Good afternoon,

We had great weather for the kick-off to the Farm-to-Table campaign on Friday with the Hardin County Chamber and Business Alliance.  The idea is to take locally grown products and market them in our local restaurants, schools, and grocery stores.  The new theme for this Farm-to-Table campaign is “Eat Fresh, Eat Local Hardin County.”  There is also a new logo to promote this campaign, and Denny Hensel’s Harvest Pride Tortilla Chips was featured as one of the first agribusinesses in the county by this Local Foods campaign.  Denny grows the white corn in the county and the chips are processed in Ada.  See the attached news article for more information about this Farm-to-Table marketing initiative.

Farm-To-Table Press Release

This Thursday (7/30) will be the Northwest Ohio Field Crops Day at the OARDC branch in Hoytville.  The program will begin at 9:00 am and end at 11:30 am.  This year’s program has researchers speaking on new corn hybrid technology, proper rates of phosphorus and potassium for optimum corn and soybean production, managing difficult soil-borne diseases in soybeans, and methods to improve soil quality.  The program is free and open to the public.  Farmers and non-farm individuals may participate to see the research farm and listen to the program.  For more information about this agronomy related field day, see the attached article.

Northwest Field Crops Day

Do you have a ram that needs tested?  The Union County Sheep Improvement Association in cooperation with the OSU Veterinary Clinic in Marysville is hosting a Ram Fertility Clinic on Sunday, August 16.  This Ram Fertility Clinic is being planned to assist sheep producers who have rams that need to be fertility tested prior to breeding season.  Rams brought to the OSU Clinic will have a full scale breeding soundness exam (BSE), including a physical examination, semen evaluation, and the owner will be able to discuss breeding options for each ram with Dr. Eric Gordon, OSU Veterinarian, Marysville.  Registration is requested by August 7.  For more details, see the attached flyer.

Ram Fertility Clinic

This past week there were only two Western Bean Cutworms in the four traps around the county.  Hopefully the adult moth flight has peaked in our area, but we still need to be on the lookout for egg masses in corn and damaged ears.  The Hardin County Soil and Water Conservation District, Natural Resources Conservation Service, The Nature Conservancy, John Deere, and OSU Extension are teaming up to provide a local field day in Hardin County on September 18.  See the attached news release for more information about this event, which is titled ‘Agriculture Conservation, Protecting Water: Keeping Soil and Nutrients in the Field.’  There will be interesting speakers, equipment demonstrations, and even smoking drainage tile, so be sure to put this date on your calendar.

ACPW Soil and Nutrients

The Manure Science Review is coming up soon on August 12 in Darke County.  Field demonstrations include Subsurfer: Poultry litter injector. Incorporating Pelleted Poultry Litter during Application, Composting Manure, Solid Manure Spreader Calibration, Smoking Subsurface Tile Drainage, Reducing Flow through Subsurface Tile Drainage, Applicator Demonstrations, Setbacks, and Cover Crops: Planting and Applying Manure.  See the attached flyer for registration and other details.

MSR Flyer 2015

Upcoming local events include a Garden Seminar tonight (7/28) at 7:00 pm and August 13 at Lovena’s Greenhouse near Upper Sandusky being taught by Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardeners.  See the attached flyer for more information.  There will also be a Fairboard meeting on Saturday, August 1 starting at 7:30 pm in the fairgrounds office.  Livestock Interviews for 4-H members will be August 4 from 1:00-8:00 pm in the Community Building at the fairgrounds.  The Farm Bureau will be meeting that same evening starting at 7:30 pm at Ag Credit.  The planned Farm Solar Power Panel Discussion program previously scheduled for August 11 at the Hancock County OSU Extension office has been cancelled.  Below I have included some agronomy related articles.

