Farm Law Expiration Draws Reactions from Major Players, Ag Organizations 

There was no lack of response to the expiration of the 2008 Farm Law at the end of September.  Administration officials, lawmakers and farm organizations responded to the failure of Congress to get a farm bill done "on time." (To keep things in perspective- the last time we got a farm bill done "on time" was 1977). 

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the USDA's authority to administer many programs including commodity programs and price supports has now expired.  He said that leaves his agency with "far fewer tools to help strengthen American agriculture and grow a rural economy."  (Click here for more of Vilsack's response.) 

Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry said, "It is unbelievable that we're in this position now where the Farm Bill will expire and create so much uncertainty for farmers, ranchers, and small businesses. The Senate came together in a bipartisan way and we passed the Farm Bill. The House Agriculture Committee came together in a bipartisan way to pass a Farm Bill. It's absolutely unacceptable that the House Republican leadership couldn't devote just one day to rural America and the 16 million jobs across the country that rely on agriculture." 

Without swift passage of the 2012 Farm Bill after the November elections, Stabenow said a patchwork of outdated subsidies and costly price controls set in the 1940s would kick in, causing turmoil in the agricultural sector.  (You can read more of her statement by clicking here.)

A group of 15 major agricultural groups issued a joint statement calling for swift action:  "Congress will return in mid-November for a lame-duck session prior to final adjournment in December. We will work to have the first order of business for the House of Representatives be to consider a new Farm Bill. We are urging our members to seek out their House members between now and the elections and remind them of the consequences of not having a new bill in place prior to adjournment at the end of the year."  (You can read their full statement by clicking here.)  

Rain Aids Wheat and Canola Planting Across Southern Plains 

Wheat and canola began to emerge in Oklahoma  as planting continued. Wheat seedbed preparation was 85 percent complete by the end of the week, and 35 percent was planted. Fourteen percent of the wheat was emerged by Sunday.  

The 2013 canola crop is now 50% planted across the state- and 8% has emerged- it's likely that both wheat and canola planting will move rapidly forward as fields dry out enough for planters to roll this week. The corn harvest was 79 complete by the end of the week, 12 points ahead of the five-year average.  (Click here for Oklahoma's Crop Weather Report.) 

Kansas farmers seeded 23 percent of the State's wheat acreage last week to reach 40 percent complete by Sunday, ahead of 36 percent for last year and 37 percent for the 5-year average. At least half of the crop in western Kansas is already seeded. Ten percent of the State's wheat had emerged by week's end which is identical to last year but slightly behind the 5-year average of 12 percent. Farmers harvested 10 percent of the Kansas corn crop last week, reaching 74 percent completed by Sunday, about three weeks ahead of 50 percent last year and 43 percent for the 5-year average.  (Click here for the USDA's Crop Progress and Condition Report for Kansas.)

Winter wheat and oats seeding was in full swing across the state of Texas.  Rainfall aided recently seeded and emerged wheat.   Cotton harvest continued across the eastern half of the state while harvest was just getting underway in West Texas and the Plains.  Corn, sorghum and sunflower harvest continued in the Plains, but was wrapped up in most other areas.  (Click here for the Texas Crop Weather and Condition Report.) 

Curt Pate Talks Low-Stress Cattle Handling Techniques

Curt Pate from South Dakota is well-known for low-stress cattle handling. Pate runs a custom grazing operation and is partners with his daughter in a bucking bull business. He works with cattle-some gentle, some not so gentle--constantly. Pate says he backed into offering seminars in cattle handling.

"Well, I started out in the horse world. And I was doing a lot of colt-starting demonstrations and everybody thinks of me as a horse guy, but I'm not a horse guy. I'm a cattle guy that uses horses. And I believe in the ranching background, the lifestyle, but I'm a horseback guy that uses the horse for cattle. 

"I always wanted to have more cattle handling stuff involved in the public demonstrations, but it kind of slowly evolved into some ranch roping stuff and some cattle handling and it really just blossomed from there."

He said the core of his work is attempting to show cattle producers how to take advantage of some of the natural instincts of cattle.

Curt Pate is our guest on the latest Beef Buzz.  Click here to go there.

Replacing Hay with Winter Pasture Requires Action Now

As commodity prices increase and the amount of hay available decreases, many agricultural producers are concerned about feeding their cattle until spring of 2013. 

