As part of a continuing series of stories on Significant Women in Oklahoma Agriculture, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry and Oklahoma State University are recognizing and honoring the impact of countless women across all 77 counties of the state, from all aspects and areas of the agricultural industry. The honorees were nominated by their peers and selected by a committee of 14 industry professionals. This week Francie Kucera Tolle of Grant County is featured this week as a Significant Woman in Oklahoma Agriculture.




Whether it's climbing into a combine to harvest the wheat or walking into a congressional meeting to discuss farm policy, Francie Kucera Tolle remains focused on one goal-"It's the legacy of it."



Rather than a legacy of how Tolle will be remembered, this is one centered on how others will value and appreciate agriculture as a result of her family's stewardship.



Having been born on a family farm and now farming with her husband Chuck, Tolle knows the importance of agriculture. She has been a resident in Grant County her entire life and laughed as she reminisced growing up on a farm with her three sisters.



"My dad brought a bottle calf home one time and we thought it was the greatest thing ever and asked for a few more. The next day we had 30 bottle calves and would be mauled when we got to barn," said Tolle. "A year later we wanted some feeder pigs and my dad brought home a whole truck load. Next, we thought we would like some sheep and our dad said, 'Really?' We changed our minds pretty quick."



Tolle spoke about the daily life lessons that were learned among the cattle and in the wheat fields. The greatest of these was work ethic and faith. 

Last week, I invited our friend Trey Lam, executive director of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, to our studios to sit down and catch us up to speed on what's been going on at his office.

The conservation community here in Oklahoma has been very busy as of late. Lam spoke on several of the projects currently on-going. One of the largest projects they have in the works, has been a statewide push to reduce the pollution in our streams and waterways, and have actually had great success improving our state's water quality. He says this project wouldn't be possible without the help of the agricultural community and farmers and ranchers like you.

Dr. Robert Wells, Livestock Consultant at the Noble Research Institute, recently penned an article outlining the benefits of weaning calves early, on first-calf cows.

Wells says weaning early can become particularly important during the summer months, when a cow's job can become intensely stressful, as she tries to maintain body condition, while lactating to feed her calf, perhaps gestating her second calf, and foraging with diminished resources throughout the season as the summer heat bakes.

Attempting to maintain all these physiological functions can weaken cows and their future performance. By weaning calves early, this takes the stress off of first-time calving cows as they adjust to this new stage of life.

To read more about Well's advice on the advantages of weaning calves early and how to properly manage early-weaned calves, click or tap here to read his full article on our website. 

Animal Scientist Dr. Bob Weaber is just back from the Beef Improvement Seminar, where the future of genomics, as it relates to the beef cattle industry, was the main topic of discussion. Genomics, although a relatively new technology that has become available, has benefitted dairy producers already allowing them to quickly improve their dairy animals. Weaber spoke with me about genomics and the opportunity cow/calf producers have to implement genomics into their own operations to improve record keeping and assist with breeding decisions.


"If you don't get on the bus and adopt technology, you're not just standing still, you're relatively moving backwards," Weaber said. "If your competitors adopt a technology and uses a technology to accelerate genetic improvement, that has consequences for your business."


One question Weaber believes to be important for producers to consider when introducing genomics into their decision making, is how to strategically position themselves to maintain or potentially improve their competitive position. Whatever the answer, Weaber says it will certainly require adoption and effective utilization.


"It's one thing to genotype a bunch of animals, but it's a whole other thing to actually use that information in an effective way to make selection and improvement," he said, "which really changes the way you should think about replacement selection as a seedstock producer."


Listen to Dr. Weaber and I discuss the benefits of using genomics as a resource for decision making in the management of your herd, on Friday's Beef Buzz - click here.

U.S. pork and beef exports posted a strong May performance, increasing significantly from the previous month and from year-ago levels, according to statistics released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation. These numbers continue a trend seen throughout the first half of the year, showing unprecedented strength that has managed to sustain itself despite typical market pressures.

Attendees had the opportunity to spend the whole day immersed in agriculturally based learning sessions, for ideas that could be taken and adapted to classroom curriculum throughout the state.

The 2017 Oklahoma Crops Conference kicks off with the first of four conferences, happening in Ardmore today. The other meetings are scheduled for El Reno, July 13; Alva, July 17 and Afton, July 20. Each meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and finish at approximately 3 p.m. A donor-sponsored lunch will be provided free of charge to participants.