CMEG Crop Management Extension Group

Field Crop News

Website Address: http://fcn.agronomy.psu.edu/

September 4, 2007    Vol. 07:27

IN THIS ISSUE:

Weather Outlook — Paul Knight, Pennsylvania State Climatologist

The dry spell will persist until the weekend as much above normal temperatures return. Humid air will flow into the region starting on Thursday. The combination of a slow-moving cool front from the Great Lakes region and a developing tropical cyclone near the Carolina coast will put a squeeze on Pennsylvania for rainfall starting later Saturday and lasting into Monday morning. Current indications favor the tropical storm/hurricane migrating northward from near Cape Hatteras on Saturday to east of Long Island by Monday morning. Its precise trajectory and strength will determine how much moisture spills back into the state. At the same time, a cool front may push slowly into the region during the weekend causing repetitive showers, particularly in the western portions.

A steady cool down is likely during the middle of next week, perhaps leading to the first frosts of the season in the deeper valleys of the northern tier around Sept 13–14. It is expected that the second half of September will have a dominance of above average temperatures.

Week One (Sept 5 – Sept 11): A marked trend toward warmer and more humid weather will begin on Wednesday and persist into the weekend. Morning fog and low clouds will return. The ‘hottest days’ should be Friday-Saturday with some sections rising above 90°F. The details of the rain for the weekend are very difficult to spell out now, but expect that some areas will receive well over 2 inches of rain (best chance in the east).

Week Two (Sept 12 – Sept. 18): A push of much cooler air will spread across the region starting on Tuesday. The chilliest air is expected around September 13–15 with the lowest readings of the late summer expected (30’s north, 40’s most other places — except the urban areas of the corners). The return of seasonable warmth during the end of next week may include some showers.

Check out the predicted Growing Degree Days (base 55) for Pennsylvania for the next two weeks at: http://climate.met.psu.edu/data/regional_gdd.php

Grain Marketing Outlook — John Berry, Lehigh County Extension

Crop Harvest The proverbial “bean counters” have gotten better through the years in estimating plant yields and harvested acres before the combines even hit the fields. Still, they are not perfect. Between August and November of 2006, estimates for global wheat and coarse grain production had fallen by a collective three percent, while oilseeds had increased by a corresponding amount. The change in soybean and corn prices was less significant during that period but wheat prices climbed 20 percent due to the growing realization of how tight stocks would be. How close are these folks this year?

Winter Wheat Planting With wheat above $7.00 per bushel, there is a lot of incentive for planting more wheat. World wheat ending stocks had actually been declining for many years without the corresponding increase in price historically associated with such a tightening in the supply/demand balance. That is until this year, when the wheat market got hit with the “perfect storm” of droughty weather conditions in several major wheat growing areas. For example, Australian wheat production is just 40 percent of last year’s level, Canadian output is 20 percent below what it produced last year, and after increasing for several years, FSU production is off by 6 percent. Wheat inventories around the world are now at their lowest level in 26 years and anxious buyers have been bidding up the prices to ensure they have adequate supplies. Do you have any of this historically high price protected?

Planting predictions for the U.S. alone range from three to six million additional acres of wheat production, with three-quarters of it expected to go into the ground in the weeks ahead as a winter crop. Still, it should be kept in mind that unlike corn and oilseeds, the current bull wheat market is supply rather than demand driven, and that means bigger crops in both northern and southern hemispheres would pop the price bubble.

Southern Hemisphere As the season comes to a close in the north, Analysts will be updating on how farmers entering spring time respond to the market dynamics. Have Brazilian farmers overcome the Real (currency) valuation issues affecting their choice of crops to plant? Will wheat prices or Argentine export taxes and bio-fuel incentives determine planting there?

Swine disease having major impact in china It is well known that China is far and away the world’s largest swine producer. It is estimated that in 2005 China produced about 49 percent of global output. Its pork production grew 16.2 percent between 2000 and 2005.

The growth in China’s swine sector is now threatened by the emergence of a deadly disease that is decimating the swine herd. The disease, Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome or Blue Ear Disease, first appeared in June 2006 in Jiangxi province. It has since spread to 25 provinces, including all of the key swine producing provinces. Swine infected with the disease develop high temperatures and difficulty breathing and their skin turns purplish in color. About 40 percent of the pregnant sows infected with the disease typically abort their piglets and about 5 percent of infected sows die.

Thus far, the Chinese government has downplayed the impact of Blue Ear Disease. However, knowledgeable industry sources in China indicate the impact has been exponentially high. They estimate that between June 2006 and June 2007 about 50 million hogs and pigs were killed by the disease across China. On a national basis it appears that deaths from Blue Ear Disease equaled about 7.6 percent of the total number of swine slaughtered in 2005.

