An important component of managing weeds in field crops is preventing the seeds released by weeds each autumn from becoming new plants.

Waterfowl hunters should keep in mind that some fields are considered baited and off limits to waterfowl hunting.

Saturated soils proved to be a challenge for Iowa farmers this past spring.

Modified Relay Intercropping (MRI) is the planting of soybeans into headed wheat that may occur up to 7 weeks prior to wheat harvest.

With the global population expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, the world's farmers are going to need to produce a lot more food — but without using much more farmland, as the vast majority of the world's arable land is already being used for agriculture.

A naturally occurring fungus may prove useful in the fight against Palmer amaranth, an aggressive southern weed that can grow at the rate of two inches a day and outcompete corn, cotton, soybean and other crops for resources, potentially reducing their yields.

USDAs Natural Resources Conservation Service is partnering with farmers to establish 20 edge-of-field monitoring stations that will measure the benefits of conservation systems, including cover crops, nutrient management and irrigation water management.

Soil test samples can be pulled any time of the year when the ground is not frozen. Various experts advise to try to soil test at the same season of the year to have a more accurate trend line when you compare fertility levels over long periods of time.

Due to the cool and wet conditions, soybeans harvested late at this time will need to be dried either on the farm or at the elevator. Some elevators will accept soybeans up to 20 percent moisture while others will reject loads that are above 16 percent moisture. Contact your elevator prior to delivery.

Unlike corn, wheat and most other row crops grown in North America, soybean is able to obtain its own nitrogen (N) through the process of N fixation. N fixation is achieved through an intricate biological relationship between soybean and a particular species of soil bacteria, Bradyrhizobium japonicum. The bacteria obtain sugars from soybean to use as their energy source, and soybean obtains N from the bacteria.