A feature report with Bill Steele who was recently appointed Director of the State Division of Forestry.  Their annual low-cost tree seedling sales program is just now getting underway and Steele says it provides an economical opportunity for landowners, rural and urban, to improve the quality of their properties.

The Harvest Heritage self- guided motor tour is coming up this weekend in Boyd and Lawrence Counties and in the last four years has blossomed into a very popular agri-tourism adventure.  Boyd County extension agent, Lori Bowling, is featured describing how the tour began and how it has grown into a very popular event in that region.   

CBOT futures closed with minimal changes after trading modest ranges. Corn and wheat closed at the high end of the range with strong buying in the final minutes.  Live Cattle closed higher and near the day’s highs as prices trended up throughout the day.

CBOT futures closed mixed in response to today’s USDA Crop Production Report which had a bearish surprise for soybeans.  Cattle futures closed higher for the second straight trading day, adding to Friday’s strong gains. Futures are now $5-6/cwt above the contract lows set last week.

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Dr. Chad Lee has been named director of the University of Kentucky’s Grains Center for Excellence which recently received and ag development grant for $15 million. Lee discusses the goals and focus of the new center which includes not only improving yields and bottom lines, but clarifying and improving upon the environmental foot print of grain production. He comments on farmers’ efforts already underway toward that goal.

Feldhaus visited with Warren Beeler at the Ky state fair getting his take on the impact of the state ag development process.  Beeler, a part time farmer himself, has utilized “shared use equipment” made available at the county level for “borrowing.”  Now as the state director of the Governor’s Office of Ag Policy Beeler has gained a perspective on the huge positive impact the ‘ag development’ effort has had across Kentucky agriculture.