AgAlerts 2002 From Griggs County
By John Swenson, Griggs County Extension Agent

Issue # 1, April 25, 2002

    Greetings.  Time to start another series of AgAlerts for 2002.  These articles will be posted once a week throughout the growing season.  If you have any questions concerning any of these articles or issues, please e-mail me at the address listed at the bottom of this page.    

Nutrition Facts for Spring Wheat Production

Nitrogen (N)
  • 2.0 to 2.5 lb/bu is needed.  example a 40bu yield estimate will require 80 to 100 lbs of N.
  • About 80% of N uptake occurs before heading.
  • Necessary for photosynthesis.
  • Adequate supplies increase water efficiency.
  • Uptake varies among varieties & environment.
 Phosphate (P2O5)
  • Requires approximately 0.6 to 0.7 lb/bu.
  • As much as 70% of P uptake occurs before heading.
  • Essential for vigorous root and shoot growth.
  • Increases tillering and grain heads per acre.
  • Necessary for energy storage and transfer in plants.
  • Immobile in soil.
  • Advances maturity, lowers grain moisture at harvest.
  • Improves input efficiency, especially N.
Potash (K2O)
  • Requirements for K are approximately equal to N.
  • About 85% of K uptake occurs before heading.
  • More than 2 lb/a taken up each day during peak demand.
  • Helps plants tolerate moisture stress, lowers incidence of disease and lodging.
  • Increases water use efficiency.
 Sulfur (S)
  • A high-yielding crop requires about 0.25 lb/bu.
  • Essential for chlorophyll formation.
  • Can increase N and P use efficiency.
Magnesium (Mg)
  • A high yielding crop will take up 20 lb/a or more.
  • Involved in photosynthesis.
  • A part of chlorophyll.
 Chloride (Cl)
  • Involved in the photosynthetic process.
  • Helps plants retain moisture under stress conditions.
  • Helps lower incidence of foliar and root fungal diseases, especially when shoot Cl concentrations are below 0.15%.
  • Responsiveness to Cl differs among varieties.
Micronutrients
  • Most common deficiencies are from copper (Cu), Maganese (Mn), and zinc (Zn).
  • Deficiencies usually are visible by tillering.
  • Visible deficiency symptoms frequently occur too late for corrective measures.
  • High availablility of P can limit uptake of Cu, Mn and Zn.

A Skunk Remedy That Works

    Skunks are now starting roam around and might come into contact with pets or humans.  Here's a new way to "de-smell" pets or people who get into tangles with skunks.  Paul Krebaum worked in a lab in Lisle, Illinois, that uses alkaline hydrogen peroxide to scrub hydrogen sulfide from waste gas streams.  The alkaline hydrogen peroxide also destroys chemicals called thiols in certain situations.  One of Krebaum's colleague's cats had an unfortunate encounter with a skunk.  After trying the standard remedies, like tomato juice, the cat still smelled too bad to let back into the house.  As a chemist, Krebaum realized that skunk spray is composed mostly of low-molecular thiols, and suggested using a version of the alkaline hydrogen peroxide mixture to wash the cat.  It worked liked magic, and the cat was allowed back into the house.
    Tom McCutcheon, a biologist with the West Virginia Dept. of Agriculture who often got calls from people whose pets get mixed up with skunks, heard about the incident.  He went out and found a road-killed skunk, doused the entire animal with the same mix of chemicals, and ended up with a completely deodorized dead skunk.

Here's the potion:
        1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide (from a Pharmacy)
        1/4 cup baking soda
        1 teaspoon liquid soap
Mix together and wash, keeping the mixture out of the animal's eyes, nose and mouth.  Follow with a thorough tap water rinse.
Source:  Countryside & Small Stock Journal (Farm Show, Vol. 19 #4, 1995)

Crop Storage Management During Spring and Summer

    This is a reminder to continue to monitor your stored crops so that they will not go out of condition during the spring and summer months.  Summer temperatures are ideal for growing insects and molds.  Therefore, grain must be even drier for storage during spring and summer than for storage during the colder winter months.  The grain moisture content should be checked to make sure it is dry enough for summer storage.  Recommended moisture contents for some crops are:  Soybeans - 11%, Corn - 13.5%, Small Grains - 13%, Flax - 7% and Sunflower - 8%.
    Start warming as soon as the average temperature is 10 F warmer than the crop.  Larger temperature differences between the air and crop will increase the the quantity of condensation.  Do not warm the grain to temperatures above 50 F.  Continue to aerate until all the grain has been warmed.  
    It does not matter whether which direction (push or pull) the air as long as all the grain has been warmed.  Pushing the air through the grain is easier to monitor since any condensation will be observable on the top of the grain.  
    Once the proper storage temperature is reached cover the aeration ducts.  Excessive warming of the grain will occur if the duct is uncovered.  Also, an uncovered duct is an open hole into the grain bin for rodents, insects and water.  Be sure to check grain storage every two weeks and check the temperature of the stored commodity in several places in the bin.  Good management is the key to keeping commodities in top quality shape.

 

 

Please Contact Our Office For Additional Information
E-mail: griggs@ndsuext.nodak.edu
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