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Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 

-- This N That: Boxed Beef Update with Ed and In the Field with Susan

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Harvest Heats Up - Oklahoma Wheat Commission Calls Harvest Twelve Percent Complete as of Midday Monday

Each harvest season, the Oklahoma Wheat Commission releases wheat harvest reports as information becomes available about that year's wheat harvest. The latest report is out, as of Monday midday, June 6th, as provided by Oklahoma Wheat Commission Executive Director Mike Schulte:


"Harvest is starting in most places of the state, although producers in parts of Southwest Oklahoma, South Central and areas of Northern Oklahoma continue to deal with mud. Test weights in areas of Southwest and in the Central western regions have dropped depending on location and where the rains fell.   Early reports of wheat being taken in at elevator locations in Southwest Oklahoma now are reporting weights of 58 to 59lbs./bu, (74.64 kg/hl-75.933 kg/hl). Yields still ranging from the mid 30's to mid 50's mainly. A better estimate of actual weights will be available once more wheat is harvested later today. 


"In central Oklahoma from El Reno to Omega, harvest was in full swing starting on Friday evening in some places East of Okarche and Kingfisher. East of HWY 81 the storms last week were minimal and test weights have not been impacted much of those weights still coming in around 61 to 62 lbs./bu, (78.507 kg/hl-79.794kg/hl). West of HWY 81 test weights have dropped in the 58 to 60 lbs./bu, ( 74.64 kg/hl-77.22) range. Yields in this region have been reported to be making from the mid 30's to the mid 50's with one field yesterday reported in this region to be making over 65 bushels per acre. 


"In Northern Oklahoma producers were just starting to get combines out in the fields with some cutting taking place East of Alva. Test weights on some of the first loads of wheat taken in on early samples were reported at 61 lbs./bu, (78.507kg/hl). Protein test throughout the state have been ranging all over the board mostly from 10.5% to 11.5%, with the hopes that those numbers might be higher as we move further North and into the Panhandle region. Harvest is estimated to be 12% complete in the state today!"

USDA Provides Targeted Assistance to Cotton Producers to Share in the Cost of Ginning

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Monday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) will provide an estimated $300 million in cost-share assistance payments to cotton producers through the new Cotton Ginning Cost-Share program, in order to expand and maintain the domestic marketing of cotton.


"Today's announcement shows USDA continues to stand with America's cotton producers and our rural communities," said Vilsack. "The Cotton Ginning Cost Share program will offer meaningful, timely and targeted assistance to cotton growers to help with their anticipated ginning costs and to facilitate marketing. The program will provide, on average, approximately 60 percent more assistance per farm and per producer than the 2014 program that provided cotton transition assistance."


Through the Cotton Ginning Cost-Share program, eligible producers can receive a one-time cost share payment, which is based on a producer's 2015 cotton acres reported to FSA, multiplied by 40 percent of the average ginning cost for each production region. With the pressing need to provide assistance ahead of the 2016 ginning season this fall, USDA will ensure the application process is straight-forward and efficient. The program estimates the costs based on planting of cotton in 2015, and therefore the local FSA offices already have this information for the vast majority of eligible producers and the applications will be pre-populated with existing data. Sign-up for the program will begin June 20 and run through Aug. 5, 2016 at the producer's local FSA office. Payments will be processed as applications are received, and are expected to begin in July.


Since 2011, cotton fiber markets have experienced dramatic changes. As a result of low cotton prices and global oversupply, cotton producers are facing economic uncertainty that has led to many producers having lost equity and having been forced to liquidate equipment and land to satisfy loans. The ginning of cotton is necessary prior to marketing the lint for fiber, or the seed for oil or feed. While the Cotton Ginning Cost-Share program makes payments to cotton producers for cotton ginning costs, the benefits of the program will be felt by the broader marketing chain associated with cotton and cottonseed, including cotton gins, cooperatives, marketers and cottonseed crushers and the rural communities that depend on them.


The program has the same eligibility requirements as were used for the 2014 Cotton Transition Assistance Program, including a $40,000 per producer payment limit, requirement to be actively engaged in farming, meet conservation compliance and a $900,000 adjusted gross income limit.

Click here for a link to learn more about the Cotton Ginning Cost-Share program.

