Ready for Spring Cattle Care!
Transcription
Ready for Spring Cattle Care!
Heart of Missouri MFA AGRIServices Newsletter 660-338-2251 402 TENTH STREET GLASGOW, MO. 65254 Issue 1 1-800-257-4735 ARMSTRONG*BOONVILLE*FAYETTE*GLASGOW*LONE ELM*NELSON*NEWFRANKLIN*SALISBURY March 2010 Ready for Spring Cattle Care! Ryan McDowell Inside this issue: Nitrogen Stabiliz- 2 Seed Command Program 3 Better Crops 5 Grain Contracting 6 Crop Production 7 Health Track Right Track 8 Full Throttle 10 Ready to Plant ?? 11 Intensive Crop Scouting Program Back Cover Thankfully the bitter cold weather we had in December is gone for now. The next challenge is fighting the mud. Just because the temperature has warmed up does not mean we need to forget about our cow herds. Cows slugging through the mud to get at hay and water can take a lot of energy. Most of our cows are in the third period of gestation getting ready to calve in March and April. The nutritional needs of these animals are even greater. We need to pay close attention to our hay and cow supplementation. MFA has a large variety of options for your supplementation needs. Hand feeding cubes or a grind & mix is always a good option for the farmer who can feed his herd daily or every other day. A benefit of hand feeding is you get to see the condition of your cow herd and the cows stay gentle. When hand feeding, the use of bunks are recommended so, you won’t loose a lot of the feed in the mud. Tubs are a great option for the customers who have a second job and can’t get out every day to feed the cows. MFA is now making there own tubs out of the Centralia MFA feedmill, they are a dried distiller grain based tub. We have a low intake and a high intake tub that will meet most customer needs. We still have the molasses based tub for the customers that are use to using those. QLF is another supplement option. QLF is a liquid supplement that can be used in a lick tank or you can pump the liquid on to large round bales that are of poor quality to increase the nutritive value and increase intake. Some producers develop a process of pouring enough bales to feed for 1 to 2 weeks. One of the newest options available from MFA is a limiter feed called Cruisin. MFA Cruisin’ pellet is set up to control consumption for developing heifers and cows. Target consumption levels are 1/2 % to 1% of body weight per head per day. Cruisin’ assists poorer quality forage situations to meet the animal needs and aid in production development. This is a great option for developing heifers, gestating cows or even back grounding cattle. Grass tetany is caused by low magnesium in certain pasture situations. The main strategy to offset grass tetany is to supplement magnesium in a well balanced mineral program. MFA offers Hi Mag mineral and Mag ADE meal both products adequately prevent grass tetany. Mag ADE meal is used in situations where we need a higher intake of Mg. or if the cows are not eating enough of the Hi mag. mineral. We start recommending putting Mag ADE meal or Hi mag mineral out mid February until beginning of May. Good luck with your calving season, and let’s hope for a drier spring. If you have any questions or concerns please come by to see me or one of the other Heart of Missouri MFA managers. Ryan McDowell Fayette Manager Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Nitrogen Stabilizers for Urea and LAN: Ronnie Anderson Today’s agriculture is about minimizing risk. All major nitrogen materials can be effective if used in a wise and material specific way. Nitrogen management is critical in maximizing yield and maintaining plant health. Peak demand for nitrogen is during the vegetative, pollination, and grain fill stages. Our goal is to have enough nitrogen available for later stages of plant development. I will discuss further each of these products and how they are used. Urea can become volatile within 24 hours if temperatures are greater than 70 degrees, wet drying soils, under heavy residue. Since UAN is half ammonia nitrate and half urea, half of its makeup is also prone to volatility under the previously mentioned conditions. There have been products introduced into the market place that will help you minimize your nitrogen loss. Listed and described below are a few products MFA sells which can help you minimize the risk of volatility, denitrification and leaching. Agrotain can be used in UAN and in Urea fertilizer to prevent nitrogen from volatilizing on surface-applied applications for up to 14 days. The use rate in UAN is half gallon per ton and can be tank mixed with herbicides and insecticides. The use rate for Urea is 1 gallon per ton and can be mixed in when blending the product. Agrotain Plus is for UAN and it provides protection in three ways: 1. Reduces volatilization losses for 7 to 14 days. 2. Reduces nitrogen loss form leaching. Reduces nitrogen loss from denitrification. This product would work in a surface