Airing August 9 - 16, 2005

Nitrates in Sorghum

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. I've been getting numerous calls lately about nitrates in sorghum. Nitrates are always a concern in the sorghums, regardless of if they are sudangrass, true forage sorghums or some of the sudex crosses. There are some differences, but they probably only really matter in borderline years. Nitrates are always present in plants - they only become a problem when they are present in the forage in quantities faster than the animals can break them down. Interestingly, if you feed moderate level nitrate feeds to cattle they can actually build up tolerances to incredibly high levels of nitrates IF they are given time for the proper bacteria to build up in the rumen. I'm expecting less problem with nitrates this year then in past years because we had good growing conditions early in the season. We also know that certain conditions during the growing season will increase and decrease nitrate levels. Immediately following a rain, drought stressed plants will show sky high nitrate levels that may take up to two weeks to drop off. Lots of cloudy weather and especially cool weather under 55 degrees will also increase plant nitrate levels. Basically anything that reduces the normal photosynthetic processes will increase nitrates. We also know that nitrates concentrate in the lowere portions of the stalk so we can cut higher and leave some of the problem in the field. We know that ensiling a plant will reduce nitrates about 50%, but just cutting for hay won't. While I haven't seen many nitrate tests this year, we are getting ready to get some results back on some droughty looking forage sorghum, so if you suspect a problem, let's test so we can adjust our management. This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

Wheat Varieties

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. Let's talk a little bit more about wheat varieties this morning. The new wheat variety test report is out. If you receive the High Plains Journal you got one in your Journal. If you don't get the High Plains Journal, I have copies at the extension office. One of the first things that I noticed about the new format for the variety results book was that the tables are in much larger type - something I'm really appreciating as I approach 50 and with my first pair of bifocals! The same information that was always in the variety test books is there. As a followup to a previous program let's look at some of the varieties and blends and what to consider. In the north central part of the state, the following varieties were 105% of average or better. Those were Cutter, Jagalene, Santa Fe, 2145, Infinity CL, Jagger, Overly, Wahoo and Wesley. Oh, and a couple of test varieties that had no name, only a number. I've already stated my concerns about any Nebraska wheat - check to see if it has Soil Borne resistance. But we also know that north central Kansas may not have as much rust disease pressure as northeast Kansas. So let's look at those from Northeast Kansas also where we again see Santa Fe, 2137, 2145, Infinity CL, Millenium, Wahoo, and Wesley. I've already warned you to be leary of 2137 because of it's failing leaf rust resistance. What are some of the popular blends that producers are looking at? For an early blend, Overly, Karl 92 and Dominator. For medium maturity, 2145, Dominator and Jagalene or Cutter and for medium late maturity, 2145, Wesley and Jagalene or Cutter. Please stop by the Extension Office or Geary Grain and pick up a copy of the 2005 Wheat seed variety test results. This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

Horse Flies

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. I don't know about you, but I've been seeing a LOT of horse flies this year, and I'm talking about the really big mean ones. To be honest, I really haven't caught one yet to figure out if it's the Black Horse Fly or the Autumn Horse Fly or one of the other even more minor species. All I can tell you is that they are big, they run into things when they fly, they will bite anything with blood, they hurt like the dickens and we seem to have a lot of them this year! For the record, there are over 40 species in the Horse Fly family in Kansas. And we are blessed to be right in the heart of the Horse Fly season which should last through early September. The life cycle for horse flies takes 1 to 2 years depending on the species. The immatures live in water, mud or moist areas feeding on soil dwelling insects including each other. So the outbreak this year is not directly related to the heavy rains in June, but they could have aided survival and may be setting us up for more next year. Only the females bite and feed on blood. The biting can be so severed that milk production can drop, and animals can go off feed, not to mention the diseases that they can carry. Animals can be treated with back rubbers, direct sprays or pour ons, primarily containing permethrin. But due to the size of the flies, death may actually take several days. Around farmsteads there are really limits to what you can do to reduce their numbers. If you can find a place where they congregate you could periodically spray them with permethrin, but most of the time they won't stay lit long enough to do much good. So simply hang on and hope that they run their cycle soon... And maybe keep a fly swatter handy! This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