AFBF, Plains Cotton Growers Applaud USDA Cotton Support Program

American Farm Bureau Federation was pleased with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) announcement to provide an estimated $300 million in cost-share assistance payments to cotton producers through the new Cotton Ginning Cost-Share program.


"Farm Bureau commends Secretary Vilsack's decision to provide a temporary Agriculture Department program to help U.S. cotton farmers defray processing costs, giving them hope as they face some of the most difficult market conditions in more than a decade," AFBF President Zippy Duvall said.


"We are especially appreciative that Secretary Vilsack took the time to work with us, the National Cotton Council and others to arrive at this special, one-time arrangement without requiring legislative action. This is a clear example of what we can accomplish when we work together. Our cotton farmers and the rural businesses they partner with will be better off because USDA took action to address a serious market downturn in their industry."

Plains Cotton Growers, Inc., also commended the U.S. Department of Agriculture for creating the much-needed assistance to growers across the Cotton Belt.

"We greatly appreciate U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and the USDA for listening to the concerns of cotton producers and coming up with a viable short-term solution that will help us face some of our challenges," PCG President Johnie Reed, a cotton producer from Kress, said.

"We had hoped for some flexibility in the payment limit, but we are grateful for the assistance, because our producers certainly need it," Reed said. "We recognize that this is a program for the near term, and we remain committed to working with Congress and others in trying to establish cottonseed as an 'other oilseed' under Title I of the 2014 Farm Bill, which would provide long-term stability for our industry."

Oklahoma Wheat and Canola Harvests Lag Behind Five-Year Average, But Quality Still Looks Strong 

The latest U.S. Department of Agriculture crop progress report has corn planting 98 percent complete nationally. That's up 4 percent over last week and just one point over the five-year average. USDA reported 90 percent of the crop has emerged in the top 18 states that plant 93 percent of the nation's corn acres. Emergence made another big leap this week, up 12 points and is currently 4 points higher than the five-year average. Soybean planting has reached 83 percent. That's a gain of 10 points over last week and 6 points ahead of average. For the complete USDA Crop Progress report, click here. 



Although heavy rain fell over most of the state of Oklahoma, except for the Panhandle area, last week, wheat harvest did begin in the state. In the weekly crop progress report from USDA, winter wheat harvested reached 5 percent, down 4 points from the previous year and down 26 points from the five-year average. Canola harvested reached 15 percent, up 10 points from the previous year but down 25 points from the five-year average. Corn emerged reached 83 percent, up 2 points from the previous year but down 7 points from normal. Sorghum planted reached 51 percent, down 9 points from the previous year. Soybeans seeded reached 59 percent, up 18 points from the previous year and up 8 points from normal. Soybeans emerged reached 33 percent, which is just 1 point lower than five-year average.Click here for the full Oklahoma report.



All areas of Texas experienced measurable rainfall last week, and flooding continued to wash away crops and delay planting in areas of the Northern Low Plains and the Cross Timbers. Heavy rains also continued to delay wheat harvest across the state, with just 16 percent harvested. That 10 percent lower than the five-year average. Forty-four percent of the wheat crop is rated in the good to excellent condition, with 43 percent of the crop in fair condition and 13 percent in poor to very poor condition. Corn planting is nearing the five-year average at 96 percent, which is 6 percent higher than this time last year. Corn emergence is up 12 points over last week but is still 3 points lower than the five-year average. Sorghum was 82 percent planted, soybeans were 84 percent, cotton was 65 percent done and peanuts were 86 percent planted. Click here for the full Texas report.



The Kansas wheat crop rated 60 percent good to excellent, 32 percent fair and only 8 percent poor to very poor condition. Winter wheat coloring was 41 percent, ahead of 28 last year and the five-year average of 32. Corn emerged was 88 percent, ahead of 77 last year, but equal to the five-year average. Soybeans planted was 42 percent, ahead of 28 last year, but well behind 64 average. Emerged was 24 percent, ahead of 18 last year, but well behind 45 average. Cotton planting was 34 percent and sorghum was at 33 percent. Click here for the Kansas report. 

The Road Less Traveled - Derrell Peel Says You Can Add Value to Your Calves in 2016

Each week, Dr. Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist, offers his economic analysis of the beef cattle industry. This analysis is a part of the weekly series known as the "Cow Calf Corner" published electronically by Dr. Peel and Dr. Glenn Selk. This week, Dr. Peel looks some of the ways that beef producers may be able to add value to their calves in 2016:


"A variety of production and marketing practices are available to help cow-calf producers enhance calf values. Though these practices are not new, many are still adopted by only a small percentage of producers. The following summarizes several surveys and feeder cattle pricing studies.


