Month: November 2017

Grazing Wind Damaged Corn Residue

Jeff McCutcheon, OSU Extension Educator, Southeast Regional Director

Although this information has been posted in the past, as harvest has come and gone, this opportunity may serve as a viable option for those looking for a cheap feed source to graze the mature ewe flock on. This strategy allows farmers to optimize on losses associated with harvest as well as serve as a means to save on winter feedings.

To survive the current feed economy livestock producers need to graze their livestock as long as they can.  Every day livestock are meeting their nutritional needs through grazing they are being fed as economically as possible.  Typically cattle producers utilize corn residue as a feed source but, in Ohio, sheep producers need to consider grazing corn residue as well.  When corn stalks become available for grazing livestock producers need to move to take advantage of this resource.

Because the feed is in contact with the ground and deteriorating in the field you should start grazing corn residue as soon as the combine pulls out of the field. The nutrient value of residue declines the longer it is exposed to weathering. Sixty days after harvest is the window for maximum feed value. After 60 days it may not meet the needs of your livestock and you will need to provide supplemental feed. Grazing residue right away will provide a better feed.

Wind damaged fields can have more grain left in the field after harvest than normal.  Check fields for excess grain before grazing. Too much corn left in the field can cause acidosis and founder. In these cases cattle need to be adapted to a higher grain ration before grazing. They should initially be turned into residue with their rumens full if a problem is expected.

Strip grazing will also force the animals to eat leaves, cobs, and stalks instead of just gleaning the grain.  Giving animals only a few days or weeks worth of corn residue at a time utilizes the forage more efficiently.  Strip grazing provides a more uniform diet.  Leaving cattle in the entire field for a couple months or longer means the livestock will initially pick the grain and some of the leaves. Eventually they will only have the stalks, or the least nutritious plant part, left and will need to be supplemented.

Typically fence and water are the excuses used for not grazing corn residue.  There are several inexpensive, temporary options for both. Check out Rory’s article for fencing and “Watering Systems for Grazing Livestock”

(https://store.extension.iastate.edu/Product/pm1604-pdf)

Changes to Ohio’s Livestock Care Standards Take Effect Jan. 1

REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio (Nov. 13, 2017) – The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) wants to remind producers and livestock owners about upcoming changes to Ohio’s livestock care standards.

(Image Source: Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio Livestock Care Standards Guide)

Effective January 1, 2018, veal calves must be housed in group pens by ten weeks of age. Additionally, whether housed in individual stalls or group pens the calves must be allowed to turn around and cannot be tethered. Also effective January 1, tail docking on dairy cattle can only be performed by a licensed veterinarian and if only medically necessary.

The above changes were recommended by the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board, a group of 13 members from farming, veterinary, academic, food safety, animal care and consumer interest back‐ grounds tasked with annually reviewing the standards and recommending any appropriate changes to ODA. The changes were submitted by ODA and ultimately approved by the Ohio legislature’s Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review.

Ohio’s livestock care standards were implemented after Ohioans overwhelmingly passed State Issue 2 in November 2009. The constitutional amendment required the state to establish comprehensive livestock care standards, established in rules by the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

More details including educational guides to the approved Ohio Livestock Care Standards can be found linked here.

 

YIELD DATA QUALITY FOR POST-HARVEST ANALYSES

by: Elizabeth Hawkins, Kaylee Port, John Fulton

As the number of tools and services utilizing precision ag data to aide in decision making continues to increase, the importance of having quality data is also increasing. Most producers understand the importance of yield monitor calibration for generating accurate yield estimates, but there are other errors that can impact both the accuracy and the spatial integrity of yield data. Spatial integrity of yield data becomes very important when being used to generating prescriptions for fertilizer and seeding. Spatial inaccuracies in yield data become a problem when using yield maps to create management zones and subsequent input decisions by zone within a field. Taking the time to evaluate quality and removing erroneous data ensures prescriptions and other maps based off yield data are correct.

When processing yield data this winter, some errors to be mindful of include: header height setting, quick stop-start errors, flow delay setting, and header/ platform width setting. Each of these errors will result in inaccurate yield estimates impacting maps created from yield maps. The following outlines some of the potential errors:

…Read More …

Precautions for Dicamba Use in Xtend Soybeans

The extension weed science programs at The Ohio State University, Purdue University, and the University of Illinois recently collaborated to produce suggestions and precautions for use of dicamba in dicamba-resistant soybeans.  The United States Environmental Protection Agency issued amendments to the Xtendimax, Engenia, and FeXapan labels last October, and this new extension weed science publication offers additional suggestions to help further reduce off-target dicamba movement.

View the Multi-State  Precautions for Dicamba Use in Xtend Soybeans here.

 

The Economic Value of Applying Fall Poultry Litter

by: Jordan Shockley, University of Kentucky Assistant Extension Professor

Spring application of poultry litter is ideal for maximizing the economic value of poultry litter but faces challenges that include wet soil conditions, lack of time to spread litter near planting, and availability of poultry litter in the spring. Therefore, it is a common practice in Kentucky to apply poultry litter in the fall. While not optimal from an economic, agronomic, or environmental perspective, producers still need to understand the economic value from applying poultry litter in the fall.

