Read an Ag Blog Last month?s article featured some upcoming agricultural webinars. In keeping with the theme of using technology to become more educated producers, this month I?d like to explore some great blogs that are available. Blogs (short for web logs) are informational sites published by individuals, universities and other sources. A benefit of blogs is that they are accessible anytime, while webinars are sometimes available only at time of broadcast, and sometimes charge a fee for attendance. In addition, blogs are generally shorter snippets of writing, often interspersed with photos and videos, which puts you in charge of how much time you want to spend. Instead of setting aside a full hour for a webinar, you can take five or ten minutes a day to browse through new blog post or two.

Some blogs allow you to enroll or follow them, which automatically notifies you by email when new content is posted. Another neat feature about blogs is that they are interactive, allowing readers to ask questions and make comments. Some blogs are very science based; others are focused on current events, while still others have more entertainment value. Agricultural topics range across all types of farming. Whatever your interests, you?re sure to find a few with value.

http://perfectparlor.com/ - Also called ?The Almost Perfect Parlor?, this blog discusses ways to keep milking parlor equipment and staff working efficiently and profitably.

http://www.thebeefblog.com/ - Published by the Purdue University department of Animal Science, this blog provides readers with ?timely news, issues, and management tips that have the potential to affect the beef business and decision-making process?.

http://billsforagefiles.blogspot.com/ - I would be remiss not to mention this blog published by our Field Crops Specialist, Bill Verbeten! Self-described as ?a blog dedicated to helping farmers improve their production and utilization of forage, corn, soybean, small grain, and cover crops?.

http://farmpolicy.com/ - This will keep you up to date on federal-level farming policy news.
http://www.erinehnle.com/blog - One of my personal favorites, this talented photographer shares her passion for agriculture by blending stunning photos with words and numbers to share a story about modern agriculture.

http://modernfarmwife.com/ - On the lighter side of things, this blog is written by a city girl who married a dairy farmer and moved to rural Michigan. Her take on life, dairy farming, and agriculture in general is refreshing.

Do you publish a blog? Do you have a favorite blog that you subscribe to? If so, send me the link (to geg24@cornell.edu) and I?d be glad to share it with the farmers that we work with.

Visit http://www.seametrics.com/blog/top-agriculture-blogs/ to see a list of top agricultural blogs!