Monthly Archives: July 2011

Savor the Moment: August is National Peach Month

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Those of you who know me well, know that I believe in savoring the moment – literally. I make time to enjoy life’s simple pleasures like a good summer-time read and a home-cooked meal. That’s why I especially enjoy best-selling author Debbie Macomber’s series and her virtual cookbook.

“In case you haven’t guessed, I love food,” exclaims Debbie in the introduction to her online cookbook. “That’s why I include a recipe section here for those who enjoy cooking and eating as much as I do.”

My sentiments exactly! These two sentences succinctly describe why I started featuring recipes each Friday on TheFieldPosition.com. So, you can only imagine how excited I was recently when I saw this recipe online for Raspberry Peach Cobbler. It caught my attention because: I love raspberries; I love peaches; and August is National Peach Month. Plus, this cobbler is made with fruit and yogurt – it has to be good for you, right? :) (That’s what I’m going to tell myself when I go back for seconds!)

Another recipe that’s sure to make you desire seconds is my mom’s Rice Crispy Chicken. It’s an easy way to feed a large number or people when entertaining at home, or it can be prepared ahead of time and enjoyed as picnic fare.

I love picnics, whether they’re summer picnics or fall picnics. Fall also makes me think of riding combines when customers harvest their Latham® top-performing products, as well as the September release of the next book in Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove Series, 1105 Yakima Street. There’s just so much to look forward to! But, in the meantime, I’m going to savor today and what’s left of summer.

How do you plan to “savor the moment”? What would you like to cross off your “must see or must do” list before Labor Day arrives?

Rice Crispy Chicken

Ingredients:
4 c. Rice Krispies
½ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. garlic salt
½ tsp. onion salt
½ tsp. Accent

Directions:

  1. Place Rice Crispies® in a large Ziploc® bag & crush them with a rolling pin.
  2. Dip chicken a bowl of oil.
  3. Then place each piece of chicken in the Ziploc bag and gently shake until coated.
  4. Place chicken on baking sheet, lined with tin foil.
  5. Bake in preheated 325-degree oven for about 90 minutes.

Prep Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 1 1/4 hr Yield: Serves 4-5 people

Help Save Glyphosate

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Glyphosate has been called the world’s greatest herbicide because its overwhelming use and acceptance has made it the most widely used product on the market today. Dr. Stephen Powles, world-renowned expert on weed resistance, takes it one step further by saying that glyphosate is to weed control in agriculture as penicillin is to disease and infection treatment in medicine. Both are considered miracle products and given the distinction of being a “once-in-a-100 year discovery.”

So what can be done to help preserve the use of this wonderful chemistry? According to many weed scientists in the Upper Midwest, there are some basic steps that every farmer should take to prevent the onslaught of glyphosate-resistant weeds:

  • Know your weeds and know your fields. Closely monitor problem areas with tough-to-control weeds or what may be considered escapes or misses.
  • Start with clean fields. Use tillage, residual herbicides and/or burndown applications of herbicides to control all emerged weeds before planting.
  • Apply herbicides correctly. Proper application methods and rates are crucial to season-long control. The three most important factors are timing, timing and timing!
  • Control weed escapes. Because of the long-term ramifications of this problem, farmers can no longer be satisfied with “economic thresholds” of weed control.
  • Reduce the seed bank. Surviving weeds must not be allowed to set seed and thereby become the dominant weed species.
  • Clean equipment. Prevent the spread of these resistant weeds at all cost.

No single tactic will protect the potential crop yield nor deter the evolution of herbicide-resistant weed populations, said ISU Extension Crop Weed Specialist Mike Owen, in a blog article he posted earlier this season. Be proactive and manage herbicide resistance before it becomes a major problem. Diversity of tactics is the key to consistent weed management and high crop yields.

Crop Report 07/27/11: Warm and Stormy in Latham Country

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Each week our Regional Sales Managers provide crop reports from their territory. They share crop progress, disease or insect pressure with corresponding management tips, as well as practices that will help you maximize yield potential in your particular growing conditions.

This week was another warm one across Latham Country. The heat brought rain, which was timely for many acres entering the pollination stage. In other areas, where the soils were already saturated, the rain wasn’t welcome. Select a territory in the map below to view a region’s most recent crop update.