application and an incorporated application because of the different ways it works. The use rate is 15 lbs per ton and can be tank mixed with most herbicides and surfactants. Ronnie Anderson Manager Boonville 660-882-2786 Page 2 Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 3 Seed Command : Shawn Frevert Another growing season is just around the corner. In the coming weeks many of you will be hooking onto your planters and checking them over to insure they will be ready for optimum performance this spring. Everything starts by placing the seed in the ground. The manner in which this is done can greatly determine the success of this crop. Over the past couple of years seed cost have risen significantly. With the increase in the cost of seed it is more important than ever to minimize waste. Not only are overlaps costly from the stand point of wasted seed at planting, but it also creates lodging problems at harvest thus reducing yield in those areas. Ag Leader Seed Command can greatly reduce overlap during planting with the use of Auto Swath. This technology uses GPS to determine what portions of the field have been planted and turns the row units on and off accordingly. Below is an example of the potential savings that can be seen by using Seed Command. Seed Command Calculator Acres of Corn Cost of Seed Corn per bag Planned Population Acres Per Bag Percent Savings with Autoswath Total saving in seed cost/acre Total corn seed savings Corn Yield Savings Acres of Corn Overplanted acres saved Yield savings in overplanted area (bu) Price of Corn Dollars gained at Harvest Total 1 Year Savings 1000 $215 32000 2.5 5% $4.30 $4,300.00 Acres of Soybeans Cost of Beans per unit Percent Savings with autoswath Total saving in seed cost/acre Total soybean seed savings 750 $40.00 4% $1.60 $1,200.00 1000 5% 5 $3.50 $875.00 $6,375.00 This numbers will vary depending on your operation, but as you can see the savings can be significant. Call or stop by to learn more about how Seed Command can make your operation more efficient. Shawn Frevert Precision Farming Specialist Heart of Missouri-MFA (660) 338-5150 Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 TOWARDS BETTER CROPS Paul Smith Stable or unstable nitrogen. That is the question? One product that you should consider for 2010 is SUPER U. SUPER U is a precoated urea prevents volatilization and denitrification. As we all know urea by itself needs help. Depending on soil temperature and moisture urea may be lost from the surface to the air. Likewise in the soil, depending on temperature, moisture, soil type, urea can be lost to leaching. Introducing SUPER U, which will address both of these forms of N loss. SUPER U will provide better nitrogen nutrition to all your cropping systems by having the N available when needed. When surface applying urea this year ask for stable SUPER U. What’s hot in seed? With the hottest lineup in central Missouri, we offer seed corn and seed beans from MFA, NK, and Monsanto. Up batting this season for the corn is MorCorn 3918VT3P, MorCorn 4207 VT3, NK72K-GT/CB/LL. NK73V-3000GT, DKC 63-42 VT3, and DKC 65-43 VT3. Coming out of the minors are new prospects like Genuity VT Double Pro or Smartstax brand. Rookies that will be tomorrow’s leaders. In the other lineup are today’s soybean powerhouses. MorSoy 3807, MorSoy 4126, NK 39-A3, NK 37-F7, Asgrow 3803, and Asgrow 4005. As new prospects go lets give a shake to the Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Yields or MorSoy Liberty Link beans. Both lineups are sure winners. Put these up against any other team and see who has the most winners in the harvest playoffs. Excellent season discount’s still available. Another cropping advance we hope to be looking at in the near future is using SST to build seed recs. SST is an Oklahoma based company that we currently use in our nutrient management program. The SST software will help you build a seed placement guide, specific to your farm. Given enough information we will be able to place the best seed products in the right field on your farm. For now, helping plan your 2010 in season is job one. Schedule an appointment to talk about your chemical, fertilizer, and seed needs for this spring. Paul D. Smith CCA Agronomist Glasgow 660-338-2251 Page 4 Heart of Missouri MFA Agriservices Issue 1 Page 5 What’s New for 2010 Seed News: David Monnig LOOK TO SEED TREATMENTS TO HELP MAXIMIZE GERMINATION IN 2010 Mother Nature did her best to interfere with crop production in 2009 – from late planting because of a cool, wet spring to a harvest plagued by frequent rains that delayed dry-down and harvest. While yield projections remain high, the seed production market segment may be facing challenges with seed quality and germination. November reports from the Canadian border down through Missouri were showing significant concerns about the ability to get seed production out of fields with good germination