Even as you dig out from the second snowstorm in less than a week, area farmers are still thinking about spring. The winter months are a time when farmers try to lock in pricing for items like diesel fuel, fertilizer, and seeds ahead of their spring planting season. Last year at this time, the world was dealing with the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which was partly to blame for the price of fertilizer skyrocketing. Input prices are trending downward for 2023 with the University of Illinois Farm Policy News reporting that wholesale fertilizer pricing has dropped near the lowest level they have seen in two years. Rio Creek Feed Mill agronomist Adam Barta says other input costs are softening heading into the spring as farmers look at their overall bottom line.

As for the recent snow, Barta says that is good news for farmers. The mild winter had left fields unprotected by snow from the weather prior to the most recent snowstorms. He says the snow should help cover the fields so winter crops like alfalfa and winter wheat are prepared to grow when farmers are prepared for it.