19.11.2014

USA - Snowfall brings sudden end to harvest

The return of wintry weather to Minnesota brought a sudden end to to this year's harvest.In some cases, farmers were not able to get all of their corn harvested before the snow began flying, according to Lisa Behnken, an extension educator with the University of Minnesota. While other farmers were able to get all their corn out of the field, the quick cold snap means they didn't get a chance to make corn stock bales or finish tilling their land."Absolutely the snowfall was a problem, and basically everything came to an abrupt halt on Tuesday, Nov. 11," Behnken said.Despite the chilly weather and only 2.7 days suitable for fieldwork this week, farmers managed to harvest 95 percent of the state's corn crop — that's 11 days ahead of normal, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The snowy weather does mean that some standing corn will have to wait until spring to be harvested.When it comes to corn yields, Behnken said results vary widely, depending on location. While some farmers in the state saw yields as low as 90 bushels per acre, others saw yields of 300 bushels per acre. Minnesota's average corn yield this year is projected to be 165 bushels per acre, according to the USDA."It's a highly variable crop as far as yield and condition that that crop came out of the field in," Behnken said. "For some folks, it was a very good year, they had a really good crop, a lot of bushels out there, did well. For others, it was very disappointing."While corn is selling for less than half of what it was two years ago, the price of $3.25 per bushel is still better than some analysts were expecting, said Dave Heins, employee at All-American Co-op in Eyota."To some of us it seems like an awful good price yet. We were expecting a lot lower because there's a big crop," he said.Part of the reason for the better-than-expected price might have to do with farmers opting to store their grain instead of selling it, Heins said. The big question weighing on the minds of farmers is whether those prices will go down.Heins added, "Looming in the back of our mind is is this going to be the '80s where crop prices are below production costs for a couple of years? Time will tell."Source - http://www.postbulletin.com/

19.11.2014

Why pesticides are so harmful to bees

What are they?Neonicotinoid (NNI) pesticides are used to protect crop seeds from damage cause by pests. They are most commonly used on oil seed rape.Chemicals are absorbed into the plant making all parts of it – including pollen and nectar – poisonous to insects.However scientists and campaigners say neonicotinoids have a greater environmental impact, both for plants and animals.Ironically, the loss of bees is considered potentially damaging to agriculture because of the role they play in pollinating other plants.When did the problem start?NNI were introduced into farming in the early 1990s, but became commonly used in the 2000sThe European Commission announced an EU-wide ban on the substances in April 2013 which is set to expire next year.Britain agreed to comply with the ruling, but said it didn’t agree with the science behind the decision.What is the problem?Concern has focussed on honey bees, whose population has declined by around 25 per cent in recent years.Numerous studies have directly linked bee death to the use of neonicotinoid – though not everyone is convinced.Critics say too many test are carried out in unnatural laboratory conditions, and that their results are therefore not reliable.They also point to loss of habitat and changing land use as reasons why numbers are dropping.How do neonicotinoids affect bees?Researchers claim they interfere with bees’ brains, limiting their abilities to learn and remember what food they should be eating.Some experiments link the pesticide to a form of bee epilepsy, in addition to reduced breeding activity.What’s happening now?Critics claim a ban extension would put crops at risk and harm the economy.Chemical firms say it isn’t necessary, and are eager not to lose out on sales worth billions of pounds.They have lobbied both the British government and EU regulators, but without success.More recently, Bayer and Syngenta commissioned a study by an independent research lab, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.It is wholly funded by the two companies – an arrangement supported by Defra.An independent committee of experts was also set up to oversee every stage of the process.Meanwhile UK has set out a national pollinator policy to protect Britain’s bees.So what’s the issue?MPs on the Environmental Audit Committee have criticised the government’s position for being too reliant on industry data and funding.They have raised concerns over whether Bayer and Syngenta may have unduly influence the study into neonictinoids effects after emails between the three parties emerged.The discovery led Conservative MP Zac Goldmsith to claim the study “can longer be regarded as independent or credible.”Both Bayer and Syngenta strongly refute any suggestion of bias and have denied playing any undue role in the experiment’s design.CEH say the study is no different to any other, and that they have “complete freedom” over the tests’ design and how the data is analysed and published.Source - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

