by CrownRandall | Nov 16, 2024 | Agriculture
Is anyone keeping heifers? It’s a question I’ve been asked at every Cattlemen’s meeting I’ve been to this fall—and one I’ve been asking myself. The answer appears to be a definitive no from all the information I’ve gathered.
In this article, James Mitchell of the University of Arkansas discusses the current heifer market, and more specifically, whether most beef producers are keeping heifers at the moment. Mitchell shares several details and charts in this article to help explain the current market. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2024/11/13/is-anyone-keeping-heifers/
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by CrownRandall | Nov 16, 2024 | Agriculture
The most prevalent types of pasture plants that we use in Ohio are cool-season forages. It is normal for these cool-season forages to enter a dormancy period to survive through the warmest and driest part of summer to come out productive in the fall.
When the drought was at its worst, we could clearly see the negative impact it was having on grasses, weather in our lawns or our forage crops. As OSU Extension Educator Cristine Gelley discusses in this article, the commonly planted grasses in Ohio often go dormant during warm and dry times, but then are able to bounce back when moisture arrives. In this case, however, there is a higher likelihood that some of that grass has died completely due to the severity of the drought.
Read through this article to learn more about the reasons for grass death, and to help you make decisions on how to repair your forages. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2024/11/13/is-the-grass-dead-or-dormant/
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by CrownRandall | Nov 14, 2024 | Agriculture
ARCANUM – On November 12, 2024 the Joyful Jets 4-H Club met at Trinity Methodist Church in Arcanum for a regularly scheduled 4-H meeting. Vice President, Brooklyn Miller, called the meeting to order and led the pledges and motto. Secretary, Cheyenne Swisher, did roll call and read minutes from the previous meeting. Recreations Leader, Hudson Wehrley led the club in a game. The Treasurers Report was given by Isaac Wiant and Garett Miller gave a Safety Report.
In Old Business, please write thank you notes for any trophies won at the fair.
In New Business, the election of the club’s 2025 officers and 2025 program committee sign-ups were postponed to the next meeting due to low member attendance. Project sign-up for the 2025 year is available now through April 1, 2025. Members, please let Susan know if you are interested in helping with any activities for the club Christmas party at the next meeting. Trash Bash forms for 2025 are now available online from the Darke County Solid Waste District. The amount paid has increased to $100 per section, participation forms are due March 7, 2025 and the Trash Bash t-shirt design contest entries are due January 31, 2025.
Lexi Myers did public speaking. November birthdays were recognized, James Enicks gave a devotion, and the meeting was adjourned. Members enjoyed refreshments provided by the Myers family. The next meeting will be December 10th at 6:00 pm at Trinity Methodist Church.
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by CrownRandall | Nov 11, 2024 | Agriculture
The Mississinawa Valley-MVCTC FFA chapter hosted Tractor Drive-In Day on September 13. The farm equipment was parked in The Nest parking lot on State Route 47 so everyone who drove by would see them. This reminds everyone that harvest season is starting and they need to slow down and share the roads with farm equipment.
The members who participated were Shane Germann, Ethan Loy, Gretchen Rodeheffer, Ethan Grow, Kyle Wehrkamp, Leland Kauffman, Tristan Muhlenkamp, Tenlee Woodbury, Quentin Hanes, Daniel Hartzell, Ty Houser, Hunter Cox, McKinley Stachler, Colten Hiestand, and Jaxin Beanblosson.
This was a great way to remind everyone to stay safe on the roads this harvest season.
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by CrownRandall | Nov 10, 2024 | Agriculture
Lincoln Winner is a senior at Versailles High School and participates in the Agriculture Education Capstone Program and has been selected as the Capstone Highlight Student of the Month.
The Versailles Agriculture Education Capstone Program is in its thirteen years of existence. Lincoln is the son of Brian and Lisa Winner of North Star, Ohio. Capstone is a program that gives Versailles High School Junior and Senior Students who are enrolled in agriculture education an opportunity to gain real-world employment experiences and opportunities while in high school.
Lincoln has worked over 9,000 hours at Brian Winner Farms LLC since his enrollment in agriculture education class. Lincoln’s primary roles at Brian Winner Farms LLC include: feeding, sorting, vaccinating, treating, tagging, loading, and castrating cattle. In addition, Lincoln plants and combines corn, drive the grain cart, hauls corn, rakes, cuts and bales hay. Lincoln performs service work on equipment and performs fall tillage work.
Brian and Lisa Winner of Brian Winner Farms LLC Farms, is quoted as saying, “Lincoln is an ambitious employee who looks forward to the challenges each day.”
