State

What do Alex McGregor, Butch Wiswall, Aaron Esser, David Harlow, Karl Felgenhauer, Rusty and Sandy Jamison, Sen. Mark Schoesler, Brett Blankenship, Brian Baumann, Brit Ausman, Walt Neff, Grant and Matt Miller, Stacey Rasmassen, Larry Cochran, Morgan Adams, and Ben Cochrane (just to name a few) all have in common? They are all Washington AgForestry Leadership Program alumni. For the upcoming ... Read More »

On March 31, 2026, the National Agricultural Statistics Service released the 2026 Prospective Plantings report. Washington growers report planting 1,850,000 acres of winter wheat, unchanged from 2025. Spring wheat is projected to be 450,000 acres down 5% from 2025, which was at 475,000 acres. Barley acres are up just slightly from 2025 at 70,000. All wheat planted area for 2026 ... Read More »

By Douglas Poole When I came back to my family’s dryland farm near Mansfield, Washington, after 20 years away, the land told me something had to change. My grandfather and father had worked this ground for over 70 years, and the soil showed it. In places, erosion had taken it down to bare bedrock. The more we tilled, the more ... Read More »

From the Capital Press A Washington State University economist says it’s time for farmers to sell their wheat, as the conflict in Iran has pushed prices higher. But, the conflict is likely to increase input prices for farmers. Last fall, economist Randy Fortenbery told farmers they might want to start thinking about selling their wheat when December futures prices hit ... Read More »

By Dr. Xianming Chen On March 18, we were checking wheat fields in Franklin, Benton, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield, and Whitman counties. Wheat plants ranged from Feekes 3 to 6. Stripe rust was found in all counties. In Franklin County, stripe rust has developed quickly since the field check on March 3, forming rust foci (hot spots) of several feet in diameter. In Horse ... Read More »

From smallgrains.wsu.edu Weather data collected by USDA’s Dr. Xianming Chen from November 2025 to February 2026 indicate severe epidemic levels of stripe rust. Highly susceptible varieties could experience yield losses of 40-60%. Commercial fields will likely have yield losses between 8% and 40% without a fungicide application.  Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

Washington’s premiere agriculture leadership program, AgForestry, is transitioning to a nine-month format in an effort to improve accessibility for prospective applicants and their organizations. The change will take effect beginning with Class 47, which is currently accepting applications through April 30, 2026. The Class 47 time commitment is September 2026 through May 2027. Applicants must have lived or worked in ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Washington in 2024 ranked No.1 in producing apples, blueberries, hops, pears, onions and sweet cherries. It was No. 2 in grapes, potatoes, raspberries and winter wheat, grapes. And in take-home farmer pay, it ranked No. 50. Despite excelling at growing high-value crops, Washington agriculture actually lost money, according to the USDA. That’s not to say every ... Read More »

By Diana Carlen WAWG Lobbyist The Legislature adjourned on the 60th day of the 2026 Legislative Session on March 12 at around 8:30 p.m. In the final week of the session, the Legislature adopted the supplemental 2025-2027 operating, capital, and transportation budgets. The Legislature also spent the final week passing bills. In total, the Legislature passed 267 bills during the ... Read More »

The last leg of the Armchair Engineer’s trip down the Columbia-Snake River System. On the final day of the trip, he enters the lower river near Portland/Vancouver and begins delivering cargo at a port on the Willamette River, the Port of Kalama, the Port of Rainier, and finally the Port of Longview. Part 4 of 4 – Cascade Locks, OR to ... Read More »