July 30, 2004

With haying completed in this field in northwest Custer County, the large hay bales break the flow of the natural Plain. (Photo by Brett Hampton)

Stick with established soybean aphid threshold

Some economic thresholds are being circulated that are much lower than the 250 aphids per plant that we recommend. We feel that the threshold of 250 aphids per plant with increasing populations is much more realistic and still gives growers about a week to spray the field before economic damage occurs. This also allows time for weather and natural enemies to help slow the population increase. The last two seasons populations naturally started decreasing in mid to late August.

The lower threshold numbers being used by some are based on some very preliminary data. We feel these thresholds are not realistic and require more extensive research. Therefore, we strongly discourage treating for soybean aphids until the 250 per plant threshold is reached and populations are increasing.

Take the time to scout your fields thoroughly before making a treatment decision. It will be time (not necessarily money) well spent.

Soybean yield increase trend similar to corn's

“During the past 32 years, soybean yields have increased at an average rate of 0.41 bushels per acre, or about 2 bushels per acre every five years,” said Jim Specht, UNL agronomy researcher and soybean breeder, speaking of the national yield trend. (See Figure 1a)

“Although long-term U.S. soybean yields have trended upward, there have been clusters of years in which the short-term yield trend was flat or down,” Specht said. In Nebraska, the last 10 years may represent one of those clusters.

Many Midwestern soybean producers have watched soybean yields on their farms gradually fall off or stagnate since 1994 when soybean yields hit an all-time high. In the past decade, soybean yields have trended downward with a 0.29 bushel per acre per year decrease in average yields. Nebraska rainfed soybean yields have declined even more, by 1.10 bushels per acre per year, while irrigated soybean yields have steadily advanced at the rate of 0.52 bushels per acre per year, said Specht, who will present his data on soybean yield trends at this year’s Midwest Soybean Conference August 6-7 in Des Moines.

While soybean yields appear to have stalled, corn has continued to see steady yield increases (Figure 1b) over the same period, suggesting the question: Are yield increases for corn outpacing those for soybeans?

In fact, in the last decade Nebraska irrigated corn yields have increased by 3.87 bushels per acre, twice the annual increase of 1.89 bushels per acre for the 32-year period being studied. In contrast, the 0.52 bushel per acre per year increase in Nebraska irrigated soybean yield during the last 10 years is not much different from the 0.57 bushel per acre increase calculated for the 32-year period.

Actual vs relative yield differences

While these numbers help address the differences in actual yields (Figure 2a), they still don’t provide a basis for comparing the relative rate of yield increases for these two crops. To look at this further, Specht said he graphed soybean yields relative to corn yields (Figure 2b) "where soybean yields listed on the right axis were scaled to be precisely one-third of the corn yields listed on the left axis."

“This graph shows that the yield improvement trend lines for corn and soybean are nearly parallel, and indeed, nearly coincident. What does this mean? Well, setting aside the intrinsic 3:1 yield advantage of corn over soybean, if corn breeders are improving corn yield each year by 1.5 bushels per acre, then soybean breeders had better be improving soybean yield each year by at least 0.5 bushels per acre, or else the 3:1 corn/soybean yield ratio would increase. Have soybean breeders maintained this 3:1 parity? Figure 2b would indicate that they have (in metric yield). Thus, the yield potential of the new soybean varieties is, in relative terms, keeping pace with the rise in the yield potential of the new corn hybrids,” Specht said.

The impact of inherent differences

When examining these yield differences, it’s helpful to remember the agronomic differences between these two crops as well as the impact of drought and the lack of rains timely for soybean production in four of the last 10 years (1995, 2000, 2002 and 2003). It’s also helpful to look at the longer-term trend in yield increases for each crop relative to that crop’s yield, rather than comparing the bushel per acre increase in corn directly with the bushel per acre increase in soybean.

