Fall Fest will be held at the UNL Haskell Ag Lab on Saturday, September 23rd from 1 to 4 PM. This free event is open to the public with activities for both young and old. We have lots of things planned including pie making tips, composting information, Pfanny's farm on their geothermal and high tunnel greenhouses as well as their ag tourism business. Come and hear about their gardening methods to provide local, fresh, and sustainably grown food. Additional attractions include healthy snacks, Northeast Arboretum tour, and photo booth. Activities for kids include Creatures of the Night, spiders, scavenger hunt, pumpkin and gourd painting, apples, and more. The flyer is below with details.
Trading manure and crop residues, considerations for a fair trade
Leslie Johnson - Animal Manure Management Extension Educator
With harvest around the corner, you might be considering trading manure for cornstalks or vice versa. In many ways, it’s easier to pay cash for either product, but there are advantages to trading. This article will focus on what kinds of things to consider to be sure any deal made is a fair trade.
One of the most common crop residues harvested in Nebraska is cornstalks so that’s the example in this article, but the following is true for any residue including soybean stubble and wheat straw.
Determine the value of both products
The easiest part of making sure any trade is fair is to make sure that the cash value of both products is similar. To do that:
Take a sample of the products to be traded and have them analyzed for their nutrient content.
Calculate the useful fertilizer equivalents of both the manure and the crop residue. Note that if a field has sufficient nutrient levels for the next crop, the useful fertilizer equivalent of that nutrient would be zero. For instance, if the field will not need potassium, the potassium would not have any fertilizer value in either product. Once you value your manure from a fertilizer perspective, you can do the same thing with the crop residues. Learn how to calculate the value of manure and value your cornstalk bales.
These are great learning opportunities to instill a love of nature. The lessons are free and you can receive in-service credit.
Our next Coffee & Conversations will be on Tuesday, October 10th at 9 AM. Please mark your calendars for October 10th for Coffee & Conversations. Invite other family and friends to attend with you.
NE Nebr Research Project Assistance Needed
"Do you have a passion for rural living? Have you lived on a farm or acreage for the majority of your life? Consider contributing to this research project focusing on Northeast Nebraska! Share your rural knowledge to help us learn more about teaching science to young children in agricultural communities like ours! For questions or to find out more, check out the flyer below or contact Sarah Roberts at the Haskell Ag Lab at sarah.roberts@unl.edu."
Rocketry Class Offered
SAVE THE DATE
Winter Fest - Saturday, December 2nd - 9 AM to Noon
More details will be forthcoming in future newsletters.
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.
