November 1, 2019

Soybean & Corn Production

Considerations for Fall Fertilizer-Nitrogen Application

Fall fertilizer applications offer cost savings and time management benefits, but also may contribute to increased soil nitrate-N leaching. With Nebraska's high soil moisture levels, consider these suggestions when applying nitrogen this fall.

Nebraska map showing counties where soybean cyst nematode has been confirmed

Fall Sampling for SCN

Have you noticed field areas where soybean yield wasn't what you expected? The culprit might just be soybean cyst nematodes, the most yield-limiting pest in soybeans. Find out if your fields are affected with a free test from the Nebraska Soybean Board.

Wheat Production

New Study Helping to Guide Future Nitrogen Management of Winter Wheat for Grain Yield, Protein, and Bread Quality

Preliminary results are in from the first year of a two-year study to evaluate how soil N levels affect protein in Nebraska wheat and to provide data to revise UNL fertility recommendations for dryland wheat.

Farm Management

Cornhusker Economics: An Illustration of Farm Program Decisions and Impacts

While the ARC and PLC programs were carried over from the 2014 Farm Bill with relatively modest changes, the substantial drop in market prices and outlook since 2014 pointed toward a widespread shift in enrollment away from ARC and toward PLC due to the increased relevance of the price safety net. However, with this year’s extreme weather events, concerns over crop production, and hopes for improved trade prospects, there has been some recovery in commodity prices that could affect farm program supports and producer preferences. The author looks at various program options and the impacts of selecting them.

Extension, FSA to Host Farm Bill Education Meetings Across Nebraska

Nebraska Extension and the USDA Farm Service Agency in Nebraska will host a series of Farm Bill Education meetings from late November to mid-December to help producers as they begin to make farm-bill related program decisions.

Loading a truck with grain — Developing a grain marketing plan can help you achieve the average price you seek.

Writing a Marketing Plan for Your Stored Grain

The farmers most successful at marketing their grain often sell smaller quantities throughout the year, using a grain-marketing plan to stay on top of their final average price. Check out these five steps to writing your grain marketing plan.

Farm Finance and Ag Law Clinics at 5 Sites this November

Free Ag Law and Farm Finance Clinics this November

These clinics are private, one-on-one meetings with an agricultural law attorney and an agricultural financial counselor.

Protecting Natural Resources

Grass and tree riparian buffer — Figure 1. Late fall is a good time to assess the need for buffer strips to protect waterways from potential runoff of pesticides, fertilizers, and sediment. Funding assistance for buffers is available from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture. (Photos courtesy of NRCS)

NDA Funding Available to Install, Renew Buffer Strips

After a wrenching year of storms and floods across much of the state, it's time to take stock of steps to reduce the impact of extreme weather on your farm and the surrounding environs. Financial incentives are available for vegetative buffer strips.

Buffer Strip Plant Selection

When planning a vegetative buffer strip, select grasses, shrubs, and trees that will perform well in your geographic area. Here's an introductory guide as to what works well in different areas of the state.

Alfalfa Production

Market Facilitation Funds for Alfalfa Growers

Thanks to the trade war, alfalfa growers may qualify for market facilitation payments, regardless of whether they were exporting their hay. Prior to the trade war, China was the number one importer of alfalfa hay from the United States.

Research

Nov. 7 Webinar Covers 'How-tos' of NCR-SARE Farmer Grant Application

The deadline is Dec. 5 for applications for the NCR SARE Farmer Rancher Grant Program. A Nov. 7 webinar will cover how to apply, what kinds of applications have been successful in the past, and what's required of the process.

Researchers with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will use the Arable Mark IOT device to record 40 variables in Nebraska farm fields as part of a research effort to improve data farmers use to determine whether they should irrigate.

Researchers to Tackle Irrigation Decision-making with Help of USDA grant

A new federally funded, multi-state research project aims to bridge the gap between data-collection in the field, modeling, and decision-making so crop producers can more easily decide whether to irrigate. The project could help growers save financial and water resources.

Plant Disease

Figure 1. A comparison of the bacteria that cause bacterial wilt of dry beans and Goss’ wilt of corn. The rods of Curtobacterium (left) in the dry bean wilt pathogen are shorter and fatter than the Goss’ wilt pathogen, Clavibacter (right).

Puzzling Out Two Closely Related Corn, Dry Bean Diseases

Two closely related plant diseases — one in corn and the other in dry bean — have followed similar, but somewhat perplexing patterns of appearing, disappearing, and then resurging as a serious threat to crop yield. A UNL researcher looks at factors affecting the cycle and whether it can be predicted.

IANR & Extension

Compact Aims to Boost Ag, Natural Resource Industries in Northeast Nebraska

Meeting the education needs of youth and lifelong learners in agriculture and natural resource is the goal of a new education compact among the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and six Nebraska institutions.

Grazing Cover Crop Workshops at 4 Sites in November

Local farmers and ranchers with experience grazing cover crops on row crop acres will be among the speakers at Grazing Cover Workshops to be held at four sites in November.

Crop Report

Corn and Soybean Harvest Progress Nears Average

After a favorably dry week, corn and soybean harvests neared normal progress levels for this point in the season, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service for the week ending October 27.