Corn is intrinsically more productive than soybean because of two physiological attributes, Specht said. “One is that the photosynthetic system in corn is much more efficient, and that system operates more effectively at high temperatures. The second is that corn seed is mostly carbohydrate, which is energetically the least expensive of the three constituents a plant can put into its seed.

“Protein and oil are energetically far more expensive for a plant to create, and putting substantial amounts of these two constituents into seed greatly reduces the amount of dry matter a (soybean) plant can accumulate for seed yield purposes. As a result, corn yields are three times greater than soybean,” Specht said.

As climate trends shift so will soybean yields

While increasing the rate of soybean yield improvement offers some challenges, researchers see potential for continued progress.

Breeders operate on the theory that soybean yield is a dependent function of three entities: genotype, environment, and the interaction of these two factors, such as when genotypes have yield responses that are not consistent across environments, Specht said.

“Nebraska irrigated and rainfed soybean yield trends show that the varieties that breeders developed during the past decade did have high yield potential, but unfortunately rainfed producers growing those varieties encountered some unfavorable growing seasons,” he said. Below normal rainfall during the critical seed-fill period in four of the last 10 years contributed to a seeming downward trend. Rainfed yields during the other six years were, in fact, greater than the yields predicted for those years by the 32-year trend line.

“It is clear from my analysis that soybean breeders are steadily increasing soybean yield potential and doing so at a rate that is relatively comparable to what corn breeders are achieving. If lower August rainfall is becoming a more frequent occurrence in the Midwest (as a result of global warming), soybean breeders will need to aim more of their breeding effort at enhancing the drought tolerance of modern varieties,” he said.

Once the climate trend returns to its previous pattern, soybean yields would be expected to return to levels predicted by the historical long-term trend line, Specht said, as long as producers continue to input the latest genetic and agronomic technologies into their systems.

Lisa Jasa
CropWatch Editor

Glyphosate resistant varieties are those in which a resistant EPSPS gene has been inserted in the plant to make it tolerant to glyphosate herbicides. When glyphosate is applied over-the-top, it translocates downward through the plant with most of the herbicide remaining in root tissue. Although these plants are resistant to glyphosate, the bacteria which live on the roots in structures called nodules are not resistant. The bacteria, Bradyrhizobia japonicum, are extremely valuable to the soybean plant because they fix atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into a form (NH3) useable by the plant. If these bacteria are hindered by the presence of glyphosate in the soybean roots, it’s important to determine if soybean growth and yield are affected.

Figure 1. Number of nodules on tap root in soybeans where varying rates of glyphosate have been applied. (Abendroth, 2004) Link to a larger image.

Previous research has been conducted on this topic, primarily in laboratories, growth chambers, and greenhouses. In that research, sometimes glyphosate reduced the bacteria’s ability to grow and fix nitrogen. Field research has been fairly limited in scope and has provided inconsistent results. In some instances, researchers found fewer nodules per plant following high rates of glyphosate (1.5 and 3 times the normal rate) applied one to four weeks after planting; yet other times, nodule counts were unaffected or actually increased.

Due to the need for extensive field research we conducted a three-year (2001-2003) study on this topic. Soybean fields in south central Nebraska were treated:

1. with multiple rates of glyphosate (1 and 1.5 times the normal rate);
2. at various application timings (at soybean growth stages of V1, V4, & V9);
3. with two irrigation levels (dryland and irrigated), and
4. with four soybean varieties.

The hypothesis that glyphosate reduces nodule quantity at typical field rates (normal and 1.5 times the normal rate) is not supported by our research. Nodule counts only varied in response to the time glyphosate was applied (early versus late season). Soybean varieties showed occasional differences yet the overall nodulation response to glyphosate was similar across all varieties. As always, when investigating nodulation in fields, it is extremely important to remember the high variability that occurs across years, water levels, and soil types. Numerous factors work together in a soybean field to provide a good environment for the bacteria and poor nodulation is rarely due to one factor. Glyphosate does not appear to be one of the factors which cause a reduction in nodule quantity. Finally, yield was not reduced due to any of the different glyphosate rates or application timings.