and decent quality in tact. For the 2010 season, that means growers will need to use tools that help their crops get off to the best start possible. Seed treatments serve as an excellent tool to ensure good germination, quick emergence, even stands and more vigorous crops. Syngenta Seed Care offers solutions for nearly all crop needs, including our latest seed treatments: Avicta® Complete Corn nematicide/insecticide/fungicide seed treatment combination and CruiserMaxx® Rice insecticide/fungicide seed treatment. An innovative and convenient seed-delivered technology, Avicta Complete Corn effectively protects corn seedlings against early-season pests – nematodes, insects and diseases. There are currently few corn nematode control options on the market, none of which offer the convenience of a seed treatment or the triple protection of Avicta Complete Corn. SYNGENTA SEED CARE FEATURES CRUISER AS WORLD’S BEST-SELLING SEED TREATMENT Cruiser® seed treatment insecticide has established itself as the world’s best-selling seed treatment. While many growers focus on the insect protection benefits, many are unknowingly reaping the rewards of another phenomenon called the Thiamethoxam Vigor Effect (U.S. Patent No. 6,753,296). Brazilian soybean growers were the first to notice the phenomenon. Seeds treated with Cruiser produced crops that were bigger, stronger and greener – and produced higher yields – compared to non-treated seed in similar pest environments. Seven years of scientific research yielded this conclusion: Cruiser induces the biosynthesis of specific proteins that defend plants against stress, which means plants need less energy to protect themselves and can instead direct it toward more healthy, vigorous growth. As a result, many crops have experienced the benefits of Cruiser through products like CruiserMaxx® Rice, CruiserMaxx Beans, Avicta® Complete Cotton, CruiserMaxx Sunflower, Avicta Complete Corn and CruiserMaxx Cereals. KNOCK OUT NEMATODES WITH AVICTA COMPLETE CORN Corn growers will be able to achieve a higher level of protection for their high-value corn seed in 2010. Advances in seed genetics and traits have made corn seed a significant investment. Growers need to protect yield potential, and ultimately, their bottom line. SOYBEANS SURVIVE AN APHID-FRIENDLY SEASON The cool, moist summer of 2009 allowed soybean aphids to thrive and spread much further south than normal. The pest was even found in regions south of the Ohio River. In fact, areas like east central Illinois experienced aphid populations so high that they became an issue beyond soybean fields, coating cars, bike riders and more. DID YOU KNOW? Approximately 85 percent of the world’s soybean crop is processed into meal and vegetable oil. Virtually all meal is used in animal feed while the oil component is The primarily used for human consumption, although the proportion used for biodiesel is rapidly increasing. Heart Of Missouri MFA AGRIServices newsletter is coordinated by Melissa Fuemmeler and printed through the Adrian Journal. If you have any agronomy, feed, seed, animal health, or grain topics you would like us to address, please call Melissa at 660-3382251 or e-mail at [email protected]. Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 6 Contracting Grain For Fall Delivery Nathan Oglesby Forward marketing grain is a very useful tool that can be utilized in every producer’s marketing program to maximize profit and continue to grow your business. However, with almost every decision that impacts our daily life or livelihood, there are pros and cons that need to be carefully weighed before we should proceed. I can think of two very realistic reasons that keep many producers on the sidelines and from committing to future delivered grain: nervousness of actually producing the contracted bushels and the potential for the cash price of the commodity to be higher at delivery than the contracted price of the grain to be delivered. Every year is different and we can never be certain of what to expect, but even with the risks, I still believe that contracting grain is a valuable tool and should be utilized. Having said this, I believe that the attitude you approach marketing grain and for that matter any challenge you face will ultimately dictate the outcome. If your motivation is to get rich by hitting the high of the market, then chances are you will be disappointed. However, if you approach contracting grain with the intent to lock in a profitable value on a portion of your estimated production with the goal being to minimize the risks associated with price decline, I believe that you will be satisfied with the outcome. I have heard it said that “It is hard to go broke making money,” and to be profitable should be the goal of any business. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, profit can be defined as the return received on a business undertaking after all operating expenses have been met. This is what keeps doors open and expansion possible. It is my belief that forward contracting can help achieve this goal. I will make no attempt to hide the fact that I am a fan of marketing grain in increments. Since we don’t know when the “high” will happen, I prefer marketing bushels in smaller bushel lots with more contracts spread over the growing season. This will hopefully allow for a good average and will alleviate some of the fears associated with not producing enough bushels to fill your contracts. As the growing season progresses, you will have an easier time managing your risk contracting this way rather than pulling the trigger on every bushels that you were thinking about contracting in one lump sum. The second reason many producers shy away from contracting grain is the fear of grain prices being higher at delivery than what they contracted their grain for. In all reality, when a producer locks in bushels for fall delivery, it should be done hoping that those bushels will be your low. I say this because the vast majority of producers will not contract more than 25% of their estimated production. If the markets are higher at fall harvest or immediately after, then the remaining bushels can be marketed for an even greater profit margin. If the markets are significantly lower at fall, then the producer will either have to store those bushels until the market comes back or sell those bushels at a time and price that is less than optimal. Since I have been here, I have heard more producers say that they wish they would have contracted more bushels than they did rather than wishing they would have done less. (continued on next page)... Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 7 Contracting Grain continued….Nathan Oglesby The major advantages of forward contracting grain for fall delivery have to do with price and peace of mind. The old rule of thumb is that at least 70% of the time the highs in the grain market for any given year will happen prior to the end of June, and historically speaking the best times in general are between March and June. Obviously every year is different, and with the markets being influenced primarily by outside elements, most significantly the value of the U.S. dollar in relation to other world currencies, the value of crude oil, as well as the influx of hedge funds into the commodity markets, we have experienced a significant increase in the volatility of the markets. This volatility in the market place has provided major swings in the cash prices of each commodity that we have not experienced prior to the last 5 years, so much that the daily limits for each commodity have increased with measures put in place that would allow for even further expansion possible if certain criteria is met. This volatility has made it very important that producers be aware of their breakevens for their crops so they can take advantage of those values when and if they come available. With the yield potential that can be achieved through proper seed placement and soil fertilization, along with a lot of help from the weather, there is another advantage of fall contracting that is seldom thought of, harvest space at the local coop. In the Heart of Missouri MFA trade territory, we are blessed to have as much storage space as we have, and even with the abundance of on farm storage, it is still very difficult at times to find a home for all the bushels that are grown in this region. Having all of our bins topped off when harvest is over is a goal that we strive for every year, but it is never a fun thing when we have to turn our friends and customers away because we are out of room. As grain is coming into the elevators and producers are filling their contracts, this enables us to move those bushels out, which significantly helps us in our desire to stay open for the duration of harvest. In conclusion, with the price of land, equipment and input costs and everyday living costs in general that are associated with farming, having a portion of your crop contracted to meet these anticipated needs should be worth a lot to any producer. Though not without risk, I believe that the advantages significantly outweigh any of the risks that are associated with contracting for fall delivery. Nathan Oglesby Grain Originator Glasgow 660-338-2251 Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 8 Health Track ...Right track Cattle News Jon Roberts Dwight Yoakam wrote a song several years ago called “Things Change” and in the chorus he says “there ain’t no need in laying any blame ‘cause...baby things change.” I kind of like the strategy of not pointing fingers, making accusations and laying blame. Better to just “roll with it, baby.” Let me tell you what I see changing in the feeder cattle market today. The gap between the highest price per pound and the bottom has narrowed considerably with relation to