News stories tagged with "crops"

(08/17/10) Some farmers in the Northeast are in the midst of an experiment in energy independence: They're growing crops that produce the fuel to run their tractors and equipment. As part of a collaboration with Northeast stations, Vermont Public Radio's Susan Keese reports. more

(08/21/07) Severe storms last Thursday knocked out power to thousands of people across the North Country and Vermont. Strong winds downed trees and power lines, even blew over a tractor-trailer on the Adirondack Northway. The fast-moving storms also produced hail which hit some area farm fields hard. Damage to crops was severe in the Beekmantown area. Clinton counties cooperative Extension is holding an emergency meeting today at noon to talk about what farmers can do to salvage as much of their harvest as possible. Field corn, hay and soybeans will be the focus. The meeting will be held at the Bill Atwood farm on the corner of Burke and Pardy roads. Martha Foley talks with horticulturist Amy Ivy about today's meeting.

(06/14/07) Carbon dioxide emissions from our cars and factories are the number one cause of global warming. Scientists have long theorized that more of the gas in the atmosphere could actually help farmers grow bigger plants. But new research from America's Breadbasket is challenging that assumption. David Sommerstein reports.

(06/01/07) Federal farmland conservation program have saved water, soil and wildlife through simple set-asides. That's when farmers get paid to take some cropland out of production. It protects waterways and provides wildlife habitat. It makes sense for the soil, too. But, in the second of our two-part series on ethanol, Julie Grant reports that as demand for corn and soybeans for ethanol production grows, farmland conservation is taking a back seat.

(05/11/07) For years, researchers studying the effects of climate change on agriculture have focused on two big issues: the availability of water and the impact of increasing carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere. Carbon dioxide released from our cars and factories is the number one cause of global warming. But scientists have long theorized that more of the gas in the atmosphere could actually help grow bigger plants. New research is challenging that assumption. David Sommerstein went to the breadbasket in Illinois to learn more.

(04/07/06) The mild winter weather and early spring meant some North Country farmers got a jump start on field work. Pete Barney, agronomist with Cornell Cooperative Extension in St. Lawrence County, says most farmers welcomed the chance to break ground earlier than usual. He spoke with Todd Moe.

(12/12/03) Martha Foley and agronomist Peter Barney look back over the year farmers had in 2003.

(03/04/03) A new study published in the Journal of the National Institutes of Environmental Health Science finds that children who eat organically grown fruits and vegetables appear to have less exposure to pesticides. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium's Mark Urycki has details.

(02/25/03) Genetically modified crops are planted throughout the Midwest. But some scientists are concerned genes from these crops could escape and work their way into weedy plants. With these genes, weeds could become more vigorous and harder to kill. New research shows this can happen between closely related crops and weeds. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium's Cristina Rumbaitis-del Rio prepared this report.

(08/28/02) Martha Foley talks with Pete Barney, agronomist with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Canton, about the challenges of farming in the North Country this summer.