Monday May 18 Crop Progress + Ag News

NEBRASKA CROP PROGRESS AND CONDITION

For the week ending May 17, 2020, there were 5.2 days suitable for fieldwork, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 3 percent very short, 20 short, 75 adequate, and 2 surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 2 percent very short, 14 short, 82 adequate, and 2 surplus.

Field Crops Report:
Corn planted was 91 percent, well ahead of 63 last year, and ahead of 78 for the five-year average. Emerged was 54 percent, well ahead of 22 last year, and ahead of 39 average.

Soybeans planted was 78 percent, well ahead of 34 last year and 42 average. Emerged was 29 percent, well ahead of 5 last year and 8 average.

Winter wheat condition rated 2 percent very poor, 9 poor, 22 fair, 59 good, and 8 excellent. Winter wheat headed was 5 percent, near 6 last year, and behind 23 average.

Sorghum planted was 28 percent, ahead of 15 last year and 22 average.

Oats condition rated 1 percent very poor, 6 poor, 25 fair, 63 good, and 5 excellent. Oats planted was 92 percent, near 88 last year and 94 average. Emerged was 82 percent, well ahead of 62 last year, but near 84 average.
 
Pasture and Range Report:
Pasture and range conditions rated 0 percent very poor, 3 poor, 19 fair, 72 good, and 6 excellent.



IOWA CROP PROGRESS & CONDITION REPORT

There were 4.3 days suitable for field work during the week ending May 17, 2020, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Windy days made spraying weeds difficult, but planting continued prior to most of Iowa receiving rain in the latter half of the week.

Topsoil moisture levels rated 2% very short, 7% short, 78% adequate and 13% surplus. Subsoil moisture levels rated 1% very short, 6% short, 83% adequate and 10% surplus.

Iowa farmers have planted 96% of the expected corn crop, nearly a month ahead of last year and almost 3 weeks ahead of the 5-year average. Only Southwest Iowa has over 10% remaining to be planted. Corn emergence improved to 62%, almost double that of the previous week.

The soybean crop moved to 86% planted, also nearly a month ahead of last year and 3 weeks ahead of average. Farmers in the northern one-third of the State have less than 10% of their soybeans left to plant. One-fourth of the soybean crop has emerged.

Seeding of the oat crop is virtually complete, with 91% emerged. Oat condition rated 80% good to excellent.

Hay condition rated 71% good to excellent.

Pasture condition rated 62% good to excellent. Warmer temperatures would help improve growth in pastures and hay fields. Livestock conditions continue to be good with little to no stress reported.



US Corn, Soybean Planting Stays Ahead of Average Pace

U.S. farmers maintained their faster-than-normal corn and soybean planting pace last week, USDA NASS said in its weekly Crop Progress report on Monday.

NASS estimated that 80% of the nation's intended corn crop was planted as of Sunday, May 17, a gain of 13 percentage points from the previous week. That was 36 percentage points ahead of last year at the same time and 9 percentage points ahead of the five-year average of 71%.  Forty-three percent of corn was emerged, 27 percentage points ahead of last year and 3 percentage points ahead of the average pace of 40%.

Soybean planting moved ahead another 15 percentage points to reach 53% complete as of Sunday. That was 37 percentage points ahead of 16% last year and 15 percentage points ahead of the five-year average of 38%.  Soybean emergence was estimated at 18% as of Sunday, ahead of both last year's 4% and the five-year average of 12%.

Meanwhile, winter wheat condition dropped for a second week in a row. NASS estimated that 52% of the nation's winter wheat was rated in good-to-excellent condition as of Sunday, down 1 percentage point from 53% the previous week. The current good-to-excellent rating is down from 66% a year ago. Winter wheat was 56% headed as of Sunday, ahead of 51% last year but behind the five-year average of 62%.

Spring wheat planting continued to lag behind normal. NASS estimated that 60% of the crop was planted as of Sunday, falling behind both last year's progress of 63% and the five-year average of 80%.  Thirty percent of the spring wheat crop had emerged, ahead of 21% last year but behind the five-year average of 46%.

