State

From the National Agricultural Statistics Service There were 6 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington, down from 6.7 days the previous week. Western Washington received excess moisture over the past week. Central Washington had cool temperatures for this time of the year, which slowed pasture growth. In northeast Washington, mornings of heavy frost and afternoons of showers had slowed spring ... Read More »

From the National Agricultural Statistics Service There were 6.7 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington, down from 7 days the previous week. Areas of western Washington saw rain that helped improve the soil profile. Central Washington had continued cool, dry weather. In Douglas County, intermittent rain showers provided moisture but interfered with weed spraying. In Yakima County, a few varieties ... Read More »

By Xianming Chen USDA Research Plant Pathologist On April 24, when we were planting spring wheat nurseries at the Palouse Conservation Farm Station near Pullman in Whitman County, I was checking our winter wheat nurseries. Plants had reached middle jointing stage (Feekes 6), and stripe rust was more widespread than the last report, with almost all susceptible check rows having ... Read More »

From crosscut.com Andy Juris, a dryland wheat and alfalfa grower in Bickleton, in Klickitat County, knows precisely how much fertilizer to put on different areas of his farm. Juris needs to ensure he uses the right amount of fertilizer. Too much can damage the plant, but not enough may prevent full development. But Juris says the proper use of fertilizers also ... Read More »

From Water Power Magazine By Kurt Miller Northwest Public Power Association For the past five years, I’ve worked as a hydropower advocate, which has given me some great opportunities. For instance, I was a keynote speaker at the Hydropower International Conference in 2022 and CEATI’s Hydropower Conference in 2023. I even graced the January 2023 cover of Hydro Leader Magazine. ... Read More »

From the National Agricultural Statistics Service There were 7 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington, up from 6.7 days the previous week. Some areas of western Washington experienced dry conditions. Central Washington experienced high winds that dried out the topsoil and caused grasses to start heading out. In Yakima County, there was no precipitation over the past week. The upper ... Read More »

From the Capital Press The potential removal of the lower Snake River dams would have “far-reaching impacts” beyond the Pacific Northwest, according to the leader of a national inland waterways advocacy group. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

From the Capital Press A report from an environmental group that claims the lower Snake River dams are a major source of greenhouse gases is “misleading without context,” the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

The Washington Association of Wheat Growers (WAWG) is pleased to announce Andrea Cox has been hired as the Conservation Coordinator. She will assist Washington small grain farmers in learning more about the additional NRCS funding opportunities provided through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). “I’m thrilled to be part of the WAWG team and have the opportunity to utilize my background ... Read More »

From the National Agricultural Statistics Service There were 6.7 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington, up from 5.1 days suitable the previous week. Western Washington saw a little precipitation. Crops were progressing a bit ahead of schedule. In Whatcom County, blueberries were budding, and raspberries were filling out. Fieldwork started, and grass showed good growth. The Yakima Valley experienced overnight ... Read More »