Measurements of soybean leaf chlorophyll content -- often thought of as the “greenness” of the leaf -- also were collected during the three-year study. These findings will be included in the next edition of Crop Watch. A summary of this research will also be included in an upcoming NebGuide publication. References: Reddy et al., 2000; King et al., 2001; Reddy and Zablotowicz, 2003.

They have used wheat seed treatments on their wheat variety plots for many years, even when there weren't any major disease problems.

“They (the treatments) always pay for themselves in increased yields [on those plots],” he said. With the disease risk possibly increasing next year, growers should be sure to buy certified, treated seed, he said. And, if you're treating seed locally, be sure to get quality, uniform coverage of the seed. Generally, seed box treatments just don’t provide the consistent coverage that’s needed, he said.

Fields that have green silks and are shedding pollen during the peak period of moth flight are most susceptible to second generation infestation. Scout fields regularly, at least once every three to five days, especially during the early half of the moth flight period. Select a minimum of 50 plants per field, choosing plants from several different parts of the field. Examine the underside of leaves for white borer egg masses. These masses, usually found on leaves in the middle third of the plant (frequently near the midrib), normally hatch in about five days. Each egg develops a black spot just before hatching.

Current light trap reports NEREC - Concord South Central Ag Lab - Clay Center WCREC - North Platte Hamilton County - Aurora Adams County - Hastings

Application timing is critical to reasonable control. Best control (approximately 50-70%, depending on timing, application method and product choice) is realized when application is timed to first significant egg hatch and when young larvae are still located in the leaf axils. Larvae that have bored behind the leaf axils, into the sheath or are in or on the ear are not likely to be controlled. As the plant approaches blister stage and beyond, potential economic benefits of an insecticide application rapidly decline.

For Steve Melvin, program coordinator and extension educator in Frontier County, a key goal of the program “is to make irrigation scheduling and management as easy as keeping fuel in the tank using the fuel gauge.”

A series of Irrigation Demonstration Project producer farm tours will showcase corn irrigated using three strategies -- fully watered, water miser, and deficit irrigation. The programs also will be showcasing soil moisture monitoring equipment and information. Program presentations also will address 15 water-conserving ideas, how time of application and amount of water applied affects crop yield, and yield affects of skip-row planted corn.

Fully watered, the traditional best management practice irrigation management strategy focuses on keeping soil-water at a high enough level to prevent moisture stress from being a yield- limiting factor, said Melvin. The goal of the strategy is to maintain the plant available soil-water (in the active root zone) between field capacity and 50% depletion from planting through maturity.

"The water miser irrigation management strategy focuses on saving water during the less sensitive vegetative growth stages and fully watering during the critical reproductive growth stages," Melvin said.

Irrigation is delayed until about two weeks before tassel emergence for corn unless soil-water becomes 70% depleted (in the active root zone). Once the crop reaches the reproductive growth stage the plant available soil-water (in the active root zone) is maintained in a range between field capacity and 40% depletion.

The deficit irrigation management strategy focuses on correctly timing the application of a restricted quantity of water both within the growing season as well as over a several year period. "The intent is to stabilize yields between years by applying irrigation based on soil-water depletions. In wetter years less water will be applied and in drier years years, more water will be applied, with the average over the years equaling the quantity of water available," Melvin said.

Tour schedule

For more information on one of the irrigation tours listed below, contact your extension educator or Melvin. For more information about the Republican River Basin Irrigation Management Project, contact Melvin at (308) 367-4424 or smelvin2@unl.edu.

