Weekly Outlook - Drought and the Cattle Industry

The beef industry has already experienced a number of difficult years characterized by falling cow numbers and declining per capita beef supplies. There was hope in the first-half of this year that this downward production phase was coming to an end, but the drought of 2012 has erased those hopes. So, where is the cattle industry today, and what do we know about the impacts of this year’s drought?

The mid-year Cattle inventory report from USDA indicated that beef cow numbers had dropped by an additional three percent over the past year. Since 2006, beef cow numbers have dropped by eight percent due to much higher feed prices and to the long drought in the Southern Plains. The 2012 calf crop is expected to be down about two percent, and also down eight percent from 2006. This year’s drought likely means further decreases in cow numbers over the next 12 to14 months.  <Read More>

Upcoming Events - Purdue Master Gardener Course to be Offered this Fall

If you enjoy gardening and enjoy “Helping Others Grow”, make plans to take part in this fall’s Purdue Master Gardener Course in Spencer County.   

The Purdue Master Gardener Program is a volunteer training program which offers an extensive course in horticulture in exchange for a donation of volunteer hours to help teach others what you have learned. 

The course will be held on twelve consecutive Monday evenings from 6:00-9:00 PM, beginning September 10, at the Spencer County Youth and Community Center in Chrisney, IN. 

Participants will be exposed to a wide range of subjects including soil and plant science, diagnosis of plant problems, pesticide safety, composting, and culture of vegetable, flower, landscape, and fruit plants.   

A $125 per person supply fee will be charged to cover such items as reference materials, mailings, name badges, and refreshments. Couples or two family members who wish to take the course together and share reference materials can register for $200 per couple. Registration deadline is August 31.    

If you'd like an application to join our new team of volunteers or have questions about the program, please contact Nicholas Held at the Spencer County-Purdue Extension Office at (812) 649-6022 or nheld@purdue.edu.  Applications are also available online.

Weekly Outlook - Anticipating the Size of the 2012 Corn and Soybean Crops

The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) of the USDA will release the first yield and production forecasts for the 2012 U.S. corn and soybean crops on August 10. The first forecasts of the season are always highly anticipated, but none more than this year as widespread drought conditions have resulted in a wide range of yield and production expectations.

It might be useful to briefly review the NASS methodology for making corn and soybean yield and production forecasts. Data for the forecasts are collected in two separate surveys conducted roughly in the last week of July and the first week of August for the August report. The Agricultural Yield Survey (AYS) queries farm operators in 32 states for corn and 29 states for soybeans asking operators to identify the number of acres to be harvested and to forecast the final average yield. The sample of operators is based on a sophisticated sample design to achieve the desired sample size and each state is expected to achieve a minimum response rate of 80 percent. In 2011, approximately 27,000 operators were surveyed for all crops for the August report. Each operator is surveyed in subsequent months to obtain new forecasts of acreage and yield. Historical relationships indicate that respondents tend to be conservative in early forecasts of final yields (underestimate yield potential), particularly in drought years. This tendency is quantified and factored into official yield forecasts.  <Read More>

Forage Crops Could Provide Opportunities Following Corn

A wide range of forage crops could help grain and livestock producers salvage some value from their fields once the drought-ravaged corn crop has been harvested - if soil moisture returns to a level that can support plant growth.

While damaged corn can be used as forage to feed livestock, it won't be enough to thwart forage shortages. Several forage crops are available for Indiana growers to plant in late summer or early fall, and that could serve as livestock feed in the spring.

"For the August seeding, an excellent consideration would be spring oat that will be harvested by machine, or a combination of spring oat and forage turnip if grazed by livestock," said Keith Johnson, Purdue Extension forage specialist. "Spring oat will not survive the winter.

"While the expectation is for turnips to winterkill, too, it has been observed that they can survive a mild Indiana winter."

Another possible choice is annual ryegrass, but growers who go this route need to pay close attention to keep the crop from becoming a nuisance. Johnson recommended an early seeding to have both fall and spring harvests.  <Read More>