Matt Gast is a first-generation farmer from Valley City, North Dakota, where he grows soybeans and corn. He serves as a United Soybean Board director and is also involved with the North Dakota Soybean Council. One of his goals for the farm is ensuring its longevity for his three sons: Jackson, Bentley and Easton. He’s interested in sustainability on his farm and for all U.S. soybean farmers.
Ground Work: Connecting Students to Modern Agriculture through Nourish the Future
The Ground Work series shares the perspectives of U.S. soybean farmers as they observe how the U.S. Soy industry lays the groundwork to grow innovative,…
Ground Work 2021: North Dakota Soybean Harvest Rolling
Planting early and a hot, dry summer combined to allow us to start harvesting soybeans about 15 to 20 days earlier than normal. Those same…
Ground Work 2021: Rain Needed to Fill Out North Dakota Soybeans
Our fields are getting drier. After several weeks of ideal conditions, my town has recorded just 1 cm, or 0.4 inch, of rain in the…
Ground Work 2021: Finishing Harvest, Preparing for Next Year in North Dakota
After a summer of drought, the wet fall in our area of the U.S. Northern Plains forced an extended harvest season. We finally finished harvesting…
Ground Work 2021: Ideal Growing Conditions for North Dakota Soybeans
While some areas of the U.S., including my state, are way too dry, other areas of the country are way too wet. But in my…
Ground Work 2021: North Dakota Soybean Yields Lower Than Expected
A month into harvest, we are seeing the results of a challenging season. Farmers in our area of the Northern Plains of the U.S. expected…
Ground Work 2021: North Dakota Crops Emerging, Need Rain
This year, we finished planting all our fields – both soybeans and corn – by May 27, roughly two weeks earlier than average. It’s also…
Ground Work 2021: Planting North Dakota Fields
We started planting both soybeans and corn the last week of April, even though we had snow the weekend before in some of our fields.…
Ground Work 2021: Fields Nearly Ready for Planting in North Dakota
The warm, very dry spring we have had in our area of North Dakota in the United States northern plains has been very different than…