Garden Seminars

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Time to Dig Roots and Inspect for Rootworm Damage  – Andy Michel

The good news with all the rain is that it likely caused substantial mortality in corn rootworm larvae. However, growers should still be mindful of our most important corn insect. Over the next few weeks is the time that growers should dig corn roots and inspect them for rootworm feeding.  Dig at least 5 plants in 10 different locations in your field.  To determine the level of injury, use the Node Injury Scale—this scale ranges from 1 to 3, were 0.5 is half of a node of roots damaged, 1 is a full node of roots damaged, 2 is 2 full nodes damage, etc.  To learn more about inspecting corn for rootworm damage, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/good-time-to-dig-roots-and-inspect-for-rootworm-damage.

 

 

 

 

 

Ohio Long-Term Phosphorus and Potassium Fertilizer Trials: Grain Yields – Steve Culman, Ed Lentz , Anthony Fulford, Clay Dygert,

Ohio corn, soybean and wheat check-off dollars are currently funding Ohio State Extension research to update the Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations for Corn, Soybeans, Wheat and Alfalfa (http://ohioline.osu.edu/e2567/index.html). As part of this effort, this is the first of several articles on the results of a nine-year corn and soybean trial conducted in Clark, Wayne, and Wood counties. The main goal of the study was to evaluate grain yield response to phosphorus and potassium fertilization.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/ohio-long-term-phosphorus-and-potassium-fertilizer-trials-grain-yields to find out more regarding the Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendation trials.

 

 

 

 

 

More on Fungicides and Tank-Mixing with Insecticides  –  Pierce Paul,  Andy Michel

Northern Corn Leaf Blight Foliar diseases continue to spread up the corn plant in some fields, so, this may be the year to apply a foliar fungicide to minimize losses due to diseases such as Northern Corn Leaf Blight (NCLB) and Gray Leaf Spot (GLS). Both GLS and NCLB may cause yield losses as high as 50% if they become established before silking (R1) and cause substantial damage to the ear leaves and the leaves above the ear before grain fill is complete. The current weather forecast suggests that conditions (wet and humid with moderate to warm temperatures) will continue to favor the spread of GLS and NCLB as fields begin to tassel.  So, this would be the time to protect the upper leaves with a fungicide, particularly if your hybrid is susceptible and your field is in an area with a history of foliar disease problems.  To finish reading this article, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-21/more-on-fungicides-and-tank-mixing-with-insecticides.

 

 

 

 

 

Late-Season Weed Issues – Are We Having Fun Yet?  –  Mark Loux

According to our weather guru, there is no close precedent for a summer like this in the last 100 years, and I can’t recall a year with this much mid-season rain in my almost 30 years here.  This has obviously caused immense problems with post-emergence herbicide applications.  There are many fields with large giant ragweed plants that still require treatment, should field conditions become suitable for traffic again.  Even the best herbicide treatments are not likely to completely control all of the large giant ragweed, but they can be at least partially effective.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-21-1/late-season-weed-issues-2013-are-we-having-fun-yet to continue reading about late season weed issues.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplemental Forage Options for Late Summer to Early Autumn Planting – Mark Sulc

This has obviously been a difficult year for mechanically harvested forages. Not only has it been nearly impossible to harvest dry forage, but reports are becoming more numerous of damaged forage stands due to the excessive rainfall we’ve experienced. This is especially true of alfalfa. Summer regrowth of alfalfa is poor in many fields and many stands are declining, especially where wheel track damage occurred due to the wet soils during harvest operations. Corn silage yields are expected to be lower in many fields. So overall stored forage supply is tight and forage quality of hay crops has been poor for many due to delayed harvest and rained on hay. The need for additional forage supplies this summer is significant for many.  To find out more about late summer and early autumn forage options, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-21-1/supplemental-forage-options-for-late-summer-to-early-autumn-planting.

 

 

 

 

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

hardin.osu.edu

 

Good afternoon,

I am writing this Ag and Natural Resources Update in anticipation of a few more drying days.  This summer we have received the highest amount of rain in June according to our Hardin County OSU Extension Township Rainfall Reporters who have been keeping track of precipitation locally since 1993.  The wettest June on record in our office was June 2009, which had an average of 8.46 inches of rain for the month.  In the month of June 2015, Extension rainfall reporters recorded an average of 10.99 inches of rain in Hardin County.  Last year, the average rainfall for June was 5.52 inches.  Rainfall for June was 6.79 inches more for the month than for the ten year average rainfall in the month of June.  For more township rainfall information, see the attached June 2015 rainfall summary.

