Friday, April 17, 2026

Plan your spring hike with the ODNR’s weekly Ohio Wildflower Bloom reports. Discover when and where native species like bluebells and trilliums are peaking across Ohio’s state nature preserves and parks.

Ohio farmers donate 218,000 eggs to Greater Cleveland Food Bank, boosting fresh protein access as demand rises amid industry challenges.
corn

Cargill confirmed its intention to close the grain elevator in Dayton over the next 20 months “to allow time for production ramp-down and to enable supply chain adjustments.” The facility employs 230 people.

Pennsylvania House Bill 1834 would establish data center regulations to protect ratepayers from rising electric costs and incentives clean energy projects.

Ryan C. Needels, owner of Clear View Construction, in Marion, Ohio, was sentenced to 17 to 22 years in prison after defrauding consumers of more than $400,000.

Lush pastures can be deadly. Learn how to identify symptoms of grass tetany and why a simple vaccination is the only real defense against soil-borne blackleg.

Reporters Liz Partsch and Paul Rowley give a rundown of the top stories in Farm and Dairy newspaper for the week of March 26, 2026.

In the heart of Ohio’s dairy country, farmers like Greg Steffen and Scott Stoller are moving beyond guesswork to discover how intensive cropping affects their land’s future. Through a $10 million USDA-funded project called "From the Ground Up," these producers are collaborating with Ohio State University researchers to design real-world trials on their own acreage. By prioritizing farmer-led questions over lab-controlled experiments, the initiative aims to find actionable ways to balance high-yield production with lasting soil health.

Ohio and Pennsylvania lawmakers are racing to regulate a massive boom in AI-driven data centers amid concerns over rising utility costs, farmland loss and environment risks. Ohio’s House recently passed HB 646 to study these impacts, while PA legislators are debating how to balance the potential economic benefits with community needs.
chicken

The West Virginia Department of Agriculture recently confirmed the presence of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in a backyard flock in Kanawha County. This is the third case of bird flu in WV this year.