Forecasts of a looming winter storm on the horizon has garnered much attention this week. After the recent flirting warm spell, maybe Punxsutawney Phil knew what he was talking about after all. Just like the weather, there are many uncertainties looming in agriculture. For the average person, it’s almost overwhelming to consider them all independently. I’ve heard it said, “farming isn’t for the faint of heart,” and this season, like most, will present its fair share of challenges ahead.

As we look towards another growing-season, there are many uncertainties looming in the horizon. It’s the beginning of 2025 and producers are still operating on extensions of the 2018 Farm Bill that was originally due to expire in 2023, with not much certainty of when Congress will take up any action. Much has changed since 2018, when the last farm bill was approved, and waves of uncertainty continue to flow into the new administration. There has been much talk recently on changes in agriculture resulting from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency following through with the Endangered Species Act and what that means for agriculture producers. There are concerns over of the agriculture workforce as pressure builds to secure our borders with moves of deportation. Producers continue to navigate the effects of trade wars and downward moves in commodity prices with uncertainties in input costs.

Much like dealing with the uncertain weather conditions expected this week and the possible disruptions to our routines, producers must focus on what they can control and have learned over the years in agriculture with optimism, knowing the sun is always shining behind the clouds.

As Dr. Ron Heiniger, NC State Extension Corn Specialist, stated at the N.C. Commodity Conference in Durham, “NC farmers are heroes because of their perseverance.“ North Carolina corn farmers are no stranger to adversity where weather, soil types, insects, weeds, and diseases constantly challenge them, especially after last year’s drought conditions decimated the corn crop. Even amongst the uncertainty, farmers will continue to move forward with optimism as they always have.

In a bid farewell, Dr. Heiniger will be providing points of optimism at what will be his last presentation as Corn Specialist before his retirement in March at the Tri-County Corn Production Meeting on February 25 at the O.P. Owens Agriculture Center, located at 455 Caton Road in Lumberton, beginning with registration and lunch at 12:00 p.m. and presentations at 1:00 p.m. Since 1994, Dr. Heiniger has been working as corn specialist at NC State University with the dream of “finding out all I could about crops and farming, and to use that information to try to make others with the dream of being the best farmers possible successful.”  Hopefully, producers will be able to focus on management decisions they can control using researched-based recommendations to help them navigate the uncertainties ahead. In addition to Dr. Heiniger’s remarks on finding the economic optimum, the meeting will cover topics on the benefits of cover crops by Austin Menker and weed management recommendations from Dr. Charlie Cahoon. Interested participants can register online at http://go.ncsu.edu/growbettercorn.

For more information, contact Mac Malloy, County Extension Director and Field Crop Agent with North Carolina Cooperative Extension, Robeson County Center, at (910) 671-3276, by E-mail at Mac_Malloy@ncsu.edu, or visit our website at https://robeson.ces.ncsu.edu/.