Crop Update June 5
This year I was counting my blessings as we made it through May with no tornadoes in Clay County and no Memorial Day storms! Yet history seems to repeat itself on days. Last year, hail went through the counties north of us on June 3. This year, hail hit us on June 3rd….an estimated 30% of Clay County. Please also see the resources listed at the end of this post for more specific information regarding decision-making.
Earlier that day, I had looked at wheat in a number of counties where white heads were appearing in wheat. Most often they easily pulled from the head and weren’t more than 2% of fields. Those were attributed to wheat stem maggot. The white heads that were hard to pull from the stem were most likely due to some late frosts that we had in the area.
The evening of June 3rd resulted in various rainfall totals throughout the county and hail damage to an estimated 30% of the County. This photo is of the west fork of the Upper Big Blue River that was flooding many fields along Hwy 6 between Hwy 14 and Sutton.
This was June 4: Water along both sides of Hwy 6 from Hwy 14 to Sutton and over the road in a few areas. The road was closed on June 5th after another 3-4 inches fell in the area Thursday night. Portions of fields were flooded throughout the County and we’ll have to see how long it takes for water to recede and what temperatures do to determine any replant situations.
Corn in the V5-V6 stage ranges in hail damage. The worst damage of plants were reduced to sticks. Time will tell how well the plants recover. I’m concerned about bacterial diseases in corn-particularly Goss’ wilt showing up later…but also a bacterial rot that we were seeing in Nuckolls and Thayer Co. after the heavy rains they received last month.
Soybeans ranged from planted to V3 in the County. Many of the hail-damaged beans still had a cotyledon attached. In the past, I’ve seen new plumules shoot from the top of the stem when the growing point wasn’t too damaged. We again will need to wait and see what happens.
First cutting alfalfa is down in much of the County waiting to be baled.
Severely hailed wheat field. You can also see the amount of stripe rust present in this field. We estimated 75-80% of wheat heads in this field were broken over and wouldn’t fill the heads.
Another hail-damaged wheat photo. We have a great deal of stripe rust of wheat in the County and some farmers with livestock have chosen to hay wheat that is severely affected by stripe rust. Some did spray fungicide which has held the rust back. Others are going to just see what happens yield-wise.
For more information on hail and replant decisions, please see:
Options for Stripe Rust in Wheat
Stripe rust has exploded in wheat in the past 3-7 days in South-Central Nebraska due to the
rain and cooler weather. Nebraska Extension is receiving numerous questions regarding options to consider. Rain has also increased our risk for Fusarium Head Blight (head scab).
Wheat is at such a variety of stages in the area; many fields are just heading and/or flowering right now while others are in soft-dough.
Stripe rust on the flag leaf, as shown in this photo, will continue to progress with cool, wet conditions, reducing yield. If your fields are currently yellow with stripe rust, here are a few options:
1-Do nothing and see what happens regarding what yield is obtained. If your wheat is past flowering, fungicide application is not an option as all fungicides would be off-label.
Susceptible wheat varieties to stripe rust that have not been treated with a fungicide to date have a yellow cast to them in South-Central Nebraska.
2-If your wheat is headed and beginning to flower, you could still consider a fungicide application of Caramba or Prosaro. Both are labeled for headed and flowering wheat. There’s a 30 day pre-harvest restriction for both. Rainfast varies from ¼ hour to 2 hours or when dry depending on environmental conditions. Both fungicides can help prevent scab and control rust on the plant. However, research has shown that best scab prevention occurs when wheat is headed and 30% of the plants are in the beginning flower stage. Application within 5 days of these criteria still showed positive results. Research showed that application before or after this time period greatly reduced effectiveness of preventing scab. Understandably, the economics of a fungicide application are tight with current wheat prices. The following article includes economic considerations.
3-Consider haying it. Dr. Bruce Anderson, Nebraska Extension Forage Specialist shared the following:
“Baling hay or chopping silage are two potential options. Rust pustules are not toxic to cattle although sometimes the spores can irritate respiration. It can be difficult to make good silage, though. Rusty leaves dry out rapidly so it can be hard to get the best moisture content for silage packing and fermentation.
