The blizzard of April 2018 was one of the most powerful low pressure systems in history for that month. Ironically, it started on Friday the 13th and didn’t wrap up until Sunday.
Due to the late planting season in 2018, growers are becoming more and more worried about potential yield losses due to planting delays. Yield reductions may become significant after about May 20, especially for full season corn hybrids, and the risk of increased drying costs and crop losses due to an early fall frost also become a concern.
With technology surrounding today’s culture, data and marketing information has become a key part of life. Farmers, especially have been targeted with large quantities of new technology created to generate more efficient farming systems promising easy real-time data access.
Utilizing sound research results to help make decisions on the farm is a wise business practice. It can be confusing, however, when you see two numbers that are clearly not the same labeled as “not significantly different.”
During the 2017 SD Legislative Session, Governor Dennis Daugaard signed into law Senate Bill 66 (SB 66), also known as the “buffer strip” bill. Essentially, the bill provides an incentive for landowners to plant perennial vegetation on land adjoining qualified lakes, rivers, or streams via a property tax adjustment in order to improve water quality.
SDSU Extension is devoted to meeting the needs of South Dakota farmers and ranchers in the state. If you are 18 years-of-age or older and farming or ranching is your occupation, please consider completing a 10-15 minute survey that would help us acquire information to design and implement future programs to serve farm and ranch families.
Se espera que en las próximas semanas haya temperaturas y humedad más altas de lo normal, lo que puede producir un golpe de calor. Esta situación, típica de los meses de verano, es especialmente crítica para todos aquellos que trabajan bajo el sol o están expuestos a condiciones menos favorables en el ambiente de trabajo.
For those whose livelihood depends upon working outdoors or in less than favorable conditions, the coming weeks look to be quite difficult with higher than normal temperatures and humidity predicted. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness."
The 2016 U.S. crop-year showed record acreage for soybeans and a large acreage for corn. The combination of more acres, warm temperatures, and adequately-timed rainfall events, resulted in also record yields. According to the NASS stocks for corn and soybeans have been increasing since 2014, a trend that’s likely to continue in 2017.
The first step in setting up an on-farm trial is to choose a topic-of-interest. While this may seem simple, one important factor that must be considered is that the topic cannot be too complex.
Several plant parasitic nematodes infect corn leading to reduced plant vigor, stunted growth and yield loss. Plant parasitic nematodes are microscopic worm-like organisms that live in the soil.
May 2018 was a 180-degree turn from April. South Dakota had its second coldest April on record, to something close to the tenth warmest May on record. As we are in early June, it appears as if the heat will continue.
Many southern area farmers are facing excess moisture again this spring, and some are considering changing varieties to accommodate for a later planting date. The Corn Growing Degree Day (GDD) Tool can help decide if a shorter day variety may be needed.
Due to the late planting season in 2018, growers are becoming more and more worried about potential yield losses due to planting delays. Yield reductions may become significant after about May 20, especially for full season corn hybrids, and the risk of increased drying costs and crop losses due to an early fall frost also become a concern.
Given the relatively late arrival of spring in South Dakota, many farmers are planting corn as soon as they are able to get in the field in an attempt to capture as many growing degree days (GGDs) as possible.
Integrated Pest Management, more often referred to as IPM, is the concept of using multiple complimentary management strategies to maintain an insect pest population below an economic injury level or threshold (i.e., population that causes observable yield loss).
As we traverse our way through this never-ending winter season, warmer weather is on our minds. Spring is slow to come this year, as late season snowstorms continue to impact South Dakota.
Long residual pre-emergent or early post-emergent herbicides may cause stand reduction or complete cover crop failure of cover crops. This situation, depending on efficacy of the herbicide can both affect in-season and/or post-harvest cover crop establishment.
Research performed in 2016-17 by the NRCS in cooperation with Cronin Farms was designed to evaluate the impacts of nitrogen rates and application methods on corn yields seeded into full-season cover-crop residue.
Exposure to insecticides can pose a serious health threat to the individuals working with insecticides along with their families. Families can be exposed to insecticides when contaminated work clothes are laundered at home.
Pesticide application season is in full swing. Breezy and windy conditions are always a challenge for pesticide applicators in South Dakota, however, temperature inversions are just as important of a challenge.
Several plant parasitic nematodes infect corn leading to reduced plant vigor, stunted growth and yield loss. Plant parasitic nematodes are microscopic worm-like organisms that live in the soil.
SDSU Extension publishes the South Dakota Pest & Crop Newsletter to provide growers, producers, crop consultants, and others involved in crop production with timely news pertinent to management of pests, diseases, and weeds in South Dakota.
With hot temperatures occurring this past week, a lot of degree days have accumulated. However, common stalk borer activity likely remains limited to grass and weeds bordering fields.
Throughout South Dakota, corn is beginning to emerge. In its early vegetative growth stages, corn is susceptible to feeding by the common stalk borer. For the most part, common stalk borer is considered to be only a minor or occasional pest.
In South Dakota, there are several species of grasshoppers that can have a negative impact on rangeland health. The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) conducts an annual survey to monitor grasshopper populations in Western South Dakota.
