Extension Update by Gary Zoubeck [March 28, 2013]

Coming Events

• March 29 – 4-H Junior Leader Road Trip to UNL, leave the York Extension Office at 8:40 a.m.
• April 4 — Nebraska On-Farm Research Meeting, 1:30 p.m., 4-H Building, York
• April 11 – Chemigation Training, 1:00 p.m., 4-H Building, York

Nebraska On-Farm Research Meeting Planned
If you’re involved with crop production, you should also be interested in conducting On-Farm Research to help evaluate production practices on your farm.  To help you get involved and learn more about our efforts, we’re hosting a meeting on Thursday, April 4, at 1:30 p.m. in the 4-H Building here in York.

Anyone in the area interested in participating in on-farm research or learning more is invited to attend and go through this year’s protocols before you get out into the fields.  Please give me a call if you’d like more information but cannot attend this meeting.

UNL BeefWatch Newsletter
Last week I received word from the UNL Beef Spire Team that they have a new beef e-newsletter entitled UNL BeefWatch that will be published monthly.  The first issue was sent out on March 8, 2013.  Here is the link to UNL BeefWatch:  http://go.unl.edu/BeefWatch.  At this site you can subscribe to the monthly newsletter which is what I did.  This newsletter will be a great way to receive current beef information on a regular basis, so I hope you’ll plan to subscribe.

Water and Nitrogen Management
Nitrates in the ground water is a concern that the Upper Big Blue NRD board of directors and staff have.  It’s not a new issue; however the nitrate levels in samples they’ve taken have slowly increased over time.  It’s important that we continue to improve our irrigation practices so we reduce the amount of nitrogen that’s moved thru the profile as well as work to improve nitrogen efficiency by producing more crop per drop of water and pound of nitrogen fertilizer.

Last Friday Dan Leininger from the Upper Big Blue NRD, Todd Whitney from the Extension Office in Aurora, and I shared information about a couple of irrigation tools that the NRD is helping cost share on to help improve irrigation efficiency in this area.  These tools are Watermark Sensors and ETgages.  If you could not attend, but would like information about these tools, you can find that information by going to the Upper Big Blue NRD website: http://www.upperbigblue.org/.  Then click on the water link on the left side of the page and finally the irrigation scheduling link.  You can also stop by my office, and I’d be glad to visit with you about them.

We found out last year that no two years are the same, but that ETgages and soil water sensors do work.  They don’t always save you water or energy, they sometimes tell you that you still need to irrigate.  With today’s fuel prices and crop values, you don’t just want to guess when scheduling your irrigations.  I’d sure be glad to assist you in using these tools and interpreting the numbers.

Last week I checked the sensors that I’ve installed in a rainfed field East of York and finally the top sensor is reporting that the top foot is near field capacity, but the second foot is still dry.  We received a little more rain over the weekend, but not much, so we can sure use some more precipitation before spring work begins.

If you’re interested in improving center pivot efficiency, check out this week’s CropWatch article at: http://CropWatch.unl.edu.  Now’s a good time to go thru this checklist prior to the start of the irrigation season.

As to nitrogen management; the key is to collect deep samples for residual nitrogen and then fertilize based on these results along with proper credits for organic matter, manure applications, legumes credits, as well as irrigation nitrogen.  Each percent of soil organic matter is about 30 pound on less nitrogen that’s needed, so the better your soil the less nitrogen that is needed.  Ideally it’s best to make the nitrogen applications as close to the crops use as possible.  If you can, spring pre-plant applications followed by cultivation or chemigation applications will work well!  UNL recommendations based on time and economics can be found at: http://cropwatch.unl.edu/web/soils/home.

I hope you’ll check out the website and adjust your fertilizer applications based on good soil test results.  Give me a call at 402-362-5508 or email me at gary.zoubek@unl.edu it you have any questions.

The York Corn Grower and UNL RoundUp Ready Comparison Plots Entries Are Due
I’ve received several entries for the 2013 York County Corn Growers and our UNL RoundUp Ready Soybean Comparison Plots.  These York County Corn Grower Plot will be on the Dwight Johnson farm near Bradshaw farmed by Ray & Ron Makovicka while the RoundUp Ready Soybean plot will be on the Jerry Stahr farm located just East of UFC.  Seed representatives interested in making entries can contact me at 402-362-5508 or by email at gary.zoubek@unl.edu.

Family WeatherFest is April 6
Boy our weather continues to be a rollercoaster; it sure did not feel like spring this weekend!  Didn’t receive much moisture either!  Last week I received some information about the UNL’s Family Weatherfest and Severe Weather Symposium which will be held on Saturday, April 6 between 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. at University Nebraska-Lincoln’s Hardin Hall, located at 3310 Holdrege St. in Lincoln, NE (the corner of Holdrege and 33rd St.).  This free, family event explores the wonder of weather and teaches techniques for surviving—and thriving—through severe weather events.

Activities will include a screening of the tornado-filled film 2012’s Extreme Weather as Captured by Storm Chasers, a book sale and signing with meteorologist and author Mike Mogil, a weather balloon discussion and launch, face painting booths, and an up-close and personal exploration of a real-life tornado vehicle; the Doppler on Wheels—Weatherfest makes storm preparedness fun for the whole family.

Other highlights this year include a keynote talk about the 100th anniversary of the deadliest tornado to hit Nebraska; tips for capturing the best photographs of meteorological events; interactive weather presentations such as “Be Weather Wise with Weather Whys,” “The Megadrought Walk,” and “Tornado Generator”; and exhibits from the National Weather Service, Lancaster County Emergency Management, and Midland Radio. Local weathercasters will be on site between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to meet and chat with families.

For more information about this event go to: http://snr.unl.edu/cpsws/ or on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/cpsws.

“York County 4-H, Nebraska” on Facebook
Speaking of Facebook, if you are involved with the York County 4-H program as a member, family, leader or volunteer, I’d like to encourage you to go to Facebook and search for the group “York County 4-H, Nebraska” and ask to join.  We’re going list upcoming events and deadlines, pictures, and other timely topics to these pages and keep you informed as to what’s going on in the world of York County 4-H!