• Culbertson -- Thursday, August 12, 6 p.m. Location: from Culbertson, 1.5 miles east on north side of Highway 6/34 or from McCook, 8 miles west. The plot is on the north side of Highway 6/34.
• Holdrege -- Tuesday, August 17, 6 p.m. Location: southeast edge of Holdrege. Go south on Lincoln St.(the street on the east side of the Extension Office/fairgrounds that goes under the railroad tracks as you turn south off of Highway 6 toward the east side of town) to 13th St., and turn east on 13th. The plot is ½ mile east on the north side.
• Holbrook -- Wednesday, August 18, 6 p.m. Location: Program begins at 6 p.m. at the Holbrook City Park. Tour starts at 7 p.m. and is located from the east edge of Holbrook on Highway 6/34, drive ½ mile north on county road. The plot is on the west side of the road.
• Benkelman -- Tuesday, August 24, 7 p.m. (MT) Location: 12 miles north of Benkelman on Highway 61 or 14 miles south of the intersection of Highway 6 & 61 (turn at Alsbury sign) and three miles west to the intersection of 718 Rd 334 Ave. Turn south and the plot is 1/4 mile down, on the east side.
• Madrid -- Thursday, August 26, 7 p.m. (MT) Location: 5 miles west of Elsie or 3 miles east of Madrid on Highway 23 and 3 miles south to the intersection of 759 Rd 340 Ave. The plot is on the west side of the road.

Two types of seedbeds work well in August. A fully tilled seedbed is best for many growers -- weeds are eliminated and the field is smooth -- but don't overtill. Conserve soil moisture whenever possible, and put extra effort into getting a firm seedbed. You should be able to dribble a basketball on an alfalfa seedbed in August. Rolling, harrowing, and waiting for rain or irrigating all help make seedbeds firm.

Small grain stubble also makes a good seedbed. Many drills can place alfalfa seeds into stubble soil very nicely, as long as there aren’t heavy windrows of straw. Make sure you control weeds like foxtail, sunflowers, and volunteer grain before stubble seeding. Use herbicides like Roundup or Gramoxone Extra before planting to kill existing weeds if needed.

Also watch for grasshoppers, which love to eat new seedlings. Spray field margins with insecticides if more than 20 hoppers per square yard are present.

Remember, these preparations are useless without moisture. Avoid planting into dry soil -- there are no guarantees if or when rain will occur. If you do have moisture, then plant -- shallow for rapid emergence and early for seedlings to develop good cold tolerance. With help from Mother Nature, good hay is just a spring away.

Nearly all problems with making good summer grass or cane hay are caused by the stems. Stems are low in protein and energy, unbearably slow to dry, and the lower stems contain most of the nitrates. To solve some problems, cut early, when plants are only waist high. The stems will be smaller, they will have higher feed value, and they can be eaten readily. Also, there is less plant volume. With fewer and smaller stems, the hay will dry quicker.

Regardless of when you harvest, cut hay high, leaving 8 to 10 inches of stubble. Tall stubble pays off three ways -- it helps plants begin regrowth quicker, it holds hay off the ground so air can help dry it underneath, and it keeps many nitrates out in the field rather than in the harvested hay.

And finally, always crimp cane hay. Even when stems are small, the waxy coating on the stem causes slow drying. But if you break open these stems by crimping, water will be able to escape and evaporate more quickly. So cut hay early, cut it high. Crimp the stems and they will dry.

Let me emphasize the words "when successful". It's not all that guaranteed that you will get a good stand of either turnips or rye to become productive in a growing corn field.

Several factors limit success rates. Moisture easily can be limiting in dryland corn and also can be difficult to manage in surface irrigated fields. Even under pivots, providing water for rye or turnips without slowing corn harvest takes planning. Another problem is the density of the corn canopy. Irrigated fields can be especially thick, preventing adequate light from reaching new seedlings. Chopping corn for silage or combining early as high moisture grain helps.

Herbicide carryover also may be a problem. Turnips are very sensitive, and rye also may be affected. Lastly is wheel traffic at harvest. Turnips are damaged more than rye, but both lose stand if fields get muddy.

I do like improving corn stalks with rye or turnips. But be aware that there are challenges and try to find ways to overcome them.

“One of the big problems we faced was how to get the crop established, but it looks like canola and brown mustard development could give us a crop to follow and still get our grasses established early enough in the fall to get a good harvest the next summer,” said David Baltensperger, alternative crops specialist with the University of Nebraska Panhandle Research and Extension Center.