Usually it is best to harvest rusty wheat hay just before heading to retain reasonable forage quality. As plants mature further, quality can decline rapidly. Digestibility of rust affected cells is much lower than that of normal cells. Fortunately, protein doesn’t seem to be affected greatly. Properly made hay should not deteriorate in the bale due to the rust any more than normal.
Be sure to have the forage tested before feeding. It is likely that nutrient concentration will differ from typical wheat hay so testing will help in developing rations. Also consider the impact of removing the wheat residue. Adequate residue helps retain soil moisture, boosting yield of your next crop.
There never are good choices when problems like this develop. All you can do is weigh your options and choose what is best for you.”
Also, please continue to check out UNL CropWatch for wheat disease and all our crop updates.
Research Before You Retweet: Gardening in the Age of Social Media
Elizabeth does a great job explaining why it’s important to know the source before sharing information online. Great explanations for why we should/should not use some of the household remedies we see online!
Blossom end rot on tomato. Maintain consistent moisture. Try mulching tomatoes instead of reaching for the Epsom salts.
Without a doubt the interest in gardening and landscaping has been on the rise for many years. In order to find information on how to garden in the past, you had to know who to ask or what book to look in. Today the places to find information are endless. Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and the internet all have gardening information that is easily shared among friends and followers alike. Sometimes these ideas are tried and true while others are more “too good to be true.” I might not be the first to say it, but you can’t believe everything you read on the internet.
Through my job with Nebraska Extension, I educate people using science-based information that comes from research. This ensures the information that I give out has been researched by…
View original post 502 more words
Wheat Scab Risk Increasing
Fusarium Head Blight Risk Assessment Tool: http://www.wheatscab.psu.edu/.
With wheat heading/flowering in South Central Nebraska and recent rains, risk for Fusarium Head Blight (scab) in wheat in our area of the state has increased to moderate/high. I’m also finding stripe rust up to a leaf below flag with some just beginning to appear on the flag leaves. This year creates a harder decision for applying fungicides in non-irrigated fields with cost of production, wheat price, poor stands, and severe stripe rust. If you are considering a fungicide, your options during flowering are: Prosaro, Caramba, and Proline. Typical foliar fungicides are off-label once flowering occurs. The above-mentioned fungicides can help prevent scab and control stripe rust and some other foliar fungal diseases if the fungicide is timed correctly. For preventing scab, research has shown that fungicides applied when approximately 30% of wheat heads reach beginning flower stage do a good job of protecting wheat plants as did the application of fungicide within 5 days of early flowering. Application of the fungicide 7-10 days after flowering offered minimal control based on University research trials sponsored by the U.S. Wheat and Barley Scab Initiative.
Avian Influenza-Nebraska Update
Dr. Sheila Purdum, Nebraska Extension Poultry Specialist asked us to share the following
Photo courtesy Nebraska Extension Poultry website.
information about avian influenza. Unfortunately, Nebraska has HPAI H5N2 in a commercial flock of laying hens in Dixon County. This is the same virus that has been infecting turkeys in MN and WI and laying hens in the state of IA for the past 3 months. It is a deadly flu virus to poultry, killing as many as 90% of the flock within 3 days of the first symptoms. The major source of the virus has been migrating waterfowl, but it is believed to be airborne now traveling on numerous vectors to include people’s clothing, vehicles and other animals that may have come into contact with migrating waterfowl excrement, dust, etc.
Biosecurity:
The good news is that Biosecurity measures such as disinfecting all equipment coming into contact with your bird’s environment will help keep it out of small flocks. It is highly advised that backyard flock owners move their birds into indoor shelters and keep them away from interaction with migrating waterfowl on ponds. Simply do not share pasture or space, water with wild birds. This may be hard for some backyard folks, but they are just as susceptible to this nasty virus as the big producers.
USDA is working quickly on an Avian Influenza vaccine; it does have some problems matching strains to what the outbreak virus is (just as in human vaccine development). One other positive outcome is that this strain of AI is not harmful to humans; it is species specific to birds. The USDA/APHIS website provides current updates about outbreaks.