June 2015 Rainfall summary

This abundance of rain has had a great effect on the crops and gardens.  Now with the excessive rain and increased humidity, we need to be on the lookout for diseases.  I have attached an article about wet gardens to this email which goes into detail about what the gardener can do to try to make the best of this saturated situation.  This article was written by Hancock County Extension Educator Ed Lentz.  Weeds are becoming a major issue as well, so gardeners will need to stay on top of this problem too.  Remember to stay well hydrated by drinking plenty of water when working outside in this hot and humid weather.

Wet Gardens

This past week there were a total of 8 Western Bean Cutworm moths caught in the four traps I have placed around the county.  This is an increase over the previous week, but not yet at threshold levels.  As more corn comes into tassel, we should expect to see more Western Bean Cutworm moths in flight as we are approaching the mid-season for this corn pest.  Most of the highest concentration of these moths have been in the northern corners of the state in previous years, but they are starting to make their way across Ohio.  See the article below for more information.

 

If you are interested in hops production and missed the registration deadline for the Wooster event, there is another Hops Production Field Night being held at OSU South Centers in Piketon if you are willing to travel.  I have attached a copy of the flyer for this July 30 program to this newsletter.  There will be a Vegetable Crops Field Night in Fremont on August 6.  See the attached flyer for more information about this program which will be held at the North Central Agricultural Research Station.

Hops Field Night 2015

2015VegCropsFieldNight

Locally, Austin Heil from Homestead Precision Agriculture is hosting an ‘Unmanned Aerial Systems VIP Training Class’ at the Christian Missionary Alliance Church in Kenton on August 21^st from 8:30 am -2:30 pm.  See the attached flyer for more details if interested in registering for this class.  Other upcoming local events include a Master Gardener meeting on Monday, July 27, starting at 7:00 pm at Harco Industries.  Below I have included some agronomy articles for your review.

Aerial Systems Training

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

 

Foliar Diseases Already Showing up in Corn  –  Pierce Paul

Foliar diseases, especially Gray Leaf Spot (GLS) and Northern Corn Leaf Blight (NCLB), are already showing up in some corn fields. Although this a little bit on the early side for Ohio, it is not at all surprising, since we have had several wet, humid days over the past few weeks, with moderate to warm temperatures. Both GLS and NCLB are favored by wet conditions, particularly if temperatures are within the favorable range like they have been (70 to 90 F for GLS and 66 to 80 F for NCLB).  For more information about corn foliar diseases, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/foliar-diseases-already-showing-up-in-corn.

 

 

 

 

 

OSU Extension to Hold NW Ohio Precision Ag Day and “Fert-Cert” August 4th  –  Eric Richer

Farmers and crop consultants interested in seeing the latest nutrient application equipment for corn, soybeans and wheat are encouraged to attend the Tuesday, August 4th Northwest Ohio Precision Ag Technology Day at Fulton Co Fairgrounds in Wauseon.  This year’s field operation of interest is precision nutrient management. The event will qualify as a full, 3 hour “fert-cert” to comply with Ohio Senate Bill 150 regulations.  The event will also offer at least 4 hours of Certified Crop Advisor credits, including Soil/Water and Nutrient Management.  To read more about the Northwest Ohio Precision Ag Day, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/osu-extension-to-hold-nw-ohio-precision-ag-day-and-201cfert-cert201d-august-4th.

 

 

 

 

 

Western Bean Cutworm Flight Has Begun  –  Andy Michel

Our trapping network has started to catch western bean cutworm (WBC) adults, meaning that flight is underway. WBC emergence occurs, for the most part, during July, although it can be extended into August, so we expect our counts to increase. Females lay eggs on corn, and, after hatch, the larvae feed on the tassel, pollen or silk before entering the ear.  Late season damage can be quite substantial, as shown in the figure.  To read more about the flight of the Western Bean Cutworm, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/western-bean-cutworm-flight-has-begun.

