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Hay & Forage Grower
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By Rick Mooney
Editor, eHay Weekly
After a bleak 2009, the outlook for U.S. hay exports is on the upswing.
“Demand in general has picked up,” says Adam Lyerly of El Toro
Export, LLC, in El Centro, CA. “We’re finally getting back to more
normal-type numbers, and it feels really good.”
Continued interest in U.S. hay on the part of Chinese buyers is one
positive development. To date, the Chinese, relatively new players in
the worldwide hay trade, have limited their U.S. purchases to alfalfa
hay for use in their rapidly emerging dairy industry. “They’re very
pleased with the quality of U.S. alfalfa,” says Lyerly. “In terms of
nutritional quality, it’s far better than anything they can produce
domestically.” He adds that, by some estimates, the volume of hay
exports to China this year could be double what it was in 2009.
Click
here to read the entire story.
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Entry forms for the 2010 Southeastern Hay Contest are now available
online in the Hot Topics section of the University of Georgia Extension forage
Web site.
Held during October in conjunction with the Sunbelt Agriculture
Exposition in Moultrie, GA, the contest is open to producers in 13
Southeastern states – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina,
Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
Hay and baleage samples entered in the contest are evaluated in six
categories: warm-season perennial grass hay, perennial peanut or alfalfa
hay, cool-season perennial grass hay, grass baleage, legume baleage and
mixed, annual grass or other hay.
Hay entries will be judged using NIR testing procedures by the
University of Georgia Feed and Environmental Water (UGA-FEW) Lab. The
entries will be ranked using the relative forage quality (RFQ)
evaluation system.
The entry fee is $15/sample, and the deadline for entering is Sept. 30.
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Rainy weather has alfalfa fields in many parts of the country
showing signs of windrow disease. That’s the name University of
Nebraska Extension forage specialist Bruce Anderson gives to the striped
appearance of alfalfa fields where windrows remained so long (usually
due to rain) that regrowth was delayed.
Windrow disease can present all kinds of challenges. “Weeds often
invade, requiring spraying to maintain quality and protect stands,”
says Anderson. “And during the next growth period, plants that were
not smothered regrow rapidly, while plants underneath the windrow suffer
delays. Part of the field often will begin to bloom while
windrow-stressed plants are still short and tender.”
Deciding when to harvest afflicted fields can be problematic. Anderson
advises making the decision based on two factors: The health and vigor
of the stand, and the nutrient needs of livestock.
If plants aren’t healthy and regrowing well, wait until stunted plants
begin to bloom. That will avoid weakening them even more. On the other
hand, if plants are in good shape, cut when it will best meet the
nutrient needs of livestock. “Dairy cows need alfalfa that is cut
early, so harvest when the first plants begin to bloom,” Anderson
advises. “Regrowth of injured plants may be slow after cutting, but
this sacrifice is needed for profitable milk production.”
In contrast, beef cows don’t need such rich hay. So let stunted plants
recover, then cut when they are ready to bloom. “Hopefully, by next
cut, growth will be uniform, plants healthy and production back to
normal.”
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University of Kentucky (UK) researchers are taking a closer look at
RyzUp SmartGrass, a new plant growth regulator, to see if the product is
effective in increasing pasture growth as advertised.
The product, a formulation of gibberellic acid, has been marketed for
some time in New Zealand and Australia to increase pasture growth in
cooler months of the year (temperatures of 40-60 degrees). Gibberellic
acid is a naturally occurring plant growth regulator that causes cell
elongation of all plants and is essential for plant growth.
The UK researchers have been testing the product in the state since
2008. Initial trials with tall fescue growth in the fall gave mixed
results. Results in other states showed more promise. This spring, the
researchers tested the product on orchardgrass at the university’s
Lexington research farm and set up on-farm demonstration tests at
several locations. They’ll continue the research this fall. Updates on
results will be available periodically on
UK Extension’s forage Web
site.
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University of Wisconsin Extension has posted a video on
establishing alfalfa and grasses on YouTube. Featuring Extension forage
agronomist Dan Undersander, the four-minute video offers tips on field
preparation and planting using drills and Brillion seeders. Also
included is a section on evaluating new alfalfa seedings. See the video.
According to the recently released “2009 Purdue University
Indiana Farm Fatality Summary,” 20 people died in accidents on state
farms last year. Of the total fatalities, three were children under the
age of 10. Read
the full summary.
Grassland: Quietness and Strength for a New American
Agriculture, a new book from the American Society of Agronomy, Crop
Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America, takes a
look at the many functions of grassland today and examines the benefits
grass-based agriculture can provide when grass is treated as an
essential resource. Learn more about ordering a copy at hayandforage.com.