19.11.2014

Reru - The red spot threatens organic bananas

The use of pesticides or other chemicals is prohibited in organic farming. Thus, organic farmers must cope with their crops' eventualities naturally, only with the resources of the earth.Organic bananas are being affected by the red spot thrip, a plague that has already affected crops in the north of Peru and in Ecuador.Thrips are insects that feed on vegetables, fruits, and cereals, among other things. After feeding on the plants, these insects leave white spots, surrounded by their droppings that look like black spots. In the past four years, organic banana plantations have begun to be affected by the attack of the thrips, which damage the quality of the fruit by staining the pericarp or fruit's rind with a reddish-brown colour that, in severe cases, can crack the fruit. In this regard, the deputy of Sullana's Productive Management said: "The red spot produces a stain on the fruit's skin. While it's true its presentation is damaged, this does not change the fruit's palatability or quality protein, but the change in appearance makes it less attractive for the export market. "The main affected area is Piura. This region, which accounts for over 80% of organic banana crops in the country, is known for its dry climate, which is ideal for the development of red spot thrips. According to the National Organic Banana Board, estimates are that nearly 40% of the organic banana crops in this region are infected to a lesser or greater extent with this pest.The measures taken by most of the producers are isolated solutions that do not comprise a comprehensive plan among all producers of this crop. In this regard, Julio Chicchón, president of the Association of Producers of Organic Banana from the San Lorenzo Valley, said there was a fund to counter the red spot, but that it wasn't operational because of bureaucratic issues.According to Jorge Landeo, agricultural engineer in charge of ecological certification, the lack of a solution has lead many producers to stop being green. "Many banana producers have opted to stop being green because of this pest, as they have no alternative but to use chemicals." According to Landeo, the problem is that the producers don't have other support crops that make the pests more bearable. "The banana plantations are monocultures, where only bananas are grown. They don't have other species that could make the affectation of the main crop more tolerable. They haven't diversified and that's a problem for these producers," he said.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

18.11.2014

USA - Snow brings end to field work

Snow Nov. 10 and 11 effectively shut down any remaining field work in central Minnesota. In Stearns County, there was nearly a foot of snow, while Kandiyohi County received approximately 10 inches in its first snow storm of the year.To get so much snow so early was quite unusual, said Jodi DeJong-Hughes, University of Minnesota Extension educator based in the Willmar Regional Extension office. Snow may have arrived around the same time or earlier in previous years, but would maybe be a couple inches and later melt."This looks like it's staying for awhile," DeJong-Hughes said.Luckily, most producers in west central Minnesota were out of the field already, with only a few spots of standing corn left. With more snow on the way and wind drifting the existing snow, DeJong-Hughes expects any remaining corn to stay in the field until spring. Advance warning of the storm spurred producers to get through their fields and get tillage done if they had the time, machinery and manpower to do so."They worked hard that weekend," DeJong-Hughes said. "They were pushing it. I saw a lot doing tillage right behind the combines."To the northeast, in Stearns County, there was also some corn left, primarily in fields where producers were hoping to get a little more dry down, said Dan Martens, Extension educator based at the St. Cloud Regional Extension office. The wet spring forced the area's producers to wait to get corn planted until the first week of June. With moisture still in the high 20s, the corn that did get in the field was destined to be chopped for silage, Martens said.If the weather cooperates, producers would like to get into the field to salvage remaining crop, but conditions on the ground will determine whether that happens. The snow from the previous storm would need to settle down to a level combines could deal with, Martens said.Even if some stranded crop survives the winter, stands will have more field loss due to droppage, stalks breaking and wildlife rummagers.Martens was concerned about what producers in his area would do with manure that needs to be hauled. Most producers will need to make room in their storage facilities for wintertime accumulations and existing holdings will have to go somewhere, Martens said.Soybean harvest was completed in both areas.The most difficult thing about this growing season may be the brevity all around."We've had some years lately where crops have been delayed, but we've had longer falls to take care of that crop," Martens said. "It's been awhile since we've been shut down this significantly this early."USDA saysBefore the snow came through, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had made assessments for its November crop forecast. Even without the weather effects, the corn forecast for Minnesota was down 3 percent from the October forecast, to 1.29 billion bushes. That amount would be 1 percent lower than 2013's crop, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service Crop Production report released Nov. 1.Corn yields were expected to average 165 bushels per acre, up 5 bushels from 2013, but 5 bushels below the October forecast. Corn planted acreage is estimated at 8.3 million acres and acres to be harvested for grain is estimated at 7.8 million.Minnesota soybean production is forecast at 305 million bushels, a 10 percent increase from the previous year, but unchanged from the October forecast. The Nov. 1 yield forecast of 42 bushels per acre is unchanged from October. Soybean planted acreage is estimated at 7.35 million acres with 7.27 million acres to be harvested.Sugarbeet production is forecast at 9.83 million tons for Minnesota, down 6 percent from the previous forecast and 11 percent below 2013. Yield is forecast at 22.6 tons per acre, down 1.5 tons from the previous forecast and 3.4 tons per acre below last year's yield. Acres for harvest are up 9,000 acres from last year, at 435,000 acres.Source - http://www.agrinews.com/

