At the 2023 Oklahoma City Farm Show, I visited with Reed Boettcher of Great Plains Kubota to talk about this year’s show and what Great Plains Kubota has to offer.

Great Plains is one of the lead exhibitors at this year’s farm show, and they are the sponsor of the “show bucks” daily giveaway.

“We have got everything from the turf equipment, the lawn mowers, utility vehicles all the way up to the big ag tractor- the Kubota M7, and even some hay equipment- some Vermeer and Kubota round balers to look at,” Boettcher said. “We pretty much brought, I would say, a little too much, but we have a bit of everything here.”

Great Plains Kubota has grown each year at the Oklahoma City Farm Show, Boettcher said, as they have had the chance to grow their space to better show their products to visitors. Over the years, Boettcher said Kubota has strategically expanded their equipment line with the use of new technologies.

The signup for Oklahoma Farm Show “show bucks” is located at the Great Plains Kubota booth.

“You have got to come see our booth if you want a chance to win that thousand dollars at 1 o’clock,” Boettcher said. “It is right in the heart of our booth.”

The Show Bucks drawing will happen both Friday and Saturday at 1 PM sharp.

The 2023 Oklahoma City Farm features over 300 exhibitors offering a variety of goods and services for all sizes of farms and ranches.

It is happening at the Bennett Event Center on the OKC Fairgrounds 9 to 5 on Friday and 9 to 4 on Saturday- Admission and Parking are free.



The Oklahoma Agriculture Mediation Program knows this is a hard time for farmers and ranchers. We want you to know we are still open, and we are still here for you. The Ag Mediation program is a free service that provides mediation to agriculture producers who may need help with ag-related disputes.

At Oklahoma Ag Mediation, we have been helping people in agriculture resolve conflicts since 1987. We know firsthand about working together to resolve conflicts, so you don’t have to go through the court systems. Let our professional mediators help you. Mediation is allowed for lease issues, farmer/neighbor disputes, family farm transitions, and more. These services are available at no cost for Oklahoma farmers and ranchers in all 77 counties. For more information, you can go to ok.gov/mediation, or give us a call at 800 248 5465.

According to the latest Oklahoma Drought Monitor, exceptional drought has increased over one percentage point from last week, now at 16.53 percent (last week was at 15.27 percent).

Extreme drought or worse has also increased from last week, and is now at 39 percent, up from last week’s 37.9 percent.

Severe drought or worse is unchanged from last week at 48.59 percent.

Moderate drought or worse is virtually unchanged- moving from last week’s 53.65 percent to this week’s 53.68 percent.

Abnormally dry or worse conditions have moved down slightly from last week’s 60.3 percent to this week’s 59.7 percent.

According to the 6-10-day precipitation outlook map, the majority of the state, aside from the western edge of the panhandle, is leaning above a 33 to 40 percent chance of precipitation through April 22. The western edge of the panhandle stands at a “near normal” chance of precipitation through April 22.

To view Oklahoma's drought numbers for this week, click the Oklahoma drought map above the story.

Introducing Matt McGuire of the Oologah FFA Chapter, Your 2023 Northwest Area Star in Agricultural Placement

During the month of April, the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and Oklahoma Farm Report are spotlighting the 17 Area Stars of Oklahoma FFA that are among the highest achievers in the organization.

The stars come from the five areas in four categories- Star in Ag Placement, Star in Agriscience, Star in Agribusiness, and Star in Agricultural Production.

One Star Finalist featured in the coming days from each of the categories will be named the State Star Award Winner during the 97th Oklahoma State FFA Convention coming up on May 2nd and 3rd in Tulsa, Okla.

This week, our coverage of the 2023 Oklahoma FFA Star Award Finalists continues with Ag Placement competitor Matt McGuire of the Oologah FFA chapter representing the Northwest Area.

McGuire said his project involved custom hay services for his employer, Mr. Smith. Due to the drought, McGuire said there was plenty of business.

