Good evening,
I am writing this edition of the Hardin County Agriculture and Natural Resources Update from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents Conference in Chattanooga, Tennessee. We have been busy attending workshops, meetings, and award sessions as a group from Ohio. These kind of events provide an opportunity for networking, learning new ideas, and meeting new colleagues from across the nation. One of the highlights of this national conference was witnessing retired Hancock County Extension Agent Gary Wilson getting inducted into the NACAA Hall of Fame. Last week before I left Ohio, we had just finished the Manure Science Review at the Watkins Farm between Kenton and Forest. If you missed that field day, I have attached a news article about the event.
After some rain a couple weeks ago, the concern has been around hot and dry conditions for crops depending on where you live. Although this can be good weather for putting up hay or harvesting oats, if you look at the latest attached Ohio Crop Weather Report for July 30, 88% of the corn is silking and 86% of the soybeans are blooming with 58% setting pods. So rainfall during this time is very important to this process. Looking at the forecast for this week in Hardin County, it appears that some rain will happen during the week. I have also included Ohio Crop Weather Reports for July 23 and July 16 if you want to take a look back and compare our crop growing conditions for those two weeks. Japanese Beetles continue to hang out in the area, causing defoliation to area gardens and crops, so you might be interested in taking a look at the attached article written by Ed Lentz about this pest and actions that can be taken to manage them.
Upcoming local events include Ag Council on Friday (8/3) starting at 7:00 am at Henry’s Restaurant, and Farm Bureau Annual Meeting Tuesday (8/7) starting at 7:00 pm at Mid-Ohio Energy Cooperative. There are some upcoming field days happening around the state that you might be interested in attending. I have included flyers for the Hops Field Night, August 15 in Bowling Green, Soil and Water Field Night, August 16 in Piketon, Beef and Forage Field Night, August 23 in Jackson, Pumpkin Field Night, August 23 in South Charleston, and the Ohio No-Till Field Day, August 29 in Wooster. See the individual attached flyer for any field event that you may be interested in attending so that you know the location and registration details. In addition to these flyers, I have included some agronomy articles below that you may be interested in reading.
Mark
No Pigweed Left Behind – Late-Season Scouting for Palmer Amaranth and Waterhemp – Mark Loux
If you don’t already have to deal with waterhemp or Palmer amaranth, you don’t want it. Ask anyone who does. Neither one of these weeds is easy to manage, and both can cause substantial increases in the cost of herbicide programs, which have to be constantly changed to account for the multiple resistance that will develop over time (not “can”, “will”). The trend across the country is for them to develop resistance to any new herbicide sites of action that are used in POST treatments. Preventing new infestations of these weeds should be of high priority for Ohio growers. When not adequately controlled, Palmer amaranth can take over a field faster than any other annual weed we deal with, and waterhemp is a close second. Read more at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2018-23/no-pigweed-left-behind-late-season-scouting-palmer-amaranth-and.
Keep Scouting for Potato Leafhoppers in Alfalfa – Rory Lewandowski, Mark Sulc, Kelley Tilmon
If you grow alfalfa, now is the time to scout those fields for potato leafhoppers. Integrated pest management (IPM) scouts are finding potato leafhoppers (PLH) widely distributed across a number of alfalfa fields. PLH numbers have ranged from low to well above economic treatment thresholds. In addition, alfalfa growers have been calling about yellow leaves on alfalfa, one of the classic PLH damage symptoms. Alfalfa growers should consider regular field scouting for PLH because this is one of the economically significant pests of alfalfa. To read more about potato leafhoppers in alfalfa, click on https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2018-22/keep-scouting-potato-leafhoppers-alfalfa.
Night Temperatures Impact Corn Yield – Alexander Lindsey, Peter Thomison
Low night temperatures during the grain fill period (which typically occurs in July and August) have been associated with some of our highest corn yields in Ohio. The cool night temperatures may have lengthened the grain fill period and reduced respiration losses during grain fill. High night time temperatures result in faster heat unit or growing degree day (GDD) accumulation that can lead to earlier corn maturation, whereas cool night temperatures result in slower GDD accumulation that can lengthen grain filling and promote greater dry matter accumulation and grain yields. This is thought to be the primary reason why corn yield is reduced with high night temperatures. Go to https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2018-24/night-temperatures-impact-corn-yield to finish reading this article.
Western Bean Cutworm: Adult Moth Catches Continue to Increase in Northeast Ohio – Amy Raudenbush, John Schoenhals, Mark Badertscher, Amanda Bennett, Bruce Clevenger, Sam Custer, Tom Dehaas, Allen Gahler, Jason Hartschuh, Ed Lentz,Rory Lewandowski, Cecilia Lokai-Minnich, David Marrison, Les Ober, Eric Richer, Garth Ruff, Jeff Stachler, Curtis Young, Chris Zoller, Andy Michel, Kelley Tilmon
Western bean cutworm (WBC) adult moth catches are beginning to decrease for the majority of Ohio counties with an exception in Northeast Ohio. For week ending July 28, 18 counties monitored 63 traps. Overall, there was an average of 15 moths per trap (945 total captured). This is a decrease from an average of 25.1 moths/trap (1985 total captured) the previous week. Despite the general trend of adult moth catches decreasing, numbers suggest Northern Ohio counties should continue to scout for egg masses. Find out more information at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2018-24/western-bean-cutworm-adult-moth-catches-continue-increase.
Manure Management and Cover Crops Field Day – Jeff Stachler
Want to learn more about sidedressing corn with liquid manure, latest on water quality, and how to make cover crops work? Attend the Manure Management and Cover Crops Field Day in Auglaize County. The field day is on August 8, 2018 from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM. The Field day will take place at the southwest intersection of Main Street and Doering Roads with the field entrance to the west at the woods. The nearest address to the field is 09244 Doering Road. Topics presented at the field day include Basics of Cover Crops, How to Make Cover Crops Work, No-Tillage and The Smoking Tile, Water Quality Update, Best Management Practices, Manure Research, and Manure Sidedress Demonstration.
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