Harvey County

Tag: Agriculture

Sericea Lespedeza Pasture Control

Sericea lespedeza continues to be a major concern on rangeland, pasture, and some CRP acres in Kansas. It is a statewide noxious weed in Kansas and therefore needs to be controlled. Sericea lespedeza has a tremendous seed bank that helps reestablish stands.

There are no known biological controls that can be effectively used on sericea lespedeza. However, grazing with goats can suppress sericea lespedeza stands and produce a saleable product. It takes 4 to 5 goats per acre (of sericea) to graze the plant heavily enough to eliminate seed production. Cattle supplemented with corn steep liquor (CSL) have been shown to consume more sericea lespedeza than animals not supplemented with CSL. Current studies are underway to determine the impact of late summer grazing by sheep on sericea lespedeza. Continue reading “Sericea Lespedeza Pasture Control”

Covering Your Acres Now Available Online

Did you miss out on attending the Cover Your Acres winter conference this year? Videos of the presentations given at the 2018 Cover Your Acres Winter Conference are being added to the new “Cover Your Acres” YouTube channel.

The first presentation has been added, and very timely as producers need to be making residual herbicide decisions this spring, is the talk on weed management strategies by Curtis Thompson.  This presentation features the latest weed control information available for the Central Plains.

Also available is a discussion of observations across farms of the High Plains on the role of crop rotation intensification on profitability, input use, and soil health. This work, presented by Meagan Schipanski of Colorado State University, provides a glimpse into how rotation decisions translate into long-term effects.

You can access the videos at www.northwest.ksu.edu/CYAvideos and be sure to follow our YouTube channel.

KSU Cattleman’s day

On Friday, March 2, 2018, the Department of Animal Sciences & Industry at Kansas State University will proudly continue its tradition of the Cattlemen’s Day program. This program is designed to provide producers, allied industry and individuals with information about new developments in the beef industry.

The entire day’s program will be held at Weber Hall. Weber Hall is located at 1424 Claflin Road which is in the northeast corner of the K-State campus on Claflin Road on the K-State Campus in Manhattan.

Cattlemen’s Day 2018 will begin with the morning program, including featured speakers from Kansas State University followed by the “Focus Sessions” in the afternoon. The program will be held in various rooms throughout Weber Hall. The outstanding Cattlemen’s Day program will be coming soon to our web site at: www.asi.ksu.edu/cattlemensday.

The day will conclude with the Legacy Bull Sale and a social after the sale at the Stanley Stout Livestock Marketing and Learning Center. All commercial exhibits will be housed in Weber Arena.  We heard very positive comments last year and are looking forward to an even bigger and better Cattlemen’s Day 2018.

Upcoming Meetings: Cover Crop & Dicamba Training

*There will be Cover Crop Update on Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM, in the Harvey County Courthouse Community Rooms, located in the basement of the Courthouse, 800 N Main, Newton. Entrance is the front doors of the building, facing west or Main street.

Jaymelynn Farney, Kansas State University Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist will be presenting the program. It will include “How to Safely rotate livestock on Cover Crops” and “What types of cover crops to plant for rotation”. There is no fee for this update.

Registration is due by February 16. Call the Extension office at 316-284-6930

 

*A very important meeting on Dicamba Training and Weed Management will be held on Monday, March 5, 9:00 AM to Noon, at the Harvey County Courthouse Community Rooms, Basement of the Courthouse. This meeting will be presented by Dallas Petersen, Kansas State University Agronomy Professor.

Anyone planning to buy one of the new Dicamba formulations in 2018 must have either a private applicator or category-specific applicator training. It is the responsibility of the applicators to obtain this training BEFORE the application of these herbicides. The training will cover the label changes in detail and provide information on what you as an applicator need to do to meet these requirements.

This is an approved training. There is no fee for this update.

Please PRE-REGISTER by March 1 by calling the Extension office at 316-284-6930.

If you have any questions regarding either meeting you may call me at the office at 316-284-6930 or email is flaming@ksu.edu.

I look forward to seeing you at these meetings.

Soil Health Workshop

A Riley County Soil Health Workshop will be held on Thursday, March 8, at Pottorf Hall, CiCo Park in Manhattan, Kansas. The workshop will begin at 9:00 a.m. and conclude at 2:00 p.m. The workshop is hosted by K-State Research and Extension and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The workshop will discuss and highlight recent cover crop research and how cover crops relate to soil health.

Topics and speakers include:

  • Using cover crops as a tool for weed control, Anita Dille – Weed Ecology
  • Cover crops and the nitrogen cycle in the rotation, Peter Tomlinson – Environmental Quality
  • Sorghum response to cover crops in no-till systems, Kraig Roozeboom, Crop Production
  • Protecting surface water with healthy soils, cover crops, and fertilizer management, Nathan Nelson, Soil Fertility and Nutrient Management
  • Building better soils with cover crops, DeAnn Presley – Soil Management
  • Cover crops in a soybean production system, Doug Shoup – Southeast Area Crops and Soils
  • Covers for use by cattle, Jaymelynn Farney – Southeast Area Beef Systems

Registration for the workshop is free and lunch will be provided. Participants are asked to register by Monday, March 5. Contact the Riley County Conservation District to reserve your spot by calling 785-537-8764 or at Aubrey.evans@ks.nacdnet.net

The event is limited to 200 people, so don’t wait too long to register!