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.

Producing Live Oak Trees from Acorns

A Texas A&M Forest Service survey of hundreds of forested plots scattered across the state shows 301 million trees were killed as a result of the devastating 2011 drought.  The figure does not include trees in cities and towns.  Another 5.6 million trees in urban areas — along streets and in yards and parks — also died as a result of the drought, according to a study done earlier this year by the Texas A&M Forest Service Urban Forestry program. 

As we hope that the current drought is coming to a close and think about replacing trees that have been a victim of the drought, some folks may consider the Live Oak Tree.  They are excellent landscape trees that contribute to property values in all parts of the state.

When selecting acorns, consider taking them from the most desirable trees native to the local area. Characteristics worth noting when choosing a mature tree as a seed source are desirability of leaf color and shape, drought tolerance, absence of galls, trunk form, vigor and umbrella-shaped canopies. Growers should understand, however, that oaks are wind pollinated. The undetermined pollen source in the formation of the acorn may dilute the desirable characteristics sought, according to Austin Stockton and David Morgan, formerly with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station.

Acorns are collected in the autumn months, from October to December. It is not uncommon for acorns to germinate while on the trees. Ripe acorns can be picked before they fall; often it is wise to do so in order to escape weevils (Curculio spp.) which attack those that fall to the ground. Acorns that are brown in color are physiologically mature; those which are yellowish are not ripe. As a rule of thumb, a mature acorn will snap cleanly from its cup without leaving a tissue residue.

When checking for viable seed, discard acorns that float in water along with those that show pin-sized weevil exit holes. Live oak seeds frequently contain weevil larvae that prevent germination. Acorn viability is adversely affected by dry storage. If acorns lose as little as 15% of their initial moisture, percent germination may be reduced by one-third; 20% moisture loss may reduce viability by 96%. This is why acorns that have been lying on the ground for 2 days may not germinate. If stored in damp peat moss, acorns will germinate and may remain healthy for a short period of time. After 4 or more weeks storage in wet peat they will begin to rot.

Ideally, acorns should be planted immediately after collection. No scarification or stratification is required; but any remaining cups should be removed.

A well-drained growing medium is preferred for germination in flats. Flats should be at least 6 inches deep. Covering the bottom of the flat with copper wire mesh promotes an extensive, well-developed root system. Seedling tap roots are killed when they touch the mesh, and lateral branching is encouraged. This type of root system is deal for continued growth in 1- and 3-gallon containers. Seedlings may be moved to containers during the spring following fall germination.

If you have questions about planting trees, the Texas A&M Forest Service has an excellent Tree Planting Guide that can be accessed at the following web site; http://texastreeplanting.tamu.edu/