18.11.2014

India - Decline in citrus fruit production causes concern

A widespread decline in the production of citrus fruits in several Arunachal Pradesh districts has caused alarm among orange farmers in the state as well as in the Horticulture Department.Lohit and Lower Dibang Valley, the two major orange producing districts, are particularly affected by the phenomenon as many farmers had to abandon hundreds of hectares of orange orchards.According to a survey conducted by the Arunachal Pradesh Horticulture Research and Development Mission (APHRDM) from October 26 to October 31, Wakro in Lohit district, known as the orange bowl of the state, and Roing and Korunu circles in Lower Dibang Valley district are the worst affected.APHRDM mission director Egam Basar, who studied the problem, said that there was an urgent need to address the problem, caused by a host of diseases, before it spread to other districts.Though decline in citrus fruit is caused by several factors, the survey team zeroed in on three causes - nutrient deficiency (especially zinc deficiency), greening disease and viral infection (Tristeza and Yellow Corky Vein virus), responsible for the crisis."Greening disease is caused by gram negative bacteria which gets into orchards through infected planting materials and later transmitted to other plants through a fly called Citrus Psylla.Measures to control the diseases include both controlling the bacteria as well as the insect carrier, Basar says.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

18.11.2014

Canada - P.E.I. soybean crops face $9M loss because of wet weather

More than half of P.E.I.'s soybean crop has not been harvested and some farmers and the P.E.I. Grain Elevators Corporation are getting worried.It’s been too wet to harvest the beans. The harvesters could get stuck, and the beans must be dry; the drier the bean, the greater the earnings.About 20,000 acres worth $9 million remain in the fields.“It's devastating, devastating, and no good outlook in the weather as far as we can see,” said Lloyd MacLeod, a soybean farmer.He’s been farming soybeans for twenty years. On Monday, he unloaded some of them at the grain elevator in Kensington. He got his crop harvested a few weeks ago.But some farmers have barely started, as most concentrated on getting their potatoes in first.“You just hope the weather clears and you can get in and cut them. Other than that, there's not a thing you can do,” MacLeod said.Harvesting window closingNeil Campbell at the Grain Elevator checks soybeans for moisture content. He's worried about getting enough to fulfill contracts signed months ago.“The old saying is you don’t get paid unless you can deliver and get them off the field,” he said.“There’s a certain window and now they have to wait for the ground to freeze and get rid of this snow."If the beans stay in the wet fields too long, they’ll become mouldy and worthless. Crop insurance would cover losses, but that would drive up premiums.Farmers need several days in a row without precipitation to harvest soybeans. They're looking forward to this weekend, which at this point looks to be cool and sunny.Source - http://www.cbc.ca/

