Farm Radio

Hi, This is Lorrie Boyer, Farm News Director for KSIR. Chris Shelley, Yuma County Extension Agent and Livestock Specialist recently spoke about supplements in cattle with me during one of my interviews.The first thing he says that producers need to do is to identify nutritional needs of cattle. Once a producer does that, then they can formulate the appropriate ration to meet the requirements of the animal. The needs of cattle will depend on age of cattle, male or female what stage of production they are in. At this time of the year, most animals are feeding on dormant range land, like grain stalks. Questions to ask is there enough to eat, is it high protein, its it limited in quantity and is it low quality? This will help dictate what you do next, according to Shelley. For low quality forage, protein supplements will be needed, especially pregnant cows. He says that 7-percent crude protein in the diet for pregnant cows is ideal for this time of the year. If lower, it is OK, as ...

    Duane Sinning, Assistant Director of Plant Industries with CDA and oversees the industrial hemp program. Colorado has a voluntary industrial hemp program that allows growers to apply for registration. This, which has been around since 2014. Eighty-five hundred acres and 1.1 million square feet of indoor acres have been registered for 2016. Locations are scattered throughout the mostly in Ag areas. Sinning adds that because of the growth, the CDA has went from two part-time employees to three full time employees. Two handle the 350 -plus registrations and and one that handles the seed certifications program of industrial hemp. Challenges for registrants have included banking issues since hemp was federally illegal. Furthermore, they have had issues importing and exporting seed and trying to get questions answered from federal agencies because it is still illegal federally. Higher education research has been lagging because of hesitancy regarding hemp be...

e: Colorado Sugar Beet growers had a great start this year with good soil moisture for planting. As the region as seen some spotty severe weather, about 60 acres have been abandoned due to hail so so far this year, according to Colorado Sugar beet Growers Association President, David Black of Yuma. The Western Sugar Cooperative in Fort Morgan has taken one sample with the second sample to be taken any day now. The sugar beet samples test for weight and sugar content and then will give farmers a better indication as to when early harvest will begin. The first samples were above average in weight and sugar content. In addition, Blach cited that some diseases are showing up, such as anastomosis and Rhizoc. These are popping up due to wet growing conditions. Early harvest is typically in September and regular harvest follows October.

Sunflower Industry: Acres Up & New Markets After a decline, sunflower acreage in Colorado is up 20%, which shows that producers are realizing that sunflowers are viable and profitable. The increase includes both confection and oil varieties. Karl Esping is President of the National Sunflower Association and says that this dry weather crop does well in Colorado and Kansas. The confection varieties or edible sunflower are  more popular in Southern Colorado due to the dry weather. As for prices, they have declined somewhat from last year, according to Esping. One unique product that the sunflower industry brings to the market is their premier oil, call High Oleic oil. This oil contains Omega 3 fats, or the good, healthy fats, which are good for health and can assist in preventing heart disease. A Colorado based company in Lamar, called Colorado Mills, now has its  High Oleic sunflower oil being sold in over twenty Whole Foods Stores. Esping says that this could lead...

EPA: Clean Power Plan The Environmental Protection Agency has released a plan recently that will change how Colorado’s electric co-ops distribute electricity to its end users. The new regulation lays the way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the United States by 30 percent by the year 2030. Fht Clean Power Plan sets a cap for coal fired and gas fired plants in the United States, which is different that the previous rule that bases emissions on state specific variables. EPA outlines three tools that can be used to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions. Those three tools are: increased use  of natural gas over coal, increased use of renewable energy for power and the use of purchasing and selling of emissions credits among utilities. According to an article in the September 2015 edition of Colorado Country Life many of the earlier power plants were build to use coal and still have a useful life and produce affordable electricity. Furthermore, the article cites the fact that...

Will the Mighty Ogallala Aquifer Be Mighty in the Future? Did you know that that the Ogallala aquifer spans underneath eight states? Did you know that about one-fifth of all U.S. cattle, corn, cotton and wheat depend on the Ogallala? To date, about 30 percent of the aquifer's water has been pumped out of the ground, according to a recent article from Bloomberg News Agency’s Alan Bjerga. With an additional 39 percent expected to be pumped out in the next 50 years, this could lead to a water crisis that has many ramifications. It will be hard for farmers to take out bank loans, land values will drop, farmers will look to plant different crops, incomes will drop for affiliated industry such as seed and machinery dealers. Other businesses like train and elevators will also feel the economy squeeze them as crop supplies decrease. In his article, Bjerga points out that there is little coordinated proactive measures being worked on in the Great Plains. There are some voluntary m...

It is breeding season in Northeast Colorado and preg checking appointments are being lined up for veterinarian's like Dr. Paul Chard of Brush, Colorado. Preg checking helps detect issues in the herd such as herd disease and/or toxins. During the preg check, body condition scores are given on a scale of 1-9, to monitor cow conditions and adjust feed if needed. Preg checks also allows for re-breeding if the cow is still open. It also makes it easier to remove open cows from the herd, which saves feed costs for the producers. Dr. Chard says that preg checks can increase herd efficiency, which includes cull cows that won't calve within a 60-day window. This helps with get more uniform at weaning time, less calves to sort when going to sale,helps with vaccination timing and less variation in feeding requirements for the herd. Additionally, it is a management tool that helps break and control the cycle of trichnomiases. For replacement heifers, he says that it is best to ...