Sorghum was 32% planted, ahead of 25% last year but behind the five-year average of 34%. Oats were 86% planted, compared to 73% last year and an average of 87%. Oats emergence was at 69%, compared to 50% last year and a 70% average. Barley was 72% planted, ahead of 71% last year, but behind the five-year average of 82%.

Cotton planting was 44% complete, compared to 39% last year and a 40% average. Rice was 81% planted, ahead of 68% last year but behind the average of 84%. Rice emerged was 57%, behind the average of 68%. Rice was rated 63% in good-to-excellent condition.

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Scout Emerging Corn for Insects; Don’t Assume Protection
Robert Wright - NE Extension Entomologist

As corn begins to emerge, be alert to the potential for damage from early season insects such as cutworms, wireworms, white grubs, or other insects. A key distinction to be aware of is that soil insects such as white grubs and wireworms can only be controlled with planting time treatments; cutworms and other caterpillars potentially can be controlled postemergence.

Wireworms and white grubs are most often associated with fields that have been in pasture or CRP where the grasses were allowed to grow for more than one year. It is rare to see these problems in continuous corn, but exceptions happen. Since wireworms and white grubs feed underground and cutworms feed on or below the soil surface, scout for plant damage and then dig in soil around the plant to identify the insect causing the damage.

More information here: https://cropwatch.unl.edu/2020/scout-emerging-corn-insects-dont-assume-protection. 



Flies on Pastured Cattle
Dave Boxler, Nebraska Extension Educator

As livestock producers prepare for another grazing season, thoughts are often directed towards grass conditions, animal conditioning, and fence repair. An additional very important consideration should include what type of flies will impact their pastured cattle, and what method of fly control will work best for their management system. Livestock fly control should be viewed as having a positive economic impact on livestock operations. In Nebraska and elsewhere, there are three fly species that economically impact pastured cattle; horn fly, face fly and stable fly.

HORN FLY
The horn fly is a small blood feeding fly found on the shoulders, back and belly region of cattle. They take some 24 to 38 blood meals per day. Females deposit eggs in fresh cow manure where the complete life cycle, egg to adult, can be completed in 10 to 20 days during warm conditions. In Nebraska, there are multiple generations during the fly season which can lead to extremely high fly numbers in late August and early September.

The horn fly is considered one of the most important blood feeding pests of pastured cattle in the United States. The annual economic losses caused by this fly has been estimated at $1 billion in the U.S. When horn fly numbers are high, cattle experience annoyance and blood loss. The effect may be decreased milk production, reduced weight gains, changes in grazing patterns and bunching of animals. Research studies have demonstrated calf weaning weights are negatively impacted from 4 to 15%, and stocker cattle and replacement heifers experience up to 18% impact in weight gains. In addition, horn flies can spread summer mastitis.

The economic injury level (EIL) for horn flies is 200 flies per animal. This level of infestation is often reached in late May or early June in Nebraska. Monitoring horn fly numbers on cattle is important in making appropriate management decisions. Cattle should be monitored weekly for horn flies throughout the fly season. These observations are best taken between the hours of 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM when flies are generally located on the shoulders, topline and sides of animals. Observations made later in the day are less accurate because horn flies will generally move to the belly area where it is cooler, making it more difficult to accurately assess population numbers. 

Control
Insecticide control methods available to manage horn flies on cattle are many; backrubbers (oilers), dust bags, insecticide ear tags, pour-ons, oral larvicides (IGR’s), low pressure sprayers, mist blower sprayers and the VetGun™. Backrubbers (oilers) and dust bags can be an effective way to reduce horn fly numbers if cattle are forced to use them; if used in a free-choice arrangement expect between 35 – 50 percent less control. Insecticide ear tags are a convenient method of horn fly control if applied at the correct time frame. In Nebraska, ear tags should be applied during the last week of May or the first week in June to achieve maximum control through the fly season. Ear tags applied too early may decline in efficacy while fly numbers are still high and result in economic loss. In addition, adult animals should receive two tags. Just tagging the calf and not the mother cow will not provide the desired level of horn fly control. Animal sprays, mist blower applications, and pour-on products will provide 7-21 days of control and will need to be re-applied through-out the fly season. Oral larvicides (IGR’s) prevent fly larvae in manure pats from developing into adults. An important factor when using an oral larvicide is ensuring steady consumption. An additional complicating issue when using an oral larvicide is horn fly migration from neighboring untreated herds which can mask the effectiveness of an oral larvicide (IGR). The Vet Gun™ applies an individual capsule of insecticide to an animal using a device similar to a paint ball gun and can provide horn fly control between 21 and 35 days.

