Coming Events
- March 27, 2014 – York County Corn Grower Tour to the Waco, Columbus & Monroe area, 9:00 a.m.
- April 4, 2014 – Agri-Business After Hours Celebration, 5:00–7:00 p.m., Cornerstone Event Center, York Fairgrounds
Corn Grower Tour
Ron Makovicka, York County Corn Grower President, and I have planned a Corn Grower Tour for this Thursday, March 27, 2014. The tour will include stops at the Monsanto Facility East of Waco, the Duo Lift Manufacturing Company in Columbus, the Behlen Manufacturing Company in Columbus, and the CVA liquid and dry fertilizer plant near Monroe.
If you are interested in attending the tour, we plan to meet at the York Extension Office (2345 Nebraska Avenue, York) at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday and then plan to leave by 8:45 a.m. If you want to participate on the tour, you need to RSVP to the York Extension Office 402â€362â€5508 by noon Tuesday, March 25, or email Gary at gary.zoubek@unl.edu.
Ag Day/Week
Do you know March 25 is National Ag Day and that March 20-26 is National Ag Week? The theme for this year is “Agriculture: 365 Sunrises and 7 Billion Mouths to Feed”. Farms both big and small have a proud tradition of nourishing generations.
One out of three Nebraskans derive their income from working directly with agriculture. Cash receipts from farm marketing contributed over $24 billion to Nebraska’s economy in 2012 which translated into a record net farm income of over $7.5 billion and 6.2 percent of the U.S. total. Nebraska has a vibrant export market and we need to remember that every dollar in agricultural exports generates $1.29 in economic activities such as transportation, financing, warehousing, and production. Nebraska’s $7.3 billion in agricultural exports in 2012 translate into $9.4 billion in additional economic activity.
You can find where Nebraska ranks nationally in ag commodities by going to: http://www.nda.nebraska.gov/facts.pdf
For more information about National Ag Day and Week, go to: http://www.agday.org/.
Also, I hope you’ll consider attending the Agri-Business After Hours Celebration planned for April 4 between 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the Cornerstone Ag Event Center on the York Fairgrounds. More details at:  http://york.unl.edu/crops-future.
Irrigation Management Cost Share Opportunities
It has not been feeling like spring the past several day, but hopefully it’s around the corner. Now is the time to begin planning and thinking about the upcoming irrigation season. If you’ve been using the ETgages and Watermark Sensors, now is the time to check your inventory to see if you need to replace the ETgage canvas cover, bird spikes etc. Do you need to replace some of the sensors that were damaged or are not working properly?
If you have not been using this equipment, I’d suggest this is the year to give it a try. I’d be happy to assist you installing/using the equipment. This is a short ink to the Upper Big Blue NRD 2014 Cost share form: http://go.unl.edu/zkxx. I hope you’ll consider ordering some of the equipment for you this season.
Don’t hesitate to visit with me or Dan Leininger at the NRD if you have any questions about these tools.
Lawn & Garden
It has not been much different than last week! Still not real spring like. Last week I mentioned that one sunny day I was thinking about beginning to plan my vegetable garden. I have not done much since then, but want to let you know that if you’re new to the area or want a reminder of what needs to be planned when, you may want to check out the “York County Home Vegetable Planting Reference†that is posted on our website at: http://york.unl.edu/water-environment. Just click on the appropriate link.
Some of the earliest crops to plant in our area are spinach, radishes, onions, and lettuce. Typically we can plant them the last week of March or so! I guess that’s not too far away. For all the latest horticultural information go to:  http://environment.unl.edu/. This site has Horticulture Updates, Back Yard Farmer, Turf Science and Acreage Insights. It’s loaded with lots of great information.
Broadband Technology Fairs Planned
The Power of Business – WHAT’S NEXT is the theme of the upcoming series of Broadband Technology Fairs. The events, set for sites across Nebraska, will highlight the Power of Business – and how broadband technology can help you be more efficient and successful.
Each Technology Fair will offer hands-on presentations on broadband technology tools and techniques with experts from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and the Nebraska Public Service Commission. Topics will feature:
•          Remote video for security and monitoring
•          Cloud technology,
•          Information security
•          Mobile technology
•          Cool Tools
Attendance is free and open to all. Those in our area include:
Seward: March 26, Seward County Fairgrounds, 9:00 a.m. – noon
Grand Island: March 27, College Park Extension, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.
This events are part of the Nebraska Broadband Initiative. This Broadband Mapping and Planning Initiative is funded through a grant to the Nebraska Public Service Commission by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration and aims to increase broadband adoption and use. Project partners include the University of Nebraska, Nebraska Department of Economic Development, Nebraska Information Technology Commission, Nebraska Public Service Commission, and the AIM Institute.
For more information, check http://broadband.nebraska.gov.
