Good afternoon,
Harvest is here! It is a welcome sight to see the combines working in the fields as several soybean fields are being taken off around the county. I haven’t heard much yield information yet but the machines are kicking up a bunch of dust so the crop looks to be dry. There has also been some wheat being planted as yesterday was the fly-free date for Hardin County. It looks like the rain is going to hold off after last week’s event at least until Sunday or Monday. See the article below for the harvest forecast.
The Hardin County Sheep Tour mailing went out this week. If you are not on the sheep producer mailing list but might be interested in attending the tour, it is October 26-27. It starts out in the Findlay area as our first stop is the University of Findlay Animal Sciences Center and goes to the Mt. Hope area. I have attached a copy of the letter if you would like to find out more information regarding this annual event to learn about sheep management practices as we visit three sheep farms and two sheep production related agribusinesses.
Sheep Tour Invitation Letter 2013
The Hardin County Agricultural Hall of Fame deadline for nominations is coming up October 15. See the attached press release, and I have also attached both a Word document and pdf copy of the application to this email. Please encourage individuals to apply as we plan to recognize these worthy applicants at the Hardin County Agriculture Hall of Fame Banquet on December 3. Applications are also available at hardin.osu.edu and at the local OSU Extension Office.
Ag Hall of Fame Nominations Ag Hall of Fame Purpose and Nomination form 2013 Ag Hall of Fame Purpose and Nomination form 2013
The Hardin County Extension Office is seeking an office associate. This individual will serve multiple roles in the office, including word processing, financial management, editing and mailing educational resources, data base management, and greeting public. The full time position is located in the Kenton office of OSU Extension, and will begin on as soon as hired. Our current office associate, Carrie Newland has moved on to a new position so we will be looking to fill this position soon. The new person would be an OSU employee and have full benefits. To assure consideration, applications must be received online no later than October 13, 2013. Questions about the position should be directed to Mark Light. For more information, see the attached job announcement. Please bear with us as we make the transition to getting someone on board in our office.
The October Ag Council meeting is scheduled for Friday, October 4. The meeting starts at 7:00 am in the banquet room of Henry’s Restaurant in Kenton. Feel free to join us to share agricultural information if you are available. Below is a list of current articles that you might find useful. Be safe as you begin the harvest season and let’s hope for bountiful crops.
Mark
October Weather Update – Jim Noel
After a heavy rainfall event last week, we will return to above normal temperatures and mainly dry weather this week. Fields will dry quickly as warm days will combine with low humidity levels. Temperatures will average 3-6 degrees above normal this week. Rainfall will generally be zero, though a few spots in the far south part of the state may see isolated showers midweek. To read more about the upcoming harvest weather patterns, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2013/2013-32/october-weather-update.
Be on the Lookout for Unexpected Lodging During Harvest – Andy Michel, Ron Hammond
For the past few years, we have been warning about the presence of Bt-resistant western corn rootworms. We have not yet detected the presence of resistant rootworms in Ohio, but detecting damage is often difficult. As corn producers begin their harvest, keep a sharp eye out for any areas of significant lodging that may be indicative of western corn rootworm damage in corn expressing Bt. To find out more information, read the full article at http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2013/2013-32/be-on-the-lookout-for-unexpected-lodging-during-harvest.
Glyphosate-Resistant Palmer Amaranth Problems Developing in Ohio – What Dairy Producers Need to Know – Dr. Mark Loux, Extension Specialist, Department of Horticulture and Crop Science, The Ohio State University
We have plenty of glyphosate-resistant weed populations in Ohio. Resistance currently is known to occur in four weed species here – marestail (horseweed), giant ragweed, common ragweed, and waterhemp – and many of these populations are also resistant to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors (Classic, FirsRate, etc.). The good news is that our resistance problems are overall less severe than in the southern United States, where the now widespread occurrence of Palmer amaranth has had a substantial impact on crop yields and profitability of cotton and soybean growers and forced a semi-permanent change in the amount of herbicide that has to be used. As we expected though, glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth populations are starting to show up here in Ohio. To read more of this and other dairy articles, go to http://dairy.osu.edu/bdnews/Volume%2015%20issue%205%20file/Volume%2015%20Issue%205.html#Glyphosate.
Abnormal Corn Ears – Peter Thomison
Farmers frequently encounter abnormal corn ears in their fields when the crop has experienced stress conditions, such as drought, temperature extremes, disease, insect injury, or misapplied chemicals. These abnormalities often affect yield and grain quality adversely. We have prepared a poster (Fig.1) highlighting ten abnormal corn ears with distinct symptoms and causes. The purpose of the poster is to help corn growers and agricultural professionals diagnose various ear disorders. A reduced 11 x 14 inch version of the poster is available for online at http://agcrops.osu.edu/specialists/corn/specialist-announcements/AbnormalCornEarsPoster_000.pdf/view.
Preplan for Quality Soil Test Results – Greg LaBarge
Soil testing is a very profitable practice to manage fertility input cost and promote environmental stewardship. The primary goal is to measure the soil’s ability to provide the soluble nutrient needed for crop production for two of our three macro nutrients (phosphorus and potassium) plus measure soil acidity which governs availability of micro nutrients and other soil functions. A secondary goal is to compare soil test results over time with crop response and fertilizer additions to identify trends in the fertility program as it is executed or what is becoming known as “adaptive management”. The key to accomplishing both these goals is to take a quality soil sample that represents the field area being sampled. To read more, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2013/2013-32/preplan-for-quality-soil-test-results.
Mark A. Badertscher
Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator
OSU Extension Hardin County
1021 W. Lima Street, Suite 103, Kenton, OH 43326
419-674-2297 Office