Infected birds that do not perish by natural causes are euthanized when a premise is tested positive and birds are composted on site. If backyard flocks have high mortality, we urge you to call the Nebraska Department of Ag at 877-800-4080.
What if I purchased chicks from a local farm store?
All of those chicks should be clean; breeders could not sell chicks from positive flocks
Photo Courtesy Nebraska Extension Poultry website.
according to State and National regulations. The virus can incubate and live in an environment for up to 3 weeks before the birds become sick. That is why Biosecurity is the best precaution. Do not visit your neighbors flock, live bird auctions or parks with migrating birds, stay in a high awareness alert to protect your birds. If you have questions, please feel free to call Dr. Sheila Purdum, Extension Poultry Specialist, 402-472-6362; spurdum2@unl.edu.
Poultry Sales:
Dr. Dennis Hughes, Nebraska Department of Agriculture State Veterinarian has shared that swap meets, exotic sales and live bird auctions east of Highway 281 will not be permitted to sell poultry until further notice. In addition, poultry from east of Highway 281 will not be permitted to be sold at swap meets, exotic sales and live bird auctions anywhere in Nebraska until further notice. Questions on this topic may be directed to Dr. Tom Schomer at (402) 471-2351.
County Fairs and Other Shows:
Your local County Extension Office and/or FFA Advisor will keep you updated regarding the status of County Fair 4-H/FFA poultry shows. For those coordinating additional upcoming poultry shows, they would appreciate you informing them. While they have not enacted a ban on poultry shows at present time, they would like to process the risk associated with each show on a case by case basis and help you determine the best course of action for your event.
They ask that you please report a contact name, phone number/email address, the name of your event, date and location via email to Jeanne Egger at NDA via email at jeanne.egger@nebraska.gov or by calling (402) 471-6880.
NE Ag Water Management Network
With increasing cost of production, the Nebraska Ag Water Management Network is another way to help reduce energy costs while conserving water for the future. If you’re not already scheduling your irrigation based on soil moisture status, consider joining us by working with your local Extension Educator or Natural Resources District this growing season!
Planting has been well underway and hopefully we will receive some timely rainfall with little need to irrigate. If you have irrigated ground and are looking for ways to save money, reduce nutrient loss and use less water, consider joining the Nebraska Agricultural Water Management Network, or NAWMN. I’ve been in Extension for nearly ten years and a program I’ve been involved with that has been a very rewarding program and made a positive impact for many is the Nebraska Agricultural Water Management Network, or NAWMN. Evaluation results have shown a one to two inch savings of irrigation since it’s inception. In 2005, only a few producers in the Upper Big Blue NRD, (shortly followed by the Little Blue NRD) were participating, but as of last fall, this program has reached 1,229 in 18 NRDs and 73 of 93 counties. The Network has been having significant impacts on both…
View original post 182 more words
Is the beef industry sustainable: A look at grass-fed, hormones, growth promotants, and more
Lindsay does a great job of summarizing highlights from Dr. Jude Capper’s presentation at our Sensitive Issues Media and Communication training.
Recently, several of my colleagues and I hosted a Sensitive Issues: Media and Communication Training, we worked on developing and improving our communication skills around agriculture and agricultural topics. One of the topics we received more information on was sustainability.
Dr. Jude Capper, a livestock sustainability consultant, was our first speaker. I want to share with some of the messages about sustainability shared by Dr. Capper.
– Sustainability is defined as “able to last or continue for a long time.” Many livestock farmers and ranchers are sustainable – whether they raise 10 head or 1,000 head. If you have never heard of the Century Farms Program, you should check it out. The American Farm Bureau Foundation recognizes farms or ranches by state that have been in a family for 100+ years! That is sustainable.
– There are essentially three things that need to be considered to be…
View original post 657 more words
Sensitive Issues Training-Engage
Many of us have been there…we’ve been asked a question in which the answer can be deemed controversial because the topic is based on emotion and beliefs. How do we respond? Do we get caught up in the emotion and passion of the issue and try to force our beliefs on others? Do we shy away or try to avoid an answer altogether by remaining silent?
