Oklahoma's latest farm and ranch news

A service of Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma, KIS Futures & Johnston Enterprises!

Howdy Neighbors!

Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We are proud to have KIS Futures as a regular sponsor of our daily E-Mail. KIS Futures provides Oklahoma Farmers & Ranchers with futures & options hedging services in the livestock and grain markets- Click here for their website or call them at 1-800-256-2555.

We welcome as our newest regular sponsor on our daily email Johnston Enterprises- proud to have served agriculture across Oklahoma and around the world since 1893. Johnston Grain wishes our wheat producers a safe and prosperous harvest this month- for more on Johnston Enterprises- click here for their website!
And finally, we are glad to have Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma as a regular sponsor of our daily email update. Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma has ten branch offices to serve your farm financing needs and is dedicated to being your first choice for farm credit. Check out their website for more information by clicking here!

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Harvest Expands with Temperatures in the 90s and Southerly Winds...

Thanks for the reports that several of you provided yesterday- Keep it UP! If you have a report on the 2008 wheat harvest, drop me a quick email- it really helps us flesh out the 2008 winter wheat harvest picture across the state.

We talked yesterday with Keith Kisling from Burlington- who is NOT harvesting wheat as of yet at his place not that many miles from the Kansas line- but he is concerned by the hot drying weather hurting his crop somewhat- reporting some of the heads he has checked have had some kernels that are a little shriveled where they were not quite mature before the hot dry conditions arrived.

The action definitely picks up south of there- we got an interesting report from Michael Jeffcoat- the Ag Agent in Jefferson County who reports pretty good yields in fields in the Red River bottoms in this county- but there has been some significant damage to several fields from Feral Hogs!
We got a report that Jimmy Kinder from Cotton County is finished with harvest- and he called it all in all an average yielding year for them- Brenda Neufeld from Major County in the Fairview area reports good yields and excellent test weights in their early harvest results- and we got a worrisome word from Mike Cassidy of Cassidy Grain Frederick saying it was the worse rail situation he had encountered in 30 years in trying to get cars and move wheat (Wheat that is on the low side in protein) so he can keep his elevators open and able to accept wheat.

After we left Stillwater yesterday from some meetings on campus at OSU- we headed due west on Highway 51 and found some harvest going in the Marshall area. If you go to our website and the Wheat Harvest webpage- we have a short video with details of what we saw there- just scroll down in the multiple entries of June 3rd!!! (and we also have the Wednesday morning report from Mark Hodges from the Oklahoma Wheat Commission as well!!!)

Click here for the latest on Wheat Harvest at WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com

Red Flags Raised Over Senate's Climate Change Proposal.

Oklahoma's Senior Senator Jim Inhofe is very concerned about the so called Warner- Lieberman Climate Change Bill that the Senate will be debating over the next couple of weeks. The Senator cites a study put together by Doane Ag Services that foresees a huge "tax" on the major agricultural crops grown in this country of as much as $12 Billion by the year 2020 under this plan.

"The Doane Advisory Services is the latest in a long line of studies to show that Lieberman-Warner would be economically devastating for Oklahoma and the nation," Senator Inhofe said. "The analysis illustrates, that if passed, the Lieberman-Warner bill would equate to an agriculture tax on the eight crops in upwards of $12 billion in 2020 alone. It is no secret that family farmers in Oklahoma and throughout the country are already dealing with exploding prices for inputs such as diesel and fertilizer. This Congress should seek opportunities to provide relief to the growing input costs, not adding to it.

"To protect Oklahoma farmers from the significant tax increase the Lieberman-Warner bill would impose, I will be leading the fight against the Lieberman-Warner cap-and-trade bill. Once again, I am proud to stand in support of Oklahoma's agriculture community. Whether it's reauthorizing critical agricultural programs or standing strong against Washington efforts to impose significant financial burdens onto farmers and ranchers, I will continue to stand firm on behalf of Oklahoma's farmers and ranchers and the nation's overall food security."

Senator Inhofe adds that he has received the input of the American Farm Bureau on this measure- who has urged him and other lawmakers to vote against these Climate Change proposals.

Here's the link to the News Release from Senator Inhofe- which includes the text of the letter from Farm Bureau's Bob Stallman on the Climate Change Proposals.

Wheat Harvest Brings Questions About Late Weed Control.

OSU's Dr. Tom Peeper has one of the articles in the latest Plant and Soil Sciences Newsletter that came out late Monday afternoon- and we wanted to share with you his thoughts on using a chemical to dry down some weeds that may be causing you heartburn in your ripe or almost ripe wheat fields.

Dr. Peeper says "Heavy rains in some areas and wheat fields this year that are weedier than normal may result in questions about herbicides for harvest aid weed control. For wheat there are labels for Ally, 2, 4D, dicamba, glyphosate, and Aim as harvest aids. Not all commercial products are labeled for harvest aid use, so it is important to read individual product labels.

"Remember that paraquat is not labeled as a harvest aid on wheat and that paraquat residues are easily detectable and have resulted in condemned wheat. Follow label directions carefully regarding herbicide carriers and additives. Using diesel fuel as the carrier for harvest aid herbicides can result in loads of wheat being rejected at the elevator due to smell. The herbicide with the shortest preharvest interval is Aim (3 days). If grassy weeds are the problem, it may be necessary to delay harvest until seedheads mature enough that seeds are threshed by the combine and can be separated from the wheat by the combine's cleaning fan. Downy brome and rescuegrass do not usually delay harvest. Wild oats and cheat may delay harvest 3 or 4 days. Ryegrass can require delaying wheat harvest 10 to 14 days, by which time lodging and summer weeds can become serious harvest issues."
We have the complete issue of this latest PASS Extension Newsletter linked below- check it out!