18.11.2014

India - More farmers file kharif crop insurance claims this year

The number of farmers applying for crop insurance for kharif seaon has gone up almost 3 per cent compared with last year. With the delay in rainfall and recent unseasonal rain, agriculture department officials said the applications for rabi crops is also likely to be high.As many as 37,663 farmers have applied for kharif crop insurance for the year 2014-15 for 24,570.19 hectares of land. In the year 2013-14, as many as 36,571 farmers applied for the kharif crop insurance cover for 30,209.72 hectares of land.Officials said the rise in the applications for crop insurance during kharif season is because of the fresh government resolution earlier this year regarding the compensation to be awarded. Farmers cultivating rice, jowar, bajra, udid, moong, tur, sesame, groundnut, soyabean, sunflower, cotton and onion will get 60 per cent of the total loss, while the compensation for sugarcane crop damage will be 80 per cent.The agriculture department has initiated the process to receive applications for insurance for rabi crops like jowar, gram, wheat and summer groundnut. The last date for submission of applications is December 31. An official at the agriculture department said the farmers would be able to take benefits upto 150 per cent of the base amount. The ideal time for rabi crop sowing is between September 15 and October 15, however, the unseasonal rain has delayed the process. Officials at the agriculture department said the numbers are expected to rise for insurance of these crops too.Last year, 8,366 farmers had applied for the insurance cover for damages to rabi crops over 3221.04 hectares of land. The farmers have to register under the national agriculture insurance scheme and report damages to the talathi concerned to get the benefit. In case of hailstorms, landslides and cyclones, farmers have to inform the government official within 48 hours.An official said the farmers have to furnish the certificate of the area sown from the appropriate authority along with the claim form. The banks should verify the same before accepting the application, which is to be kept in the record for reference.Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

18.11.2014

New Zealand - Hail 'unlikely to dent outlook'

Although Motueka's severe hail of a fortnight ago was devastating for the hardest hit orchardists, the national impact will be slight because the affected area was relatively small.The overall Nelson kiwifruit crop accounts for only about 4 per cent of the national crop, and even taken together with the hail damage from the Bay of Plenty about the same time, hail losses would impact on less than 1 per cent of the national crop and would have no impact on overall prices, said a spokeswoman for Zespri, the exporter that supplies about 30 per cent of the world's supply.Sally Gardiner, the general manager supply chain for Zespri, said the company had received notifications of damage from 20 orchards from the significant hail in the Nelson area and another 67 from a hail event in the Bay of Plenty recently.Zespri operates a hail insurance scheme that automatically covers all Zespri kiwifruit destined for export. All claims under the Zespri insurance scheme are assessed by an independent loss assessor."Preliminary inspections of the South Island orchards were carried out the week before last and Bay of Plenty inspections were done last week. Preliminary inspections have revealed that around 50 of the 87 notifying orchards suffered leaf damage but without significant loss of fruitlets or buds - so, while there are some impacts, those orchards should be able to deliver a good marketable crop for 2015," said Gardiner.Nineteen orchards have suffered varying amount of loss, ranging from moderate to severe. A portion of these orchards will be considered a total loss.Zespri's hail insurance scheme has an excess of 10 per cent and a total of $12 million cover split between green and other varieties is available to growers and is jointly funded by Zespri growers and the insurer.The events in Motueka happened when green kiwifruit were pre-fruit set, so an orchard assessed as a constructive total loss, or "write-off", will receive $3 per tray for the crop they would have harvested had the hail event not occurred, minus the excess. Gold was further along in maturity so the compensation is $7 per tray for orchards assessed as a constructive total loss, said Zespri.This compares to last season's national figures for orchard gate returns of $5.23 a tray for green kiwifruit and $12.91 for gold.NZ Hops operations manager Warren Amos said three hop growers were hit by hail and that Motueka hops grower Kim McGlashen would have the best read on the overall impact.McGlashen said given how early in the season it was, he doubted it would have any effect on the overall crop size."The plants have a pretty good chance of producing a good crop," he said. Vigorous hops vines would send out new shoots that could be retrained.He said for the three growers affected, who were in Dehra Doon and around the corner in Swamp Rd, Riwaka, costs would be up, but overall production should not be affected.Source - http://www.stuff.co.nz/

18.11.2014

India - Rain hit 25% vineyards in district, say grape growers

Unseasonal rain over the past four days has affected around 25 per cent of the total vineyards in the country's wine capital.The Maharashtra Rajya Draksha Bagayatdar Sangh (MRDBS), the state grape growers association, said the grapes affected were in the stages of flowering and harvest.The state agriculture department has started assessing the damage due to unseasonal rain that hit the district in the past four days.Speaking to TOI, Kailas Bhosale, Nashik divisional president, MRDBS, said, "The unseasonal rain across the district has hit around 25 per cent of the total vineyards. The vineyards in the district are in stages of flowering and harvesting. The rainwater has pierced flowering and developed cracks in the grapes in the stage of harvesting. The grapes in Baglan and Satana talukas were in stages of harvesting."When contacted, an official from state agriculture department said, "We are in the process of assessing the damages to the crop caused due to unseasonal rain in the past three-four days in the district. The assessment is expected to be completed in a day or two."The area under table grape cultivation is close to 1.6 lakh acre across the district. An estimated 25 per cent of the total area or vineyards on 40,000 acre have been damaged due to unseasonal rain in the district. Information pertaining to the exact losses will be available after the receipt of crop damage assessment report.Last year too, the unseasonal rain accompanied by hailstorms had hit the crops and orchards across the district in the months of February and March. Around 4,280 hectares of the total 63,000 hectares of vineyards were affected due to hailstorms during this period. The proportion of losses to vineyards was low as compared with other crops and orchards.Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

