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Fall Fertilizer Advice for Farmers Information for this article was taken from the Fertilizer Guidelines for Montana Crops (EB161), which is available at the Chouteau County Extension office. •MSU Extension has an on-line tool designed to assist producers in determining the optimal N rate. The online tool can be found at www.sarc.montana.edu/AgTools/soiltest. •Fall soil tests can lead to over or under fertilized fields because soil nitrate can increase or decrease from November to April. •The historical average available N rate guideline at 2%...
Horticultural Advice for August Below are some rules of thumb when tending vegetables, lawns, flowers and trees during the month of August. •Renovate strawberries by mowing a minimum of every three years. Some people mow their strawberries every year following fruit production. Be sure to set the mower high enough to mow the leaves. Mowing too low may damage the crowns and kill the plant. •Topdress strawberries after harvest with a complete fertilizer like 16-16-16. •Pinch the tops of indeterminate tomatoes and reduce watering to promote ripen...
Beat the Heat: Protecting Cattle During Summer Heat Stress This article was written by Paul Beck, Oklahoma State University Extension Beef Nutrition Specialist. Summer heat stress reduces cattle performance, reproductive efficiency and animal welfare. Extreme heat stress may result in death. Heat stress is not determined by temperature alone. Humidity, direct sunlight, wind speed and the amount of nighttime cooling all influence the heat load cattle must manage. Cattle accumulate heat during the day and normally release much of it overnight....
By Kelsey Jencso Record-breaking January and February temperatures, early snowmelt, thawed soils across the plains, rain-on-snow flooding, and earlier-than-normal streamflow peaks have producers, water managers, and firefighters concerned about the rest of the year. Their concerns highlight an important gap between what we know with high confidence about Montana’s changing climate and what we can predict in any given season. The current US Drought Monitor shows approximately 86% of Montana in d...
A Special Thanks in Advance to our Chouteau County 4-H Fair Superintendents 4-H, the nation’s largest youth development organization, grows confident young people who are empowered for life today and prepared for a career tomorrow. 4-H programs help develop nearly six million young people across the U.S. through experiences that develop critical life skills. 4-H is the youth development program of our nation’s Cooperative Extension System and USDA. Cooperative Extension serves every county and reservation in the U.S. through a network of 110...
In the early days of the Soviet revolution, the Bolsheviks persecuted the Russian Orthodox Church. They shut down and destroyed churches, sent priests to gulags, and decreased the total number of operating churches from tens of thousands to a couple hundred. The remaining churches mainly continued to exist because they were remote and rural, thus difficult to keep closed. In the early days of WW2, a strange thing took place. In the face of repeated defeats at the hands of the Germans, Stalin revived the Russian church. He allowed its...
Top Yielding Winter Wheat Varieties for Chouteau County MSU Agricultural Research Centers have one test plot for winter wheat in Chouteau County which is managed by MSU Northern Agricultural Research Center (NARC) north of Loma. A special thanks to Peggy Lamb (NARC agronomist) for establishing and maintaining the Chouteau County test plot. The Extension office would also like to thank the McKeever family for donating the use of their land for MSU research. NARC (Loma area) top three yielding winter wheat varieties (10-year average yield) from 2...
Managing Nuisance Ants in and Around the Home Information for this article was written by Patrick Beauzay, NDSU Entomologist. Foraging worker ants sometimes enter homes in search of food, and if they find an indoor food source, the workers will leave chemical trails for other workers to follow. Food found either indoors or outdoors is carried to the nest to feed the colony. This behavior makes the use of ant baits an effective control measure. To keep ants from entering the home, make sure the kitchen is clean and no attractive food, like a...
By Your Accidental Journalist As Independence Day approaches, the sights and sounds of fireworks once again become part of summer in Montana. Fireworks are a long-standing tradition that help us celebrate our nation’s birthday, but they also bring responsibility. Whether you’re lighting fireworks in town, out on the prairie, or gathering with friends and family for a backyard celebration, a little courtesy and safety awareness can go a long way toward ensuring everyone enjoys the holiday. While fireworks can be exciting for children and adu...
GREAT FALLS, Mont., June 17, 2026 — Montana wildfire season is here, and the American Red Cross is urging families to take simple steps now to protect themselves and their loved ones. “Wildfires move fast and can leave little time to get to safety,” said Scott O’Connell, regional disaster officer for the Red Cross of Montana, Idaho and East Oregon. “Make sure you have an evacuation plan and practice it with everyone in your household. Taking a few simple steps today can make all the difference t...
Hailed Out and Emerged Volunteer Wheat Should be Sprayed Immediately after Harvest Information for this article was compiled from a Kansas State University Press Release in 2016. Producers often wait several weeks after harvest before making their first herbicide application to control volunteer wheat,” said Dallas Peterson, K-State Research and Extension Weed Management Specialist. “This allows as much volunteer as possible to emerge before spraying it or tilling it the first time. Often, a second application or tillage operation will be neede...
From Northern Montana Health Care People having trouble sleeping or having issues like daytime drowsiness may be suffering from a common and potentially serious condition called sleep apnea – and a lab right in Havre can diagnose and find treatment for it. The Hi-Line Sleep Disorders Center at Northern Montana Health Care is an American Academy of Sleep Medicine-certified laboratory that can find out if people have sleep apnea or other sleep disorders, giving a report to their doctor to prescribe the best treatment to try to solve the p...
New World Screwworm Confirmation: The Bad and the Good News Article was written by Derrell S. Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist. For many months producers and markets have operated under the threat of New World Screwworm (NWS) coming into the U.S. Now that it’s here, we can get on with the reality of dealing with it. The bad news is that NWS will be costly and a management headache for affected producers and those nearby, along with industry and agency folks tasked with controlling and eradicating the p...