"Winter pasture, while expensive and traditionally used for stocker cattle, may fit a producer's cow management system because of recent drought circumstances," said David Annis, soils and crops consultant. "However, producers must make some important decisions before planting." 

First, producers must determine which winter forage is best suited for the pasture's soil texture. Wheat and cereal rye are the most commonly planted winter forages seen in Oklahoma and Texas said Annis. "A general rule of thumb is to plant one acre of winter forage per 1,000 pound cow." 

Farmers and ranchers should then collect and analyze good soil samples to determine the soil's fertility and pH. Phosphorus and potassium should be applied prior to or near planting. 

You can read more recommendations from David Annis by clicking here.

Early DuPont Harvest Data Shows Yield Advantages with Pioneer Optimum AQUAmax Products

New Pioneer® brand Optimum® AQUAmax™ products from DuPont Pioneer demonstrated a significant yield advantage in the second year of on-farm evaluations in North America during unprecedented drought conditions. On more than 4,000 side-by-side comparisons with competitive products, preliminary 2012 yield data from Pioneer shows an advantage of more than eight percent with Optimum AQUAmax products in water-limited environments and almost a two percent yield advantage in favorable growing environments at locations harvested as of Sept. 27, 2012.

Across the past two growing seasons among more than 12,600 comparisons, Optimum AQUAmax hybrids have shown a 7.6 percent yield advantage in water-limited environments and a 2.7 percent yield advantage in favorable growing conditions.

"Even in drought conditions rarely experienced by most corn growers, Optimum AQUAmax products showcased their outstanding performance potential," says Paul E. Schickler, president of DuPont Pioneer. 

Click here for more details of this story.

Salvation Army Thanks Oklahoma Farm Credit Associations and CoBank for Wildfire Donations

The Salvation Army of Arkansas-Oklahoma is very grateful to the Farm Credit Associations of Oklahoma and CoBank for a generous gift of $70,000. The gift is to help those impacted by the recent wildfires in rebuilding their lives after wildfires destroyed hundreds of homes in Oklahoma. 

Farm Credit Associations of Oklahoma include AgPreference, American AgCredit, Chisholm Trail Farm Credit, Farm Credit of Central Oklahoma, Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma, Farm Credit of Enid, and Farm Credit of Western Oklahoma. Farm Credit Associations of Oklahoma collaborated to donate $35,000. In addition, CoBank, the district funding bank for the Farm Credit Associations, matched the $35,000 donation for the grand total of $70,000.

The Salvation Army deployed mobile feeding units during the active wildfire response and served more than 2,500 meals, 2,840 snacks, and 4,584 beverages. In addition, it provided gift cards and vouchers to meet the emergency needs of those impacted by wildfires and have already distributed nearly $50,000 in direct assistance.  

You can read the full story by clicking here.

This N That- Wind Energy Workshop, Corn Harvest at Light Speed and Beef Prices Plunge

Coming this Saturday is another of those Wind Energy Workshops that have planned by the folks at OSU- this one to be held in El Reno at the Canadian Valley Career Tech- OSU Ag Law expert Shannon Ferrell is a part of these efforts to go on the road and help educate land owners and others in rural Oklahoma about their options and opportunities in leasing their land for wind energy. They have extended FREE pre registration (lunch included) until close of business today- Tuesday- so click here for more information and if you are interested in attending, call and reserve your spot- the number is 405-262-0155. 

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We highlighted the Oklahoma Crop Weather Report details in an earlier story- but also wanted to point you this morning to the weekly US Crop Progress report released by NASS on Monday afternoon- it confirms a very swift corn and soybean harvest across the US- corn harvest is now 54% complete versus the five year average of 20% with soybean harvest now 41% done versus the average of 19%.  The stress of the summer drought across large hunks of the midwest is the key to the earliness- and the question is now- will USDA further shrink the size of either of those midwest crops in their next crop production report that will be released next week?  In the meantime, click here for the Crop Progress numbers as of October one released yesterday.

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Finally- we point you to our weekly analysis of the fed cattle and wholesale boxed beef trade that is offered up by Ed Czerwein out of the USDA Market News Office in Amarillo.  Last week was an ugly week for both cattle and beef prices- Ed offers some of the reasons why in his audio recap- click here to take a listen.  And- and remember you can check out a lot of market information every morning from this email by clicking on the links in the left hand column- our market links are being sponsored this month by Oklahoma Farm Bureau Insurance- click here for their website to learn more about how they can meet your insurance needs- they're in all 77 Oklahoma counties- and always near by.