Census Provides Opportunity to Grow the Future of Agriculture

    The 2012 Census of Agriculture, the only source of consistent and comprehensive agricultural data for every state and county in the nation, has been mailed to millions of farmers and ranchers across the United States.
Conducted every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), the Census provides detailed data covering nearly every facet of U.S. agriculture. It looks at land use and ownership, production practices, expenditures and other factors that affect the way farmers do business and succeed in the 21st Century.
    "The 2012 Census of Agriculture provides farmers with a powerful voice. The information gathered through the Census influences policy decisions that can have a tremendous impact on farmers and their communities for years to come," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "I strongly encourage all farmers, no matter how large or small their operation, to promptly complete and return their Census, so they can voice to the nation the value and importance of agriculture."
    Vilsack added that in addition to affecting policy decisions, Census information also influences community growth and development. Many companies review Census data when determining where to establish or expand their businesses, as well as where they can go for supplies of locally-produced food and agricultural products, which further emphasizes the importance of supplying accurate information. Information from the Census also is valuable to explain the many ways farming is important to urban or non-farming residents and decision-makers.
    "Along with their accomplishments as business men and women, farmers know about the challenges they face in their local areas," said Vilsack. "Taking part in the Census is increasingly important to farmers and every community in America because it provides important information and helps tell the true story about the state of agriculture in the United States today."
    All farmers and ranchers should receive a Census form in the mail by early January. Completed forms are due by February 4, 2013. Farmers can return their forms by mail or online by visiting a secure website, www.agcensus.usda.gov. Federal law requires all agricultural producers to participate in the Census and requires NASS to keep all individual information confidential.

For more information about the Census, visit www.agcensus.usda.gov or call 1-888-4AG-STAT (1-888-424-7828). The Census of Agriculture is your voice, your future, your responsibility.

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A TIME TO GIVE THANKS

Blackbuck Antelope on Edwards Plateau in Texas.

    As the northeast cleans up and assess losses in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, the unpredictability of Mother Nature is again on full display.  This severe weather event is just one recent example of the types of uncertainties our farmers face day in and day out, and it serves as a compelling argument for the importance of ensuring that our farmers have the tools they need to succeed in feeding our nation.  Locally we have been dealing with a severe drought the last two years, and we are thankful that our Ag producers have access to risk management tools like crop insurance, that can help offset major financial losses due to weather extremes.  Numbers are still being finalized but it looks like more than 69 % of our gain sorghum acres and 89 % of our cotton acres in Nueces County failed in 2012. We remain hopeful that rains will come soon, as our soil moisture conditions remain very dry and the long-range outlook does not hold much promise.
    With all of that bad news from the drought, we still have an adequate supply of food and fiber in our grocery stores and we are not standing in lines to get a loaf of bread, and yes we are all thankful for that!  As we consider the Thanksgiving of 2012, our food costs have remained very reasonable.  The retail cost of menu items for a classic Thanksgiving dinner including turkey, stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie and all the basic trimmings increased less than 1 percent this year, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).
AFBF’s 27th annual informal price survey of classic items found on the Thanksgiving Day dinner table indicates the average cost of this year’s feast for 10 is $49.48, a 28-cent price increase from last year’s average of $49.20.  U.S. consumers spend just 10% of their income on food-the lowest percentage in the world.  We all are thankful for that!
    Ask most Americans where food comes from and they'll say the grocery store. True, but where did the grocery store get its food? The vast majority of America's food and fiber is grown on farms across the country. With fewer and fewer farmers (farm and ranch families comprise just 2 percent of the U.S. population) standing in between feast and famine, America cannot afford to lose even one working farm.  With that said, we should all be thankful for the farmers and ranchers in this country, as today, the average U.S. farmer feeds 155 people. In 1960, a farmer fed just 26 people.  Moreover, today’s farmer grows twice as much food as his parents did – using less land, energy, water and fewer emissions.
    It is my hope that during this time you are able to spend quality time with family and friends and reflect on the many things you enjoy in life and be thankful for those.  Happy Thanksgiving!

STATEWIDE REFERENDUM TO ESTABLISH A GRAIN INDEMNITY FUND FOR FARMERS - VOTING OPENS NOVEMBER 19

    The Texas Grain Producers Indemnity Board is holding a referendum on the statewide establishment of a grain indemnity fund. The TGPIB referendum will be held from Nov. 19, 2012, until Dec. 7, 2012 across the state.
    The grain indemnity fund board may award up to 90 percent of the financial losses suffered by producers of corn, sorghum, soybean and wheat when grain buyers fail to pay for grain due to a financial failure. The TGPIB was established as the result of legislation passed by the 2011 Texas legislature and signed into law by the governor.  Rep. Larry Phillips of Sherman and Sen. Craig Estes of Wichita Falls introduced the legislation after a series of grain buyer financial failures in recent years resulted in millions of dollars in losses to Texas grain producers.
    Eligible voters in the referendum will vote to establish an assessment rate within a range of 0.2 percent to 0.6 percent of the final sales price of grain. The assessment, which will be set each year by the TGPIB, will be collected and remitted to the TGPIB effective Feb. 1, 2013.
    Any producer who has produced corn, sorghum, soybeans or wheat within the last 36 months is eligible to vote. This includes owners of farms on which grain is produced or an owner’s tenant or sharecropper engaged in the business of producing grain or causing grain to be produced for commercial purposes.

The referendum will be held by mail ballot. Ballots will be available at all Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service county offices during regular business hours.  For a ballot to be valid, it must be mailed to the Texas Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 12847, Austin, Texas, 78711, with a postmark date of no later than Dec. 7, 2012.

For more information regarding the referendum, please contact the Texas Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 12847, Austin, Texas, 78711 or call 512-463-3285. To learn more about TGPIB and the indemnity fund, visit www.TexasGrainIndemnity.org.

FORAGE INSURANCE A USEFUL RISK MANAGEMENT TOOL

            An insurance tool that was introduced a few years ago to help manage risk associated with drought or a lack of rainfall in pastures and rangeland has the sales closing dates for the upcoming year set for November 15, 2012.

Drought of 2011 and 2012 in Nueces County, Texas.

            Pasture Rangeland Forage (PRF) crop insurance is a group risk policy that covers livestock grazing and forage land, and in Texas, it is based on a Rainfall Index. The Rainfall Index (RI) uses National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) data and the index reflects how much precipitation is received relative to the long-term average for a specified area or grid and time frame.

            Each grid covers an approximate 12 x 12 mile grid. You must select at least two, 2-month time slots, where rain is important to your operation in your area. These time slots are called index intervals. Your insurance payments will be calculated based on the actual rainfall in the grid and how it differs from normal rainfall within the  grid and index interval(s) you have chosen to insure. When the final grid index falls below your “trigger grid index” (coverage level multiplied by the expected grid index), you will receive a loss payment. This insurance coverage is for a single peril—lack of rain. Coverage is based on the experience of the entire grid. It is NOT based on individual farms or ranches or specific weather stations in the general area.

            PRF insurance was designed for maximum flexibility.  You are not required to insure all your acres, but you cannot exceed the total number of grazing or haying acres you operate. This allows you to insure only those acres that are important to your grazing program or hay operation. By selecting a Productivity Factor, you can establish a value between 60 and 150 percent of the County Base Value and match the amount of your protection to the value of forage that best represents your specific grazing or hay operation, as well as the productivity of your land.

            You will be asked to make several choices when insuring your grazingland or hayland production, including coverage level, index intervals, productivity factor, and number of acres. You will also need to provide your farm numbers. You should work with your crop insurance agent to view the map and index grids for your area, and assign acreage to one or more grids based on the location and use of the acreage that is to be insured.  It is critical that producers review the historical indices for their grid ID to determine how well the past results correspond to their past observations.  Remember the sales closing date  for 2013 crop is November 15, 2012.

            The web site with more information on this program and grid locations and can be found at:  http://www.rma.usda.gov/policies/pasturerangeforage/

Citrus Greening - Concern for Citrus Growers

The Texas Department of Agriculture and the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed the first detection in Texas of citrus greening, in January of this year, and this is a destructive plant disease that poses a threat to the state’s citrus industry. The disease was discovered in a tree in a commercial orange grove in San Juan.  The disease poses absolutely NO threat to human health as it affects only the tree and NOT the fruit itself. Although there is no cause for consumer alarm, the disease has caused serious economic damage to the citrus industries in Florida, Africa, Asia and South America. Citrus producers and homeowners with citrus plants are asked to comply with quarantine measures to protect Texas citrus trees. 

            Recently I have had a few local calls from citrus growers with concerns that they were seeing symptoms associated with this disease, thus I thought a review was important. NO cases have been reported locally to date.

 Citrus greening (CG) is a devastating bacterial disease that affects the production, quality, and appearance of citrus trees. It is also known as huanglongbing, or yellow dragon disease.  CG is caused by the bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, which is vectored by an insect, the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP). This disease has been reported in several southeastern US states since 2005 and was confirmed in Texas on January 2012.

There is no cure for CG, but it can be eradicated if detected early.  The best ways to ensure that the disease does not infect trees in Texas are prevention and early intervention. No one should bring in citrus plants from states where the disease and/or ACP have been detected.  Look for symptoms, inspect citrus trees often, and report any symptoms you see to the Texas Department of Agriculture (512-463-7476; or toll free, 800-835-5832).

A tree that is infected by citrus greening will have two or more of the

following symptoms:

-          Blotchy mottling and yellowing of leaves. This is a common symptom of CG and may appear initially on a single shoot or twig.

-          Bunched, narrow leaves, commonly referred to as “rabbit ears.” Small and narrow yellowed and/or mottled leaves grow in a tight arrangement, resulting in a bunchy appearance

-          Twig and branch die-back.  Infected trees may have leafless twigs and/or branches. Trees appear unhealthy because this portion of the tree may be dead.

-          Reduced fruit size. The fruit is stunted and does not continue to enlarge; it remains green to  partially green in color. Mature fruit may appear lopsided or asymmetrical.