Face Fly
The face fly is a robust fly that externally resembles the house fly. It is a nonbiting fly that feeds on animal secretions, nectar, and dung liquids. Adult female face flies usually cluster around the animals’ eyes, mouth, and muzzle causing significant irritation. They also congregate around wounds caused my mechanical damage or other injury to feed on blood and other fluids. Since face flies are on the animals for only short time periods, they are difficult to control. Most of the time they are found in shaded areas resting on plants, fence posts and other objects.

In addition to being annoying to cattle, face flies mechanically vector Moraxella bovis, the principal causal agent of bovine pinkeye or infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis. Pinkeye is a highly contagious inflammation of the cornea and conjunctiva of eyes. If coupled with the infectious rhinotracheitis (IBR) virus, M. bovis can cause a much more severe inflammatory condition. Reducing face fly numbers is a key to reducing pinkeye problems. Fly control methods should target the region of the face with daily exposures of the control product. Both cows and calves must be treated if control is to be realized. Commercial and autogenous pinkeye vaccines are available. Please check with your veterinarian about the use of these products in your area.

Control
The best method of reducing face fly numbers is using a treatment where animals come in contact with an insecticide on a daily basis such as a dust bag, oiler, spray or an insecticide impregnated ear tag. Ear tags should be applied at the label recommended rate. Both cows and calves must be treated if control is to be achieved.

Stable Fly
Stable flies are a significant pest of cattle on pastures in the Midwest.  Stable flies are blood feeding flies, mainly feeding on the legs of cattle. To avoid being bitten, animals stomp their feet and switch their tails. Other avoidance behaviors include standing in water, lying with legs tucked underneath, and bunching at the corners of pastures.

The stable fly is about the size of a house fly but is dark gray and has dark irregular spots on its abdomen. The proboscis (mouthpart) protrudes bayonet-like in front of the head. Stable flies develop in spoiled or fermenting organic matter mixed with animal manure, moisture, and dirt. The most common developing sites are in feedlots or dairy lots, usually around feed bunks, along the edges of feeding aprons, under fences and along stacks of hay, alfalfa, and straw. Grass clippings and poorly managed compost piles also may be stable fly breeding areas. Winter hay feeding sites where hay rings are used can often be a source for stable fly development through the summer if the proper amount of moisture is present. Stable flies found on many Nebraska pastured cattle likely migrated from distant developing sites. Research has shown stable flies can move at least 10 miles or more.

The effect of stable flies on weight gain performance of pastured cattle is similar to that of livestock in confined operations. Research conducted at the University of Nebraska, West Central Research & Extension Center recorded a reduction in average daily gain of 0.44 lb. per head per day in 84-day trials with animals that did not receive an insecticide treatment compared to cattle that received an insecticide application. The economic threshold of five flies per leg is easily exceeded in Nebraska pasture conditions.

Control
The best adult management option available for reducing stable flies on range cattle is animal sprays. Sprays can be applied using a low-pressure sprayer or a mist blower sprayer. Weekly applications of control products will be required to achieve a reduction in fly numbers. Sanitation or clean-up of wasted feed at winter feeding sites may reduce localized fly development. If sanitation is not possible, these sites may be treated with a larvicide (Neporex®), but the application of either procedure may not totally reduce the economic impact of stable fly feeding.

Insecticides have been placed into numbered Insecticide Mode of Action groups (MOA) based on how they work against insects. Continual use of products from a single group against a pest species can lead to reduced control (resistance to all products in the group). To reduce control failures due to insecticide resistance, do not apply insecticides within the same group number repeatedly. Rotate between (MOA) groups during the fly season.