17.11.2014

USA - Northwest apple farmers scramble to save last of their fruit

An Arctic air mass has swept into the Northwest. Cold air and snow are expected from central Washington through central Oregon and even into Idaho’s central Panhandle.Workers at Broetje Orchards in southeast Washington pulled some midnight shifts lately to try and save the last of the apples from the recent Arctic air.That means farmers in the region are rushing to harvest the last of their apples before the fruit freezes.In southeast Washington, Joe Shelton manages one of the world’s largest fruit orchards. He said few things are colder than a picking bag full of 30 pounds of 30-degree fruit strapped close to your body.This week, Shelton has been running crews until midnight trying to save the last of the orchard’s Fujis and Braeburns. All together, Shelton said about 30,000 boxes of apples will probably rot on the trees.“It’s hard, everyone is kind of deflated, ‘cause we’ve all worked so hard,” Shelton said. “Even all the guys that we have out there picking, it’s like a week shorter of harvest, they could have made another week’s wages. You just hate to see them hanging out there and going to nothing.”Once apples freeze, they can’t go to the fresh market. And Shelton said juice prices are so low this year it doesn’t pay to pick them.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

17.11.2014

Argentina - Hail causes huge losses to the blueberry sector

"The hailstorm hit the department of Metan, in the province of Salta, and hit about a thousand tons of upcoming blueberry harvest. Three minutes of hail were enough to destroy an entire season of promising crop. Due to the total loss of their plantations, the Extraberries SA Company was forced to terminate abruptly, the campaign that began on September 1 and that was programmed to last until the end of November," said local MP Bernardo Biella.The MP added that as a result, more than three thousand workers lost their source of income. The company lost all of its production because of the weather event and they only need about seven hundred workers to prune the plants and prepare the plantations for the 2015 season.Biella remarked: "We've presented a project in order to address issues of the same problem: the activation of the agricultural emergency contemplated by law 26,509 can be implemented when the needs of the affected producers, their employees and their families are pressing and require immediate financial assistance and when harvesters abruptly lose their jobs in these circumstances. We the representatives have requested the government tries to give solutions to both workers and producers."Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

17.11.2014

Russia - Altai region introduced emergency to receive federal aid for lost harvest

Buckwheat trade problems have begun in the region.“According to preliminary estimates, over 500 Th ha of crops were lost. Losses associated with direct costs have totaled about RUB 1.5 Bl,” reads the decree of Altai governor Alexandr Karlin.The region’s authorities are going to request the Ag Ministry to assess the incurred damages and the Russian government to partially compensate for crop losses to farmers. In addition, the region accounts for 40% of the country’s buckwheat output.Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

17.11.2014

Australia - Grain harvest downgraded by 100,000 tonnes because of dry spring weather

A dry finish to spring in South Australia has downgraded the state's crop forecast by 100,000 tonnes, according to Primary Industries and Regions SA.The crop is now expected to total 7.5 million tonnes, harvested from four million hectares.Despite the downgrade from the previous Crop and Pasture Report, published in October, the harvest will still be above the long-term average.PIRSA's grains industry accounts manager Dave Lewis says the South East was particularly hard hit by the lack of rain, with yields dropping by about 30 per cent, although other regions fared a bit better."Grain yields might have been impacted worse by the dry finish."But it has been pleasantly surprising to see crop estimates comes in as they have."It really does show how important stored soil moisture is and the farming technologies farmers now use to sow their crop in a timely manner."Despite the adverse weather, barley yields and quality have been a highlight for all the state's growing regions, according to the report.The same can't be said for canola, which in many areas was hit hard by the deadly Beet Western Yellows Virus.Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

