2019 Market Facilitation Program Payments

Information from Ben Brown

Today (7/25/2019) at noon the U.S. Department of Agriculture released details about the 2019 Market Facilitation Program (MFP). This is a continuation of the 2018 program designed to help offset market effects from retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agricultural products. Continue reading

Septic System Care and Maintenance

Cleaning effluent filter with soap and brush

Karen Mancl, Professor, Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
Brian Slater, Associate Professor, Environment and Natural Resources

 

Homes beyond the reach of a city sewer must treat and disperse wastewater on their lots. This household sewage treatment system requires regular care and maintenance just like other components of a home. A neglected system threatens public health and can result in financial losses to the property. In cities, a trained professional operator cares for the wastewater treatment system. For homes with household sewage treatment systems, the property owner is responsible for maintenance.

Household sewage treatment systems usually consist of a septic tank, a treatment system, and a dispersal system. The expected life of a properly maintained wastewater treatment system is around 20 years.  To continue reading this factsheet click here

 

 

“Working Lands” Forage Field Days Planned

By: Garth Ruff, OSU Extension

The Ohio Department of Agriculture Working Lands Buffer Program allows for forage to be grown and harvested from field edge buffers in the Western Lake Erie Basin. Join OSU Extension, Ohio Forage and Grassland Council, and your local Soil and Water Conservation Districts to learn about the Working Lands Program.

Topics to be covered at these field days include Soil Fertility ~ Seed Bed Preparation ~ Forage Species Selection ~ Seeding Methods ~ and More! Continue reading

Two new OSU Extension Soil Fertility Factsheets available

By Steve Culman, Ohio State University Extension

Two new factsheets summarizing key components of the work to update the Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations are now available.

Updated Grain Nutrient Removal Rates

How many pounds of nutrients are removed with every bushel of corn, soybean, and wheat harvested? This factsheet reports new numbers and shows how nutrient removal rates in harvested grain have decreased over the past 25 years.

For more information: go.osu.edu/grain.

Converting Soil Test Values: Mehlich-3, Bray P, Ammonium Acetate

The updated Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations will use the Mehlich-3 extractant as the new standard for fertilizer recommendations. This factsheet provides simple, standardized conversions that allow users to convert back and forth from these different extractants.

For more information: go.osu.edu/mehlich.

Thinking about Cover Crops…thoughts to consider

By Sarah Noggle and Alan Sundermeier

Decisions, decisions these days.  When it comes to selecting the right cover crop for your farm, there is no one-size-fits-all option. This document is to help those of you new to cover crops with the thoughts, questions, and decisions, one needs to make when selecting cover crops. oatsPlanting cover crops to prevented planting acres to protect the soil from further water and wind erosion.

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Tax Planning in an Unusual Year – Prevented Planting Indemnity Payments, Market Facilitation Payments and Cost-Share Payments

By:  Barry Ward, Leader, Production Business Management & Director, OSU Income Tax Schools

Prevented Planting Crop Insurance Indemnity Payments

With unprecedented amounts of prevented planting insurance claims this year in Ohio and other parts of the Midwest, many producers will be considering different tax management strategies in dealing with this unusual income stream. In a normal year, producers have flexibility in how they generate and report income. In a year such as this when they will have a large amount of income from insurance indemnity payments, the flexibility is greatly reduced. In a normal year, a producer may sell a part of grain produced in the year of production and store the remainder until the following year to potentially take advantage of higher prices and/or stronger basis. For example, a producer harvests 200,000 bushels of corn in 2019, sells 100,000 bushels this year and the remainder in 2020. As most producers use the cash method of accounting and file taxes as a cash-based filer, the production sold in the following year is reported as income in that year and not in the year of production. This allows for flexibility when dealing with the ups and downs of farm revenue.

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#LeanOnYourLandGrant

From Cathann A. Kress, Dean of the College of Food, Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

The historic rainfall during this growing season has challenged Ohio growers and producers.  Find science-based solutions to the issues from the CFAES community of experts.

Visit go.osu.edu/AgCrisis.

The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences is concerned with the severe impact that the extreme weather, coupled with recent public policy issues, is having on growers and producers.

In response, CFAES has assembled resources and information that can assist from a broad perspective on the issues facing those in farming and related industries as well as the rural community overall.

