Dairy Margin Coverage and Dairy Risk Management for 2025: “The dairy industry has a history of volatility in profits coming from both income (milk price and the beef market) and expenses (feed prices). Using multiple strategies to manage these risks in 2025 can help protect your operation from volatility. Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is one of these tools that allows producers to manage both milk price risk and feed cost risk together. This program allows producers to protect their operations from market fluctuations.” Risk management is an important aspect of any business, and the dairy industry in particular can experience volatility. One tool that can be used by dairy producers is Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) which is the primary topic of the article from OSU Extension Specialist Jason Hartschuh. Hartschuh discusses what DMC is, some finer details of how it works, and some other risk management tools that should also be considered. https://dairy.osu.edu/newsletter/buckeye-dairy-news/volume-27-issue-1/dairy-margin-coverage-and-dairy-risk-management-2025
Drone Activity Update: “Drones, or more accurately named Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), have helped provide new methods of pesticide applications and agronomic data collection to assist farmers with productivity and efficiency. Yet the possibility of unknown drones flying over a farm property can cause concerns. Recent conversations and sightings of drones in rural areas have producers raising questions such as “what can I do about suspicious drone activity” and “can I shoot down a drone over my property?” Federal and state laws provide answers to these questions. Here are several points farmers need to know about dealing with UAVs traveling over their properties.” If you, like many people, have had questions about the recent drone sightings, this article will provide good answers. Peggy Hall, Attorney and Director of the OSU Agricultural and Resource Law Program, provides great details on the current drone situation. Specifically, she provides some background information, discusses the legal requirements for drone usage, and shares the best ways to respond to a suspicious drone sighting. https://farmoffice.osu.edu/blog/property-owners-and-suspicious-drone-activity
New Box Tree Moth Factsheets: “We ended last season with box tree moth (BTM)… squarely on our radar. We know about infestations in two locations in Ohio, but we don’t know if there are any other BTM infestations elsewhere in our state. We learned that this non-native is only a potential boxwood killer. It can be managed.” The Box Tree Moth is not something we have yet experienced in Darke County, but it is an invasive pest that is important to be aware of due to its presence in Ohio. Three new factsheets are available through OSU Extension and are linked in the attached article. https://bygl.osu.edu/index.php/node/2455
Planning Spring Grazing Improvements: “It is hard to think about forages when your main concern is running around making sure there is thawed water for all the animals. But this can be a great time to think back to those ‘It sure would be nice if’ projects that came up throughout the year when you had no time to deal with them. Thanks to the drought conditions of 2024, one thought was likely ‘How can I get better productivity and utilization of my pasture?’” While pastures and forage production may not be the main thing beef producers are thinking about now, preparing pastures for spring will help to improve production. Fence repairs, pasture divisions, and other preparations can have great benefits when spring arrives. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2025/02/12/planning-spring-grazing-improvements/
Selecting Corn Hybrids for Disease Management: “Corn hybrid selection is critical to maximizing your cow’s production. When selecting hybrids, we usually consider factors like digestibility, energy, crude protein, milk per ton, and milk per acre. Foliar corn disease susceptibility is a critical factor to consider as it can affect both grain and forage quality, requiring a multi-prong approach to managing feed quality. Stalk and ear rots can be even more detrimental as they produce mycotoxins.” There are many factors to consider when selecting a corn hybrid, and one consideration is disease management. Learn more about this topic from this article from OSU Extension Specialist, Jason Hartschuh. He discusses impactful corn diseases, and how hybrid selection is one management tool that should be used. https://dairy.osu.edu/newsletter/buckeye-dairy-news/volume-27-issue-1/corn-hybrid-selection-disease-management