 

 

 

 

 

Planting Scabby Wheat  –  Pierce Paul

Although scab was not widespread in Ohio this year, there were a few pockets with high levels of the disease in some parts of the state. In addition, persistent rainfall over the last several weeks has caused producers to be concerned about grain quality even in fields without high levels of scab. One of the main questions being asked is whether scab will affect the quality of the wheat seed this fall. Yes, scab will indeed reduce seed quality tremendously, causing germination rates and stands to plummet. However, the vomitoxin that is usually present in scabby seed is not your biggest problem in terms seed germination, damage to the embryo is your problem. You should first pull a grain sample from your lot and determine how badly damaged the kernels are. For more information, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-21/planting-scabby-wheat.

 

 

 

 

 

How much N has been lost this year?  – Steve Culman,  Greg LaBarge

Rain. Rain. Rain. With excessive rain, chances are good most fields across this state have lost more N than in a typical year.  But how much have they lost? Everything applied? Is all of the N fertilizer gone? Although it’s difficult to estimate, it’s very unlikely that the majority of the N applied has been lost. Nitrogen losses in Ohio fields occur by two main pathways: denitrification and leaching. Both pathways occur with nitrate (NO3-), a form of nitrogen that is readily available for plant uptake, but also susceptible to environmental loss. Denitrification is more prominent in heavy, poorly drained soils while leaching occurs more in lighter, well drained soils. Most soils will experience some N loss through both pathways, but the proportion from the two pathways can vary dramatically between soils.  To finish reading this article about nitrogen loss, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-21/how-much-n-has-been-lost-this-year.

 

 

 

 

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

hardin.osu.edu

 

Good afternoon,

Thursday is shaping up to look like a good day weather-wise for the Twilight Tour program on Farm Solar Power.  This program is scheduled for Thursday, July 16 at the Jerry McBride farm.  It will start at 7:00 pm and end at 8:30 pm.  The address is 11312 County Road 60, Dola.  Bring your lawn chair and find out about Jerry’s system and other real-life examples on Ohio farms.  We will have OSU Extension fact sheets on farm solar power systems, an opportunity to see Jerry’s system first hand, a guest speaker from industry, and of course, refreshments sponsored by Ag Credit.  I hope to see several of you at this program.  See the attached news release for more information.

Farm Solar Power Twilight Tour

This past Friday I checked the four Western Bean Cutworm traps around the county, and found two adult WBC moths.  I will be monitoring this pest throughout July and August to find out how big of a problem they are in the county.  Attached is a fact sheet about this pest and the damage it does to corn.  I hope to start soybean research soon, but am waiting on the fields to dry up enough to collect samples.  This year we are in the third and final year of the statewide Yield-Limiting Factor Soybean Research with Dr. Laura Lindsey from Ohio State.  Soil samples and soon, leaf samples will need to be collected from each of the four fields participating in this study.

WBC Fact Sheet

There will be a regional OSU Extension Dairy Meeting August 10 from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm at St. Henry High School.  Subjects presented include Basics of Milk Quality, Margin Protection Program Update, and Margin Protection Decision Program Tool Revisited.  See the attached flyer for more information about this program planned for dairy farmers.  If any of you missed the Fertilizer Certification meeting held this past March in Ada, there is another meeting planned for August 17 from 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm at Botkins High School.  This 3 hour program meets the requirements for obtaining an Ohio Fertilizer License for those applying commercial fertilizer to 50 acres or more who do not presently have a pesticide applicator’s license.  I attached a flyer with more information about this program which is being planned by Auglaize and Shelby County Extension.

