Agriculture

A $4 million-plus irrigation pipeline is nearly complete that will give irrigators in the Upper Wallowa Valley a more efficient and less expensive way to water crops, livestock and pasture whe…

The legislative deadlock may forestall upgrades to Oregon’s regulatory powers over hemp that are needed to meet federal requirements for the crop.

ENTERPRISE — Wheat farmer Erl McLaughlin has finally gotten a settlement for his unharvested crop after fretting through the fall and early winter and wondering what the next growing season wi…

Some industry experts predict CBD sales in the U.S. could reach $20 billion by 2024, though others say it remains a perilous market for hemp growers.

Authorities are investigating the mysterious death and mutilation of a cow on a remote ranch at the border between Oregon's Lake and Deschutes counties.

New Oregon dairies would need to pass muster with regulators before starting operations under a bill the state Legislature will  reconsider this session.

OLYMPIA — Hemp's popular non-psychoactive compound CBD would be a legal food ingredient in Washington under a bill introduced Jan. 7 by a state legislator, a move that would cross federal food…

A federal judge has effectively revoked a grazing permit for Oregon’s Hammond Ranches, ruling that it was renewed contrary to regulations and thus unlawful.

HERMISTON — Wednesday marks the beginning of the 46th annual Hermiston Farm Fair with over 50 vendors from across the Northwest ready to set up shop, and an assortment of agricultural seminars…

Miller, university researchers, make advances on potato Pink Rot control

SALEM — The 50th Northwest Agricultural Show will be Jan. 15-17 at the Oregon State Fair and Exposition Center in Salem.

Preliminary findings from research into the use of biostimulants in blueberries are proving positive.

Federal agencies want to require seed imports to first be quarantined at centralized exam stations before being delivered to Oregon warehouses, alarming the state’s seed industry.

Artist, sound engineer and adventure traveler Blu Fortner is adding “farmer” to his resume with his first commercial crop of hemp seed.

MADAS, Ore. — A habitat conservation plan aimed at protecting several species while shielding farmers from legal liability in Oregon’s Deschutes River basin will be formally announced next week.

Blake Rowe, 63, announced earlier this year he plans to retire from the Oregon Wheat Commission and Oregon Wheat Growers League. The organizations announced Sept. 19 they are searching for a r…

U.S. farmers are cheering a new trade deal with Japan that they say will put them on equal footing with overseas competitors.

A slight increase in U.S. hop stocks is indicative, a leading producer says, of a relatively good balance between supply and demand.

Gov. Kate Brown selected Marty Myers, of Threemile Canyon Farms, to serve a second four-year term on the board, which makes policy recommendations for the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

BEND, Ore. — Though preventing leaky canals from losing water doesn’t seem like a particularly controversial idea, irrigators in Central Oregon have found out otherwise.

Clive Kaiser, horticulture professor and Umatilla County extension agent for OSU in Milton-Freewater, will take over as interim director at HAREC beginning Sept. 3.

MAUPIN — There’s a lot of time to think while sitting behind the wheel of a combine.

Researchers at Oregon State University have determined a combination of factors — apart from pesticides — may be to blame in part of bumblebee deaths beneath linden trees.

The USDA's Columbia Plateau Conservation Research Center in Pendleton, Ore. plans to hire three new positions after receiving an additional $2 million in funding through Congress.

Anita Azarenko will take over as interim Vice Provost for University Outreach and Engagement and director of Oregon State University Extension Service beginning July 7. She replaces Scott Reed…

PORTLAND — A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting two Oregon ranchers pardoned last year on arson charges from grazing cattle on four federal allotments.

A key group of Oregon lawmakers has recommended spending $700,000 to implement new regulations allowing farmers to clean more sediment from ditches with less red tape.

There was the late blight scare, bouts with silver scurf, corn smut and a beet leafhopper that came from out of the blue and transmitted a deadly plant virus.

Working off the farm can have many upsides but the underlying motivation is usually simple: Making ends meet.

Oregon State University Extension plant pathologist Jeremiah Dung hopes to engage growers in a citizen-science approach to monitor for ergot in grass seed crops.

Positive developments on the trade front with Mexico, Canada and Japan are welcome news for U.S. beef, pork and lamb industries.

Threemile Canyon Farms, Oregon's largest dairy producer, is planning to turn millions of gallons of cow manure into renewable natural gas, if state regulators approve a permit for the project.

Acquisition adds international capacity, service opportunities

Two Eastern Oregon ranchers have volunteered to test a new strategy aimed at preventing further conflicts between wolves and livestock.

WALLA WALLA, Wash. — The U.S. loses more than 3 acres of farm and ranch land to development each minute, the leader of a national nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting ag land told a …

Oregon farm regulators have issued a fine of more than $187,000 to a Boardman dairy, citing more than 220 violations of its wastewater permit between last December and late August.

A new framework for managing wolves that repeatedly prey on livestock may have the support of both Oregon ranchers and conservation groups, if the state can find enough money to pay for it.

PORTLAND — Wastewater problems at a controversial Oregon dairy have persisted despite a federal trustee taking control of the operation last month, state farm regulators said during a hearing Friday.

Ranchers in north-central Oregon are just beginning to recover from a devastating wildfire season that saw hundreds of thousands of acres of dry grass and rangeland go up in flames.

Les Schwab Tire Centers of Oregon has partnered with Oregon FFA in a “Drive Away Hunger” Initiative to help raise as much food as possible for those in need.

A “perfect storm” of high demand and increased production carried the Oregon wine industry to significant economic growth in 2017, according to an annual study by the University of Oregon Inst…

Months of intense heat and smoky skies are not expected to diminish Oregon’s potato crop, with farmers across the state predicting average to above-average yields heading into the bulk of harvest.

A bankruptcy judge in California will appoint a trustee to operate Lost Valley Farm, Oregon’s second-largest dairy, after finding owner Greg te Velde is “unwilling, or unable to comply with hi…

Drought intensified in Oregon and Washington over the previous week, the U.S. Drought Monitor reported this week.

Help is on the way for farmers and ranchers in north-central Oregon who lost tens of thousands of acres of cropland in a series of large wildfires that swept through the region earlier this summer.