By Your Accidental Journalist After months of dry conditions and growing concern about drought across the Big Sandy area, residents were greeted with a welcome change over the weekend as widespread rainfall soaked fields, filled reservoirs, and replenished creeks throughout the region. Reports from around Big Sandy, the surrounding prairie, and the Bear Paw Mountains indicate that many locations received between three and four inches of rain during the three-day weather event. Even more...
EARLY SEASON FUNGICIDE ON WHEAT Information for this article was written by Andrew Friskop from NDSU Extension Plant Pathology. The complete article is located at https://bit.ly/4vm5mHP. Cereal crops residue-borne diseases such as tan spot and Stagonospora nodorum blotch (SNB) are the primary targets for early-season fungicide application. Tan spot is more common than SNB in North Dakota (ND), but both diseases have shown a downward trend in prevalence in ND wheat fields over the past eight years. This can be largely attributed to the use of ma...
Mulching is a Must for Lawn and Garden Landscapes During the Hot Summer This article was written by Ron C. Smith, NDSU Extension Horticulturalist (Retired). The single most serious problem with ornamental plants in the Northern Plains region is not a disease, insect or mite problem; it is environmental stress. Stress affects plant material in direct and indirect ways. It can cause damage directly and weaken the plants to the point where they are vulnerable to insect and disease attack. Stress is a problem in the Plains region because we, in our...
Rudi, Roadways and Rural Responsibility Rudi, my 3-year-old wonderful German Shepherd, and I have a quarterly project. We take a garbage bag while walking to collect garbage. We live in rural Yellowstone County, Montana. We’ve done this for the past couple of years and “patrol” a 3-mile stretch (a 1 ½ out-and-back route on both sides). This past weekend we also walked the next half-mile stretch on both sides. Unfortunately, there is never a lack of things to collect, especially aluminum cans, plastic water bottles, cigarette butts, food wrapper...
The Sunshine Snippers 4-H Club would like to say a big thank you to Montana Farmers Union for awarding our club a $100 Sentence Grant. Montana Farmers Union is a nonprofit organization that started as a grassroots movement and works to support family farms, ranches, and rural communities. We are very thankful for their investment in 4-H youth like us. Our club is excited to use this money for team-building and leadership activities. Opportunities like this help us learn new skills, build confidence, and work better together as a team. These...
The Risks of Hauling Pregnant Cows is Greatest in First Trimester The following article was written by Chevy-Lynn Vaske, Kansas State Extension Service. Transporting pregnant cows may seem routine, but timing and management decisions can have significant impacts on the success of the herd, according to experts from the Kansas State University Beef Cattle Institute. During a recent episode of the BCI Cattle Chat podcast, veterinarians and beef cattle experts emphasized that moving pregnant cattle requires careful consideration to avoid...
Looking Up and Slowing Down As I was scrolling through today’s news, an article intrigued me enough to click and read more. The International Space Station (ISS) has been in orbit for more than 25 years. It orbits the Earth once every 90 minutes, and the crew sees 16 sunrises and sunsets every day. I learned that the ISS is often visible to us Earthlings as it speeds overhead at 17,500 miles per hour. I also learned the “Spot the Station” app is available that tells exactly where in the sky the ISS will appear and how high in the sky it will...
Thirteenth Annual Chouteau County Agriculture Day for 4th and 5th Graders (Reprint to add photos) The thirteenth annual Chouteau County Ag Day for 4th and 5th graders will take place at the Chouteau County Fairgrounds on May 5, 2026. All 4th and 5th graders in Chouteau County are invited to attend. Home school kids who are interested in participating need to contact the Chouteau County Extension Office at 622-3751. Youth will learn why agriculture is important to their health, home and...
Summer MSU Agricultural Field Days in the Golden Triangle The Montana State University College of Agriculture and Montana Agricultural Experiment Stations will once again host a series of field days at Havre, Moccasin, and Conrad. “We look forward to our field days every year because of the opportunities they create to interact and share research results with agricultural producers and friends around Montana,” said Sreekala Bajwa, director of the Montana Agricultural Experiment Stations and the College’s dean. “Getting to share and receive...
Big Sandy Medical Center is moving forward with a renewed focus on stability, continuity and community-centered care, according to Interim CEO Carissa Bergren, who said her priority is to build on the strengths already in place while guiding the organization through a thoughtful period of transition. Bergren brings more than 20 years of healthcare leadership experience to the role, including leading teams and managing operations across multiple states. At the same time, she brings something more personal to the position: deep local roots and a...
Alfalfa Weevil Information for this article was compiled by Dr. Kevin Wanner, previous MSU Extension Entomologist and Dr. Emily Glunk, previous MSU Extension Forage Specialist. Alfalfa weevil is the key insect pest of alfalfa, causing variable levels of economic damage across Montana. Females lay eggs in alfalfa stems. Larvae hatch and crawl up to developing terminal buds where they chew small “pin” holes in the leaves. Larvae develop through four instar stages. Larger 3rd and 4th instar larvae feed openly on unfurled leaves and cause the lar...
More Good Days, Together As I sit at my kitchen table and look at the snow flurry-filled gray sky, I can’t help but think about last weekend when temperatures were hovering around eighty degrees and I spent most of the weekend doing yard work. It was too warm for this time of the year, for sure, but the blue sky and the chirping birds and the upcoming gardening season made the time fly by. Pulling weeds didn’t seem like a chore, but more like a small treat in that it allowed or required me to be outside immersed in nature. Now as pumpkin sou...