Aug 2015 Regional Dairy Meeting Flyer

Fertilizer Cert. Flyer

Hops is a new alternative agricultural crop which is gaining popularity in Ohio.  This crop is used to brew craft beers and can be very profitable if you have a good marketing plan and master the technique of growing this plant.  With this new venture goes infrastructure as well with the installation of poles and wires for the hops plant to grow.  If you would like to learn more about this opportunity, a Hops Production Field Night is being held July 23 in Wooster.  For more information, see the attached flyer which includes registration details and topics.  Finally, the Viburnum Leaf Beetle has been discovered in Hancock County recently.  This pest can do severe defoliation to Viburnum plants in the landscape.  See the attached article to learn more about this pest which has the potential to damage landscapes.

Hops Field Night

Viburnum Leaf Beetle

Upcoming events this week include a Sheep Improvement Association meeting tonight (7/14)  at the Extension office , starting at 7:30 pm.  The Cattle Producers are meeting tomorrow evening (7/15) at the Steak Barn located at the fairgrounds, also starting at 7:30 pm.  There will be a Soil and Water Conservation District meeting Thursday morning (7/16) at the SWCD office, starting at 7:30 am.  Below are some agronomy articles that you may be interested in reading on these wet days.

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

 

West Central Ohio Precision Agriculture Day: Combine and Drone Technology  – Amanda Douridas

Please mark your calendars for the Precision Agriculture Day: Combine and Drone Technology which will be held Friday, August 21, 2015 at the Champaign County Fairgrounds in Urbana, OH. This event will feature presentations on decision agriculture, aerial imagery, utilizing field data, nutrient management, My John Deere and MyShed-Case IH. Some of the presenters include Dr. John Fulton, the new OSU specialist in precision ag technology, Ohio Farm Bureau, Integrated Ag Services, and a panel of farmers utilizing aerial imagery technology.  Demonstrations from Case IH, John Deere, Lexion and New Holland dealers on combine setup for harvest will take place in the afternoon. Live drone flying demonstrations will also occur during the day.  For more information about this event, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-17/west-central-ohio-precision-agriculture-day-combine-and-drone-technology.

 

 

 

 

 

Northern Corn Leaf Blight: Earlier than Usual this Year  –  Pierce Paul

We are already seeing Northern Corn Leaf Blight (NCLB) in some Ohio corn fields. Why are we seeing NCLB this early and how will this affect our yields? For this disease to develop this early, three basic conditions must be satisfied: 1) the fungus (Exserohilum turcicum) must be present; 2) the hybrid planted must be very susceptible to the prevalent races of the fungus; 3) and environmental conditions must be highly favorable. In fields with early NCLB, the symptoms are very characteristic of a susceptible reaction to the disease, with one-to-six inch long cigar-shaped gray-green to tan-colored lesions on the leaves.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-19/northern-corn-leaf-blight-earlier-than-usual-this-year to continue reading this article.

 

 

 

 

 

Cover Crops for Prevented Acres  – Alan Sundermeier

Excessive rainfall and prolonged ponding conditions this spring have resulted in many fields remaining unplanted to corn or soybeans this season. These “prevented planting” acres, while unfortunate for this year’s production, should be managed in ways to prevent further soil degradation and to increase soil productivity for next year. Cover crops are an excellent option for producers to consider for protecting their soil and increasing productive capacity for succeeding years.  To read more about planting cover crops on prevented planting acres, go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/cover-crops-for-prevented-acres.

 

 

 

 

 

Ohio Fertilizer and Manure Application-New Legislative Criteria  – Greg LaBarge

New regulations for manure and fertilizer application started on July 3, 2015 when Senate Bill Number 1 came into effect. The legislation affects nitrogen and phosphorus application whether applied as manure or granular fertilizers. Parts of the regulations are targeted specifically to define watersheds that encompass the Western Basin of Lake Erie while one provision is effective statewide. The text below summarizes important provisions but does not substitute for the legislative text which is found in Ohio revised code sections 6109.10, 903.40, 905.326, 905.327, 1511.10, 1511.11, 3745.50 and 6111.32 plus subsequent rule making by the state agencies. These rules are in addition to the Agricultural Fertilizer Applicator Certification program which began in September, 2014.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/ohio-fertilizer-and-manure-application-legislative-criteria to finish reading about the new fertilizer and manure regulations for the Lake Erie watershed.