weight brackets. This gap narrows even more profoundly when comparing 600 wt. cattle and 800 wt. cattle. Bigger cattle don’t see the price discount that we saw in years past. Unweaned, non-vaccinated cattle sell at a significant discount to weaned, value-added, preconditioned cattle. Bulls sell farther behind steers than previously observed. Buyers are more accepting of condition on cattle, as they equate increased condition with an increased health status of the animal. The increased emphasis on health status has been brought about by a lot of changes in the industry, and here’s a little laundry list of them. Most cattle are sold on a grid basis as opposed to live on the hoof. Health affects quality grade a and quality grade affects carcass value. Labor is more expensive, as is rescue treatment costs—with new generation antibiotics being close to $30 for a single dose. Preconditioned cattle require less step-up period and perform better, turn around faster and are easier to manage. Animal agriculture is coming under increased scrutiny by regulatory agencies that push To decrease use of oral or injectable antibiotics in the finishing process. Preconditioned cattle require less of both. With these explanations in mind, some producers still ask me, “What’s the big deal about Health Track cattle? Why are they better than commodity cattle?” So, let’s peel away the outer layer and get to the meat of the nut: A common scenario could play out like this. A farmer wants to sell cattle at a Thursday auction. He takes them to the sale barn Wednesday afternoon to get in the early part of the run when the buyer activity seems to be the best. The barn had a large run, which is good because nobody wants to be in a sale with few cattle. It wraps up late Thursday with the buyer filling his card with a hundred 500# steers— a load going to a yard in western Kansas. Those cattle leave early Friday and get to the yard late Friday. If they have a Saturday processing crew, they will get vaccinated at that time. If they don’t process on Saturdays, the calves will get vaccinated on the following Monday. The clock started ticking on these immunologically naïve calves Wednesday at 1 p.m. and their immune system has a vaccine introduced 72 or 120 hours later—depending on the Saturday crew. It takes the calf’s immune system several days to mount an effective response enough to create resistance. All this time the incubation period of the organism had a major head start. Continued….. Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 9 Health Track ….Right Track continued…... Couple that with the fact that the calf might have only known his mother’s milk, pasture and pond water as familiar groceries. It now sees a strange environment, strange pen mates, unfamiliar feed and a black box with blue balls poking out the top as the only, and yet undiscovered, source of water. Had that calf been afforded the opportunity to experience some of these changes over a gradual time frame and not when it was exposed to pathogens with no acquired immunity from vaccination, it would definitely fare better. How much better you ask? Morbidity rates drop from 10% to 2%; mortality rates will drop from 5% to 1%. Remember, a vaccine’s performance is better when stress load is reduced and the nutritional plane is high. This group of calves were gathered up Wednesday morning, sorted off the cow, loaded on a truck, transported to a sale, sorted again for size, sex, color, weight, then sold, resorted to a buyer’s pen, reloaded, hauled, unloaded, processed, and turned out Saturday afternoon to run up to the bunk and chow down. Do you think they could use a cigarette about now to calm their nerves? Health Track cattle in contrast were at the very minimum eating 10# per head, per day of a nutrientdense, vitamin-fortified ration during the vaccination process. Some of them even had the process initiated while they were still on the cow under minimum stress. They are exposed to the stress of marketing only after 45 days—when blood titers are at their peak performance for resistance to pathogens. That, my friends—in a nutshell—is why Health Track cattle are more highly sought after than commodity cattle. Another tasty nugget for a cattle buyer to salivate over is the fact that US Premium Beef has committed to a $35 per head premium for source- and age-verified cattle through May 2010. With today’s pricing on MFA branded products and your homegrown inputs, feed costs for that calf gain should be in the $.60 range. Getting back to the feeder cattle market strategy, you probably want to cash out under 850# to leave a little for the next guy. If he cant’ make money on your calf, he doesn’t want it. If you have an interest in making your feeder cattle more attractive to buyers and increasing your profit margin while improving the beef industry at the same time, then stop by any Heart of Missouri MFA location or give