Top Of The News
by Rick Mooney
Editor, eHay Weekly
 Being able to show potential customers the hay they're considering actually helps sell it, says hay buyer Brian Foss, of Northern Plains Forage in Volin, SD. Foss has been putting videos of hay lots for sale on his Web site for the past year or so.
"It takes a lot of the guesswork out of buying hay," he says. "Just about everybody who has ever bought hay long distance has been burned at one time or another. This way, they know that if they order a particular load from me, it's the load that they're going to get. They just feel better about buying from you if they can have a look at it first."
Foss buys hay in South Dakota and neighboring states. He sells primarily to horse owners in the southern U.S. – from Texas to Florida. The videos have been especially popular with women buyers.
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University of Minnesota Extension has recently updated its publication, Fertilizing Alfalfa In Minnesota.
The four-page bulletin gives new sulfur suggestions for alfalfa grown on fine-texture soils. Other topics include pH and lime requirements and phosphate, potash, nitrogen and micronutrient recommendations.
The alfalfa publication, along with updated bulletins on Lime Needs For Minnesota and Liming Materials For Minnesota, can be accessed on the U of M's new nutrient management Web site.
For additional stories on alfalfa fertilization, see "Alfalfa In Need Of Nutrients," "Tissue Tests Measure More" and "Meet Alfalfa's Fertility Needs."
High alfalfa hay prices continue to be a major concern for dairy producers in many parts of the country. So says Bob Cropp, emeritus ag economist with University of Wisconsin Extension, in Dairy Situation And Outlook.
The average U.S. alfalfa price in October, $203/ton, was 72% higher than it was the same month in 2010, according to USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) numbers.
October hay price spikes were greatest in Southwestern and Western states: 88% higher in California and Idaho, 80% in Arizona, 79% in New Mexico and 44% in Texas. By comparison, Wisconsin's alfalfa hay price was up 14% and New York had just a 2% increase from October 2010 figures.
Dairy producers are also facing higher costs for feed grains, energy and other inputs while milk prices decline. Bottom line: Lower margins for milk production in 2012 will likely stop the growth in U.S. milk cow numbers and slow increases in milk production per cow.
See a chart of monthly alfalfa hay prices reported by NASS.
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Montana
It's been a good year to be an alfalfa hay grower in south-central Montana, says Joel Flynn of Flynn Hay and Grain near Townsend, MT.
"Demand was phenomenal. We're completely sold out. It wasn't very hard to make a sale this year," says Flynn. He grows alfalfa and alfalfa-grass (timothy, orchardgrass and some bromegrass) hay on 650 irrigated acres. "We got off to a slow start with wet and cool weather, and we thought we might be down on tonnage. But we caught up as the season went along. Our yields turned out to be normal."
Flynn puts up large and small square bales. This year, he marketed most of the large squares to Idaho and Washington dairies. He sold the small squares to various horse markets in the eastern U.S.
His dairy-quality hay brought as much as $210/ton, but most sold in the $170-175/ton range, about $60/ton higher than it sold for a year ago. Small square bales went for as much as $250/ton. "Last year, I don't think we had a sale for over $150/ton on any of our hay."
Even his feeder-quality alfalfa hay sold for $140/ton.
Flynn believes prices in his area may have hit a high point. "The market has quieted in recent weeks. The most aggressive buyers have already filled their orders for the season. I don't think that's caused any softening of prices, but demand has been backing off over the last month or so."
To contact Flynn, call 406-980-0536 or email joelflynn@mt.net.
Ohio
"Hay and straw have been moving well, and the price for hay has been going up steadily since last year," says Doug Russell, who runs J.D. Russell Hay and Straw Inc., with his dad, John, in Pemberville, OH. "But you'd expect that given what's going on with the grain markets. As long as grain prices stay up there, the hay price will be on the strong side."
The Russells have been plenty busy fielding inquiries from would-be customers this fall. "We've definitely been getting more calls this year and from people farther away than (we have) in other years," says Russell. "It takes hard work to find hay this year in many places."
They grow alfalfa and alfalfa-orchardgrass hay on 400-450 acres, and it was a good production year despite a late start to the growing season. Their hay is packaged in small square bales weighing 65-70 lbs. They also buy wheat straw in windrows from neighboring farmers to make small square straw bales. Most of the Russells' hay and straw is marketed to feed stores serving horse owners in the eastern U.S.
4.41 Inches of rain that fell in Hot Springs, AR, on Nov. 22. Crop growers and livestock producers are welcoming widespread rains throughout the state this month after a dry growing year. "It will help emerging wheat and also winter pastures," says Joe Vestal, University of Arkansas Extension ag agent in Lafayette County. "Producers who were holding off fertilizing winter pastures because of dry conditions should go ahead and fertilize. Pasture growth will be stimulated if it doesn't get too cold." Read more.
40 Percentage 2011 increase in Nebraska farmland value compared to last year's third-quarter figures, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. A survey of 243 banks throughout the 10th Federal Reserve District shows its average farmland values were up 25% for the quarter. The district includes Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, Colorado, northern New Mexico and western Missouri. Learn more.
$120,000 Estimated value of alfalfa hay lost in a fire at a dairy in Mesquite, NM, early last week. Local fire officials suspect arson was the cause. Source: KVIA-TV, El Paso, TX.
198.4 billion Pounds of milk that U.S. dairy farms will produce in 2012 compared to this year's projected 196 billion pounds, according to USDA's November Livestock, Dairy & Poultry Outlook report. The agency expects the all-milk price to average $18.05-18.95/cwt in 2012, lower than this year's average of $20.10-20.20/cwt. Read the full report.
Events
New developments in biomass grass crops will be the focal point of an educational program to be held Dec. 6 at the University of Missouri (MU) Bradford Research and Extension Center near Columbia.
"This will be a timely meeting, as many producers in mid-Missouri and other parts of the state are preparing to plant biomass crops as part of a USDA-funded project (the Biomass Crop Assistance Program)," says Newell Kitchen, a USDA and MU soil scientist.
It will feature presentations on miscanthus and switchgrass; question-and-answer sessions on planting, weed control and harvest; and a panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities with biomass grasses. Sessions will be geared toward farmers, Extension specialists and agribusiness and farm agency representatives.
The free event includes a complimentary lunch to those who RSVP to Kristi Perry at 573-882-0085 or PerryKK@missouri.edu. For more information, contact Kitchen at KitchenN@missouri.edu.
The Northeast Washington Hay Growers Association will hold its annual meeting on Dec. 3 at John's Auto Repair in Clayton.
Insurance, identifying problem weeds, pest control, hay contracts and additional topics are on this year's agenda. A business meeting is also scheduled.
A registration fee of $20 for members and $25 for non-members, which includes lunch, will be charged at the door. See a brochure.
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