Field Notes July 2022

As warm as the weather’s been, any excuse to sit in the shade is welcome. How about seeing how USDA programs can help your farm or ranch’s balance sheet pencil out?

One new one helps specialty crop operations pay food safety certification costs. Others pay both farmers and ranchers for adopting conservation practices. Some pay even more than before – but the deadline to apply for one, the newest, a pilot program called CLEAR30, is August 5.

Saving your outdoor activities for nighttime hours is another trick for beating the heat. What better time to go moth-ing? Maybe that’s why National Moth Week is scheduled this month. It’s a great opportunity to get better acquainted with these under-appreciated insects.

One heat-loving crop is sorghum, and one sorghum-loving pest is sugarcane aphid. David Redhage shares some recent news about sweet sorghum varieties with resistance to this insect.

Please join us in wishing the very best to Liz Speake, who’s retiring this month after a long career with the Kerr Center.