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  Farmers, starting in 2025, will get paid for corn delivered to ethanol plants based on a carbon intensity score (CIS). This is part of the Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (BIRA) which has to do with trying to reduce climate change impacts. The BIRA program starts in January 2025 and runs for 3 years. Farms with a lower CSI may get higher premiums while farms with higher CSI may not even be able to sell their corn to an ethanol plant. Farmer’s need to start planning, collecting data, and even change some farming practices to lower their CSI if they want to take advantage of the program. BIRA pays ethanol plants and biofuel companies (biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuels) to collect the data and they are the ones that get paid the tax incentives and tax credits. According to Mike Estadt, OSU Extension Educator, “The government decided it was easier to work with close to 100 ethanol plants and pay them to conduct the program then to try to collect data from 100,000 farmers.” Mik...

The world of agriculture is changing quickly with all the new technology. Artificial intelligence (AI); automated planting, spraying, and harvesting; and nutrient management are all being incorporated into farming operations to increase efficiency and yields. This article will focus on changes in nutrient management. Plant nutrition impacts yield and the quality of our food supply and impacts pests (weeds, insects, disease). Most farmers have insufficient data for the immediate nutrient needs of a plant, leading to fertilizer misapplication and significant challenges in fruit and grain quality. Good plant nutrition at the right time improves plant health, soil health and also reduces issues with pests. Extensive research has established the link between disease susceptibility and specific nutritional imbalances associated with each disease. By managing a crop’s nutritional needs, it is possible to significantly reduce or even eliminate pest susceptibility, however, farmers need to meas...

  This revised article comes from Larry Tombaugh (2023). So, what's the big deal about humates? Humates reconditioned the soil around Chernobyl after the nuclear reactor had a melt-down. Humates give us fulvic acid which is used to treat medical patients more effectively. Humates have a CEC (cation exchange capacity) of over 600, contains 65 micronutrients, and has both positive and negative sites. So, humates are a great soil conditioner and plant biome facilitator! Humates are a big deal! A teaspoonful of dry humic eaten about 4 or 5 times a week will feed your gut microbes (over 8,000 bacteria and fungi strains in a healthy gut). Humates is a broad term for the carbon-based product formed after the Ice Age all around the world. Potency depends on the amounts of Humic and Fulvic acid. Russia claims about 75%, New Mexico and North Dakota 80% and Canada about 85%. Where the ore was formed determines its purity. The reason Canadian ore is superior is because it was formed from 30-fo...

  Every two years, Ohio State conducts a survey of farmers on cropland values and cash rent. Barry Ward, OSU Economist conducts this survey of professionals including ag business, farm managers, farmers, rural appraisers, and ag lenders. Western Ohio cropland values and rental rates are significantly different than the eastern and southern values. The type of soil, fertility, productivity, and generally higher returns result in higher prices in Western Ohio. Also, larger squarer fields, flatter soils, and access to crop markets add value to the cropland and to rental rates. In 2022-2023, Barry Ward surveyed 190 participants and the results were just released in August 2023. The numbers are reported for top, average, and bottom farmland with only the average farmland and cash rent values reported. For all of Western Ohio, average producing cropland produced 185.3 bushels corn per acre and had a projected value of $9,672/acre in 2022 with a projected value of $10,329/acre in 2023 for...