He shows up in a timely manner ready to work, he sees things to do, he has initiative.” Lincoln plans to join the family farm after graduation.
Brian Winner Farms LLC is owned and operated by Brian and Lisa Winner and was started in 1999. Brian Winner Farms LLC is a diversified crop and livestock operation that raises corn, alfalfa and wheat and finishes out market beef steers and heifers cattle and has a herd of beef cows.
This year 53 students are enrolled in the Versailles Agriculture Education Capstone programs and are leaving school after their daily required courses are complete and working at area businesses. The goal of the spotlight is to highlight each month one of the students that participate in the capstone program and highlight the skills/knowledge they are gaining, and the roles/assets they are to their business. The students enrolled in capstone also use their employment as their Supervised Agricultural Experience Program. As part of their grade in capstone, students are required to keep detailed records of their hours worked, earnings and skills performed.
In addition to the record books, capstone students are being evaluated at the end of each nine weeks by an evaluation completed by their employer.
Congratulations to Lincoln and Thank you to Brian Winner Farms LLC for this opportunity.
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by CrownRandall | Nov 9, 2024 | Agriculture
Certified Crop Adviser Credits CEU Credits Available: “The Ohio State University Extension Agronomic Crops team has developed an online, self-paced course for Certified Crop Advisers to earn CEU credits. This course is also great for K-12 educators to earn CEU credits and anyone wanting to expand their knowledge of agronomics. The course is designed as a series of six videos, each with a five-question quiz.” For those looking to gain CEU credits as a Certified Crop Adviser, OSU Extension is providing a great opportunity. The Agronomic Crops Team has developed a course to allow people to earn the necessary credits. More details and directions for the course can be found in the article. https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2024-422024-39/certified-crop-adviser-ceu-credits-available
Drought Related Fencing Issues: “The drought in this part of the country continues with very little chance of rain in the forecast. With the shortage of available pasture and hay supplies, livestock may start thinking the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. How secure are your fences? No one likes to get that wake-up call or knock on the door letting you know you have livestock out. There are a couple of fencing issues that are related to drought to keep in mind.” Yet another issue caused by drought is the potential difficulty of fencing animals. OSU Extension Educator Dean Kreager shares his advice on keeping your livestock contained when fencing issues arise. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2024/10/30/drought-related-fencing-issues/
Feeder Cattle Futures Prices: “Feeder cattle futures prices rallied in September and October to offset much of the decline that occurred in August. The January 2025 contract dropped roughly $25 per CWT from mid-July to mid-August. Since early September, the price of the January 2025 feeder cattle contract has risen approximately $15 per CWT.” Josh Maples of Mississippi State University’s Department of Agricultural Economics shares the latest details on the futures prices of feeder cattle. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2024/11/06/feeder-cattle-futures-prices/
Group Housing Vs. Individual Housing for Calves: “ A study was recently published in the Journal of Dairy Science summarizing the last 40 years of research on individual calf housing compared to either pair or group-housed calves. Over those 40 years, 81 peer-reviewed research studies have been conducted on these housing systems with 47 published journal articles. The study found that group-housed calves had significantly higher starter grain intake, higher average daily gain and heavier weaning weights.” Calf producers have the option to either house their calves in individual or group pens, each of which has its own advantages. In this article, an OSU Extension Specialist shares data from research on this topic. Specific factors being considered include weight gain, social traits, illness, group size, and barn design. https://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/how-does-group-housing-for-calves-stack-up-against-individual-housing/846397.html
Managing Low Precipitation Levels for Forages: “As the fall continues to provide us with extremely dry conditions, fall growth of forages will be limited this year. Cow-calf producers should be developing a drought plan as we move through the fall and winter. Below are a few tips to consider when navigating these dry fall conditions.” With the overall very dry conditions we’ve faced this growing season, and the current lack of moisture, it is important to make the most out of the resources we have. In this article, Dr. Jeff Lehmkuhler of the University of Kentucky shares advice for managing forages in low-precipitation conditions. https://u.osu.edu/beef/2024/11/06/coping-with-low-precipitation/
Soybean Performance Trials: “Yield results for the 2024 Ohio Soybean Performance Trials are available for all locations… We will update the report with seed protein, oil, and size as we finish analyzing samples.” Ohio Soybean Performance Trials help producers understand which varieties may be best for them. The latest report shares data on multiple varieties throughout several trial locations. https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2024-39/2024-ohio-soybean-performance-trials-yield-results-all-trial
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