Now is the time for wheat producers to make a plan to control Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) in their fields. FHB, or head scab, is a fungal disease that reduces yields and can impact the quality of the grain. In addition, the disease can produce mycotoxins, sometimes referred to as DON or vomitoxins, that are […]
The sea of native warm-season grass on Gene Cowherd’s Barry County farm is a reminder of a time when buffalo grazed tall prairie grasses. Cowherd’s first-year grasses stand more than 6 feet high with thick, green undergrowth. The grasses are part of a diverse grazing system that also includes alfalfa, Bermuda grass, orchardgrass, red clover, […]
Tall fescue, Missouri’s most used pasture grass, provides fall and winter grazing with proper management. With growing concern about the lack of stored forage, grazing offers potential feed this year. Fescue grows in two distinct seasons, spring and fall. Fall growth isn’t as robust as in spring. With good management, fescue gives grazing well […]
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) has determined that as many as 10 medical marijuana testing facilities could be licensed in Missouri. Article XIV of the Missouri Constitution calls for “at least two” testing facilities for the new program. Testing facilities will be licensed to acquire, test, certify and transport marijuana. DHSS also established ten advisory committees composed […]
Two years of abnormal weather changed plant growth, which changes livestock digestion and in the end, cows die. The words “it’s very complex” kept popping up in a University of Missouri emergency teleconference of state and regional MU Extension specialists. This winter farmers find groups of cows dead, often falling on newly unrolled baled hay. […]
On top of dealing with harsh winter weather in feeding cows, cattle farmers must guard against too much nitrate in poor-quality hay. “Just from cases we’ve confirmed, I know of 150 cows dying in the last month,” says Tim Evans, head toxicologist at the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. High nitrate, mostly concentrated in […]
Winter feeding of forage to beef herds doesn’t rank high as a favored job for herd owners. But there’s a bright side to feeding fescue, whether in hay or grass. Fescue toxins are down. “This is the best fescue will be, now until pastures green up again,” says Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension forage […]
Managed grazing makes better use of forage in a year of high-priced hay. After a drought with short grass and little hay, fall pastures grew fast with good rains. Management-intensive grazing (MIG) extends fall grass supplies. Or the grass can be saved for winter grazing, says Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension forage specialist. Controlled […]
Odd fall weather and fescue pasture growth set up potential poisonous pastures causing fescue foot in cow herds. Fall growth after a drought produces more toxins in infected tall fescue grass. The poison develops after rains start regrowth following a drought, says Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension specialist. Roberts urges herd owners to keep […]
Mother Nature has much to say about soybean yield and grain quality almost every year, says University of Missouri Extension soybean specialist Bill Wiebold. This year was no exception. Several important soybean-growing regions in Missouri experienced severe drought this year. The most worrisome effect from drought is yield loss, but producers face several other effects […]
Livestock producers can stretch short supplies of hay this year by using a simple ammonia treatment on bales, says University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist Zac Erwin. Erwin and MU Extension agronomy specialist Valerie Tate will lead-free hay ammoniation demonstrations Oct. 9 and Oct. 11 at 5:30 p.m. to show farmers how to boost the […]
A meeting has been scheduled in Savannah to discuss livestock concerns caused by drought conditions, a shortage of pasture and hay, as well as water concerns. The University of Missouri extension reports the meeting is to be held Wednesday, July 11th at 5:30 pm in the Andrew County Youth Building, 201 South Banyon, in Savannah. […]
