Good evening,
Well it finally warmed up. I know it is normal for it to get cold in the winter but that blast earlier this past week had my water frozen in the hose. Everything is thawed out and fixed now, so things can get back to normal. Normal that is if you are a Buckeye football fan who expects national championships every year. Now that the football comment is out of the way, I want to let you know that this coming week will be the second Conservation Tillage Club breakfast meeting at the Plaza Inn Restaurant in Mt. Victory. The complimentary breakfast will begin at 7:30 am. This Tuesday???s (1/20) program will feature Cal Whewell, Risk Management Consultant, FC Stone. Whewell will present a program on the grain marketing outlook, addressing what to expect in the 2015 crop year in regards to the agricultural commodity markets and the risk associated with marketing options for corn, soybeans, and wheat. This information will provide additional tools for the farmer???s marketing toolbox to use when considering their marketing strategy. See the attached flyer for more information.
Have you been in to see Doug Dyer at the FSA office about the Farm Bill yet? The January 7 Farm Bill Update program held at the courthouse had 83 farmers and landowners in attendance. Doug has been busy doing reallocations and yield updates. Don???t wait until the last minute to get your farm taken care of as his staff is limited. For more information on the new farm bill, go to http://go.osu.edu/farmbill. The Dairy Service Unit has applications available for Hardin County Dairy Princess and also their dairy scholarships. The dairy scholarship application must be completed and returned to the Extension office by February 11. The dairy princess entry form must be completed and returned to the Extension office by February 6. See the attached news release and applications for more information about these awards which will be presented at the Hardin County Dairy Banquet on February 21.
Dairy Scholarship Princess Applications News Release
This year we are hosting the Corn, Soybean and Wheat Connection webinars again at the Hardin County Extension office. January 20 will be the first webinar concentrating on Precision Agriculture. It will start at 7:00 pm and end at 8:30 pm. ???Using Precision Ag to Make Informed Decisions??? will be the topic of the presentation. It will be taught by Dr. John Fulton, Extension Specialist-Machinery Systems, OSUE. ???Can Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) be an Agronomic Tool???? will also be presented by John Barker, Extension Educator, Knox County. If you would like to attend this webinar presentations, please call the Extension office at 419-674-2297 or email Mark Badertscher at badertscher.4@osu.edu to RSVP so that preparations can be made to accommodate the number of people interested in attending. These webinar programs are sponsored locally by Farm Credit Mid-America, with an office in Bellefontaine. Refreshments will be provided to those who attend. See the attached news release and flyer for more information on this series.
Corn Soybean Wheat Connection News Release
Hardin 2015 CSW Connection Series
Grain marketing will be increasingly more important to future success of the farm business in the next few years due to tighter profit margins associated with lower grain prices. Ohio State University Extension and the OSU Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Developmental Economics are offering a grain marketing series titled Grain Marketing in Challenging Times. This series, offered through a weekly webinar for five weeks, will allow farmers to learn how to set critical grain pricing targets and strategies from the comfort of their home. The series of classes will focus on using futures and options; making a marketing plan to fit your farm business; utilizing crop insurance as a grain marketing tool; and financial statement analysis in relationship to your grain marketing plan. If you are interested in participating in this course, make sure you read the attached news release and register by January 28. I have included some agronomy related article below for your reading interest.
Grain Marketing Course News Release
Mark
Agronomy Educational Program Listing – Greg LaBarge
Many dates for agronomic educational programs being held in the upcoming months can be found at http://agcrops.osu.edu/calendar. A variety of Agronomy Update Programs, Intensive Crop Workshops, Webinars and programs which offer Pesticide Applicator License Recertification, Certified Crop Adviser or Agricultural Fertilizer Applicator Certification credits are listed. The calendar will be completed in the next couple of weeks with even more offers. We would suggest bookmarking this page http://agcrops.osu.edu/calendar and visiting it often over the next month to know what is happen in your area.
Large Variation in Forage Grass Performance in 2014 – Mark Sulc
This past growing season demonstrated that forage grasses are not created equal. Following one of the coldest winters on record in Ohio, there were large differences among forage grass species and varieties for winter injury and yield. We all remember the bitter cold days of last winter. Surprisingly enough, the temperatures at the two-inch soil depth never fell below 25 F all winter across most of Ohio. We had enough snow cover during the coldest days to moderate soil temperatures, but the cold air temperatures still had very damaging effects on some grass species and varieties. Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2014/2014-41/large-variation-in-forage-grass-performance-in-2014 to continue reading this article.
Ohio State University Extension Announce Two Corn Colleges Set For January 2015 – Tony Nye
Corn Colleges are high impact programs that are designed for producers wanting to be on the ???Cutting Edge??? of corn production for their operations. Topics will include: Agronomic Practices that Optimize Profitability in Corn Production-Perception vs. Reality ??? Dr Peter Thomison, OSU Extension, Corn production; Nitrogen Timing and Needs During Corn Development ??? Dr. Steve Culman OSU Extension, Soil Fertility; Influence of N Source on Timing of Application ??? Dr. Steve Culman OSU Extension, Soil Fertility; Fungicide Effects on Disease, Ear Rot and Yield in Field Corn ??? Dr. Pierce Paul, OSU Extension, Plant Pathology; Real Field Experiences with Variable Rate Nitrogen Applications ??? Tim Norris, Ag-Info Tech. To continue reading about the Corn Colleges, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-1/ohio-state-university-extension-announce-two-corn-colleges-set-for-january-2015.
2015 Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council Conference – Mark Sulc
The Ohio Forages and Grasslands Council Annual Conference will be held February 6, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Ohio Department of Agriculture in Reynoldsburg, OH. The program focus is ???Take the Next Step??? in your forage management program. The featured speaker will be Dr. Ed Rayburn, Extension Specialist at West Virginia University, who will provide an introduction to pasture ecology and plant and animal responses to management. Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2014/2014-41/2015-ohio-forage-and-grasslands-council-conference to continue reading this article about the 2015 Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council Conference.
Northwest Ohio Corn-Soybean Day set for January 22 – Eric Richer
The annual Northwest Ohio Corn-Soybean Day will be held on Thursday, January 22 at Founders Hall on the campus of Sauder Village in Archbold, Ohio. Registration will begin at 8:30 am with donuts and coffee available as you visit exhibitors. After an on farm research update, the keynote speaker Dr. Bob Nielson of Purdue University will discuss ???Nitrogen Management in Corn.??? This year???s line-up will also include OSUE???s Greg Labarge discussing ???Phosphorus Best Management Practice??? and Bruce Clevenger discussing ???Quality Soil Sampling for High Quality Nutrient Recommendations.??? The day will feature Jim Noel of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to lay out climate predictions for the 2015 production year. This portion of the program will run from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm and will fulfill the 3 hour Ohio Fertilizer Applicator Certification & Training (FACT) requirement for all farmers who apply fertilizer on 50 acres or more of farmland. Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-1/northwest-ohio-corn-soybean-day-set-for-january-22 to finish reading this article.
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