 

 

 

 

 

When Is It Too Late to Fertilize Corn with Nitrogen?  – Steve Culman, Peter Thomison

Heavy rainfall over the past several weeks has left many producers across the state with few opportunities to side dress their corn with nitrogen. To make matters worse, excessive water means that significant soil nitrogen has likely been lost through denitrification and/or leaching. It’s not uncommon or surprising to see standing corn crops with severe yellowing, indicating some level of nitrogen deficiency. Most of the corn in the state has grown too tall for standard application equipment to pass over without crop damage, and some corn is entering late vegetative stages. Given all this, when is it too late to fertilize corn with nitrogen?  To find out more regarding late nitrogen fertilization of corn,  go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/when-is-it-too-late-to-fertilize-corn-with-nitrogen.

 

 

 

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

hardin.osu.edu

 

Good evening,

Today was the OSU Weed Science Day at Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) Western Branch in South Charleston.  We were able to dodge the raindrops for the most part to hear about and see the corn and soybean plots to compare different weed control programs.  Studies were done on both fall and spring burndowns, as well as pre and post emergence applications.  Following the program, I dropped off nematode samples on campus in Columbus that were taken as a follow-up to a 2012 research project that was done near Ada.  These samples were collected yesterday with the help of Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) Technician Mark Lowery, in the exact same locations as marked by GPS, and then were put in a cooler until their delivery to the lab.  This study is to find out if tillage radishes might have a bio-fumigation effect on parasitic nematodes.

 

This has also been a productive time in the test plots locally, as I was also able to get out and take GreenSeeker crop sensor readings on the two Corn Response to Nitrogen plots near Dola and Alger.  These vegetative bio-mass readings will enable us to study the effect of nitrogen application amounts applied, and hopefully gain some insight about how the nitrogen is or isn’t being utilized in the corn plants.  A practical application of this technology is to predict the amount of needed fertilizer in a crop.  However, this year with all of the rain, our readings will have extra variables that wouldn’t normally be seen.  At this time, we don’t know exactly how much nitrogen is still in the soil because of slow root development brought about by wet conditions compared to how much has been lost from leaching.  The plan is to do an additional GreenSeeker reading of the same rows later in the growth stages and follow that up with leaf samples for lab analysis of nutrients taken in by the corn.

 

Other field work has included the setting up of Western Bean Cutworm traps around the county to monitor the flight of the adult moth of this corn pest over the next 8 weeks.  Last year, I only caught 5 moths the entire season with the four traps.  However, many more were caught in other counties in the northwest corner of the state.  Hopefully these pests won’t make it this far to Hardin County to become a problem in our area.  In other programming, Integrated Pest Management Specialist Jim Jasinski and myself met with the local produce growers last night to teach them how to properly identify, monitor, trap, sample picked fruit, and manage the Spotted Wing Drosophila fruit fly.  This is a new pest to the area in soft fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, grapes and peaches.

 

There is a Twilight Tour program on Farm Solar Power scheduled for Thursday, July 16 at the Jerry McBride farm.  This program will start at 7:00 pm and end at 8:30 pm.  The address is 11312 County Road 60, Dola.  Bring your lawn chair and find out about Jerry’s system and other real-life examples on Ohio farms.  Learn how solar power helps farms and businesses seize control of electricity costs.  Solar power basics information about replacing your purchased electricity with your own power you generate will also be discussed.  Attendees will also find out about how you can “sell” your excess energy back to the utility.  Sizing a solar power system to your needs will also be a topic along with information about the incentives, including tax credits, accelerated depreciation and  USDA grants.  I hope to see you there!  See the attached flyer for more information.