17.11.2014

Colombia - 71,500 hectares of citrus at risk because of HLB

The Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA) constantly surveils the 71,500 hectares of seeded orange, tangerine, lime, lemon and grapefruit in the country to prevent the arrival of Huanglongbing (HLB), a pest that has already reduced the production of citrus in Florida, USA, by 50 percent.Yong Ping Duan, an American expert in the HLB, said that all the citrus groves in Florida were infected and that the citrus industry had lost $4 billion dollars and 8,000 jobs last year.Although the insect that transmits the disease was detected in Tolima, Colombia, seven years ago, so far there is no evidence that plantations are infected. The ICA works to keep the bacterium from reaching its final development, characterized by rapid spread.Luis Humberto Martinez, manager of ICA, estimated that there were nearly 3,500 citrus growers in 26 departments in the country to whom he had pledged to maintain a constant accompaniment to avoid infection. "We've been working with growers for seven years and have been able to maintain a favourable status, keeping it will depend on the joint work we do."Next year, the government will allocate $1,200 million pesos to implement prevention programs for the HLB; according to Martinez, the investment could be higher.Emilio Arevalo, head of ICA's Epidemiology department, the desire to prevent the arrival of this disease is not unique to Colombia, as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) considers the HLB to be one of the most devastating diseases for the citrus production in the world and because there is no treatment to eradicate it so far.PreventionThe officials acknowledged that the HLB is unavoidable. "The entire health protection program of the countries that are free from it (like Colombia) is to take preventive measures to delay the entry of the disease because, seeing the evolution it has had in the continent, it is going to arrive to the country."An additional concern in the Colombian case involves the detection of the Candidatus Liberibacter caribbeanus bacterium, which apparently would be associated with the organisms that cause HLB in the world.Adriana Castaneda, technical director of ICA's Analysis department said the discovery had been made last year in the department of Cordoba and that researchers were trying to establish how infectious the bacterium was.So far, $600,000 dollars have been allocated to this end and the findings are not over.The studies conducted by the ICA were focused in Cordoba, the Coffee area and Tolima. Professionals from the ICA are currently conducting the research, but they hope to link researchers from Corpoica, the National University and the Andes University to the study.The disease was discovered in Asia and it was first detected in the American continent in Brazil in 2004. It is also present in Costa Rica and Colombian authorities know that the bug that transmits it is in the country since 2007. Besides citrus, the HLB affects some ornamental species such as the Indian orange blossom or myrtle. The US government, through the Office of Agricultural Affairs is supporting preventive activities against the HLB in Colombia.In short, the Colombian authorities are aware of the latent threat posed by the fungus, which is why the ICA implements measures with producers to prevent any spread that could affect the country.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

17.11.2014

England - Bird Flu detected

Strain of bird flu was detected in England on Sunday a few hours after the outbreak of the disease was registered on a chicken farm in the Netherlands.British authorities confirmed an outbreak of avian influenza at a duck farm in England, a second case of bird flu on the European territory in the course of the weekend.“We have confirmed a case of avian flu on a duck breeding farm in Yorkshire,” British officials said, adding that the strain doesn’t pose any danger to humans. "The public health risk is very low and there is no risk to the food chain," she said, however, not having specified, what type of the virus was detected at the Yorkshire farm.Bird flu can have fatal consequences for all bird species, and some of its strains can be highly contagious for people. H5N1 subtype claimed lives of about 400 people since it emerged in 2003, having a death rate of 60% among humans, according to WHO. H7N9 subtype was found in 2013 in China and killed more than 170 people since that time.The case is reported to be the first in England since 2008. British officials set up an exclusion zone around the farm and started culling process as part of a complex of prevention and security measures.On Sunday, a highly pathogenic strain of bird flu was also detected at a chicken farm in Netherlands. To prevent the disease from spreading, Dutch authorities prohibited transporting of poultry and eggs across the country’s regions and imposed ban on hunting.Source - http://www.blackseagrain.net/

