With wildfire recovery efforts underway, Nebraska Extension educators share insights on how to proceed with the 2024 growing season.
Resources are available for people who want to help producers affected by fires, and the affected producers. A meeting March 12 will provide more information. (UNL Beef photo by David Orr)
Central Nebraska producers seeking help with wildfire recovery are encouraged to attend to an informational meeting on March 12 in North Platte.
TAPS
The 2024 TAPS program will include sprinkler corn and continuous corn competitions in North Platte, Nebraska, the sorghum competition in Grant, Nebraska, and a new soybean competition near Mead, Nebraska.
The March 21 Kickoff Event is open to the public and will usher in the 2024 TAPS Competition, which features a new soybean contest at ENREEC.
Extension Events
A farmer walks a weedy sugarbeet field at a weed tour in June at the UNL Panhandle Research Extension and Education Center in Scottsbluff. (Photo by Chabella Guzman)
Academics, industry leaders and impacted stakeholders will discuss Palmer amaranth's current and anticipated impacts across the Midwest during this free, live-streamed event.
Hosted by Science for Success, a three-part webinar beginning March 8 will provide soybean producers with insights from university faculty and extension specialists across the nation on numerous production challenges.
The three-part webinar series in March will discuss soybean production considerations such as planting dates, seed treatments, fertilizer, fungicide, late season dessication and more.
Forage Production
Drought adds another layer of complication to the process of establishing fair pasture rental rates. Landowners renting pasture in severe drought-impacted regions might consider pricing leases based on grazing animal unit months or rent per head per month of grazing, rather than flat rates per acre or cow-calf pair.
Extension educators share insights on establishing pasture rental rates and selecting alfalfa seed for winter survival traits.
A cow's energy requirements increase about 30% and protein needs nearly double after calving. Because of this, it's important to use your best quality forages with any needed supplements to provide adequate nutrition.
Tips on meeting nutrient requirements of cows after calving season and improving pasture production by frost seeding or interseeding legumes.
Financial Management
Quicken is an easy program for people unfamiliar with accounting terms to use, making it a good place to start when changing from a hand-kept cash accounting system to computerized records. Nebraska Extension’s new virtual Quicken course will teach participants how to use the features of the program in a self-paced setting.
The course will lead users through hands-on sessions to develop a simple set of financial records and reports using Quicken, with exercises based on a case farm to walk through practical applications.
Housing, insurance and vehicles can provide another form of compensation for returning farm or ranch family members. However, it's best for all family members in the operation to get non-monetary compensation in writing before any official employment begins.
This is the first in a series of Center for Agricultural Profitability articles that will highlight ideas and tactics for successfully bringing another family member into the operation.
This CAP webinar on farm electricity costs features discussion from F. John Hay, extension educator — energy, UNL Department of Biological Systems Engineering, and Rick Stowell, professor and animal environmental engineer, UNL Department of Animal Science.
This webinar explores how farms are charged for electricity and ways to identify and possibly slash costs.
Though the farm finance and ag law clinics are offered monthly at sites across Nebraska, remote sessions are another option — call the number below to arrange a one-on-one meeting via phone or virtual platform.
Nebraskans can attend a free, in-person farm finance and ag law clinic in Fairbury or Norfolk in March, or call to arrange a virtual/phone appointment.
Chances are increasing for precipitation late next week, with potential for snow in western Nebraska and significant moisture in the eastern region.
IANR/Extension
Rajib Saha (left), Richard L. and Carol S. McNeel associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and Niaz Bahar Chowdhury, doctoral student. (Photo by Craig Chandler, University Communication and Marketing)
Scientists involved in the study are investigating the creation of new hybrids and utilization of beneficial fungus to mitigate temperature stress in corn.
In this episode, the FarmBits team chats with Caro Córdova about emerging soil health technologies and resources for producers in Nebraska.
(From left) James Schnable, Rebecca Roston and Toshihiro Obata hold young sorghum plants outside of the Bioscience Greenhouses on City Campus. The researchers are part of a $1.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation to try to boost the cold tolerance of sorghum, and eventually corn and other crops, by harnessing the power of the plant’s circadian rhythms. (Photo by Craig Chandler, University Communication and Marketing)
UNL researchers are examining the way sorghum defends itself against low temperatures and comparing it to the cold tolerance characteristics of foxtail millet to find answers on improving crop resilience.
Nebraska Dry Bean Growers Association President Dan Hinman (left) leads a raffle with help from Lesli Howell, NDBGA office manager/Bean Bag editor.
Attendees of the recent event heard from the Nebraska Department of Ag about ongoing initiatives to expand the dry bean export market, and learned more about the 2024 weather outlook.
Crop Reports & AgNews
Historical crop progress data for Nebraska is available at USDA.
UPDATED: Extension advises Nebraska soybean producers on the 2024 growing season after a Feb. 6 federal court ruling vacated registrations of dicamba-based herbicides Xtendimax, Engenia and Tavium.
An upcoming four-part extension workshop for women in agriculture will focus on emergency preparedness for rural families. (Adobe Stock photo)
Hosted by local extension personnel in five locations across Nebraska, the workshop series will focus on farm and ranch emergency management, first aid, fire protection and hazardous materials.
Results of the 2022 Census of Agriculture are now available on the USDA NASS website.