Grass seed efforts are now being expanded by using technology from turf grass seed production and applying it to reclamation and forage grass seed production, Baltensperger said. While the market for these grasses is much narrower and each variety probably needs to be limited to a few acres of high level production, there are several species and varieties so producers can find their niche, explained Carl Thomas, producer in Scotts Bluff County.

Thomas and Laursen are both producing varieties of intermediate wheat grass that have recently been released by the ARS-USDA and University of Nebraska for their improved forage quality. Other niche grass produced in the region include thickspike wheatgrass, Indian ricegrass, western wheatgrass and crested wheatgrass. Kendall Atkins has been a long-time producer of Thickspike wheatgrass in Kimball county and has been active in sharing ideas with other producers.

Most folks don’t fully understand what the word “intensive” refers to. It’s not intensive fencing. It’s not intensive labor or animal movement. And it’s especially not intensive defoliation. Intensive is all about management.

First, before you need to determine your goals and what you want to accomplish with your grazing. If you want maximum production and are willing to make the needed investment in labor and materials, then dividing your grazing land into many smaller pieces is a likely option. Most important is how you manage the grazing of each individual small pasture as well as how all the small pastures are combined into one management unit.

Often when producers adopt an intensive grazing strategy, there is a relatively common misunderstanding about implementing the strategy. Many times producers may think that intensive grazing means you should graze each small pasture short before moving to the next pasture. Nothing could be further from the truth. Sometimes severe or short grazing may be appropriate, but more often than not we want to leave more grass behind after a move so it will regrow faster and be ready for another grazing sooner. Thus, it’s the intensity of your management that enables you to meet your grazing goals.

When used correctly, intensive grazing can be a great tool. Remember, however, that it’s the management, not the defoliation, that is intensive.

Market Journal -– television for ag business decisions –- is broadcast on NETV at 6:30 a.m. on Saturdays and on NETV 2 at 9 a.m. on Sundays.

Keith Jarvi, Extension Integrated Pest Management, Northeast REC: The true first generation of bean leaf beetles has been working on soybean foliage for a couple of weeks here in northeast Nebraska. Beetle numbers appear to be below thresholds in all fields. During this time beetles are working on leaf tissue and the soybeans have plenty to spare. Numbers will be decreasing as females lay eggs and die off. The more serious second generation will be emerging in late August and will be feeding on the developing pods. We will provide further management information in CropWatch at that time.

Steve Melvin, Extension Educator in Frontier County: We have received lots of wonderful rain in much of this area and while there’s not much subsoil moisture, there’s been enough to keep up with day to day crop growth. With the cooler temperatures, corn growth is a little behind normal, but generally doing pretty well. Hail and wind damage earlier in the summer is likely to affect some yields. While alfalfa is yielding well, it’s been difficult to harvest due to the intermittent rains. Pastures have greened up and are now growing. Last spring they greened up, but grew little and went dormant in May. Soybeans are looking about as good as ever and all the dryland crops, including sorghum, are looking good.

Andy Christiansen, Extension Eductor in Hamilton County: A few fields in the area have been treated for soybean aphid. European corn borer flight is building, but cool weather has kept light trap numbers low. Irrigation has begun.

Thomas Dorn, Extension Educator in Lancaster County: I am continuing to monitor several soybean fields in westesrn Lancaster County where I found soybean aphids earlier this month.. I have been scouting these fields weekly to monitor the change in aphid population. Last week, numbers seemed to be increasing with more plants with aphids and a few leaves with some small colonies as opposed to single aphids. This week, numbers seemed to have declined - I’m assuming we had mortality from the very hot weather the first half of the week. I broadened the scope of the soybean aphid survey this week by including fields northeast of Lincoln, near Waverly and east of Lincoln near the Cass county border. I found extremely low numbers of soybean aphids in every field I checked, but nothing to be concerned about at this time.

