Pastures

Chef Bryan Flower hurries toward one of the raised “free-to-pick” vegetable, flower and herb beds that flank Neptune North residence and dining hall on the Northern Illinois University campus in DeKalb.

The best option for adding sheep or goats to an operation is to purchase from a reputable breeder.

The Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition announced the continuation of its free Pasture Walk series for livestock producers, with upcoming fall dates planned across the state.

We are in that tough phase between decent residue grazing and great stockpile grazing. It is the hardest time of the year for grazing management.

What a great harvest we had, huge crop and great weather to harvest in. Aside from the dusty road conditions, I do not recall an easier harvest ever.

Once again, no shortage of things to do on the farm and couple that with the planning and office work that continues to be done, there won’t be much time for rest or slacking.

With the current crises we face on all fronts, foreign and domestic, we need a strong leader and God’s help to get us through.

I asked my wife, “What have I done in the last 30 days?” She said, “Praying for rain, moving sheep and praying for rain.” I’m still praying for rain.

We hosted a farm and mill tour as part of our county’s Farm Stroll. The local University of Illinois Extension office coordinates the day with small farms and more in Boone County participating.

The focus at Schoepp Farms LLC is to keep soil and nutrients on the land.

Will we someday return to a more diversified Midwest agriculture economy incorporating livestock into row crop operations?

We have all but finished our harvest for the year. Corn chopping went extremely smooth with no rain delays and to my recollection only one truck needing pulled all season long — surely a record.

Who would have thought that hurricanes would impact Illinois weather so much, but that is what has happened. Not just one, but two of those storms made their way to southern Illinois with ample amounts of rain.

Regenerative farming and soil health are the focus for pastured-raised animals at Terra Vitae Farms.

A late-summer drought across much of the Midwest certainly altered the landscape. The cows are moving slowly, single file as they often do, coming from a pasture to get a drink from the automatic waterers.

The mill is buzzing with activity to prepare some of our fiber for sale and complete customer orders. We make felted batts from our Scottish Blackface wool.

Well, it’s dry again and we really could use a good soaking rain. The grass pastures had been growing nice up to about two weeks ago when they started feeling the effects of no rain.

We’ve gone more than a month now without any rain and none in our forecast, so the pastures are thirsty. In spite of that, the cover crops on our wheat stubble are looking surprisingly well.

Beef production spans generations in the Hanson and Kuipers family in Iroquois County where they operate a forage-based program utilizing a paddock grazing system along with growing corn, soybeans and wheat.

After waiting, not so patiently, for the corn to mature, we finally had a field last week get mature enough to start chopping. Now we will race to stay ahead of the corn getting too mature.

It certainly has dried up in a hurry and pastures are showing the ill effects of that. We have had some hot days, but for the most part temperatures have been moderate, so it could have been worse.

Armyworms are appropriately named. They definitely work like an army, moving their line forward as efficiently and rapidly as possible, attempting to overwhelm the enemy and gain territory.

I hope you readers saw the recent AgriNews article on sheep grazing under solar farms. Land stays in production while generating electricity for the grid and cash for shepherds while saving on mowing and spraying costs.

Women who own or manage farmland or who have an interest in farming are invited to the Learning Circle hosted by The Land Conservancy of McHenry County.

The earth provides an overabundance of food, but the distribution of that food is the struggle.

Does your corn have stunted, yellowing plants along the edges of the field? If so, you’re not alone. It’s a common occurrence that agronomists call edge effect.

Maybe it’s time to put some eggs in a different basket — that is, livestock. And since cattle prices are formidable for newcomers, I suggest a more reasonable approach to diversification: sheep.

The fairs have started and my granddaughters have been busy walking, setting up, washing and trimming their four market lambs and one yearling ewe.

During my travels, one question seems to be always popping up, one which many producers are not sure of answers. That is: What is regenerative agriculture?

As the Fourth of July celebrations come to a close, it’s a good idea to look out for your pets and livestock.

Summer is finally here in northern Illinois. Temperatures are going to be hot this weekend. We call it Georgia weather, teasing our daughter who lives in Georgia. Luckily, we have had more rain than they have had.

Last month I mentioned the long list of jobs and projects that needed to be done here at the farm. That list hasn’t gotten any shorter. Even though we have been able to cross off some of those tasks, we seem to keep adding to it.

My last article had just been sent off when I got word that my good friend, Jamie Willrett, had left suddenly to be with the Lord. This tragic news shook me and the rest of the cattle industry as we all lost a trusted friend and leader.

Two years ago, the Masters of Beef Advocacy program managed by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, hit 20,000 graduates. This year, the program celebrates an additional 5,000 graduates.

The winner of the Star in Agricultural Placement award will be announced during the Wednesday afternoon session of the Illinois FFA State Convention starting at 2 p.m.

Soil health and quality play a significant role in the nutritional value of pastures and cover crops, determining grazing strategies and sustainability.

These longer, warmer and sometimes wetter days are really giving the crops and pastures a great start. While most of my neighbors are done or close to finishing planting, we’ve just got a good start.

More weather events are bringing more challenges here at River Oak. The corn is planted, but a few acres will be on the list for replanting due to standing water after frequent rain the last 10 days.

We live back in the woods, so the only time I witness the sun rise is when we get started at o-dark-thirty and get out and about on the ranch somewhere. Turkey season came in mid-April and is soon to wrap up.

April was an extremely busy time, mostly because we welcomed a new granddaughter. Her name is Brynlee and she is doing well. We were lucky to spend more time in Georgia in April than Illinois.

Soil tells the story of what has happened in a field for decades.

We have some water standing on pastures and fields. I had almost given up seeing that this spring. Looks like some other events may follow. Ponds aren’t full, but have been improved.

The pastures have greened up nicely and the cows still receiving silage head out as soon as they have hoovered their daily allotment.

Spring has arrived and it is good to see grass growing and greening up. I won’t say that grass growth is exploding, because over the last few weeks, winter has tried to hang on.

This is the time of year that I become a little impatient waiting for spring. The warmer weather makes me think the grass and pasture should be getting green faster than they are. The sheep are also looking impatient.

I just saw a map of the affected drought areas of 2012 and right now and they looked awfully similar to the one for 2024.

March weather has come in like a lamb, so if the saying is true, it will turn into a lion at some point this month. It is still winter, but we are inching closer to spring.

A group raised the roof in rural Will County in northeastern Illinois, but it wasn’t from celebrating the winning goal or rambunctious behavior. A team from FBi Buildings was raising the roof of a 60-by-200-foot barn for Everett Hauert.

Hello from Graze-N-Grow. Well, it seems Elton and I missed our deadline last month. I don’t know his excuse, but mine was forgetfulness. I wasn’t really idle, though.

I was just having so much fun with the minus-15 temperatures and 20 mph winds last month that I just forgot to write an article. Well, the last part is true. Things have been mundane around here — unroll hay, break ice and fill water tanks.