2020 Legislative Session to Resume in July

Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature Jim Scheer of Norfolk announced today that the 2020 legislative session will resume July 20. 

In his announcement, Scheer said the decision to resume the session was based on the belief that Nebraska will have reached the peak of COVID-19 cases by that time – and will not have experienced a resurgence in cases following the loosening of restrictions on businesses and social gatherings.

Scheer suspended the session indefinitely in March due to public health concerns regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

“Please keep in mind that I reserve the right to alter this 2020 Reconvening Session Calendar should it appear best to do so,” he said.

Lawmakers are scheduled to complete their work for the session on Aug. 13.



Nebraska Farm Bureau Asks SBA to Modify Paycheck Protection Program to Help Farmers, Ranchers, Self-Employed

The Nebraska Farm Bureau is urging the Small Business Administration (SBA) to modify the agency’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to allow more farm and ranch businesses experiencing COVID-19 financial pressures to utilize loan assistance offered through the program.

“According to analysis conducted by the American Farm Bureau Federation, only 1.3 percent of PPP program funds were distributed to the agricultural sector of the U.S. economy. The low level of funding is likely due to PPP rules preventing farmers and ranchers from participating in the new program,” said Steve Nelson, Nebraska Farm Bureau president. “Agriculture, food, and related industries account for roughly 5.4 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product so it would seem the percentage of PPP funding to the agricultural sector would be higher.”

Current rules mandate PPP borrowers must spend 75 percent of loans on worker salaries, yet a large share of farm and ranch family businesses are organized as sole proprietors who either have a small number of employees or in many cases are self-employed. The 75 percent threshold prevents many of those businesses from being able to take full advantage of PPP loan forgiveness provisions.

“We’re encouraging SBA to reevaluate the worker salary threshold to mitigate this barrier to program utilization,” said Nelson.

While the SBA recently allowed farmers and ranchers to utilize Schedule F tax returns to reflect payroll to themselves for purposes of calculating PPP loans, many farm and ranch families filed negative Schedule F tax returns as a result of multi-year agriculture commodity price declines and last year’s devastating flooding throughout the Midwest.

“We appreciate SBA’s actions to recognize Schedule F returns to help farmers and ranchers participate in PPP, but we encourage SBA to find another way to account for payroll expenses for small businesses locked out of PPP because of a negative Schedule F tax filing,” said Nelson.

In comments to the SBA, Nebraska Farm Bureau also urged the agency to increase the amount of loans that could be allocated for rent, in addition to broadening the type of business utilities that qualify for loan forgiveness.

“The purpose of the PPP is to aid small businesses in the face of the pandemic. Broadening loan eligibility parameters as it relates to payroll costs will make PPP much more helpful to farmers, ranchers, and other main street businesses that involve the self-employed or those with few employees,” said Nelson. “It’s our hope SBA will make these changes to expand participation opportunities for our members and others seeking much-needed assistance.”



USDA CONDUCTS JUNE HOGS AND PIGS SURVEY

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is contacting producers for the June Hogs and Pigs Survey. The agency will survey pork producers for detailed information on market hog and breeding stock inventories as well as pig crop and farrowing intentions in every state.

“With the data gathered in the quarterly Hogs and Pigs surveys, NASS measures and reports trends in the U.S. pork industry over the course of the year,” said Nicholas Streff, Director of the NASS Northern Plains Regional Office.

The information is used by all sectors of the industry to help make sound and timely business decisions.

NASS will mail the questionnaires to all producers selected for the survey in late May. To ensure all survey participants have an opportunity to respond, NASS interviewers will contact producers who do not respond by mail or online to conduct telephone interviews.

NASS will publish the survey results in the quarterly Hogs and Pigs report on June 25. All NASS reports are available online at www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/. For more information, call the NASS Northern Plains Regional Office at (800) 582-6443.



