State

From NASS There were 6.8 days suitable for field work, down from 7 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 23 were below normal. In western Washington, the weather was favorable for farming. Ground preparation for planting was excellent. Areas within the Marshland Flood Control District received hail. In Jefferson and King counties, ... Read More »

From the Seattle Times What do real estate agents, salespeople, vessel crews and farmers all have in common? Their work hours are often long and unpredictable, and until recently, Washington law included an overtime exemption recognizing those unique circumstances. During the recently completed legislative session, only agriculture’s exemption was targeted and removed. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

County committee elections are now underway. The election of responsible agricultural producers to the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) county committees is important to ALL farmers and ranchers with large or small operations. It is crucial that every eligible producer takes part in this election because county committees are a direct link between the farm community and the U.S. Department of ... Read More »

From NASS There were 7.0 days suitable for fieldwork, up from 6.8 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 16 were above normal. In western Washington, pastures were in prime condition with grasses that started to boot. Well drained sandy-loamy soils dried out, and livestock were on pasture rotations. In Snohomish County, grass ... Read More »

By Dr. Xianming Chen On May 12, we were checking winter wheat fields in Whitman, Adams, Lincoln, Grant, Douglas, Columbia and Garfield counties. Wheat crops ranged from middle jointing (Feekes 6) to heading (Feekes 10), and most fields appeared dry and needed moisture. No stripe rust was found in all checked commercial wheat fields except one field in Garfield County ... Read More »

From the Capital Press A bill stemming partly from the Washington Department of Transportation’s refusal to fund county weed-control districts was signed Monday by Gov. Jay Inslee. House Bill 1355 clarifies that state agencies must pay weed-control assessments. The transportation department had declined, an example that farm groups worried would spread to other public landowners. Read the rest of the ... Read More »

From NASS There were 6.8 days suitable for field work, up from 6.7 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 9 were mostly below normal. In western Washington, planting was ahead of schedule for most producers. Planted crops looked good due to the nice weather. In Clallam and Jefferson counties, corn was planted ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Up to 146,000 acres of the Northwest — much of it farmland — could be converted to solar production by 2050, according to a recent study. In addition, wind power production could directly impact nearly 8,800 acres. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

From NASS There were 6.7 days suitable for field work, up from 6.5 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 2 were above normal. In western Washington, the weather was great for farming. Some field tillage and planting were done due to the dry soils. Cover crops harvested by dairymen were lighter than ... Read More »

By Diana Carlen WAWG Lobbyist On Sunday night, the final gavel came down, and the 2021 Legislative Session adjourned Sine Die. It was a session unlike any other, held almost entirely remotely and with the campus closed to the public due to the pandemic. While people could testify remotely, oftentimes, people were not able to testify because of the high ... Read More »