U.S. on-highway diesel fuel retail prices, which averaged $2.46 per
gallon in 2009, are forecast to average $2.96/gallon in 2010 and $3.11
in 2011, according to the June Short-Term Energy
Outlook issued by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In
2008, the average price was $3.80/gallon.
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Hay & Forage Grower content is available on Facebook, a social
networking tool increasingly used by growers. Interact with readers and
editors, participate in discussions and keep up-to-date with industry
happenings. Become
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Hay & Forage Grower is also on Twitter, a micro-blogging site
that provides brief status updates on people, groups or organizations.
Users can "follow" people or groups, including news organizations that
they want to keep up-to-date with.
Follow Hay & Forage
Grower on Twitter!
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Idaho
A late start on first-crop alfalfa harvest, due to cooler- and
wetter-than-normal May weather, could crimp overall season yields in
parts of the state this year, says University of Idaho Extension forage
specialist Glenn Shewmaker.
As of mid-June, Shewmaker reports, many producers were just starting on
first-crop harvest. “Everything has been running about 10 days later
than normal,” he says. “For the most part, fields look pretty good.
But we are seeing a few more weeds in alfalfa than we usually see.”
A big question is how the delay will affect scheduling for subsequent
cuttings. “It’s pretty tight to get four to five cuttings in Idaho,
anyway. And, ordinarily, we don’t make up any ground during the hot
period in July and August. We could be short on yields at the tail-end
of the season.”
A side note: University of Idaho Extension recently launched a new forage Web site.
Included are variety test results, proceedings from the Idaho Alfalfa
and Forage Conference, fact sheets, links to other forage-related Web
sites and more.
To contact Shewmaker, phone 208-736-3600 or email gshew@uidaho.edu.
Missouri
University of Missouri (UM) Extension livestock specialist Eldon Cole is
reminding hay growers in southwestern Missouri that the deadline for
entering this year’s Ozark Empire Fair Hay Show is July 10.
The hay show accepts entries for hay harvested in Missouri during 2010.
Classes include legume, cool-season grass, warm-season grass,
grass-legume mixes and summer or winter annual grasses. The show
primarily receives small rectangular bales but special classes exist for
large hay packages.
Entries are evaluated by laboratory analysis and by subjective procedure
of a judge. The latter involves color, aroma, purity and texture. The
traits are weighted to actually favor the lab analysis, which uses the
relative feed value system of measuring digestibility and expected
intake.
“Exhibitors use the hay show to find out the real nutritional value of
their hay,” says Cole. “In addition, the show is a great way to
promote quality hay production both from an individual and a region's
standpoint.”
For more information, contact the nearest UM Extension Center. There is
a $19 entry fee per lot of hay. Held in Springfield, this year’s Ozark
Empire Fair will run July 30-Aug. 8.
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Harvesting delays caused by cool, wet weather in May and early June
frustrated hay growers in many parts of the Pacific Northwest. On the
upside, though, the unusual weather may mean that a predicted outbreak
of grasshoppers will not materialize in the region this summer, says
Richard Zack, an entomologist at Washington State University.
Earlier this year, Zack was among those warning that parts of the
Northwest could see the worst infestation of grasshoppers in a
generation. Part of his forecast was based on last year’s severe
grasshopper outbreak during which populations exploded on more than a
quarter of a million acres in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
The cool, wet weather this spring came at just the right time –
when grasshoppers were hatching. "The wet cold provides them with a lot
of diseases, with a lot of fungus, etc., and that tends to knock numbers
down,” Zack said in a recent
interview on Wyoming Public Radio.
He adds that he expects grasshopper populations in the region will
likely peak this year, then decline cyclically over the next several
years.
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Alfalfa production and silage corn production and harvest will be
featured topics at a forage field day, scheduled for Aug. 12 at the
University of Idaho’s Kimberly Research and Extension Center.
Attendees will have an opportunity to view variety trials of corn,
alfalfa and other forages. Field demonstrations of forage harvesting
machines provided by major equipment dealers will also be part of the
field day. A sponsored lunch will be provided.
For more information, phone 208-734-9590.
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July 15 – Central Wisconsin Forage Council Summer Field Day.
1-3 p.m., Bill Herr Farm, Greenwood. Get info.
July 20-22 -- Wisconsin Farm Technology Days, Roger and Bev
Peterson farm, south of River Falls. Get details.
July 21 -- Illinois Forage Expo/Hay Contest, 9 a.m-3 p.m.,
Law-Rae Dairy Farm, Manteno. Get details or call
815-772-4075 or email gmclark@illinois.edu.
For a complete list of upcoming events, click here.
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