Maximizing Efficiencies: The Economic Return Of Spring Vaccinations and Strategic Deworming

Nebraska Cattlemen, along with Boehringer Ingelheim, are hosting aproducer education webinar on Wednesday May 20th at 7pm CDT.  The program should last about 45-60 minutes. 

The Presenter is Joe C. Gillespie, DVM MS
-    Graduated from Texas A&M University – Animal Science (BS 1990, MS 1993) and College of Veterinary Medicine (DVM 1995)
-    Worked in Beef and Dairy Veterinary Medicine for the last 20+ years in McCook, Nebraska
-    Joined Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health in December of 2018 as a Professional Services Veterinarian for the Beef Cattle Business
-    Areas of focus are Animal Health, Reproduction and Continuous Improvement to create Business Profitability.

Register now to attend webinar here...  https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lEksxqrUSK6e5x7qdsMFjQ. 

If you have any questions about Nebraska Cattlemen's Producer Education Programs please contact
Bonita Lederer by email at blederer@necattlemen.org or voice/text @ 402-450-0223. 



Water Quality Can Impact Livestock Production

Providing adequate water to livestock is critical for animal health and production.  "Good-quality water can have a major impact on your cattle's intake and weight gain," says Miranda Meehan, North Dakota State University Extension livestock environmental stewardship specialist.

Canadian studies have shown the quality of water accessible to livestock is directly tied to the amount of forage they consume. Studies report improved gains by as much as 0.24 pound per day in yearlings and 0.33 pound per day in calves receiving good-quality water.

Providing good-quality water also can improve herd health. Livestock whose primary water sources are ponds and dugouts have a greater risk of contracting illnesses such as giardia, leptospirosis and cyanobacterial poisoning, compared with livestock drinking from a trough.

"Water quality can vary depending on the source," says Tom Scherer, NDSU Extension agricultural engineer. "Groundwater tends to be of higher quality than surface water; however, some aquifers in North Dakota have naturally high levels of potentially toxic salts such as sulfate due to geology.

"Weather also can influence water quality," he adds. "When runoff is low in the spring or during a drought, the salts in surface water become more concentrated as water levels decline and can reach levels that can be toxic."

All natural water contains dissolved minerals (often called salts). The concentration of the total dissolved solids (TDS) is measured in parts per million (ppm). For most classes of grazing livestock, the TDS in the water should be less than 5,000 ppm.

Sulfate is part of the TDS. The recommended concentration should be less than 500 ppm for calves and less than 1,000 ppm for adult cattle. High levels of sulfate can reduce copper availability in the diet. Elevated levels of sulfates may cause loose stool, whereas very high levels of sulfate can induce central nervous system problems.

If a water test indicates that the TDS are greater than 5,000 ppm or the sulfate concentration is greater than 1,000 ppm, producers may have to find an alternative water source or find some way to blend a better-quality water with the poorer-quality water to reduce the concentration of TDS or sulfate.

Water with elevated nutrient levels also are at a higher risk for blue-green algae blooms in periods of hot, dry weather. Some species of blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) contain toxins that can be deadly when livestock and wildlife consume them.

"Monitoring water quality throughout the grazing season is important because it changes in response to climate and environmental conditions," Meehan says.

To document this variability and help livestock producers identify potential water quality concerns, Meehan and Scherer are working with 23 Extension agents across North Dakota to monitor livestock water quality.

Installing a water development project can help ensure that livestock have access to good-quality water throughout the grazing season, the specialists say.



Dairy Organizations Unite in Calling to Aid Other Nations by Filling Food Needs

The National Milk Producers Federation, U.S. Dairy Export Council and the International Dairy Foods Association jointly urged Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to use all tools at his disposal to “ensure high-quality, nutritious U.S. dairy products are made available to our international neighbors in need.”

“As a nation, we are blessed to have an abundance of dairy available, even during this difficult time. Taking steps to share that abundance with the world will provide a lifeline for regions where food is needed while supplying an additional outlet for American farmers to share their abundance of dairy products,” wrote Jim Mulhern, Tom Vilsack and Michael Dykes – the respective presidents and CEO’s of the three leading U.S. dairy organizations, in the letter dated May 18. “We encourage a focus in particular on countries that have indicated a food or nutrition deficit in their country during these times and that lack the infrastructure or resources to reliably deliver dairy supplies through robust commercial channels.”