Click here for the latest newsletter from the Plant and Soil Science Department at Oklahoma State University.

CRP- USDA Offers Annual Update on This Thirty Year Old Land Retirement Program.

USDA's Farm Service Agency has released the Fiscal Year 2007 report on the Conservation Reserve Program. FSA Administrator Teresa Lasseter calls CRP- the nation's largest private lands conservation program. Lasseter says - there is significant on-going interest in CRP. She says CRP has proven to be a dynamic and flexible program in achieving a wide variety of conservation goals. She says the report demonstrates how participation in CRP helps preserve our nation's resources.

The publication summarizes CRP's accomplishments and reports that in FY 2007 CRP:
* Reduced runoff of sediment by 207 million tons,
* Lessened nitrogen runoff by 480 million pounds,
* Decreased runoff of phosphorus by 108 million pounds,
* Reduced soil erosion by wind and water by 470 million tons,
* Sequestered 50 million tons of carbon dioxide,
* Restored or maintained 2.1 million acres of wetland and adjacent upland buffers, and
* Established or maintained 1.9 million acres of grass and forested buffers along the nation's rivers and streams.

The report also provides a synopsis of CRP activities in FY 2007 and a legislative and programmatic history of CRP going back to CRP's initial authorization in the 1985 farm bill.
We have the CRP page on the USDA website linked below that has access to the full 2007 Summary of what the Conservation Reserve Program has done for US agriculture, landowners, wildlife enthusiasts and the general public.

Click here for more on the 2007 Annual Report on the CRP.

Calling All Former 4-Hers from Across Oklahoma!!!

The State 4-H office is conducting an alumni search to reach out to those whose lives have been impacted by their participation in 4-H activities. We want to know where our former 4-H members, leaders, educators and volunteers are today to include them in upcoming Oklahoma 4-H Centennial celebration activities.

The Centennial Celebration will kick off this summer during the 2008 Oklahoma 4-H Roundup that will be held at the end of July in Stillwater. Events will continue into next year.

Please call Jessica Stewart, Oklahoma 4-H marketing coordinator, at 1-800-522-0081, extension 4-7960, or e-mail what you've been up to and your contact information to Jessica at jessica.stewart@okstate.edu.

Click here and we will jump you over to the Oklahoma 4-H website and you can see what's going on in the land of the Green Clover.

Big AgriTourism Doings in Kay County This Saturday!

Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Terry Peach will be the keynote speaker for the Salt Fork River Valley agritourism kick-off events being held on June 7th at the Big V Ranch, Blubaugh Angus Ranch, and Silvertop Farm. Carrie Netherton of Tulsa Fox23 News will emcee the "Summer on the Salt Fork" events. Abby Cash, Oklahoma State Agritourism Director, and other Oklahoma Department of Tourism officials will attend the events.

The three agritourism venues have joined together to develop the "Salt Fork River Valley Ranch and Farm Tours" to tap into the fastest growing segment of the tourism market in recent years. Over 63 million people visit agritourism venues in the United States annually.

The Salt Fork River Valley agritourism events will begin at high noon with ribbon cutting ceremonies at the Big V Ranch, followed by a 2 pm kick-off at Blubaugh Angus Ranch, and a 4 pm kick-off at Silvertop Farm. Each farm or ranch will be open for tours and activities for all ages. The Big V Ranch is located at "T" Street and White Eagle Road, the Blubaugh Angus Ranch is located at 9801 W. North Avenue, and Silvertop Farm is located at 6151 W. Fountain Road. The Salt Fork River Valley is located southwest of Ponca City, Oklahoma. Each venue is located west of Highway 156 and south of Highway 60.

Click here to see the website jointly operated by these three entities- and find out more about the Salt Fork Tours!

Wrapping Up with Jayson Lusk on Animal Welfare and the "Average Consumer"

We wrap up our three days of Beef Buzzing with Jayson Lusk of OSU- considering the consumer survey that Lusk helped with that considers what the average consumer in this country thinks about how animals are treated by livestock producers.

Today we talk about what the consumer believes when it comes to placing a price tag on various "humane" practices. It's interesting that consumers will say money is no object when asked the question one way- but change their tune when the question is put to them from a three party perspective.

Our report with Lusk is the heart of our Wednesday Beef Buzz, as heard on great radio stations across the state of Oklahoma. We have it archived on our website on the Beef Buzz page (great place for it!) and we also have the link direct to today's Beef Buzz below for you to click and listen to- check it out!

Click here for the latest Beef Buzz with Ron on RON- the Radio Oklahoma Network!

Our thanks to Johnston Enterprises, KIS Futures and Farm Credit of East Central Oklahomafor their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked at the top of the email- check them out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis!

We also invite you to check out our website at the link below to check out an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.

Click here to check out WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com

Checking the Markets...

It's a bit of a surprise- but we sold cash cattle on Tuesday for $94 to $94.50 in both the western Kansas feedlot area as well as Texas/Oklahoma. That would be one to two dollars cheaper than last week's sales.

Here are some links we will leave in place on an ongoing basis- Click on the name of the report to go to that link:
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network with Ed Richards and Tom Leffler- analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day-
Ron on RON Markets as heard on K101 mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
Previous Day's Wheat Market Recap- One Pager From Country Hedging- looks at all three US Wheat Futures Exchanges and the why of that day's market.
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- As Reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture. Previous Day's Energy Market Recap- also from Country Hedging
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.

God Bless! You can reach us at the following: