Corn grown following alfalfa stands that are 2 years and older (and contained at least 50% alfalfa) require no nitrogen (N) fertilizer on many soils. Red clover N credits are less than for alfalfa.

The Census of Agriculture is designed to be a complete count of U.S. farms, ranches and operators. The agency defines a farm as anywhere $1,000 or more of fruit, vegetables or food animals are raised or sold.

Iowa State University is hosting 3 field days in April in northeast Iowa as part of a research project demonstrating the use of winter annuals for spring grazing.

One way farmers can keep track of soil temperature in Iowa is by using the soil temperatures map compiled by the Iowa Environmental Mesonet at Iowa State University. Updated daily in the spring, this map provides current and historical soil temperatures for each county in Iowa.

The carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio of the cover crop determines the durability of the cover crop residue.

Nitrogen fertilizer prices are high and likely will go higher due to repercussions from the Ukraine-Russia conflict. Researchers at the University of Illinois trace the evolution of nitrogen price increases, making the case that increases up until recent months resulted from responses to the COVID pandemic, general price inflation and policies in Europe to move away from fossil fuels. 

The Wetlands Initiative and Ducks Unlimited have combined resources to help Illinois farmers install "Smart Wetlands" to combat the Gulf of Mexico’s hypoxia zone – an area of oxygen-depleted water covering more than 5,000 square miles at the Mississippi River Delta.