Cucumbers: A cool slice of life
COLUMBIA, Mo. – It’s one of the most popular crops in the home garden. It’s 95 percent water, low in calories and an excellent source of vitamin K. It’s been grown in space and a mile underground.
Flowing grain: 'A farmer's worst nightmare'
COLUMBIA, Mo. – A wet fall harvest and a cold winter might make conditions especially dangerous for grain producers emptying grain bins to fulfill commodity contracts and prepare for wheat harvest. In 2010 there were a record 26 deaths nationwide due to grain bin accidents, according to U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration reports. And there were many more unreported “near misses,” say University of Missouri Extension…
Container gardens to supply your salads
COLUMBIA, Mo. – It’s easy to grow lettuce in container gardens, says Kim Martin, manager of Tiger Garden, the student-run floral shop on the University of Missouri campus.
It's time to plant peas
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Peas will never be considered an exotic food, but they’ve been cultivated for at least 5,000 years. This ancient plant is a cool-season vegetable that needs to be planted early.
New software helps farmers manage nutrients
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension has released a new Web-based application to help farmers manage soil nutrient needs on farms.Nutrient management helps farmers set rates and timing of fertilizer applications, said John Lory, MU Extension nutrient management specialist. Plans are required for some farms in cost-share programs and permitted animal feeding operations.
Big fish
WARSAW, Mo.– These fish aren’t biting. Paddlefish never do. They eat by filtering plankton as water passes through their gills. But here on the Osage Arm of the Lake of the Ozarks, paddlefish do put up good fight after being hooked.“It feels like all of a sudden you just slam into a wall,” says Mark Bagwell after snagging his first paddlefish. “It’s a lot bigger than the trout in Georgia,” he said.
Cash does grow on trees
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Missouri river hills would look beautiful lined with chestnut trees and they’d turn a pretty profit.“Missouri has a lot of acres in the river hills, which are fertile, deep, well-drained soils perfect for growing chestnuts,” said Michael Gold, professor of forestry at the University of Missouri.
Cold rain right after planting causes problems
COLUMBIA, Mo. – It may be too early to think about replanting corn yet, but it’s a good time to look at guides from University of Missouri Extension or seed dealers, said MU Extension agronomy specialist Bill Wiebold.
Beautiful bulbs
COLUMBIA, Mo.– The long, harsh winter coupled with last fall’s drought caused a lot of damage to evergreen trees.
Boots on the Green
GRANITE CITY, Ill.– After Bobby Hutchinson lost his left leg in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm, he thought he’d never play golf again. “I just kind of had it in my head that that chapter in my life was over,” says Hutchinson, who was a heavy equipment operator in the U.S. Navy Construction Battalion when his leg was crushed in an accident in Saudi Arabia.
When grass seed heads appear, hay quality drops
COLUMBIA, Mo. – So far, it’s a bad hay year. Cool weather, lack of sun and dry soil slowed grass growth.Dry matter per acre is about one-third of what we expect this time of year, says Rob Kallenbach, University of Missouri Extension forage agronomist.He spoke to regional extension specialists in a weekly teleconference.“There’s hope,” he adds. “With warmth and rain, we can still grow lots of good hay. It will take management to make…
Pruning winter-damaged evergreens
COLUMBIA, Mo.– The long, harsh winter coupled with last fall’s drought caused a lot of damage to evergreen trees.
Well owners need to regularly test water
COLUMBIA, Mo.– If you use well water for cooking and drinking, you should regularly test the water for contamination, says a University of Missouri Extension water quality specialist.“Bacteria is one of those things that is easy to control, but it is something you need to check for,” says Bob Broz. “The best time to test a well for bacteria is in late spring or early summer during wet weather.”
MU tool helps farmers decide on pasture insurance
COLUMBIA, Mo.–Is pasture insurance right for your farm? The answer could be yes, no or maybe.University of Missouri Extension recently launched an online tool that can help farmers decide if purchasing pasture, range and forage (PRF) insurance makes sense for their operation.MU Extension agricultural economist Ray Massey says that unlike most crop insurance, PRF is based on rainfall rather than yield.
AgrAbility program from MU helps farmers after injury
BETHEL, Mo –Chris Allen wanted out of the bed. He argued with hospital staff that he needed to go home to harvest crops, feed cattle and cut firewood to heat his farmhouse. The lifelong Shelby County farmer had a brain aneurysm that resulted in a life-threatening hemorrhagic stroke on his farm in August of 2010. But the thought of crops in the field nagged at him while he was a patient at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis and Rusk…
AgrAbility program helps horse trainer begin ride of his life
NEW FRANKLIN, Mo. – Zane Volkmann always wanted to be a horse trainer.A serious accident weeks before his senior year of high school slowed his gait, but it didn’t throw him.He cinched up his saddle and began the ride of his life. “You just pick your lip up off the ground and go ride,” he said.
Deep tillage buries seeds of weeds that can’t be killed by herbicides
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Deep-six weed seeds to control pigweeds and other herbicide-resistant pests in soybean fields.“I’m not advocating a return of moldboard plowing,” said Kevin Bradley, University of Missouri weed scientist. “Burying weed seeds with deep tillage does provide one more tool in dealing with resistant pigweeds.”
Drones draw interest to crop scouting and other new farm uses
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Remote sensors can play a big part of farming in the future. Those sensors can be on a 10-foot pole or a satellite 250 miles out in space.The sensors of most interest at an agriculture technology fair, July 17, were on an unmanned aerial vehicle, or drone, that looks like a toy helicopter. Farmers and agribusiness came to see, learn and do.
Building beef cow herd requires quality management and genetics
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Rebuilding a beef cow herd to capture record-setting high prices is more than saving heifers to breed.Dave Patterson, University of Missouri Extension beef specialist, said heifers need management – and new breeding technology.Producers who do it right benefit in the long term. Patterson spoke to a national meeting of the American Society of Animal Science in Kansas City, July 23.
Don’t turn up your nose at turnips
COLUMBIA, Mo. – You may not be able to squeeze blood from a turnip, but you can easily grow this tasty and nutritious vegetable.Turnip is an ancient vegetable that’s been cultivated for thousands of years. While turnips can be found in European cuisine, David Trinklein, horticulture specialist for University of Missouri Extension, says turnips don’t often show up in American cuisine.“Turnip is an underappreciated and under used fall…
Aid for ailing plants
COLUMBIA, Mo. – If you have the sniffles or a bad infection, a visit to your doctor can usually put things right. Plants can get sick too and the University of Missouri Plant Diagnostic Clinic is where you can turn for help.
Teachers learn energy lessons to pass on to students
Columbia, Mo. – Sara Johnson, a biology teacher at Montgomery County High School, has some new lessons about energy for her students this fall.
How much rent should I get for my farm?
LINNEUS, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension’s upcoming Farm Lease Program helps landowners and renters make decisions about renting farm ground.
Wear a helmet when horseback riding
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Horse trainer Zane Volkmann calls his riding helmet an “anti-watermelon cracker.”Volkmann, who suffered a brain injury two years ago while riding, spent part of his summer college-related internship encouraging horseback riders to wear a helmet.His most recent appearance was at a safety expo sponsored in part by University of Missouri Extension. He also talked about helmet protection in the agriculture safety booth at…
Crop sensors improve nitrogen application
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Sensor-guided nitrogen application can save corn producers money and increase yields, says Peter Scharf, University of Missouri Extension soil scientist.Scharf showed how crop sensors diagnose variable nitrogen needs at a recent farmer technology field day at MU’s Bradford Research Center. In the last decade, on-farm demonstrations have been carried out in more than 100 cornfields and a dozen cotton fields in Missouri.