Dairy farmers are facing some of the steepest losses of all major U.S. agricultural producers – potentially $8.2 billion, based on a comparison of current USDA projections with pre-crisis estimates. U.S. dairy supplies available for international distribution remain ample, making targeted food-aid shipped worldwide a promising avenue for helping populations struggling with localized hunger and the coronavirus crisis.



Mexico Opens for U.S. Bison Meat Exports

The National Bison Association welcomed the news on Friday that the Government of Mexico has formally opened its doors to import U.S. – produced bison meat into that country.  The move formally opens the doors to a new market for U.S. bison meat.

“This is a very positive development for the bison business,” said Dave Carter, executive director of the National Bison Association. “The Mexican marketplace offers a growth opportunity for our business. Additionally, many consumers in Mexico tend to favor cuts of meat that are not in high demand by U.S. customers, so this can help our marketers balance carcass utilization.”

At the request of the National Bison Association, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service formally petitioned Mexico in 2018 to open their market to U.S. bison meat. That request led to extensive discussions between agricultural officials in the two countries over the protocols and procedures that would be required from exporters. Last week, Mexico formally agreed to the protocols recommended by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

USDA FAS formally notified the National Bison Association Friday that Mexico had agreed to the latest procedures proposed by FSIS.

Carter noted, “Several people at USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service have worked extremely hard over the past two years to push this process along on behalf of U.S. bison ranchers and marketers. We appreciate their efforts to secure this new market opportunity.”.



NGFA submits statement to CFTC on speculative position limits rule

The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) on May 15 submitted its official statement to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on the agency’s latest attempt to implement speculative position limits across a range of commodities and futures contracts.

The commission has attempted several times previously – during the almost 10 years since the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation became law – to finalize rules for position limits. The NGFA has worked closely with CFTC over the years to resolve contentious issues that existed in earlier proposals of the rule. As a result of NGFA’s efforts, the current proposal comes much closer to a workable approach for the grain, feed, and processing industry.

While expressing general support of the proposal and citing improvements from previous iterations, NGFA highlighted a few remaining concerns in its comments, including:

•    Spot-Month Limits: The NGFA supports increased spot-month limits for grain and oilseed contracts, up to 1,200 contracts compared to the current spot-month limit of 600, but with the admonition that CFTC and the CME Group should monitor implementation closely and make adjustments if convergence between futures and cash markets is threatened.

•    Non-Spot Month Limits: Rather than endorse very large increases in single-month and all-months-combined limits, the NGFA recommends that the commission maintain relatively lower single-month limits to prevent too much volume from becoming concentrated in nearby non-spot months. In addition, the NGFA strongly supports providing authority for exchanges to implement limits lower than federal limits as merited for individual contracts and various commodities.

•    Enumerated Bona Fide Hedges: Commendably, the CFTC proposal expands the range of hedging strategies explicitly recognized by the agency as bona fide hedges, including an important expansion of anticipatory hedging. Importantly, these so-called enumerated hedges will be self-effectuating for purposes of hedge exemptions from federal speculative position limits. That means market participants will not have to apply to CFTC for exemptions for those enumerated hedging strategies. However, NGFA urges the CFTC to make one additional hedging strategy enumerated in the final rule; that is, using a futures calendar spread to hedge an unfixed price basis purchase or sale.

•    Non-Enumerated Hedge Exemption Process: The proposal introduces a new two-track process for applying for hedge exemptions from both exchange-set and federal position limits. Hedgers can apply directly to their exchange, and following exchange approval the CFTC has proposed that the agency have a 10-business day review period. The NGFA urges CFTC to reduce its review period to two days for both hedging needs known in advance and for sudden or unforeseen needs. In addition, NGFA seeks clarification from the CFTC as to whether a market participant may take a position based upon the exchange’s determination during the review period without fear of CFTC penalties for a position limit infraction.