Poultry litter applied in the fall to fallow cropland will suffer from ammonium volatilization and leaching resulting in little to no nitrogen available to the crop come spring. This results in an economic value less than if applied in the spring. To evaluate the economic value of poultry litter applied in the fall, first assume that soil test recommendations indicate the need for phosphorus and potassium. Also, assume that “as received” poultry litter has a nutrient content of 50 lbs of nitrogen, 56 lbs of phosphorus, and 47 lbs of potassium (average for Kentucky). With current fertilizer prices of $399/ton for anhydrous ($0.24/lb N), $418/ton for DAP ($0.36/lb P2O5) and $316/ton for potash ($0.26/lb K2O), the expected value of poultry litter applied to fallow cropland in the fall is $29/ton. This value should cover the price paid for the poultry litter, transport, and application to compete with commercial fertilizer when applied in the fall. The value of poultry litter increases to $33/ton if it is spread in the fall to cropland that has a cover crop planted. Both fall poultry litter prices are lower compared to 2016. This is directly attributed to the decrease in nitrogen prices from $0.32/lb to $0.24/lb. This decrease value was slightly offset by small increases in both phosphorus and potassium prices.

If availability of poultry litter in the spring is a concern, stockpiling litter purchased in the fall can be an option if local, state and federal regulations allow. With the correct storage techniques and a properly staked litter pile, producers can expect minimum nutrient loss for spring application. If the same commercial fertilizer prices hold, the average poultry litter in Kentucky would have a value of $36/ton if properly stored and applied in the spring.

The value of poultry litter differs in the fall if applied to pastures or land for hay production. If applying poultry litter to an established stand of alfalfa with a legume mix of <25% of the stand, the average poultry litter in Kentucky at current commercial fertilizer prices has a value of $40/ton. The value of poultry litter will vary based on grass type, established stands vs. new seeding/renovation, and whether the land is used for hay, pasture, or silage.

Since the value of poultry litter is dynamic and always changing, decision tools have been developed so producers can enter soil test data, nutrient content of measured litter, commercial fertilizer prices, and management practices of poultry litter applied to determine the value. Tools for applying poultry litter to both grain crops and land in hay/pasture/silage are available and can be found on my website at the following link: http://www.uky.edu/Ag/AgEcon/shockley_jordan.php

Market Beef and Market Dairy Steer Tagging

Are you planning to exhibit a Market Beef and/or a Market Dairy Steer at the 2018 Knox County Junior Fair?  If so, the following information is for you.

WHAT:                               Market Beef and Market Dairy Steer Tagging and Weigh-In

WHEN:                               Saturday, December 2, 2017

TIME:                                  8:00 to 11:00 a.m.

WHERE:                            Knox County Fairgrounds

COST:                                 Each animal will be double tagged.  Once with an electronic tag (EID) and the second will be a visual tag.  Tags are $2.00 each for a total of $4/animal.  If your animal already has an EID, then it will only receive the visual tag for a cost of $2.    

Special Note: All animals need to be wearing a halter and be broke to lead!!!!

They also must be dehorned and castrated!

If you know of any 1st year members who are thinking of taking one of the above projects, please pass this information on to them.

Potential Ohio State Fair Market Beef Exhibitors: Please contact Andrea (397-0401 ext. 1301) for more information.

2017 OHIO CORN PERFORMANCE TEST PRELIMINARY RESULTS NOW AVAILABLE ON-LINE

by: Rich Minyo, Allen Geyer, Peter Thomison

Results from the 2017 Ohio Corn Performance Test are now available on line at: http://oardc.osu.edu/corntrials

Single and multi-year agronomic data is currently available for all sites and regions for 2017. The results can be accessed by following the links on the left side of the page. Information regarding the growing season, evaluation procedures and traits will be available soon. Additional hybrids will be added as soon as marketing information becomes available, as will the combined regional tables (which are especially helpful in assessing hybrid performance across locations).

 

 

Wet Pattern Likely Into Next Spring!

by: Jim Noel

The wet pattern arrived this fall and continues. It has resulted in flooding and harvest delays.
It does look like for the rest of November it remains colder than normal with only light precipitation events every few days. However, it will not be cold enough to freeze the ground and make better traction for equipment in the fields.

For winter and spring, it looks wetter than normal. Temperatures will trend from warmer than normal to start winter in December to slightly colder than normal by late winter into spring.

This is all based on the current La Nina advisory that the NOAA Climate Prediction Center has issued.

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/enso_advisory/ensodisc.pdf

Tax Reform: What’s on the Table?

by: John Barker

Tax reform continues to be a hot topic.  Proposed changes to the Estate, Gift and Generation-Skipping taxes could all have significant impacts on Agricultural businesses.

Kristine A. Tidgren, Assistant Director for the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation at Iowa State University provides an excellent summary and update on the current status of the tax reform proposals.  CLICK HERE TO READ MORE…

Fall Fertility – Tri-State Fertility Phosphorus Tables

by: John Barker

As harvest winds down and “IF” the fields ever dry out many of us will turn our attention to fall fertilizer applications.  We can still submit soil samples.  The turnaround time is approximately 5 -10 days, usually closer to 5.  The cost for a standard Ag sample is $10 + postage.

We are always willing to help you with your fertilizer recommendations.  The following tables are adopted from the Ohio State University Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations.  To utilize these tables you must first know what units are used with the P value (i.e. Pounds/acre or Parts Per Million (PPM)).  Secondly you will need to know what extractant is being used Bray P-1 or Mehlich III (M 3).

Currently the lab we use reports P values utilizing M3 and PPM.  Table 13 contains the recommendations for corn and Table 15 shows the soybean recommendations.

 

 

 

 

 

For example if you have a field with a corn yield goal of 170 bu./ac., a soybean yield goal of 60 bu./ac. and a soil test report from our lab with a P value of 35 (M3, PPM) our recommendation would be as follows: Corn – 65 lbs./ac. and Soybeans – 50 lbs./ac.

If MAP (11-52-0) is your fertilizer of choice, you would apply 125 lbs/ac. (65/.52) for your corn crop and 96 lbs/ac. (50/.52) for your bean crop.  This application can be applied before each crop or combined into one application of 225 lbs/ac. for both crops.