Other pests in this area include bean leaf beetles, which are developing now; and several species of sub-adult grasshoppers invading from field borders, road ditches and grassed waterways.

Corn pollinated well. Average ear size is 16 rows of kernels with potential for more than 50 kernels per row in most fields that did not have storm damage or standing water. I think ears will tip back to around forty kernels per row in most fields. Provided we continue to receive timely rains, dryland yield could be in the neighborhood of 140 bushels an acre (16 rows x 40 kernels x 20,000 ears per acre). As of Monday, most grain sorghum fields had not headed, although a few fields are heading or pollinating.

Thomas Hunt, Extension Entomologist at the Haskell Ag Lab, Northeast REC: We received a report of at least one soybean field where soybean aphid numbers definitely hit the economic threshold for treatment. More fields may reach the threshold with the more moderate, cooler weather expected this week. The aphids tend to multiply when temperatures are in the 70s and 80s and die when the temperatures reach the mid 90s.

Philip D. Steinkamp CCA and CNMP Coordinator, Northeast REC: I scouted six Antelope County corn fields July 24 and found most corn was 100% silked with pollen shed. Western bean cutworms infestations ranged from 4% in two fields to 7%, 8%, 9%, and 11% in the other fields. Almost all were hatched and some larvae were present. I also found a few rootworm beetles, mainly in the areas with heavier soils. Most of the corn looked pretty good with good potential. Very few disease problems were seen. All the fields were irrigated and soil moisture was good.

Del Hemsath, Extension Educator in Dakota, Dixon, and Thurston counties: Corn is in the pollination stage with ideal weather conditions for success. Soybean aphids are becoming more active, winged adults are being found with all stages of development on the infested leaves, so the stage is set for active development. Natural predators in the fields should help control aphid numbers. Soybeans are in the R4 stage in most areas. Since most of this area is in dryland production, we’ll need August rains to get the crop through the reproduction stage. Pastures still look good and alfalfa regrowth is looking very good.

Roger Elmore, Extension Crops Specialist: I toured several fields in central Nebraska Tuesday and viewed damage from a July 12 storm with high winds and hail. Leaf stripping occurred on corn and leaf stripping, leaf loss, and stem breakoff occurred on soybean. Winds up to 100 mph resulted in greensnap on corn with some fields averaging 60% to 80% broken stalks. Breakage occurred at least from Elba to North Loup. Scott Brady, Extension educator in Greeley, Howard, Sherman and Valley counties, said the storms also caused damage near Boelus and Farwell.

Jack Campbell, Extension Entomologist at the West Central REC, North Platte: The grasshopper spray program seemed to go very well this year with posttreatment grasshopper counts indicating a good kill. Four blocks totalling 108,000 acres were sprayed at a cost to the ranchers of about $1 per acre.

The new APHIS nymphal survey indicates numbers of 15 and above in Logan, McPherson, Thomas, Blaine, Loup, Rock, Brown, Sioux, Dawes and Boyd counties. A Wednesaday report from Dundee County indicated high grasshopper numbers may be developing there as well. If the fall adult count is similar to the nymphal count, we may have problems in those counties next year. This yer timely rain provided for regrowth of grasses, offsetting much of the damage that could have occurred under severe drought conditions.

Nebraska Agricultural Statistics Service: Based on July 1 conditions, Nebraska’s 2004 winter wheat crop is forecast at 57.6 million bushels, down 11% from last month’s forecast and 31% below last year’s crop. Average yield is forecast at 32 bushels per acre, 3 bushels below last month and 14 bushels below last year’s near record yield. This is the lowest yield since 1992 when the average was 30 bushels per acre.

The recorded head count from Nebraska’s objective yield survey, at 43.0 heads per square foot, is the lowest since 1996.

