The UNL Haskell Ag Lab will be hosting a Home Canning Workshop on Saturday, November 4th. This workshop will feature using a steam canner and an electric pressure canner. Session A from 10:00 to 11:30 AM will focus on using a steam canner to make grape jelly. Session B from 1:00 to 3:30 PM will focus on using an electric pressure canner for carrots. The cost is $5.00 per session; or $10.00 for both sessions. Note: Lunch will NOT be provided. Please call 402-584-2261 to register (registration deadline is October 31.) Please see the flyer below for information.
FALL FEST 2023
Fall Fest was held on Saturday, September 23rd. While the weather did not cooperate and we did not have the beautiful weather we enjoyed the last two years for the event, those that attended enjoyed all of the sessions and it was still an educational and fun event for all.
Nebraska Soil Health School: A Success Story of Collaboration and Learning
HAL hosted one of the Soil Health Schools in August 2023. An article on these schools is below.
The Science of Food, Nutrition and Health will be on Saturday, October 28 from 9 AM to 4 PM at Ponca State Park. The entire schedule and information is in the flyer below.
This is not just for Early Childhood. ANYONE interested in gardening, healthy eating, and creative cooking. Sessions include how to create and present charcuterie boards, food demo with a pressure cooker, and the curriculum project of the Junior Master Gardener® Program. Please register by October 19, 2023, 12:00 PM, through the registration included in this link: https://web.cvent.com/event/f93bc297-757b-4e24-9715-66fe94ed6c52/summary
Forage Hazards Following a Freeze
With any forage crop, the risks associated with utilizing them as supplemental forage, especially as our environmental conditions begin to change are important to understand and manage for. This becomes critical as we move into fall.
With freezing temperatures making their way across the plains and Midwest, knowing how they can impact our forage crops is crucial for safe use. Freezing temperatures cause metabolic and cellular changes to plants we need to be aware of, with prussic acid formation and nitrate poisoning being the biggest concerns.
First, let’s look at prussic acid. Sorghum, sudangrass, sorghum-sudangrass hybrids, and milo following a frost have broken cell membranes that allow the formation of a cyanide compound called prussic acid. Thi is naturally occurring in sorghum species. When ingested and broken down by the digestive system, the cyanide is released can quickly cause lethal results when consumed in high amounts. Monogastric species like pigs and horses can get prussic acid poisoning in extreme cases, but ruminants are more susceptible.
Levels of prussic acid vary depending on plant species. Lowest risk is sudangrass, with sorghum sudan hybrids of medium risk. High risk are forage sorghums with grain sorghum or milo carrying the highest levels and risk.
Keeping livestock out of fields with these species for five to seven days after a frost can limit the risk associated with prussic acid. Each time a new part of the plant is frozen, this five-seven day timer is reset until the entire plant has been killed. This can make grazing difficult in the fall when freezing events occur regularly but are not enough to fully kill the plant.
New shoots and especially regrowth on previously frost-damaged plants have the highest concentrations of prussic acid. If you notice new shoots after a frost, animals should not be allowed to graze until the regrowth is 15-18 inches tall or a frost completely kills the plant. This can be especially tricky when warm temperatures follow a frost.
Unless extremely high levels of prussic acid are present initially, haying or cutting a crop with prussic acid is not a concern. During the drying process, the prussic acid will volatilize and a majority of the initial concentration will be lost. Similarly, the fermentation process for ensiled sorghums will reduce prussic acid levels. If you are concerned about high levels of prussic acid in a silage or hay feed, samples can be sent to a lab for analysis.
Another issue to keep an eye on is nitrate poisoning. Grasses are especially susceptible to nitrate poisoning risks. Slower metabolism following a stress like freezing allows nitrates to accumulate within the plant, specifically oats, sudangrass, and millets. Because nitrates do not dissipate like prussic acid, haying or green chopping is not recommended following a freeze and can be potentially dangerous.
Nitrates commonly concentrate in the lower portions of plant stems. Waiting five days before haying or chopping and keeping a cutting height of 6 to 8 inches will help mitigate risk. Like prussic acid, the ensiling process will lower nitrate levels of plants harvested for silage. If grazing, reducing the stocking rate and increasing the animals' ability to selectively graze can lower nitrate risks. Pull animals off once the upper 2/3 of the plant has been consumed to avoid forcing animals to eat the lower portions of plants where nitrate risk is highest. This is not a good strategy for mixtures with sorghum species due to the prussic acid concerns discussed above.
Feeds that may contain high levels of nitrate aren’t necessarily unusable as long as proper action is taken to minimize risk. Send samples to a lab for analysis on those forages that are suspected to contain high nitrate levels. With these results, rations can be developed that limit the amount of high nitrate forage being fed, minimizing risk.
-Ben Beckman is a beef systems Extension Educator serving the counties of Antelope, Cedar, Knox, Madison and Pierce. He is based out of the Cedar County Extension office in Hartington. You can reach him by phone: (402) 254-6821 or email: ben.beckman@unl.edu
Our next Coffee & Conversations will be on Tuesday, November 14th at 9 AM. Please mark your calendars for November 14th for Coffee & Conversations. Invite other family and friends to attend with you.
The Value of Grazed Corn Residue for Crop and Cattle Producers
Jay Parsons - Farm and Ranch Management Specialist; Daren Redfearn - Extension Forage Crop Residue Specialist; Mary Drewnoski - Beef Systems Specialist
Figure 1. Grazing an additional 10% of available acres of corn residue could increase income for crop producers by more than $6 million. (Photo courtesy of USDA)
The Western Corn Belt has historically been corn and wheat cropping systems with cattle integrated on nearby grasslands. Recent agricultural production data ranked Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, and North Dakota in the top 10 states for both corn and beef cattle production in the United States. In 2017, these four states had about 20% of the beef cow inventory in the United States with Nebraska alone having 1.9 million beef cows (USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2018).
Forage-based livestock production is a fundamental component of these agricultural economies. However, a large quantity of grasslands in this region were converted into annual crops during the mid-2000s (Wright and Wimberly, 2013). To maintain the efficiencies of beef cattle production systems, synergistic use of forage resources in a sustainable manner is essential. In addition to grasslands, this includes the complementary use of corn residue for grazing during the winter months. In this article, we provide an economic assessment of current corn residue grazing in Nebraska as well as some comparisons to Kansas, South Dakota, and North Dakota.
Rocketry Class Offered
SAVE THE DATE
Planning is underway for Winter Fest on Saturday, December 2nd. Preliminary plans include a program on Animals in Winter, tree winter care, a wreath making workshop, activities for kids, and more. The November newsletter will have all the details and event information.
Suggestions/Requests
Do you have a suggestion or a request for a program at the Haskell Ag Lab? We want to hear from you.
Click this link and complete this form and submit. We will look at all suggestions and requests. The form is available at: https://go.unl.edu/halsuggest
You can also reach us by phone at 402-584-2261 with your suggestions/requests for programs.