Please engage and communicate with us. Know that we are all in this together, and everyone in the CFAES community may have insights to share. Thank you.

Noxious Weeds in Cover Crop Seed and Seed Germination

By: Alexander LindseyLaura LindseyMark LouxAnne DorranceStan SmithJohn Armstrong, Ohio State University Extension

Seed quality is key to establishing a good crop (or cover crop). Some of the critical components of seed quality are percent germination, mechanical analysis for purity (% other crops, % inert, and % weeds), and a listing of noxious weeds identified by scientific/common name and quantity found. As producers are looking for seed sources to provide living cover on acreage this year that was previously earmarked for corn or soybeans, it is important to pay attention to the quality. These tests may also be required on seed lots for use in some relief programs as well. Commercial or certified seed used for cover crops should have a seed tag that shows variety and the seed quality measurements above. However, if the seed is sourced from out of state, the noxious weeds listed (or NOT listed) on the tag by name may differ from those had the seed been sourced from Ohio.

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Farm Science Review Tickets Available Locally

Pre-sale tickets for the 2019 Farm Science Review (FSR) are available at the Paulding County OSU Extension Office for $7. The office is opened Monday-Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.  A portion of the sales of these tickets will be kept locally by the Paulding Extension Office.

If you cannot make it during our regular hours, call ANR Extension Educator Sarah Noggle at 419-399-8225. The 2019 Farm Science Review will be held at the Molly Caren Agricultural Center near London, Ohio on September 17 (8:00 am to 5:00 pm), 18 (8:00 am to 5:00 pm), and 19 (8:00 am to 4:00 pm). Tickets at the gate are available for $10. Children 5 and under are free. For more details about FSR, please visit https://fsr.osu.edu/home.

2019 North American Manure Expo

The 2019 North American Manure Expo is being held on July 31st and August 1stat Fair Oaks Farms in Indiana. This event is a great opportunity to see new manure technology, gain knowledge through educational sessions, and see equipment being demonstrated.

The Expo kicks off on Wednesday, July 31st with tours in the morning followed by liquid manure agitation demonstrations, special industry presentations, and the trade show in the afternoon.

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Cows Under the Covers Field Day

Please click on the flyer if interested in attending a grazing and cover crop workshop on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 in Camden, Michigan.

Join us at Person Farms on Wednesday, August 21 for an advanced Cover Crop and Grazing workshop with guest speakers Steve Groff, “The Cover Crop Coach” and Jerry Lindquist, retired MSU grazing educator. Continue reading

Considerations for Using Soybeans as a Cover Crop

Taken from the CORN Newsletter – Article by Laura Lindsey

From the USDA RMA website (https://www.rma.usda.gov/News-Room/Frequently-Asked-Questions/Prevented-Planting-Flooding):

“Q. Can I plant a cover crop of the same crop I was prevented from planting? Or in other words, can I use the seed I have on hand (corn, soybeans, wheat) to plant a cover crop as long as it’s at a lower-seeded rate that qualifies for the cover crop?

A. Yes. An acceptable cover crop must be generally recognized by agricultural experts as agronomically sound for the area for erosion control or other purposes related to conservation or soil improvement is planted at the recommended seeding rate, etc. The cover crop may be the same crop prevented from planting and may still retain eligibility for a prevented planting payment. The cover crop planted cannot be used for harvest as seed or grain.” Continue reading

July 15 – A big deadline for Prevent Plant Acres and FSA Crop reporting

Two deadlines (and maybe three) farmers won’t want to miss as of July 15. (Please note that FSA has extended the reporting deadline to July 22 as of 7/11/2019)

1. Prevent plant reporting deadline with your Crop Insurance Agent.  This is a hard deadline for reporting with USDA-RMA (United States Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency).  The date is July 15. No exceptions or extensions will be made.  If you have questions contact your insurance agent directly. Refer to https://www.rma.usda.gov/-/media/RMAweb/Handbooks/Loss-Adjustment-Standards—25000/Prevented-Planting/2019-25370-Prevented-Planting-Standards.ashx?la=en or https://www.rma.usda.gov/News-Room/Frequently-Asked-Questions/Prevented-Planting-Flooding

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