14.11.2014

USA - Winter weather pushes fieldwork into high gear

With snow and cold, soggy conditions on the near horizon, Wisconsin farmers scrambled to get fieldwork done last week.According to the Nov. 10 “Wisconsin Crop Progress & Condition Report”, some farmers were working through the night to clear fields while conditions allowed.“Farmers were really hitting the fields hard trying to get as much done as possible before the winter weather rolls in this week,” the Juneau County reporter shared in the document created with input from farm reporters and county ag agents across the state.The first full week of November ended with 52 percent of fall tillage finished, beating last year’s 46 percent and the five-year average of 44 percent.Unfortunately, many in the Eastern section of the state were stymied by rain and snow late in the week that interrupted fieldwork and drove up grain moistures. The precipitation created slick field conditions and wind that lodged some standing corn.Marathon County was hit with its first major snowstorm of the season. “Harvests are slow going with muddy fields,” the reporter said. Most corn silage is off, he added, but just under 50 percent of the corn still needs to be harvested.Precipitation totals for the week ranged from 0.08 inches in La Crosse to 0.73 inches in Green Bay.Light showers fell on La Crosse County every couple of days, making bringing in the corn difficult. “Good crop, though,” that reporter observed.Across the rest of the state, conditions were much dryer and good progress was made during the week that offered 5.3 days suitable for fieldwork. Average temperatures fell between normal to 3 degrees above normal with average highs ranging from 46 to 56 degrees and average lows falling between 32 to 37 degrees.With forecasts of substantial snow and much colder weather, reporters were concerned about the amount of corn and soybean still to be harvested and the amount of manure still to be spread.There’s a lot of fertilizer that needs to be hauled in Manitowoc County. “With wet field conditions and potential cold/ground freezing temps on the way, moving manure could be a real challenge this fall,” the reporter observed.Statewide, the corn silage and soybean harvests were nearing completion.In Bayfield County, the week was pleasantly dry, meaning lots of corn silage and soybeans were harvested with reports of some very good yields on corn. St. Croix County farmers enjoyed nice fall weather as they harvested corn and lots of corn stocks for bedding.As of Nov. 9, 93 percent of Wisconsin’s corn was mature, compared to last year’s mark and the five-year average of 98 percent. The condition of corn held at 72 percent good to excellent.Corn for silage was 96 percent harvested, compared to last year’s 99 percent and the five-year average of 100 percent.In Barron County, manure hauling was keeping farmers busy, fall tillage equipment was being used heavily, and the grain crop harvest was in full swing. “The corn is heading to grain dryers at 18 to 22 percent moisture,” the reporter commented.By week’s end, the harvest of corn for grain topped 50 percent, lagging last year’s mark of 60 percent and the five-year average of 68 percent. The grain moisture at harvest averaged 23 percent.Most of the corn in Shawano County tested above 25 percent moisture. “There’s still a fair amount of soybeans left to harvest with moisture being quite high in them yet,” the reporter added.In Jackson County, moisture levels were dropping and the corn harvest was picking up. “Moisture levels are still a little high, so corn agronomy centers are about full, causing things to slow a bit,” the reporter commented.Grain dryers were going full blast across the state, the report said, but some producers were still delaying their grain corn harvest until moisture content falls naturally.As high moisture levels slowed the shell corn harvest in Washington County and farmers waited for dryer conditions, the harvest was just starting in Marinette County. “Moisture content is still high in most fields,” that reporter commented. “Producers may leave corn standing longer this year in an effort to reduce their drying costs.”The corn harvest for grain has not been aggressive in Crawford County either. “However, now with the threat of winter weather upon us, farmers may take a different look at the situation,” the reporter said.There was still a lot of corn in the field across Richland County. “We are hearing that many of the elevators are full,” the reporter shared. “Talk of the winter storm warning led to a big weekend push.”In Juneau County, where moistures were high and yields are even higher, the reporter said dryers were having a hard time keeping up.Fond du Lac County reported extremely variable yields for corn, ranging from just over 100 bushels per acre to well over 200 bushels per acre. A lot of soybeans were in the 50 to 60 bushel per acre range.Bean yields in Crawford County were pretty much average, ranging from 30 bushels per acre up to 50 bushels. “Area farmers seem extremely pleased with corn yields,” the reporter observed.Farmers had pulled off 90 percent of the state’s soybean crop by Nov. 9, edging above the five-year average of 89 percent and last year’s 85 percent.Farmers were nearly done planting winter wheat. By week’s end, 94 percent of the crop had been planted and 79 percent had emerged. The report rated the condition of the crop at 68 percent good to excellent.In Washington County, winter wheat was between 1.5 -2 inches tall, while some Juneau County farmers were still hoping to plant rye for a cover crop.Source - http://www.wisfarmer.com/