China’s swine inventory has fallen fast because producers hit by the disease are unwilling or unable to repopulate. After losing their swine many producers are unable to raise the money to buy new pigs. Those who do repopulate are at great risk of seeing their herds infected again since the disease is still present all across the country. Hardest hit have been small back-yard swine producers. In key province 60 to 80 percent of small swine producers have exited swine production and most likely will never return. This will probably expedite the shift of Chinese swine production from smaller producers to large companies that are more efficient and utilize strict bio-security procedures to prevent disease infections.

A vaccine for Blue Ear Disease has been developed by the Chinese government and 12 companies are producing the vaccine. However, there is some evidence the vaccines may not be effective. Some breeders who have vaccinated their herds have suffered Blue Ear Disease outbreaks soon thereafter. Nevertheless, the central government has dictated compulsory vaccination programs and has spent almost $40 million on the vaccination program.

The declining swine numbers also have to be impacting Chinese demand for corn and soybean meal. Clearly any prolonged contraction of the Chinese swine sector will be felt by those who supply it with feed and feed ingredients. It may be interesting to see how the Chinese government deals with Blue Ear Disease in coming weeks and months. If it fails to get the disease under control and its swine inventory keeps falling the impact on feed demand could be substantial.

If one out of every four rows of corn and beans in the USA is destined for export — this doesn’t sound like much fun for our grain producers.

Grain Storage Preparation and Maintenance Saves Quality — John Rowehl, Cumberland County Extension

Corn harvest is not too far away and with current prices, steps to protect grain from insect infestation and preserve grain quality pays off faster than ever. Starting out with a grain bin free of old, insect infested grain is essential to getting a good start, particularly if no other protection will be applied to the grain. Sweeping down the walls of the bin and getting old grain out of the cracks and crevices is essential to prevent problems later.

Malathion, Storcide II ™ or Tempo Ultra SC ™ and several pyrethrin products can be used to apply a surface treatment to the inside of the bin and provide a residual. Note that on the label for Storcide II there are restrictions on the application method. Chloropicrin is no longer labeled to fumigate underneath false floors and in air ducts. Phostoxin is the only product that can be used for this purpose.

Once the bin has been properly cleaned, it is important to put clean, insect free new grain in the bin. The first step to accomplish this is to make sure your equipment has been cleaned out before you begin harvesting. Otherwise, you could bring in insects that have been living inside of your combine.

Make sure the combine is adjusted to minimize breakage of grain. Whole grain is more difficult for molds and insects to get started on and also makes aeration of the bin more efficient. If possible, grain should be run through a cleaner before placement in the bin. Sanitation and surface treatment should be sufficient to control insects for a six to nine month period.

If you are not able to clean out the bin or don’t fumigate under floor areas, or if you think the storage period may be longer, application of a residual insecticide to the grain as it goes into storage will help keep insects controlled. Actellic 5E is labeled for this use on corn. A dust formulation of malathion (check the label) may possibly still be available for this. If you do not treat the whole bin this way you can treat the last load going in with a protectant or mix in a Bt product into the top four to six inches of grain in the bin to control Indian meal moth.

During winter months, the cool temperatures keep insect activity in check but as spring approaches and grain temperatures rise above 40–50°, insects can become active and reproduce. If insect populations do develop in your bin, in most cases, your only option is to fumigate. Aluminum or magnesium phosphide is labeled for grain fumigation. You must be a certified applicator to use these products. Remember, fumigation only kills insects that are present and does not provide long—term residual protection.

A handy reference you can download is the University of Tennessee 2006 Insects in Farm Stored Grain. http://www.utextension.utk.edu/publications/pbfiles/PB1395.pdf

Grain storage insecticide labels have been changing frequently over the last several years. As always, check to make sure you are following the instructions on the product label.

Quality Grain Care Focus of Grain Storage Meeting — Mena Hautau, Berks County Extension

“Quality Grain Care”, according to John Gnadke, Advanced Grain System, Inc., is all about managing moisture. Gnadke, who estimates he has been working with grain drying systems for 50 years, consults with major companies that demand quality grain. In a two hour breakfast meeting, members of the Lehigh Valley Grain Marketing Club were treated to valuable tips to improve handling and storage systems.

One of the most valuable practices Gnadke covered was incorporating a bi-weekly check of grain quality. He promotes the use of static pressure rather than temperature for monitoring. Static pressure increases are caused by kernel swelling from moisture. Static pressure gauges are used. The static pressure gauges are available from Gnadke through Pioneer Seed representatives.