“Mr. Smith already has a customer base built up from previous years he has done hay,” McGuire said. “We definitely got a lot more new customers looking for hay and people reaching out, and we had hay that was sold before we could even get it baled up and put on the ground.”

Following high school graduation, McGuire plans to attend a five-year school to pursue a career in commercial plumbing with Shoemaker Commercial Industries. McGuire said he also plans to continue helping Mr. Smith on the hay production side.

Forty percent of Oklahoma is out of the drought zone, while another seven to eight percent are in the abnormally dry range. Over half of the state is still suffering from significant drought.

In this episode of Beef Buzz, I am featuring comments from the vice president of operations at Farm Data Services, Clay Burtrum, about his experience with handling the drought in the short and long term.

Burtrum farms and ranches within the territory that is under significant drought conditions. A big issue Burtrum is dealing with, he said, is adjusting for the lack of water availability.

“If you look at the Mesonet- less than a quarter inch of rain in over 60 days right there in Payne County,” Burtrum said. “I farm in Payne, Pawnee, and Noble. I haven’t had significant rainfall in over 60 days.”

One way Burtrum has adjusted his property to utilize rainfall for long-term relief includes cleaning out ponds.

“I used the drought commission money as it was commissioned to us to do,” Burtrum said. “We have done those programs with the conservation commission, but now you look here we are in the middle of April- no significant rains to fill the ponds.”

‘Up And Down, Down And Up’: Input Costs Vary For Wheat Farmers As Pivotal Spring Season Arrives

Farmers who spent the past year staring at charts and graphs that gauge costs and returns would certainly by now be quite familiar with the sensation of vertigo.

Up and down, down and up.

The proper term is “volatility,” and for those who make a living growing wheat and other crops, it can affect decisions made in spring – a time when farmers typically spend a lot of money on the front end of one crop while also waiting for the rear end on another.

USW Vice Chairman Michael Peters, who grows hard red winter (HRW) wheat in Oklahoma, is the farmer who put the “mixed bag” label on his current inputs situation.

He has bigger problems with moisture, or lack thereof.

His farm being located on the Southern Plains, Peters has an added challenge he and other Oklahomans share with fellow producers in northern Texas, most of western Kansas and portions of Nebraska and Colorado.

“The problem for my area is the lack of rainfall,” he said. “Our winter wheat crop is looking a little tough at this point.”

According to USDA, approximately 51% of U.S. winter wheat is produced in an area currently experiencing drought, down from 69% as the year began.

Economic impact study shows livestock auctions are growing in importance for rural vitality

A 2023 economic impact study, which updated a study from 2017, found that livestock auction markets continue to be important for the growth and vitality of rural communities. The study of an average, fixed-facility livestock auction market revealed that the market provides approximately $2 million in total value-added dollars to its local community. This result is up from $1 million identified in the 2017 Livestock Marketing Association (LMA) Economic Impact Report.  

The case livestock auction market, located in a rural Missouri town with a population of less than 5,000, sells all classes of cattle in a weekly sale. The auction market was selected as a representative example of LMA member-livestock auctions based on type of operation, gross sales of livestock, rural location of market and population of city. LMA represents 85% of the livestock auction markets in the United States, with cattle being the largest per-head species sold through livestock auction markets annually (32 million head, per 2020 USDA P&S Annual Report data). 

Key findings also revealed that the market studied provides 17 jobs, generating $888,000 in labor income to the community’s economy. Additionally, the market contributes $447,000 in local taxes and $108,000 in federal taxes. Of the total value-added number, contributions were also made by the on-site café, which further provides labor income, state, local and federal taxes.  

“Livestock auction markets today remain critical to helping our rural communities continue to thrive,” said Kristen Parman, LMA Vice President of Membership Services. They generate a competitive sale environment which results in cash for local livestock producers. That cash equals dollars spent in town and investments back into their businesses and operations.” 

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