In 2017, researchers at South Dakota State University completed a grasshopper survey of Eastern South Dakota. The last grasshopper survey to be conducted in Eastern South Dakota was published in 1925.
The 2018 winter was cold—very cold. Throughout most of South Dakota, low temperatures were at or below 14F for 60-80 days with many areas experiencing 2-3 weeks with subzero temperatures.
Starting April 30, 2018 all dicamba products that are not a mixture but instead straight dicamba are restricted use in South Dakota. This will mean all applicators will need to keep spray records of use and place of application.
This season’s planting will soon be in full gear and a good proportion of the acres will be planted with treated seed. Seed treatments provide protection against soil-borne pathogens and insect pests which might interfere with plant stand establishment.
In recent years’ soil health has become a popular subject for many farmers and ranchers across South Dakota. Producers are interested in increasing soil health through methods that increase diversity, retain covers and residue on the soil surface, utilize low soil disturbance, and integrate livestock into cropping systems.
Research performed in 2016-17 by the NRCS in cooperation with Cronin Farms was designed to evaluate the impacts of nitrogen rates and application methods on corn yields seeded into full-season cover-crop residue.
Soil degradation has become one of the most pressing global issues, because of its adverse effects on world food security, environment and quality of life. Farm management practices such as conventional tillage and monoculture cropping systems can directly damage soil health by causing erosion, carbon loss and nutrient depletion.
I recently came across an article from the Associated Press addressing road salt and the nation's waterways. Many of you may have seen the article too as a number of local media outlets elected to carry it. While road salt is almost a necessity in our part of the country, it can come at a cost.
In an effort to educate today’s youth about sustainable agriculture, SDSU Extension field specialists teamed up with educators from University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL) and presented a four-hour training session for South Dakota high school teachers on January 5, 2018 at the SDSU Student Union.
The discussion of grain yields and different tillage practices needs to start in producers’ fields. Grain yield comparisons and results from un-biased research are very important for making agronomic decisions that include tillage; however, producers need to put these practices to work in everyday situations across large acres to consider a practice worthy in modern agriculture.
Do you believe the highest yields return the greatest profit? Are you managing for maximum yields? Do you attempt to manage your corn crop for the highest yields as a result of what yield contest winner’s say?
Earlier this month, I travelled to Indianapolis, IN to attend a meeting sponsored by the North Central Region Soil Health Nexus. The meeting was a kickoff to discuss a new grant the Nexus was recently awarded entitled "Empower Educators to Improve Water Quality by Adoption of Soil Health Practices.”
Cover crops have been gaining a reemerging acceptance over the last decade, with very few producers disagreeing about the potential soil health benefits of adding cover crops to their farming operation. However, with low commodity prices producers are trying to reduce expenses on inputs, especially on inputs with a varying or unknown return.
During the 2017 SD Legislative Session, Governor Dennis Daugaard signed into law Senate Bill 66 (SB 66), also known as the “buffer strip” bill. Essentially, the bill provides an incentive for landowners to plant perennial vegetation on land adjoining qualified lakes, rivers, or streams via a property tax adjustment in order to improve water quality.
Dicamba off target movement created disagreements between many. This occurred in South Dakota between farmers, farmers and companies, farmers and university weed scientists and companies with regulatory agencies.
In an effort to educate today’s youth about sustainable agriculture, SDSU Extension field specialists teamed up with educators from University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL) and presented a four-hour training session for South Dakota high school teachers on January 5, 2018 at the SDSU Student Union.
Crop performance testing results are released annually through the activities of SDSU Extension and the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station at SDSU.
With technology surrounding today’s culture, data and marketing information has become a key part of life. Farmers, especially have been targeted with large quantities of new technology created to generate more efficient farming systems promising easy real-time data access.
Utilizing sound research results to help make decisions on the farm is a wise business practice. It can be confusing, however, when you see two numbers that are clearly not the same labeled as “not significantly different.”
During the 2017 SD Legislative Session, Governor Dennis Daugaard signed into law Senate Bill 66 (SB 66), also known as the “buffer strip” bill. Essentially, the bill provides an incentive for landowners to plant perennial vegetation on land adjoining qualified lakes, rivers, or streams via a property tax adjustment in order to improve water quality.
SDSU Extension is devoted to meeting the needs of South Dakota farmers and ranchers in the state. If you are 18 years-of-age or older and farming or ranching is your occupation, please consider completing a 10-15 minute survey that would help us acquire information to design and implement future programs to serve farm and ranch families.
The first step in setting up an on-farm trial is to choose a topic-of-interest. While this may seem simple, one important factor that must be considered is that the topic cannot be too complex.
The season is upon us and producers are heading out to the field to get their crops planted and established. Producers are interested in knowing what works best, yields the most, and especially what is most profitable during these tight economic times. Some may want to compare products or practices on their own farm or look at information from other farms or industry studies.
According to 2015 UN estimations by 2050 the U.S. will have a population of 402 million, 25% greater than today. In order to feed this population and sustain the country’s economy through commodities’ exports, agricultural output needs to increase by a similar amount by that year. These figures are projections based on current population and food production dynamics. One critical component of this equation is going to be the presence of enough pollinator activity. Pollinators are crucial to maintain global food production and a healthy ecosystem.
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