spokane

In an effort to slow, or even stop the spread of chronic wasting disease, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife passed an emergency rule last week banning the feeding of deer, elk, and moose north of Spokane.  CWD is a fatal illness of cervids, which include deer, elk, and moose in Washington.  It is c...

Succession and farm transitions are a challenging topic that takes a lot of preparation.   “There's two that are most important," noted Tim Cobb, owner and President of Spokane-based Farmland Company.  "That's an operational management transition as well as an ownership transition, and those items don't normally happen at the same time. When you talk about...

In an effort to spread joy and raise funds for children facing life-threatening illnesses, the Wishing Star Foundation has announced the return...

When it comes to the snowpack in Washington’s higher elevations, it’s not looking bad; but it’s also not looking fabulous.  That’s how Scott Pattee with NRCS-Washington is describing the statewide snowpack, which is sitting at 99% of average.  Pattee noted while the Northwes...

The Idaho snowpack is looking really good for the mid-way portion in the 2022-2023 snow year.  Erin Whorton, NRCS Idaho, said most of the basins are at or above normal for this time of year.  The only three basins not at average are in the northern portion of the state, where the Northern Panhandle, Spokane, and Clearwater are all below 100% for mid-January.   With these...

Earlier this week, stockholders of both Northwest Farm Credit Services and Farm Credit West overwhelmingly approved a merger of their associations.  The new association, AgWest Farm Credit, will serve more than 22,000 customers throughout seven western states.  The mer...

The Washington snowpack is looking good for this time of year.   But good is not great.   Scott Pattee with NRCS Washington said December was a bit of a letdown after such as strong start to the snow year in November.   “Quite a bit less than it was last month.  But surprisingly, ...

With the wet and cooler weather, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources is planning a prescribed burn for 240 acres of state land located about seven miles north of Deer Park.  DNR hopes to start that burn Monday.   The prescribed fires will help control the amount of fuel available for wildfires, improve the health of older trees and support new and current wildlife habitats.  A rec

American Farmland Trust recently released a multi-year study that indicates that if changes are not made, up to 25 million acres of farm land will be lost across the U.S. by 2040.  Addie Candib with AFT said their study looked at three different levels of urban sprawl and the impact it would have on the farm community: Business as usual will result in the loss of 18 million acres  “Runaway” spraw

Farming has a variety of impacts on communities across the region, and the PNW as a whole, but the impact does not stop there.  Ainsley Carpenter, Washington’s 2021-20211 FFA Vice President said many people don’t appreciate how important agriculture is to the entire plant.   Click Here t...