Farm Solar Power Twilight Tour

Other upcoming events include Ag Council Friday, July 10 at Henry’s Restaurant starting at 7:00 am.  Part of the sharing of information will be the results of the test plot Greenseeker readings and practical applications of this data.  The Fairboard will meet Saturday, July 11 starting at 7:30 pm in the fair office at the fairgrounds.  The Sheep Improvement Association will meet Tuesday, July 14 starting at 7:30 pm at the Extension office.  On the way back from the OSU Weed Science Day today, I noticed several wheat fields that were harvested in Union County.  The more wheat harvest is delayed, the greater risk for poor grain quality.  See the attached news article about this subject as well as one I included about bedbugs that you will want to read especially if you are traveling or have kids moving in or out of apartments or dormitories.  I have also included agronomy articles below that you may be interested in reading.

Wheat Harvest Issues

Bedbugs

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

 

Saving Soybean Seed for Next Year  – Laura Lindsey

Due to wet weather, a few farmers in northwest Ohio have not yet planted soybean.  Can this soybean seed be saved and planted next year?   Check with your seed dealer.  Your seed dealer may have options available to return seed.  Check with your seed dealer to see what your options are.  Store seed in a climate and humidity controlled environment.  High temperature and relative humidity increases the rate of seed deterioration.  Test seed quality before planting.  If seed is to be saved for next year’s planting, make sure to test the seed quality before planting.  At minimum, the warm germination test is needed to adjust seeding rate.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-18/saving-soybean-seed-for-next-year to read the entire article.

 

 

 

 

 

Prospects for “Muddied Corn”  – Peter Thomison

During the past two weeks, flooding and ponding have occurred across Ohio, especially in river bottoms and along streams. In some localized areas, this may have resulted in partial and complete immersion of corn in nearby fields, especially in low spots. When water drains off these fields, plants may be covered to varying degrees with a layer of mud. Will corn plants covered by a layer of mud survive and can it perform normally? The layers of silty mud covering plants will limit or prevent leaf photosynthesis. Bacteria deposited in leaf whorls by flooding can result in disease and kill plants.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-19/prospects-for-201cmuddied-corn201d to finish reading this article.

 

 

 

 

 

 

June Sets Rainfall Records for Many Parts of Ohio  –  Jim Noel

June will go down as forecast with it being a wetter and warmer than normal month. Most of the warmth came from moisture and clouds holding overnight lows being held up where daytime temperatures were close to normal.  The outlook for July is for continued wetness for the first half of the month followed by drying in the second half. Temperatures will start cooler than normal but will turn back warmer than normal in the second half of July.  Rain chances will continue daily or every other day into the first week of July.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-19/june-sets-rainfall-records-for-many-parts-of-ohio to finish reading this article.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scabby wheat grain? Increasing your Fan Speed May Help  –  Pierce Paul

Wheat harvest in now in progress and will continue over the next several days before and after the next showers. Early reports on grain quality indicate that a few fields may have moderate levels of scabby grain, and consequently could have vomitoxin contamination above thresholds set by grain buyers. The threshold set by the US Food and Drug Administration for harvested grain intended for animal and human consumption is 2 ppm, but elevators may accept grain with slightly higher levels, depending on how big of a problem we have and whether or not they can find clean grain to blend.  Go to http://corn.osu.edu/newsletters/2015/2015-20/scabby-wheat-grain-increasing-your-fan-speed-may-help for more tips on dealing with scabby wheat during harvest.

 

 

 

 

 

Northwest Agronomy Day – Harold Watters

The Northwest Agricultural Research Station, 4240 Range Line Road, Custar, OH will hold its annual Field Crops Day on Thursday, July 30 from 9 – 11:30 A.M.

The Program will include presentations and opportunity for discussions on: Management of Soil Borne Diseases in Ohio, Results of Nine Year P and K Fertilization Study, Drought Tolerant Corn Hybrids: What Is the Fit for Northwest Ohio, and Methods to Test for and Agronomic Practices to Improve Soil Quality. Pesticide and CCA continuing education credits will be available. The Custar Ohio Station is 2.5 miles northeast of Hoytville at the corner of Oil Center and Range Line roads in Wood County. For more information contact farm manager Matt Davis at 419-257-2060, davis.1095@osu.edu or see the station website: www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/branches/branchinfo.asp?id=3.

 

 

 

 

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

hardin.osu.edu