220310-mk4
Article
March 10 2022
We are at the end of the winter, and soon it will be time to start harvesting winter grass forages for silage. Recently, I have been asked whether grass and legume mixtures ensile well
220310-mk1
Article
March 10 2022
A record 8.7 million units of beef semen was sold to U.S. dairy farmers and cattle ranchers last year. That was up 21% over the previous year’s 7.2 million units
220307-mk5
Article
March 7 2022
Ask someone about how farm milk is marketed, and you’ll probably hear something about cooperatives and Federal Milk Marketing Orders
220307-mk3
Article
March 7 2022
The phrase “carbon markets” gets tossed around often during conversations about sustainability and agriculture, but how many people truly know what a carbon market is
220307-mk2
Article
March 7 2022
The height of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 and the photos of milk being dumped that splashed across headlines pushed base excess plans imposed by cooperatives to a prominent place
HDNotebook_MollySchmitt_03022022_02 copy
Blog
March 4 2022
Whether playing music on the radio during milking or humming tunes to cows while training them, smooth melodies help keep our cows (and ourselves) calm
Screen Shot 2022-02-28 at 3.31.33 PM
Article
March 1 2022
Early lactation is widely regarded as both the most precarious and the most rewarding time in the lactation cycle for dairy cows
Marilyn-Hershey-pic
Article
March 1 2022
I recently had the opportunity to judge the extemporaneous speaking contest at the Pennsylvania Junior Holstein Club annual convention
156-Winter-housing-cow-with-calf
Article
March 1 2022
Separating a dairy calf from its dam shortly after birth is a standard farm practice. For years, this has been considered safer and healthier for animals and people
153-HandyHint-002-robot-teaching-positioner
Article
March 1 2022
When training calves to drink at our automatic feeders, it is difficult to keep them inside the stall. We took an iron pipe and welded two rods on both sides so it doesn’t slip out
220228-mk2
Article
Feb. 28 2022
With milk futures prices nearing or at record highs, it’d be easy to sit back and enjoy a solid year that dairy farmers have long waited for
220221_ph4
Article
Feb. 21 2022
Dairy product exports have garnered many headlines in recent years. It was well-deserved attention, as the U.S. has shown tremendous growth as a collective dairy community
220221_ph1
Article
Feb. 21 2022
In a typical year, high moisture corn and corn silage would be feeding to nearly its full potential by this time in the calendar year. This year is different
220219_HDN_MS
Blog
Feb. 18 2022
Everything farming-related seems to fall within a cycle of tasks, and there’s a blurred line between getting caught up, being ahead, or falling behind
220217_HDN_CR
Blog
Feb. 17 2022
Heat detection on our farm got more technical yet simpler over time
220214-mk5
Article
Feb. 14 2022
Why do restaurants in the pizza, burger, and sandwich sector matter so much to dairy farmers? They are key partners in marketing an immense volume of cheese
220214-mk3
Article
Feb. 14 2022
The flurry of attention around animal rights-driven legislation that began with last summer’s attempts in Colorado and Oregon to limit common farm practices has stretched into 2022
220214-mk2
Article
Feb. 14 2022
About 50 years ago, a Cornell University dairy nutritionist made the statement, “The best corn grain hybrid is the best silage hybrid.”
220210-mk1
Article
Feb. 10 2022
“The commodity market is bringing a lot of money into the ag markets,” shared Sarina Sharp at the winter gathering of the Wisconsin Association of Dairy Plant Field Representatives
MCO-2web
Article
Feb. 10 2022
This year is shaping up to be a good year for milk prices. Milk production has dropped below levels from a year ago in four of the five major dairy exporting regions