Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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Brookside Farm is a half mile north of Kimball and sits on the banks of Lodgepole Creek. It's much more than a picture perfect setting. The farm, also known as the Gridley-Howe-Faden-Atkins Farmstead, was listed in 1997 on the National Register of Historic Places. The description on its registration form for that distinction states that "the property illustrates an historically typical farmstead evolution in Nebraska. The farmstead is a rare and well-preserved collection of buildings and...
"Hey, why don't you come to this sorting event with me? I think you will get a kick out of it," Frank Stauffer asked Trish Lukassen, who has since become his ranch sorting teammate. Although she had never watched the event, Trish didn't just show up. She took her horse and participated – and the rest is history. The Lukassen/Stauffer team from Kimball has been ranch sorting since 2015 together. "It took us a long time to learn to ride together right," Lukassen said. "We were so afraid we were g...
Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Executive Director, Dan Steinkruger, announced 17 counties have been designated as contiguous natural disaster areas due to the ongoing drought affecting Colorado, Kansas and Missouri. Those counties are: Contiguous to Colorado: Chase, Cheyenne, Deuel, Dundy, Keith, Kimball, Perkins Contiguous to Kansas: Dundy, Franklin, Furnas, Harlan, Hitchcock, Nuckolls, Red Willow, Webster Contiguous to Missouri: Nemaha, Otoe, Richardson These counties were declared a Secretarial Disaster on January 9, based on their...
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a new microloan program from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) designed to help small and family operations, beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers secure loans under $35,000. The new microloan program is aimed at bolstering the progress of producers through their start-up years by providing needed resources and helping to increase equity so that farmers may eventually graduate to commercial credit and expand their operations. The microloan program will also provide a less burdensome,...
The Nebraska FFA Foundation, along with corporate sponsors and county Farm Bureaus, are working together to provide extra incentives to raise funds for local FFA chapters. This year, $20,000 in matching funds will be distributed to chapters, proportionate to the percentage of dollars raised. The funds will be used for innovative classroom projects, leadership training, community service events and educational trips by the Kimball and Banner County FFA chapters. This year families, friends and businesses are invited to participate in donating...
Farm Service Agency (FSA) Kimball County Office announced that family farmers in seven counties in Nebraska are eligible to apply for low interest Farm Service Agency (FSA) Emergency (EM) loans due to physical and production losses caused by drought that occurred on November 1, 2012 and continuing. Those seven counties are: Kimball, Cheyenne, Chase, Deuel, Dundy, Keith and Perkins These seven Nebraska counties became eligible for this assistance because they are contiguous to the 30 Colorado counties that were designated on January 9 by the...
Kimball’s Ag Sales team took first and the Floral Design team finished second at the January 9 Career Development Events competition held in Scottsbluff. The Ag Sales team consisted of Brian Evertson, Colton Snyder, Tessa Shaw and Jessica Fossand. Kayla Lukassen, Kayla Schonemann, Dalton Luppen, Dakota Randles,and Arica McCloud made up the Floral Design team. Kimball FFA students also participated in Livestock Management and Welding. The chapter had several individual high performances. As t...
Pam and I were having a deep discussion on cow psychology. Subjects such as horn envy, chuteaphobia, the empty nest syndrome at weaning time and unsightly hair on udders. Then she brought up a subject that I have wondered about myself, even as a cross-species problem; females working together in a tight community. We all know the tension that occurs when you put a new mare into the herd, or buy a new blue heeler bitch and bring her home to meet the other dogs, or put six mothers of second-graders in a small room with the objective of picking...
When it’s cold, build a fire in the fireplace, or the woodburning heater, or maybe just light a candle and look in the flames, look deep in the flames for the answers. I’ve always believed they are there, and this time of year is a time for questions. It is a time to weigh the events of the past year and toss them around and ask why. It has been a good year for each of us in some respects, and a bad year in others. Just like every year. A few of our young people died this year. Others were born. Some precious old-timers left us, too, but at...
There are several educational meetings scheduled for January and February, 2013 that producers in our area should plan to attend. I’ve been going to no till crop production meetings for over 20 years and I have always felt that attending as many of these meetings as possible has always been time well spent. These educational meetings are a great way to meet and visit with other producers about their no till crop production practices. These meetings always include speakers that cover a variety of topics on soil health, economics, crop p...
Nebraska Cattlemen, in partnering with Sand County Foundation and Cargill, is seeking nominations for the 2013 Leopold Conservation Award in Nebraska. The winner of the award will receive an Aldo Leopold crystal and a check for $10,000. The Leopold Conservation Award recognizes Nebraska landowners who demonstrate outstanding stewardship and use sustainable management when working with the natural resources that are in their care. The Leopold Conservation Award is presented in honor of famed conservationist and author Aldo Leopold who called...
Private pesticide applicators with licenses expiring in 2013, and anyone seeking first-time private applicator certification, should plan to attend upcoming training sessions scheduled throughout western Nebraska beginning in January. Dates, locations and contact information: •Harrisburg: January 24, 1 p.m., Banner County Museum; call 308-235-3122 •Sidney: January 22, 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., Sidney, Holiday Inn; call 308-254-4455. •Kimball: February 6, 1 p.m., 4-H Building; call 308-235-3122. To reserve space for each session, or for more infor...
Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Executive Director, Dan Steinkruger, announced that the agency has implemented some changes regarding issuing IRS Form 1099-G and 1099-MISC for payments issued in 2012. FSA will no longer issue IRS Form 1099-G and/or 1099-MISC if a producer’s total reportable payments are less than $600. In addition, FSA will only issue one IRS Form 1099-G and/or 1099-MISC for producers participating in multiple counties. Producers receiving reportable payments that total $600 or more before withholdings were applied are still b...
Grandpa Tommy was reminiscing, “It’s a shame everybody couldn’t go through the Great Depression.” I know what he meant. I think. He didn’t mean it like “It’s a shame everybody hadn’t been in a concentration camp or had polio.” He was remarking that most of us Baby Boomers and younger are unable to appreciate how technology has pampered us. There was no safety net back then. Grandpa Tommy spent the Dirty 30s in the depths of the Dust Bowl in Syracuse, Kansas. Then the first half of the 40s he was on a Navy vessel in the Pacific. He passe...
Annette George, owner of the Soup ‘R Market, picked up the list of her New Year’s resolutions: 1. Replace cracked glass on the meat cooler. 2. Walk two miles each morning before work. 3. Lose 15 pounds by summer. 4. Take a class in Spanish. She thought about the kind of person she’d be at this time next year with all those things done, and it made her smile. Then she looked out the window at the snow and crossed off number two. “Each morning” was just too…too, inflexible. It’s always best, she thought to make promises you can keep. Annette tapp...
As 2012 winds down I thought a little reflecting back would be a good thing to do. Sometimes it helps to look back on your successes that you were a part of over the past year and take a hard look at your failures to keep you humble and to continue the never ending learning process. Continuing education is important in every business and agriculture is no exception. I feel it is very important to be flexible in your decision making and embrace the changes that are inevitable. Mother Nature really threw agriculture a nasty curve this past year....
The Nebraska Forest Service announces the 2013 Western Tree Care Workshops in Chadron, Scottsbluff, Sidney, Valentine, North Platte, and McCook in January. These full-day workshops will address some of the challenges associated with growing trees and other landscape plants in Nebraska, with specific emphasis on dealing with the drought’s effects on trees and shrubs. “This year’s drought leaves many wondering how best to care for their trees,” said Laurie Stepanek, Forest Health Assistant for the Nebraska Forest Service. “While drought c...
The dry conditions that began in May and then escalated into a drought of historic proportions is the state’s top agriculture story of 2012, Nebraska Farm Bureau said in releasing its annual list of the Top 5 Nebraska Agriculture News Stories of the Year. “The drought has gripped Nebraska from border-to-border and every farmer and rancher in the state has been impacted in some form or fashion,” said Steve Nelson, Nebraska Farm Bureau president. “It was and is still clearly on the minds of our members as they look at the prospect of continu...
Nebraska Farm Bureau’s voting delegates reiterated their support for efforts to reform Nebraska’s tax system as a means to provide tax relief and help enhance Nebraska’s economic competitiveness. Property tax relief was chief among concerns discussed by delegates to the Nebraska Farm Bureau Convention held December 3-4, in Kearney. “When it comes to funding for schools, roads and other local infrastructure funded through property taxes, Nebraska farmers and ranchers continue to carry a disproportionate share of the property tax load in rural a...
We started out the year in Pasadena riding in the Rose Parade as part of RFD-TV’s 100 Palominos entry. I came home with flowers in my hair! It was one of five speaking programs I did (out of 65 in 2012) that were in California. The National Western Stock Show in Denver has been a big part of our lives for years. I see a lot of friends walking the barns and signing books and often do a program somewhere in town. We lived in Colorado for many years before moving to Arizona. January-February also included two events I never miss, the Cowboy P...
‘Twas the morning after Christmas, and all through the Mule Barn truck stop’s philosophy counter … “Happy Boxing Day!” said Herb, settling in and flipping his cup to the upright and fillable position. “Boxing Day?” said Steve. “It certainly is,” Herb said. He’s like that … a lot. We looked at each other. Doc put down the crossword puzzle he was working on. “You think there’ll ever be another Mohammed Ali?” said Dud. “The best,” Doc said. “How about Sugar Ray Robinson?” Steve said. “A toast to the great ones!” Cups were raised. “Guys?” said Herb...
I hope everyone is able to spend the holidays with friends and family spreading good cheer throughout our region. We have the results of our cover crop biomass sampling back and the cover crops performed about like we thought they would. I think we could justify the cost of planting the cover crops with the benefits we’ll see from producing them, but I do have some concerns with producing cover crops. Our sampling from the cover crop field showed some interesting results. We sampled a square yard of the field that we felt was pretty c...
Fruit and vegetable growers, both large and small, are becoming increasingly aware of the food safety issues related to field-grown produce, and the importance of food safety to consumers. The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, signed into law in 2011, enhances the traceability of fresh produce grown in the United States, and creates greater responsibility for food safety to producers. The bill requires producers to evaluate hazards to their products, take steps to prevent contamination and to develop written food safety plans. The University...
Moustaches have become de rigueur in certain lifestyle choices; mountain men, Arctic explorers, Fu Man Chu-ists, carnival acts like the bearded lady and cowboy poets. As we know, if something becomes popular, the government soon tries to get involved. A word about moustache safety and maintenance; HAPHAZARD! There are really no official rules, no regulations passed down by the Department of Sanitation or Landscaping or Aerodynamics. But I suppose one might encounter moustache restrictions for certain jobs like wine tasting, orthodontry, or...