Ted Wiseman, OSU Extension, Perry County (originally published in The Ohio Cattleman) I don’t think that anyone would be surprised if I stated that getting hay made this spring was a real struggle. Spring arrived with beef cows in some of the poorest body conditions that we have seen in years. It is possible for an animal to starve to death with hay in front of them every day all winter. My intent…
U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary Scott Hutchins announced today that the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has invested $11 million in research that will support specialty crop farmers. “This collaborative public-private research effort will focus on applying innovative solutions to pest management problems that often are otherwise not available to specialty crop farmers,” said Hutchins, who leads USDA’s Research, Education and Economics (REE) mission area. “Practical and economic crop…
Check out the exciting line up for this year’s Range Beef Cow Symposium in Mitchell, NE November 18-20. On Monday afternoon the program will kick off with beef quality assurance training and certification and you won’t want to miss the Ron Gill Stockmanship Clinic. Tuesday morning will begin the traditional program with Drs. John Hall and Benton Glaze from University of Idaho talking about when it pays to artificially inseminate and breed complementarity. …
Bruce Anderson, Nebraska Extension Forage Specialist Sorghum-related plants, like cane, sudangrass, shattercane, and milo can be highly toxic for a few days after frost. Photo credit Troy Walz. Listen to a discussion of the content in this article on this episode of the BeefWatch podcast. You can subscribe to new episodes in iTunes or paste http://feeds.feedburner.com/unlbeefwatch into your podcast app. If you haven’t experienced a freeze yet this fall, you soon will. And…
HENRIETTA, Texas — The reward has been increased to $10,000 for information on 489 steers missing from a ranch in eastern Clay County, Texas. Special Ranger John Bradshaw of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) is investigating the case. It was previously reported that the cattle went missing between November 2018 and August 2019. Due to the large herd maintained by the rancher, he did not discover the missing animals until…
K-State economist has released publication taking a look at impact of MCOOL MANHATTAN, Kan. – A Kansas State University agricultural economist says a law that once required mandatory reporting of the origin of meat sold in grocery stores likely did not have an impact on consumers’ demand for those products. Glynn Tonsor has completed an analysis of meat demand before, during and after the U.S. Department of Agriculture had implemented mandatory country of…
Bruce Anderson, Nebraska Extension Forage Specialist When yucca covers too much land to spray, the only cost effective way to reduce its impact is to winter graze. Photo credit Troy Walz. Yucca plants, which are also called soapweed by many people, have nearly overrun many rangelands. There are ways, though, to reclaim those grazinglands. Across much of western and central Nebraska, yucca has nearly taken over some pastures. While they may be able…
Aaron Berger, Nebraska Extension Beef Educator Fair and competitive compensation for work that is done is certainly important in attracting and keeping employees in agricultural operations, but it is only a part of what motivates people. Photo credit Troy Walz. Unemployment across the United States is at historically low numbers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Nebraska ranks in the top 25% of states in having one of the lowest unemployment rates. …
Aaron Berger, Nebraska Extension Beef Educator Corn residue is a tremendous feed resource for cattle in Nebraska. Photo credit Troy Walz. Corn harvest will be underway soon in much of Nebraska. Corn residue is a tremendous feed resource for cattle in Nebraska. With Nebraska’s 9 million corn acres and 1.8 million beef cows, there is more than twice the number of corn stalk acres needed for grazing all of Nebraska’s beef cows! The…
Erin Laborie, Nebraska Extension Educator Cattle feeders that grow their own corn have the opportunity to market light test weight corn through their cattle without sacrificing cattle performance. Photo credit Troy Walz. The number of growing degree days remaining for the season will influence the amount of light test weight corn harvested this fall. The current standard test weight for corn is 56 pounds per bushel. When corn test weight is below the…