DATE: July 11, 2008
HARDIN COUNTY COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE
201 Peterson Drive
Elizabethtown, Kentucky 42701-9370
BY: Doug Shepherd
County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources
Cow College Deadline:
The University of Kentucky Beef Integrated Resource Management (IRM) Team will again be conducting Cow College for the summer and fall of 2008. Cow College is more in-depth, intense, and more “hands-on” than the popular Kentucky Master Cattlemen Program. Cow College is the “next step” for those producers that have graduated in the Master Cattlemen Program and wish to continue to develop their beef production knowledge base.
Cow College requires a full ten days of commitment, spread out over five, two-day sessions. The cost for the program is $250.00 per person, which includes all materials and most meals. Participants will need to make arrangements for their own lodging. The registration fee for Cow College may be paid by a single payment of $100.00, and the balance of $150.00 due at the first session on July 23rd. All sessions will be held either at the UK Campus in Lexington or the UK Research Center at Princeton, KY.
Dates and program topics for the five sessions will be as follows:
For further information and to enroll, contact the Hardin County Cooperative Extension Service Office, 765-4121 or Jay Busby at the Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association, 859 278-0899. Checks need to be made payable to “Cow College” and mailed to KCA, Cow College, 176 Pasadena Drive, Lexington, KY 40503.
LCP and LIP signup ends Friday:
Just a reminder to livestock producers that the deadline for applying for the 2005-07
Livestock Compensation Program (LCP) and Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) ends this Friday, July 18, 2008. These two programs provide aid to livestock producers who suffered eligible livestock losses or livestock feed losses between January 1, 2005 and December 30, 2007, because of natural disaster.
The LIP provides payment to eligible livestock owners and contract growers who incurred the death of livestock because of a natural disaster. The LCP provides payments to eligible livestock owners and cash lessees who suffered feed losses or increased feed costs because of a natural disaster.
For more details about LCP and LIP, and to apply, contact the Hardin County Farm Services Agency (FSA) at 765-2702.
Crops Yellow? May not be what ya think!
Remember this spring and all the rain, delaying planting season? Many farmers were “mudding in” their spring crops, well the consequences of that are showing up now as “yellow crops” that aren’t doing so well. According to Dr. Chad Lee, UK Extension Grain Specialist, he seeing sidewall compaction (upper 2 inches) and in some cases plow layer compaction (about 4-6 inches deep). In these cases, compaction will restrict root growth which limits uptake of nutrients, which results in nutrient deficiencies, stunted plants and concerned farmers.
There is no good remedy to alleviate compaction in-season. Timely rains will help more than anything else. Any tillage done to alleviate compaction should be done when the soil is dry, and when there is no crop growing on the field.
If compaction is the issue, then the real problem is root restriction. Most foliar fertilizer applications are so small that application of these would not provide a yield increase. The foliar fertilizers would in almost all cases make the crop greener for a little while, but would not be enough to make a difference in yield.
One other note: the recent rains and humid weather, make ideal conditions for the growth of many plant diseases, and also makes for good insect feeding conditions. As a result, be scouting your fields, especially tobacco and alfalfa fields for plant diseases and insect feeding. Don’t get caught like many I talked with at the County Fair last week, that discovered well developed problems in some of their fields. Prevention is much more successful, than rescue treatments!
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