Western Nebraska Observer - Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First

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...

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,...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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,...

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...

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...

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 t...

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... Full story

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...

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... Full story

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...

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 Wes...

‘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 cer...

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...

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...

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...

When Pop Walker sneaked out the kitchen door the other day, it affected all of us. He’s been a resident of the Rest of Your Life retirement home for several years now. He still remembers who said what during combat in Europe, but has a hard time re...

In the past couple of articles I’ve talked about how we have added diversity into our cropping rotations to diversify markets and improve soil health. We have added field peas into our dry land cropping rotation which has allowed us to diversify ou...

Todd Parsons, a well known Kimball County farmer/rancher was re-elected to the Kimball County Farm Service Agency (FSA) Committee for a three year term by the voters of the Bushnell Local Administrative Area (LAA) on December 5, 2012. Parsons will...

In the wake of a series of regional drought conferences with farmers, ranchers, business owners and other stakeholders, USDA is entering into a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Commerce, including the National Oceanic and...