Fillmore County Extension Update: Grassland Days

Views from VanDeWalle

Brandy VanDeWalle, UNL Extension Educator in Fillmore County

February 23, 2011

62^nd Annual Milligan Grassland Day – Entrepreneurship Topics

Tuesday, March 1^st will be the 62nd annual Milligan Grassland Day with registration at 9:30 A.M. and the morning program beginning at 10 A.M. at the Milligan Auditorium. This year’s program features a look at rural entrepreneurship in southeastern Nebraska. Vaughn Hammond, UNL Extension Educator will provide a look at how various small business owners in southeastern Nebraska are turning their talents into success. A panel of local entrepreneurs will follow including but not limited to the following: Kim Slezak, Everlasting Light Images; Dave Welsch, direct marketing of poultry and beef; Carey Potter, Pour House Tasting Room; Chloe Diegel & Alex McKiernan, Robinette Farms; Sharon Auld, Awesome Pretzels; and Reid Ely, Ely Farms. Lyndsey Pohlmeier, UNL Extension Assistant in Fillmore County, will give a brief overview of the 4-H project ESI which is a project focusing on developing entrepreneurship skills for youth.

In the afternoon prepare to laugh along with our speaker, Susan Brown, retired UNL Extension Educator, as we learn the importance of laughter in our lives. We finish up the afternoon with highlights of the LEAD International Study Travel Seminar to Nicaragua, Panama, and Costa Rica provided by Deanna Karmazin, UNL Extension Associate in Lancaster County. Contact our office for more details at 402-759-3712.

Soybean Population On Farm Research Study Results

With rising input costs, producers were interested in looking for ways to reduce input costs. The objective of the soybean population study was to look as the effect of lowering soybean seeding rates and its effect on yields and economic return. Two replicated plots were conducted in 2006 and 5 in 2007 and 2008 for a total of 12 field length replicated plots in York, Seward, Hamilton, Fillmore and Clay Counties. These trials were on 30 or 36” row in no-till, ridge-till or conventional tilled fields with planting time seeding rates of 90,000, 120,000, 150,000 and 180,000.

Observations we saw were that typically most plantings resulted in about 90% of the stand that was seeded. The lower populations had more branching and as the populations went up we had less pods per plant, but in most cases we had somewhere between 5 and 6 million pods per plant. The thicker the populations, the less pods per plant and the thinner the population, the larger plants with more pods.

Over the 3 three year 2006-2008, the 90,000 population yielded 64 bu./acre; 120,000 population yielded 64.8 bu./acre; 150,000 population yielded 65.0 bu./acre; and the 180,000 population yielded 65.4 bu./acre. That’s less than a bushel and a half difference in yield as a result of doubling the seeding rates and costs!

This past year a producer in Hamilton County seeded soybeans at 60,000, 90,000, 120,000 and 150,000 with yield results of 69.5 bu./acre, 71.8 bu./acre, 73.6 bu./acre and 72.7 bu./acre. We’re not recommending going to 60,000, but that 120,000 seeding rate gave us both optimum yield and economic yield. I hope you’ll consider giving it a try on some fields or at least conduct your own on farm trial! For more detail information about the results go to http://cropwatch.unl.edu, then under related resources click on the farm research tab on the left hand side of the page. It will be the top article on that page.

Upcoming Events:

Feb. 23^rd - Pesticide Safety Ed. Program, 1:30 p.m., Ag Hall – Fillmore Co. Fairgrounds,

Geneva AND 6:00 P.M.

Feb. 24^th – Farmers & Ranchers College (Economics Mgmt & Outlook Conf.), 9-2:30 – Fillmore

Co. Fairgrounds, Geneva

Mar. 1^st – Milligan Grassland Day, Milligan Auditorium, 9:30 registration, 10-3:30 p.m.

Mar. 10^th - Pesticide Safety Ed. Program, 9:00 a.m., Shickley High School Gym (Free water

testing from Shickley FFA; bring your samples)