me a call any time. We’ll have you whistling a happy tune all the way to the bank! Jon Roberts Area Sales Manager Livestock Products 660-641-1333 660-647-2403 [email protected] Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Page 10 Full Throttle Cattle News…. Ryan Brooks Struggling economy hit the United States and now we have to be careful with our dollars and cents. This is true when deciding what is best to feed your calves for an economic outcome. As the economy changes so does the producers marketing habits. Cattle today are being pushed much harder earlier on so we can hit the market at the right weight, at the right time. Full Throttle feed is showing to be the way to get this accomplished. Full Throttle’s first year has shown exceptional gains when used in the producers feeding program correctly. Full Throttle is a higher Protein high energy, ration that most producers are not accustomed to using, so consulting a MFA feed representative to maximize your profit by fitting your feeding operation is recommended. The exceptional gains and profits this year came from using a program based off of these guide lines: “How” Should I Use Full Throttle? Creep Feed – Cattle Charge and Cadence Get them started with Cattle Charge Transition to Cadence and corn 50/50 Self feed with confidence Helps establish enhanced marbling Wean calves – Full Throttle for a minimum of 14 days Maximum performance Keeps building marbling Grow calves on Cadence and Corn Keeps them growing on similar diet Self feed with confidence Level of performance is up to you Tough economic times will have producers looking in directions of cheap options to lower input costs. Remember when doing this to always figure feed conversions, because it takes quality products like Full Throttle and Cattle Charge to unlock your cattle’s potential. Ryan Brooks Manager Salisbury 660-388-6421 Heart of Missouri MFA Newsletter Issue 1 Are You Ready For the Planting Season?? Greg Stowers As I look outside the window I would think nothing about spring or Planting season. But then I look at the calendar and it is only 6-8 weeks away. With another spring lining up like the last two we will all be very busy getting fertilizer applied, working ground, spraying and planting. So I pose the question what can we do to make the spring go smoother. I believe readiness is the answer, and making sure one of the most important machines is ready “the planter”. First, I would suggest that you have the corn meters calibrated. Calibration will ensure that the meters deliver the seed for the most accurate spacing every time. Second, lubricate and check all drive chains to make sure they are working freely and do not have kinks that will cause irregular operation. Third, make sure that all bearings and bushings are still movable and have not seized up over the winter. Fourth, make sure the double disk openers have the proper spacing so that they cut a proper trench for the seed to be placed in. Many use a business card to space that gap correctly. Fifth, check to see that your seed tubes are still in good shape with no cracks, splits or abnormal wear at the bottom of the seed tube. You may also want to drop seed down each tube to test that the seed sensors are also working correctly. Lastly, make sure the closing wheels are aligned properly. The trench of the double disc openers should be right in the middle of the closing wheels. MFA is now a full line dealer for Precision Planting, Ag Leader and Trimble so ask your local Precision Advantage rep. what more you can do to be more efficient with every acre. Hopefully these tips will get you a head start in making sure your planter is ready for another successful year. Greg Stowers Regional Sales Manager MFA - Inc. Columbia Page 11 Intensive Crop Scouting Crop scouting is an essential tool in today’s farming industry. Heart of Missouri MFA has offered an intensive crop scouting program to growers for the last three years and continues to grow each year.The scouting program consists of making four trips across a grower’s field at key times throughout the growing season. Using a GPS handheld receiver allows us to pinpoint exact problems in fields and relay that information to the grower with reports and digitized field maps. By using this system we have been able to isolate problems in certain fields or even parts of fields resulting in significant cost savings and yield increases to the grower. We have what it takes to customize the scouting program to fit your farming operation. For more information contact Matt Schreiner 660-728-0130 Heart of Missouri MFA AgriServices First Class Pre-Sort U.S. POSTAGE PAID COLUMBIA, MO PERMIT #286 ARMSTRONG*BOONVILLE*FAYETTE*GLASGOW*LONE ELM*NELSON*NEWFRANKLIN*SALISBURY 402 10Th Street Glasgow MO 65254 Main: 660660-338338-2251 Fax: 660660-338338-2056 Email: mfuemmeler@[email protected] Visit us on the web at www.heartofmissourimfa.com