Native Hay

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. I had to make a quick run up to Nebraska recently and it was really interesting to see the broad range of native haying operations that were going on. Sure, I may sound like a broken record on this, but it really is important and I don't think a lot of producers are taking it very seriously. Along the way I saw fields that had been hayed 2 to 3 weeks ago, in what I would call the prime native haying period. These fields had nice regrowth coming on and by the time growth starts slowing down in another month, there will be no doubt that the food reserves in the roots will have been restored. Additionally, the quality of the hay that came off these fields will be the best that you can hope for in native hay. Protein would be expected to be in the 6 to 8% range with good palatability. I saw other fields that had been recently hayed and baled, probably within the last 10 days. There was very little regrowth yet and I am willing to bet that most of those bales are going to be at, or below, 5% protein. Just borderline feed value for most cattle. And finally I saw fields that had just been swathed and they were waiting to be baled. All I can say about this hay is that it will make good bedding or probably some fairly good mulch. Assuming we start to get some regrowth soon, the grass plants will be starting to move into dormancy phase just about the time that the root reserves are at their lowest. So the grass plants go into winter with only a half a tank of fuel. They may be better off if there isn't any regrowth. Then on top of that, just about the time that many invasive cool season winter annual grasses, like cheat and downy brome, are starting to germinate, these meadows will have minimal ground cover and bare soil. Bottom line - it's time to STOP cutting native hay. This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

Crop Production Update - Soybeans

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. I guess it's about time for a soybean rust update or maybe just a soybean production update, period. Recent heat and dry weather has certainly been taking it's toll, and I really can't remember when we've had a summer of such isolated and spotty showers. One side of town can have nearly an inch and the other side less than a quarter inch. A crazy year! Okay, Asian Soybean Rust has been reported slighlty further north, but as of yet we haven't cleared the Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia northern border. Spore traps in Tennessee did show up some possible spores in late July and early August, but apparently this heat that we've been having all across most of the country has been suppressing it. So I guess there's at least one good thing we can say about the heat. With most of the soybean crop blooming and podding, or at least trying to pod, we are quickly moving past the really critical time frame for this disease. Even if the weather does cool down and get rather rainy, I don't think the disease is going to get up here fast enough to give us too much bother or require more than one fungicide application. And if it doesn't cool down and start giving us some decent rains, it may not matter too much. Now we are also still keeping an eye for soybean aphids, though. There were infestations being found in Shawnee and Jefferson counties late last week, but they appear to be in decline at this point. There were, however, spider mites showing up in many parts of the state recently and we really need to keep an eye on these. With even just 7 to 10 days of hot dry weather spider mites can get way ahead of predatory insects and can cause serious damage. Look for soybeans going off color and call me if you find some. This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

New Loan Deficiency Payment form

This is Ag Outlook 2005 on 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte, Geary County, K-State Research and Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent. I want to give all producers and land owners a heads up about a new form that you will want to get filled out at the Farm Service Agency office. As of August 1st there is a NEW loan deficiency payment form. Even if you have filled out a loan deficiency payment form for this year's crop, the folks at the FSA office would really like for you to fill out a new one. The reason for this is simple - it helps to insure that you will receive your loan deficiency payment. With this new form signed, you no longer have to worry about filing your paperwork requesting your LDP before you lose your beneficial interest. The new form that you need to fill out is the CCC-633-EZ. It is available on the web or at the FSA office. If you wish to FAX in your new form, remember that there needs to be an FSA-237, Facsimile Signature Authorization Verification Form, on file with your FSA office. By completing and agreeing to the terms and conditions provided by the new CCC 633 EZ form, before losing beneficial interest in any of this years crops, you are then eligible to receive LDP benefits based on the earlier date of either the date that the beneficial interest in the eligibile commodity was lost or the date of the request for payment. In other words it takes out the penalty of losing your LDP if you happened to sell the grain before you filed the paperwork at the FSA office. There are a few other benefits to the new form - it incorporates all types of LDP requests into a single 3 page form, like I said earlier, it insures LDP eligibility for producers, it covers all quantities the producer has beneficial interest in, and most importantly, it simplifies the process. So get it done! This has been Ag Outlook 2005 on the Talk of JC, 1420 KJCK, I'm Chuck Otte.

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