profitability and on-farm losses, such as devastating hail or drought. Olen and Auld (2018) showed that 85% of U.S. crop losses are caused by weather. Utilizing weather and climate resilient practices and strategies can lessen the impact.
In what year did you experience the most crop loss in your area? Was a single event the cause?
REFERENCES Olen, B., & Auld, S. (2018). A roadmap for assessing relative risks for agricultural production. Choices, Quarter 4. http://www.choicesmagazine.org/choices-magazine/submitted-articles/a-roadmap-for-assessing-relative-risks-for- agricultural-production
Why Weather Ready Farms?
In 2015, Nebraska Extension set out to address the impacts that extreme weather and climate variability have on agriculture. This is an important and challenging topic due to the extreme variability in our weather and climate, as well as the diversity of agricultural operations. Through many discussions with stakeholders, the team developed a program that would reduce the whole-farm risk to losses from weather events. Over and over, the risk reducing strategies discussed with farmers primarily dealt with the day-to-day (or season- to-season) weather variations and extremes. The goal for Nebraska Extension was to create a model for enhancing, and rewarding, weather and climate resiliency on farms through multiple engagements, not a one-time workshop or publication. A single engagement with a stakeholder is highly unlikely to accomplish the changes necessary to make farms more resilient. Additionally, each operation is unique, and this program allows for local and regional differences in recommended farming practices.
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