Equipping farmers to build resilient farms and communities. | | |
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We are excited to announce the launch of our new Produce Safety Cost-Share for fruit and vegetable farmers seeking to make on-farm food safety improvements.
By directly investing in farmers, PFI's goal is to open more markets to more farmers in Iowa. Learn more on our Produce Safety Cost-Share webpage.
Applications are due by Dec. 15.
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With input costs rising and cutting into your farm’s profits, it’s time to look at reducing your reliance on purchased inputs.
With support from our staff and a yield warranty, PFI can help you reduce nitrogen applications on your farm – saving you money and increasing your farm’s resiliency.
Eligibility is broad! You can apply if this is your first time reducing nitrogen, OR if you've done so previously. Apply today and start saving money!
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Dick Sloan has been evaluating his use of insecticide seed treatments for soybeans in on-farm trials and has found no improvement in yield or financial returns compared with untreated soybean seed.
Now he's focused his attention on different corn seed treatments. One key finding revealed that the fungicide-only treatment, the least expensive of the three trialed, provided top net returns over the other two treatments by nearly $4 per acre. Read the full report.
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Sam and Danielle Bennett live in Galva, Iowa, where they raise corn, soybeans and small grains.
Inspired by fellow PFI member and cooperator Dick Sloan's on-farm research, they wanted to see if their seed treatments were valuable for early planting.
Read about what they learned in their on-farm trial.
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Drawn to the taste and ease of growing honeyberries, Jeff and Deb Sindelar of Deb's Berry Farm near Newhall, Iowa, have become vocal champions for this little-known and hard-to-define berry.
What's a honeyberry? “Honeyberries are similar to, yet very different from, blueberries,” Jeff says. “They have kind of a general berry flavor, but with a kick. They have a little bit of a zing.”
Read more about the kick that honeyberries carry in our autumn magazine article.
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Practical Farmers of Iowa is excited to continue to grow its staff! In November, we welcomed Erin Carpenter as our new Green Iowa AmeriCorps member, as well as two new field crop viability coordinators: Chelsea Ferrie and Morgan Jennings.
Learn more about Erin, Chelsea and Morgan, and how they'll be supporting PFI's mission, vision and values.
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Dec. 2 | Noon-1 p.m. | Zoom or call-in
Hear from Keith Gorham as he shares his experiences growing and feeding small grains to his livestock.
In 2016, Keith started growing small grains like wheat, rye and triticale for on-farm use. He raises cattle, pigs and some hobby goats and chickens. He also plants diverse cover crop mixes that the cattle graze in the fall and spring.
Learn more about Keith’s operation and how he uses small grains.
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Are you already a member of PFI and want to help grow our network and impact? Do you have a neighbor or friend who is aware of PFI but has never been a member? Give them the gift of a PFI membership – a gift of farming resources and community.
It’s easy: Just click the button below or go to our website and fill out the gift membership link, and we’ll take care of the rest!
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Ron Rosmann of Harlan, IA, Bryce Irlbeck of Manning, IA, and Sarah Nizzi of Boone, IA, were featured on Iowa Public Radio's "Talk of Iowa": Farmers find improved profitability with switch to organic
Seth Watkins of Clarinda, IA, Wendy Johnson of Charles City, IA, and Matt Russell of Lacona, IA, were featured in The Valley News: National FSA administrator tours Clarinda
Seth Watkins of Clarinda, IA, was on the EDF and Two Degrees Adapt panel at the World Food Prize 2022: Can we climate-proof U.S. agriculture?
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Have you been featured in the media? If you're a PFI member, tell us when and where to find a link to the article, and we'll feature you in a future issue of Practical News.
Contact: rachel.burke@practicalfarmers.org
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