,” says Brandon Vining, president of ProGro Agronomy in St. Anthony. Agronomic outcomes differed by region, but low commodity prices and high input costs have most producers (outside of the beef industry) tightening their belts and hoping for better times.

Taking the familiar Christmas pageant to the next level, living nativities seek to immerse visitors in the events surrounding Jesus’s birth, without ever leaving Idaho. And behind the scenes of many of these living nativities are the ranches and pet owners that contribute animals – and the sights, sounds, textures and smells that they bring – to the experience.

As the Make America Healthy Again Commission (MAHA) makes headlines, Idaho producers may wonder where changing policies and recommendations leave them. One article of particular interest is the disavowal of “ultra-processed foods.”

A profitable, drought-tolerant crop can be a welcome addition to a dryland rotation in the arid Intermountain West. Particularly following a push for clean fuels created by the U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005, camelina (Camelina sativa) entrepreneurs have been making the case for expanding acres of this oilseed.

Step onto Lowe Family Farmstead near Kuna and you’ll find a conventional farm growing feed corn and wheat. And if you come in the fall, you’ll find a corn maze, hayrides, livestock interactions and dozens of other on-the-farm activity options.