Hello Again! As you read this, Memorial Day is right around the corner, welcoming THE “official start of the summer season.” Maybe you will celebrate the day with a cook-out and a visit to the cemetery. Maybe you will attend a parade or maybe you will spend it in the seat of a tractor trying [...]
Hello Again! Is your corn in the ground? Is your wheat ready for the bin? Are you prepping for beans yet? Are you just a bit busy right now? With all this sunshine and the days getting longer you’re still not done? You know there’s hay to mow, hogs to slop, eggs to gather, a [...]
Hello Again! It took a while, but I think winter has finally lost its tenuous grip on us. The smells of spring are fully upon us now. Newly mown grass, lilacs in bloom and, yes, that favorite scent of spring for a farmer, the smell of newly worked soils. Planting in the area is well [...]
Hello Again! April showers bring May flowers! And here we go again! Now that spring planting has slowly begun, many farmers are busy trying to get all of their crops planted by the final crop planting dates established by the Risk Management Agency. If, by chance, Mother Nature does not cooperate, the Farm Service Agency [...]
Hello Again! On April 22, people all over the country reached out to celebrate Earth Day and thanked their local farmers, the original conservationists and stewards of the Earth. America’s farmers play an important role in keeping the earth clean through the Farm Service Agency’s Conservation Reserve Program. CRP conserves soil, improves water and air [...]
Hello Again! Do you like to travel and work outdoors at your own pace? Then this just may be the perfect job for you! The USDA Ohio Farm Service Agency (FSA) is seeking qualified individuals with knowledge of field crops and specialty crops interested in becoming Independent Crop Loss Adjustment Contractors for FSA. FSA administers [...]
Hello Again! Once again the Direct and Counter-Cyclical Payment Program (DCP) and the Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) Program are being offered for the 2013 crop year under the 2008 farm bill extension. New contracts are required annually for each of these programs and all signatures must be obtained by the deadline. Enrollment for the [...]
Hello Again! The Farm Service Agency is now offering a new microloan program designed to assist small family farms, beginning farmers, and socially disadvantaged farmers with operating credit. The microloan program was developed to better serve the unique financial operating needs of beginning, niche and the smallest of family farm operations. The microloan offers a [...]
The Farm Service Agency has loan programs to assist members of socially disadvantaged groups and beginning farmers to finance agricultural enterprises. Under these designated farm loan programs, FSA can provide financing to eligible applicants through either direct or guaranteed loans. While all qualified producers are eligible to apply for these loan programs, FSA has targeted [...]
Hello Again! The village of Mt. Pleasant, Ohio, in southern Jefferson County, is on the National Register of Historic Places and designated as a National Historic Landmark District of the Underground Railroad. It was a primary stop on the Underground Railroad. The first abolitionist newspaper in the U.S., the Philanthropist, was published there. It was [...]
Hello again! After a few short days of respite from the winter cold, the snow is once again claiming the landscape as its own. The hint of spring brought with it the urge to look at seed catalogs and the thoughts and smell of newly turned soil. Most of our readers know the sweet smell [...]
Hello Again! As I came out to kitchen this first day of February, my wife said she was a little behind as Daisy May needed her nap. I just laughed when I saw the orphaned lamb asleep on her lap after having her morning bottle. Now the economic value of bottle feeding a lamb really [...]
Hello again! The Farm Service Agency is now offering a new microloan program designed to assist small family farms, beginning farmers and socially disadvantaged farmers with operating credit. The microloan program was developed to better serve the unique financial operating needs of beginning, niche and the smallest of family farm operations. The microloan offers a [...]
Hi Again, Well here we are almost to the end of January already. We’ve had some snow, freezing temperatures, rain and even a few 50 degree days. Amazing how fast things can change in our day-to-day lives. People like to make New Year’s resolutions and by now they are either seeing a change in their [...]
Hello again! Each year, the Farm Service Agency is required to issue public notice on a variety of programs, policies, and opportunities available at the county office. Questions can be directed to your local Farm Service Agency office. Commodity loans Commodity loans, also referred to as marketing assistance loans, are available to producers who share [...]
Hello again! Happy New Year! Whew, it seems like our “cliff diving” trip has been canceled. I, for one, am very happy about that — I am not real impressed with rocky heights with only a flimsy rope to catch me if I fall. The good news is, a farm bill extension now looms in [...]
Hello again! I hope you read this article weekly … because I requested a few snow flurries. It appears I was granted my wish. This article is always the hardest one for me to write — the last of 2012. I am a person who reflects on not only this year, but on years gone [...]
Hello again!Well, my family vacation to Florida was both educational and memorable. If I would have known that every restaurant and theme park took your photo prior to entry I think I would have gone and had a makeover prior to going on vacation. Those little memories on paper were then of course marketed to [...]
Hello again! Well, the combine is in the back shed and it’s time to work on the farm finances. I know we all love to pay the bills and make our projections for the upcoming year. If you are considering purchasing some land or can advise a young farmer on their finances, the following may [...]