Cultivate Expert Sources

Farmers rely on content that’s up-to-date with reliable information they can use in their daily operation. It’s not difficult to find experts in just about any agriculture field and many are more than willing to pass along the pertinent information you need for an informative article or blog. You should never put your byline on an article you aren’t 100% sure of its accuracy, so always cultivate expert sources to back up your information. You’ll discover a lot of background information and topic ideas from the Internet, but don’t rely strictly on this information. Websites aren’t always regularly updated, so information could be outdated or inaccurate. Don’t be afraid to consult with agriculture experts, which ensures your information is timely, authoritative and more appealing to your farming audience.

You can sift through 100s of online pages looking for the answers to specific questions or save time by talking with an expert. You should discover sources who specialize in specific fields and can supply more in-depth knowledge than you’ll find using online sources alone.  Plus, live sources typically have more entertaining stories. Try to cultivate a list of expert sources covering various topics within government agencies, agricultural associations, college and university agriculture departments and established farmers with proven techniques. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an excellent source of information and provides a page with links to agriculture departments by state.

Sow Crops of Topics

If you’re new to agriculture writing, you may want to focus your content on basic crop and livestock information for beginning farmers; so you can learn as they learn. Later, search the Internet for “trending farming topics” to see what’s currently making the news. You can create content that farmers will dig that covers a wide variety of topics and issues, such as:

• New or better ways of propagating specific crops or raising certain livestock
• Modern methods of pest or disease control
• New diseases or illnesses cropping up or old ones making a comeback
• New twists on sustainable practices
• Legislature that affects any aspect of farming
• Alternative crops or livestock
• Consumer demand
• Unique marketing aspects
• Farmland controversies
• Trends and technology beneficial to farming