Farm Help

You can do a lot with feed supplements for your summer forage program; you can also tailor the supplements, depending on how you want your cattle to perform. University of Missouri Extension beef nutrition specialist Justin Sexten told Ozarks Farm & Neighbor it’s not always the case that supplements are used to maintain gains as forage quality declines in the heat of the summer; they can also be used to enhance gains, by producers who have chosen to manage risk by locking in a price for cattle at a target weight. “If they have forward contracted those cattle for sale in late July and August,” Sexten explained, “and contracted those cattle at 700 lbs and locked in a price, what they have done is minimize their price risk, but then they have potentially shifted the price risk to a production risk.” They can’t control the price, he said, but by manipulating the feeding program, they can control the weight of the cattle as they come off grass.

Between the Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), the Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and the Farm Service Agency (FSA), there are federal and state monies to be had by local producers willing to do a little homework and  paperwork.

As spring ends and the warm summer months approach, many producers are heading to the fields to begin hay season. While it easy to be distracted by Mother Nature’s forecasts, it is important to take the time to properly prepare and operate equipment to make the most of the available dry conditions. Whether it’s fescue or brome, orchardgrass or bermudagrass, there are several steps all producers should take to make the most of their haymaking.

Lameness that impairs the usefulness of a horse is usually caused by inadequate prevention through proper hoof care and reasonable management.

Do the babies get here when they’re wanted? The gestation period is different for cows, goats, sheep and horses. The farmer should look at the food source, his or her time available to be around and market timing, and also any farm-specific variables, when developing a breeding schedule.

You can do a lot with feed supplements for your summer forage program; you can also tailor the supplements, depending on how you want your cattle to perform. University of Missouri Extension beef nutrition specialist Justin Sexten told Ozarks Farm & Neighbor it’s not always the case that supplements are used to maintain gains as forage quality declines in the heat of the summer; they can also be used to enhance gains, by producers who have chosen to manage risk by locking in a price for cattle at a target weight. “If they have forward contracted those cattle for sale in late July and August,” Sexten explained, “and contracted those cattle at 700 lbs. and locked in a price, what they have done is minimize their price risk, but then they have potentially shifted the price risk to a production risk.” They can’t control the price, he said, but by manipulating the feeding program, they can control the weight of the cattle as they come off grass. 

Spotted knapweed, a recently declared noxious weed in Missouri, is spreading through the state at an alarming rate.  Introduced to the state as early as 1963, it is now confirmed in 41 counties. Knapweed is an extremely aggressive invader capable of forming dense monocultures and displacing desirable livestock forage. It has very low palatability and cattle will avoid it. Knapweed readily infests roadsides and other disturbed sites and then spreads into adjacent undisturbed pastures and open forests. Spotted knapweed is most common in southwest and south central Missouri, however it has been recorded as far north as Putnam county on the Iowa state line and as far east as Ralls, Pike, Lincoln and Jefferson Counties.

Bermudagrass has been a popular forage for quite some time, and there's still value in this forage for southwest Missouri. John Jennings, a professor and expert in forages for the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, said that cold tolerance is one of the most important traits for any bermudagrass variety. There have been more varieties developed, in recent years, with sufficient tolerance to cold weather. These varieties have thus become more persistent in growth through the colder months.

Will the future of cattle production include fenceline weaning? “I would hope so,” University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist Dona Funk told Ozarks Farm & Neighbor. “I really see that it works a lot better than some of the other methods, and (the calves) don’t seem to get as sick… The people that I have that are trying it really like it, and many of them won’t go back to anything else – unless, of course,” she added with a laugh, “something happens.”

Prescribed fire can be an effective tool for clearing and rejuvenating growth in farm fields when used under proper conditions and with supervision. However, springtime wildfires are a serious threat to property owners throughout the Ozarks. Steven LaVal, Resource Forester with the Missouri Department of Conservation for Laclede, Dallas and Hickory counties is keenly aware of the problem as earlier this month, he and his crews found themselves fighting fires on an estimated 5,000 acres in the area in a single day.