"Castration of bull calves is the most adopted among common cow-calf management practices. Nevertheless, surveys show that 27 percent of Oklahoma producers don't use castration, a number that is similar to national estimates. Calves marketed as bulls typically receive a four to five percent price discount compared to steers. Polled cattle are preferred to horned cattle. Dehorning calves with horns avoids the two to three percent discount often applied to horned cattle. Dehorning and castration are best done early to minimize stress on cattle. 


"About 35 percent of Oklahoma cow-calf producers vaccinate calves prior to sale. Vaccinated calves usually receive a premium of one to two percent over unvaccinated calves. Vaccination programs typically include two rounds of Clostridial and respiratory vaccine. Weaning calves prior to sale adds 1.5 to 3 percent to calf value. Conversely, bawling calves are usually discounted at auctions. Roughly 40 percent of Oklahoma producers sell weaned calves. The costs of weaning calves are significant but weaned calves sell at heavier weights. The premium for weaning is the additional value for calves at the heavier weaned weight and are in addition to the added value of selling heavier calves. 


"Castration, dehorning, vaccination and weaning are key components of preconditioning programs. Completing a certified preconditioning program such as the Oklahoma Quality beef network (OQBN) or other VAC45 type programs further enhances calf value by providing third-party verification of the production claims. In the last several years, OQBN calves have sold at prices five to nine percent above non-preconditioned calves in addition to selling at heavier weights.

Click here to read more about increasing the value of your calves and to find a link to the OQBN website.

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OSU's Justin Talley Says Time is Now for Fly Control Options for Cattle 

Summer means fly season, and so it's time to get ahead of the problem before it creates a negative economic impact on your cattle herd. Dr. Justin Talley, a livestock entomologist at Oklahoma State University, says one level of fly control to strongly consider is insecticidal ear tags.                

                                  
Talley warns against putting ear tags in too early because the efficacy will wear out before fly populations begin increasing at a high rate in July and August.


"What we consider when you need to start implementing ear tags are about 200 horn flies per animal," he says. "If that animal is in good body condition score, they can probably handle more than that, but at this time of year, we could have some animals at that 200 horn flies per animal rate."


Talley says pour-ons and sprays are also fly-control considerations.


"When you're putting a pour-on on the animals to control stable flies or horn flies in general, you're going to get anywhere from about three to four weeks of control, where it's keeping them below those economic threshold levels of 200 flies per animal," he says. "So that means you're going to have to reapply."


Due to environmental challenges like precipitation and even heavy dew, Talley say sprays can be a challenge.


"You can essentially depend on reapplying that product anywhere from three to five weeks after that initial application," he says. 


If using a pour-on or spray, Talley recommends creating a monthly application schedule to maximize effectiveness.


And Talley says that it's important to rotate treatment chemical classes, not just similar products with different names, so that the flies do not build up resistance to the insecticides.


He says that rotation is more important when it comes to using ear tags. 


"You can switch out products with sprays and pour-ons on a once-per-month basis, whereas with ear tags, it's once a year," Talley says. "So year one you start off with a organo-phosphate, year two you can go into a pyrethroid and then year three you can get into Ivomec-type tags." 


Hear Dr. Talley talk more about effectively controlling flies during the summer months during the latest Beef Buzz. 

Oklahoma Farm Bureau Weighs in on Global Food Security Act

In Washington, the US House may consider the Senate version of the Global Food Security Act this week which passed the Senate earlier this Spring. Proponents, including the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, say the bill is an important step in the fight to end hunger and build sustainable food systems in developing countries.

This measure would coordinate US global food security programming.

Oklahoma Farm Bureau President Tom Buchanan is one of several farm leaders who is calling for final passage of this measure- saying "we recognize food insecurity issues still exist not only in Oklahoma, but also around the world. "

Buchanan adds "We support the Global Food Security Act because it will help educate farmers across the globe to use technology to produce an abundant food supply for their citizens."

More details about the bill are available here.

This N That: Boxed Beef Update with Ed and In the Field with Susan

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