Last week’s Sensitive Issues Media and Communications Training was developed to help all of us through these situations. It was a remarkable experience working with an amazing group of ladies, all passionate about food, but looking at food from a variety of perspectives and taking an issues-based approach in developing our team. Our team was comprised of a livestock expert, a manure expert, two food and nutrition experts, a communication’s expert, and myself from a crop production perspective. Special thanks to Dr. Chuck Hibberd, Nebraska Extension Dean and Director, for providing us a New Audiences Innovation Grant to partially fund this training. You can catch the conversation on Twitter at #SIMCT15.
We invited the Center for Food Integrity to conduct their Engage training with us, which was sponsored by the United Soybean Board. This
training uses “the power of shared values to highlight industry trends and teaches strategies for using values-based messaging in daily conversations, and public speaking and media opportunities.” There was discussion, role playing, and mock media interviews. The training challenged me to use something I also just learned from “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” training….Seek first to Understand, then to be Understood.
Essentially, ask questions. Understand why a consumer believes X, Y, or Z about food and agriculture. Universal values include:
- Compassion
- Responsibility
- Respect
- Fairness
- Truth
Seek to understand the other person’s values by listening and asking questions. Then share by communicating about common values telling your food and ag story. We can’t really script this. We can’t be so vague that we’re not credible. For example, the following is vague and perhaps over-used:
By doing X we help the environment.
Instead, we need to be willing to talk about the hard issues with authentic transparency…to share our own individual stories.
I also desire water that is safe for my family to drink and desire for there to be enough water for future generations. That’s why my colleagues and I work with farmers to use research-based irrigation scheduling tools. Doing so helps reduce over-irrigation which can reduce the nitrate levels reaching our groundwater and the amount of water being pumped from the aquifer.
There were a few surprises for me. The first being the progress in one year (based on
the Center for Food Integrity’s research) that we’ve made in consumer trust. This slide is essentially saying that 42% of consumers feel the food system is going the right direction (up from 34% last year). Men are more trusting of the food system at 48% believing the food system is on the right track. 32% of women feel the food system is on the wrong track.
Another surprising, yet encouraging piece of information for 
me to see is which people are trusted the most on sensitive topics. On the topic of genetically modified foods, University Scientists topped the list, a Scientist that was a Mom was second, and Farmers were third. This is different than other research I’d seen, so I was excited about this. It was a survey of 2005 individuals conducted in 2014 and was encouraging from the standpoint that we do still have an opportunity to share our stories with those who truly desire to know more about where their food comes from. We will never change the activists, but we can reach the middle.
Finally, I loved the following quote which is so true:
A picture is worth 1000 words; a video is a library.
They showed the following video from Similac entitled, “The Mother ‘Hood“. Instantly, my mind went to how easy it would be for ag to do something similar. We tend to be so divided, but division is killing us. We are in the business of providing a safe, affordable, food supply to the world…but beyond that, our diversity provides consumer choice. If you watch the video, consider what is the common issue that could bring all of ag together. I have some ideas and my team members and I have discussed what a similar video with diverse agriculture groups would look like. What are your thoughts and ideas?
Vegetable Gardening Workshop
Have you been interested in starting your own garden? Have you been vegetable gardening for years but are curious about the latest trends and ways to raise vegetables? Do you have a particular pest or disease that continues to plaque your garden produce? Then this Thursday’s (April 16th) Clay County Vegetable Gardening workshop is for you! Join us for an enjoyable evening of learning and fellowship. There is a $5 fee to cover light refreshments and materials….and as always, plants will be the doorprizes 🙂 Please RSVP to jrees2@unl.edu or (402) 762-3644. See you there!
2015 Nebraska Ag Water Mgmt Network Meeting
April 2, 2015 is the date for the 2nd annual Nebraska Ag Water Management Network (NAWMN) Meeting! Come hear the latest in irrigation research and share with your peers during the innovation sharing and Q/A discussions. There’s no charge but please RSVP to Gary Zoubek at (402) 362-5508 or gary.zoubek@unl.edu.
JenResources 