It takes a lot of knowledge to grow a lush, green, healthy lawn and beautiful, blooming flowers. For example, gardeners need to know when to plant, reseed, fertilize, mow, apply weed treatments and treat any diseases. Luckily technology has caught up with landscaping with these great apps specifically dedicated to helping both homeowners and professionals […]
Broomsedge, which is actually a native grass and not a sedge, has become more prevalent in many pastures in the eastern United States in recent years. This is undesirable, because this plant provides relatively little nutritional value to livestock. Even worse, it competes with desirable plants for nutrients, water, sunlight, and space. Reasons for Encroachment […]
When choosing a seed for your livestock’s forage-based diet, look no further than Prine. Ragan & Massey’s Prine™ Tetraploid is the most commercially available ryegrass variety developed by the outstanding University of Florida ryegrass breeding program. This high-yield, rust- and disease-resistant tetraploid variety withstands cold temperatures to improve forage yields.
Year after year meteorologists and farmers predict the upcoming winter will be worse than the last – and it turns out to be accurate most of the time! But no matter if the winter or extremely harsh or mild, it always poses a risk to your livestock. The best way to prepare for the worst […]
A winter pasture, full of annual forages such as small grains and annual ryegrass, benefits small farms with easy-to-grow, highly-nutritious forage while saving money, time and effort. It is no wonder that more and more farmers across the United States are adopting winter grazing habits for cattle, sheep, horses and goats. Planting a winter pasture […]
October 12 is National Farmer’s Day Fall has arrived. It’s the time of year when farmers may not necessarily be able to take a break, but at least they can take a breath and be proud of the hard work they’ve done all spring and summer. Fall is harvest time, when all the planting, the […]
First deemed as the perfect solution for erosion control, kudzu may now be the most hated word to gardeners and farmers in the southern United States. This plant, native to Japan, stretches and expands across pastures, fields and gardens, its vines smothering and choking everything in their path including native species, wild spaces and even […]
If you’ve accidentally gotten into poison ivy once, once is enough. This little plant’s oils, called urushiol, cause painful, itchy rashes that can last one to three weeks. While the rash itself isn’t contagious, poison ivy’s oils can take years to dissipate, so if it gets on clothes and gloves, it can cause multiple reactions. […]
I saw another dandelion yesterday. That makes 123 for the year, and it’s April.
Dear Driver, I see you up ahead, behind that slow-moving tractor on this otherwise desolate county road. You’re on your cell phone, likely complaining that you’re going to be late for Something Very Important because Some Idiot Farmer took the paved road to the field.
It’s been a long, cold winter, and we’re dreaming of spring in the most delicious ways. Whether you are prepping your spring garden or counting down until the opening day of your farmer’s market, if you’re like us here at Ragan & Massey, you’ll want to enjoy spring’s bounty throughout the entire season. Freezing or […]
Besides a side at the Thanksgiving dinner table, there are many unexpected uses for corn. Açai berries, broccoli rabe, and blueberries may be superfoods according to dietitians and nutritionists, but when it comes to a truly versatile food product that has become a staple in most of our modern lives, all signs point to corn.
I remember being six years old, riding alongside my grandfather in the old red tractor, watching my father and uncle behind me pulling bales of hay from the bailer to the hay rack. It was a sweaty job even without the summer heat, which was there in force, and yet there they were, whistling and […]