Another useful discussion was bin roof design. Often, roof design is lacking sufficient venting, causing moisture accumulation. Correct air flow is especially important when constructing a new bin. Older bins also can be retrofitted.

Each participant came away with Gnadke's manual, “Quality Grain Care” published by Pioneer and John Deere.

Eastern Black Nightshade — Bill Curran, PSU Weed Specialist

Eastern black nightshade is a member of the Nightshade (Solanaceae) family. This is the time of year that it can become more noticeable both in soybeans and corn and in recently harvested hay crops. Eastern black nightshade is toxic, as are most plants in the Nightshade family, so special care should be taken to avoid feeding contaminated grain or hay.

Eastern Black Nightshade

Nightshade is fairly easy to identify. The stem of the eastern black nightshade plant is erect, becomes widely branched, and reaches 1 to 2 feet in height. As the plant matures, white flowers form in umbel—like clusters of 4 to 5 star—shaped flowers each. The fruit is a 3/8–inch round green berry that turns purplish-black at maturity (see photo). Each nightshade plant is capable of producing up to 1,000 berries. Contained in each berry are 50 to 100 round, flattened, tan—colored seeds, each 1/16 inch in diameter (approximately the size of a pinhead).

All parts of the plant are considered poisonous; however, the green leaves, stems, and seeds are especially toxic. The green fruit may be quite poisonous, while the ripe fruit may be relatively nontoxic. The concentrations of the toxins are higher following dry conditions and often are lower following damp, rainy periods. The toxic properties are not removed by drying and are relatively heat stable. Portions of the plant stored with forage will remain poisonous, so producers must be cautious when feeding livestock nightshade—contaminated hay. The toxicity of the green plant material varies from 0.1% to 1% of an animal’s body weight (that equals 1 to 10 lb of nightshade for a 1000 lb animal). The toxic principles include tophane and steroidal alkaloids, which commonly induce symptoms in farm animals similar to those of an atropine overdose, including colic, diarrhea, salivation, and vomiting. Very high doses may induce intestinal dysfunction and constipation, loss of coordination, weakness, tremors, depression, posterior weakness, paralysis, and low heart rate and blood pressure. Clinical signs develop rapidly. Most animals succumb or recover within 24 to 48 hours. Limited therapies are available for treatment.

Teff Evaluation in Pennsylvania — Marvin Hall, PSU Forage Specialist

Teff

Teff has been promoted this past year as being the best thing since “sliced bread”. Here is some background about Teff and some yield data from Teff growing at Rock Springs and Landisville, PA.

Teff is a major cereal crop in Ethiopia and has been used as a forage crop throughout Africa. It is a warm-season, summer annual grass (will grow only in summer and won’t survive a Pennsylvania winter) with rapid seed germination and seedling development. As you might expect from where it is commonly grown, Teff is well adapted to dry climates. Recommended seeding rates of Teff are 4–5 pounds per acre.

Without irrigation and under dry conditions, Teff was ready for harvest about 50 days after planting. It regrew quickly and a second harvest was made after only 14 days. A third harvest was made about 30 days later. Additional harvests will be made until the plants stop growing this fall. Teff had slightly lower yields than sudangrass and sorghum-sudangrass (both warm-season, summer annual grasses). However, sudangrass and sorghum-sudangrass are difficult to harvest as hay but Teff hay entered in the Hay Show at Ag Progress Days was green, leafy and high in quality.

Species, Variety Rock Springs
t/a		 Landisville
t/a
Teff, Pharaoh 5.2 6.4
Teff, Tiffany 4.6 6.7
Teff, Corvalis 5.6 6.9
Millet, Wonderleaf 6.3 6.8
Sudangrass, Haymaker 7.7 7.4
Sorgham-sudangrass, Summer King 8.2 6.7
Sorgham-sudangrass, Summer Queen 9.1 7.4
Sorgham-sudangrass, Summer Prince 8.2 7.6
Sorgham-sudangrass, Summer Dream 7.7 4.4

Contributors: Dept. Crop & Soil Science: Marvin Hall, Dwight Lingenfelter, Bill Curran, Doug Beegle. Extension Educators: Kevin Fry (Armstong County), Paul Craig (Dauphin County), Dave Messersmith (Wayne County), Mena Hautau (Berks County), Mark Madden (Sullivan County) Tom Murphy (Lycoming County), Susan Alexander (Jefferson County), Andrew Frankenfield (Montgomery County), John Berry (Lehigh County), Del Voight (Lebanon County), John Rowehl (Cumberland County) and Paul Knight (Pennsylvania State Climatologist).

Editor:Dave Messersmith, Wayne County

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