Crop condition

Parched corn northwest of Broken Bow in Custer County. (Photo by Brett Hampton)

Soybean condition rated 1% very poor, 3% poor, 19% fair, 53% good, and 24% excellent, above last year and average. Seventy-four percent of the acreage had bloomed, ahead of last year at 67% but the same as average. Twenty-eight percent had set pods, ahead of last year at 9% and average at 21%.

Sorghum condition rated 1 % very poor, 2% poor, 29% fair, 49% good, and 19% excellent, above last year and average. Nine percent had headed out, the same as last year but behind average at 17%. Wheat harvest progressed to 92% complete, the same as last year and average. Oat condition rated 11% very poor, 13% poor, 23% fair, 42% good, and 11% excellent. Harvest progressed to 63% cut, behind last year at 70% and average at 73%.

Dry bean condition rated 1% very poor, 11% poor, 25% fair, 52% good, and 11% excellent. Twenty-nine percent of the acreage had bloomed, behind last year at 62% and average at 60%. Five percent had set pods, behind last year and average at 16%.

Alfalfa conditions rated 4% very poor, 13% poor, 27% fair, 41% good, and 15% excellent, above last year and average. Second cutting activities were 83% complete, behind last year and average at 90%. Third cutting activities were underway with 3% harvested, behind last year at 4% and average at 7%. Wild hay condition rated 11% very poor, 12% poor, 28% fair, 41% good, and 8% excellent.

Pasture and range condition rated 11% very poor, 16% poor, 31% fair, 34% good, and 8% excellent, above a year ago and average.

Acreage to be harvested for grain is estimated at 1.80 million acres, 20,000 acres less than last year. Wheat harvest started the third week of June and has kept a near normal pace.

Oat production is forecast at 3.65 million bushels, down 44% from last year's record yielding crop. Acreage for harvest, at 50,000 acres, is down 44% from 2003 while yield at 73 bushels per acre is equal to last year's record high yield.

A list of presentation topics and feature speakers follows:

• Performance of Roundup Ready alfalfa, Bob Wilson, extension weeds specialist
• Update on Roundup Ready sugarbeets and demonstration of wick applicator, Wilson
• Transgenic corn for managing western bean cutworm, Gary Hein, extension entomologist
• Reduced population and skip row to reduce water requirements in corn, David Baltensperger, extension crop breeding specialist
• Bird seed crops with potential for irrigation and limited irrigation, Baltensperger
• Winter wheat in irrigated rotations to manage limited water, Drew Lyon, extension dryland crops specialist
• Building family strengths in times of drought. Kathy Bosch, extension family life specialist
• New techniques to control white mold in dry beans, and other plant disease topics, Bob Harveson, extension plant pathologist
• Twin row sugarbeets, can we plant and harvest?, John Smith, extension machinery systems engineer
• What happens to corn yield with in-canopy sprinklers, Dean Yonts, extension irrigation specialist
• Weather forecast, Fall 2004 -- Spring 2005, Al Dutcher, extension state climatologist

The field day begins with registration at 11 a.m. and continues with a free lunch at 11:50 p.m. Following is a schedule of field day speakers.

11:30 a.m. Welcome, Dr. Charles Hibberd, director of the Panhandle REC in Scottsbluff.

12:30 p.m. Skip row corn and sorghum, Drew Lyon, Panhandle REC dryland cropping systems specialist.

12:50 p.m. Weed control in proso and chickpea, Lyon

1:10 p.m. Pea Feeding, Erin Fendrick, graduate student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

1:30 p.m. Controlling volunteer wheat, Karen Deboer, extension educator, Cheyenne County.

1:50 p.m. Crop rotations, Tom Nightingale, farm manager at the High Plains Ag Lab, and Lyon

2:30 p.m. Crop rotation economics, Paul Burgener, extension agricultural economist, Panhandle REC, and Cheryl Halstead, UNL graduate student

2:50 p.m. Alternative Crop Update on New Proso and Foxtail Varieties, David Baltensperger, extension alternative crops specialist, Panhandle REC

3:10 p.m. Fall forages, Aaron Berger, extension educator in Kimball and Banner counties.