-          Premature fruit drop. CG can cause higher than normal fruit drop.

-     Orange-brown discoloration of the internal flesh. This may appear inside the fruit on tissue where it attaches to the tree. The fruit tastesbitter and sour instead of sweet.

Because of the nature of the CG pathogen, diagnosis is confirmed by molecular testing in a la

Due to the nature of CG pathogen, diagnosis is confirmed by molecular testing in a laboratory.  Samples from Nueces County north , should be sent to the Texas Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab in College Station.  For more information on citrus greening or to report a tree that may have the disease, go to saveourcitrus.org. or .visit texascitusgreening.org.

COOL SEASON FORAGES COULD OFFER WINTER GRAZING

Winter forages are good replacements for the hay bale!

            The recent rainfall has offered forage producers some alternatives if they wish to establish winter pastures.  With predictions for above normal rainfall this fall, planting a winter forage could be a be a good bet to help ease the lack of available forage.  Although cool-season annual forages can be expensive to plant and grow, they can be a less costly substitute for supplements found in a bale, sack, or tub.  There are several options when it comes to a cool season forage, and all have different pros and cons.

            Oat is the least winter-hardy cool season annual grass, but for South Texas, this would be a good choice, since hard freezes are not common. Oats can be planted in early fall and will more than likely produce the most early dry matter of the cool season forages in South Texas.  Keep in mind that forage production can be variable with oats and oats do not grow well on sandy soils, but tolerate wet, poorly drained soils better than other small grains.

            Rye is the most winter hardy of the annual winter pasture grasses. Compared to other annual winter grasses, rye produces more fall and winter forage. It matures earlier in the spring than most wheat varieties - usually peaking in early Spring. Rye grows well on well-drained soils that are sandy in texture.

            Wheat provides the most flexibility as a crop as it can serve as a forage crop and grain crop simultaneously, if managed properly. It produces well on a wide range of soils, with very sandy soils being the exception. One negative aspect of wheat is that most of the production occurs in the Spring.

            Barley and Triticale are cool season annual grasses, but are not as widely used. Barley is most noted for being tolerant of saline and alkaline soils. It does not grow well on sandy soils, but is drought tolerant. Triticale is a "cross" between wheat and rye and its forage production generally exceeds that of wheat.  Triticale has characteristics of both parental lines that may make it the most widely adapted of the small grains.

            Ryegrass is adaptable to a wide range of soil types, growing better on wet soils than most other cool season annual grasses. It can be easily established by simply broadcasting seed on the soil surface or on grass sod, but establishes better if a light disking operation on a short sod is performed prior to broadcasting the seed. Production of dry matter from ryegrass will be late in the cool season; therefore,, most ryegrass will generally occur later than the small grains.  One advantage of ryegrass is that it matures later than other small grains, extending the grazing season.  Moreover, mixtures of small grains with ryegrass can work well to extend the grazing season.

            Legumes like bur medics and clovers are good for the soil and provide good nutrition for livestock, however their dry matter production will be late in the cool season, most of which will occur in early Spring.  Cool season legumes are an attractive option to decrease the production cost associated with nitrogen fertilization because legumes have the ability to fix atmospheric N. Annual clovers can contribute about 75- 100 lbs N/acre for the subsequent grass crop. They are, however, only able to fix N from the air if host-specific strains of Rhizobia bacteria are present in nodules on their roots.

            In South Texas, the general recommendation is to overseed cool-season annual

forages from 6 to 8 weeks before the average first killing frost.   Correct timing for cool-season

annual forage establishment cannot be overemphasized. If planted too early, warm temperatures and the competitive nature of the warm season perennial grass sod can result in stand failure.

            Planting cool-season forages with a drill is usually better than broadcasting as more of the seed is placed at the proper depth. When broadcasted, the seeding rates should be increased 25 to 30% to compensate for fewer seed becoming established plants. Small grains should be planted from 1 to 1.5 inches deep, and ryegrass and clovers should be planted approximately 1/8 to 1/4 inch deep.  Clovers and medics have very small seed and should be broadcast on the soil surface and rolled.  Seeding rates for cool-season small grains range from 90-120 pounds per acre, while ryegrass seeding rates range from 25-30 pounds per acre and clovers and medics range from 4-16 pounds per acre.

            Fertilization for cool-season forages should be based on soil test recommendation and fertilizer should be applied at planting or after emergence, except for phosphorus, which should be applied several weeks ahead of the anticipated planting date.  Nitrogen fertilization of overseeded small grain-ryegrass is usually split into two applications of 50 to 60 lbs/acre each. If ryegrass is planted in combination with a small grain, one to two additional applications of N will be required.  The initial N application on small grains should be delayed until after the small grain-ryegrass is established and cool temperatures have reduced warm-season grass growth.  For ryegrass-only pastures, the first N application should not be applied until mid January and then again approximately six weeks later.

            Although winter pastures provide forage that is high in nutritive value, establishment and maintenance costs are relatively high. Therefore, winter pastures containing small grains should be carefully used to maximize the return on the investment, and one more thing, we have to have rain to make this system work.