I

6 *WISHEk STAR -.-------------- _I

I JUNE 30, 2021

Drouqht: Turning poor grain crops into decent cattle feedThe unprecedented hot,

dry weather in the upperMidwest continues to deteri-orate large aheages of thesmall grains. I

In some] cases, grainyield potential has declinedto a point where harvestingthe small grains as foragemay make more sense thanwaiting to harvest the cropas grain, according to NorthDakota State University andUniversity of Minnesota Ex-tension speci~lists. Reportsof producers chopping smallgrains for f(frage alt·ead.yhave come in from dry areasof North Dakota.

"Before dbing anything,begin having conversationswith your crop insuranceprovider," adv~ses Jared Go-plen , University of Min-nesota Extdnsion cropeducator. "Thtre arc provi-sions related Ito harvestingdrought-stressed crops asforages. To ensure crop in-surance payments, you needto provide a notice of loss toyour insurance provider andget those acres released. Foradditional information, con-tact your crop insuranceagent." ~

Small Gra!ins MakeExcellent ForageSmall-grain hay and

silage can m<ll<eexcellentforage. That ib good newsfor producers because foragesupplies will iighten if thedrought conditions persist.

"The forage quality ofsmall grains is largely deter-mined by thetrowth stagewhen small gains are har-vested," sa s JochumWiersma, Univ rsity of Min-nesota Extension agrono-mist. "If y ur primaryobjective is ton age, waitingto harvest sma I grains untilthe dough sta e will maxi-mize yield but ill sacrificeforage quality.

"The heat . nd dry con-ditions I have sped smallgrains along, eaning manyare at or bey nd the bootstage already' he adds."Quality will c mtinue to godown as the sm II grains rna-

School boardmeets 0finalize gymfloor d cision

SCHOOL BOA~D MINUTESWISHEK PUB IC SCHOOL

DISTRIC #19THURSDAY, J NE 3, 2021

6:00RMSPECIAL ~EETING

WISHEK HIG SCHOOLCONFEREN E ROOMThe June 3, 2021 special

meeting 'of the )iShek SchoolBoard was calle to order byPresident Curt Meidinger at6:04pm with me bers present:Rocky Brown, Br ce Herr, TrinaSchilling, and Melifsa Kaseman-Wolf. AI~o presert was ShawnKuntz.

Discussion leld on gymfloor issues.

Motion by ocky Brown,seconded by Trin Schilling, andapproved by roll all vote: TrinaSchilling '~Yes, ruce Herr -Yes, Rocky Brow - Yes, CurtMeidinger ~ Yes, tAelissa Kase-man-Wolf ~ Yes, t approve gymfloor repair with a bon 2.

Me~ting a journed at6:50pm. I

Curt Meidin er, Presidentlyssa CC'nitz,

Busi ess Mardger

ture. If small grains are se-verely drought-stressed andwithering away, additionalbiomass will not accumulatewithout additional moisture.Drought will likely not havea substantial impact on for-age quality compared withconditions with adequatesoil moisture."

Forage samples should

NEVVS

nitrate level in standing for-age. Extension agents whoare certified can conduct thetest in the field or, if neces-sary, at the office.

"Producers should pro-vide a representative samplecontaining at least 20 stemsby clipping the forage atground level while travelingin a zigzag pattern across the

WWW.MCINTOSH-STAR- TRIBUNE.C<DM

stocklnitrate-poisoning-of-livestock.

Harvesting"As drought conditions

intensify, the lower leaves onsmall grains will dry out,which increases leaf loss po-tential when harvesting asforage," Goplen says. "Cut-ting and harvesting smallgrains prior to excessive leaf

Chopping small grainsat 60% to 70% moisture isbest to make good silage. Indrought-stressed situations,the moisture content alreadymay be below this level,meaning direct choppinglikely will be best. If themoisture content is still 70%or greater, allow wilting timeto decrease the moisture

Expected meager yields mean some farmers will be better off baling grains.

be collected from all har-vested forage to test for for-age quality. Some additionalinformation regarding foragequality testing can be foundat https://extension.umn.edu/forage- harves t-and-storage/measuring- forage-quality.

Check for NitratesThe primary concern

with harvesting drought-stressed small grains as for-age is an excessiveaccumulation of nitrate. Thiscan lead to nitrate poisoningwithout proper care.

"Prior to harvesting,small grains can be tested fornitrates with NDSU's NitrateQuik'Iest," says Zach Carl-son, NDSU Extension beefcattle specialist. 'Thisscreening. tool assesses the

field," he adds. "The NitrateQuikTest is not designed toanalyze nitrate content inharvested forages."

FoUowing harvest,when submitting foragequality samples, be sure tohave samples tested for ni-trate content. Nitrate contentdoes not decrease throughtime in harvested forages.Therefore, having a properanalysis to determine the ni-trate content of small-grainforage before feeding it tolivestock is important.

For help collecting for-age samples, interpreting ni-trate sample analysis resultsand additional informationregarding nitrate poisoningin cattle, sheep and goats,visit https://www.ag.ndsu .edu/publications/live-

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loss will improve yield andquality. However, smallgrains will likely have lowernitrate concentrations as theplants mature."

content.The hollow stems in

small grains cause somechallenges in eliminatingoxygen. Using a shorter cut

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length of 3/8 to 112 inch "Yillassist with packing. Whetherpiling or bagging, inSU!fi-cient packing will result ingreater storage losses. All wa fermentation period ofl atleast 21 days before feeding... "~nother benefit ?f 9n-siling IS It can reduce rutra~esby 30% to 70%, meaning 9n-siling is the preferred harvestmethod for crops with con-cer~,s abo.ut h.igh nitrate Id~V-els, . Goplen says.

Small grains can emade into dry hay, especia Iyif nitrates are not a concer:'More mature small grai scan be deceivingly dry insome cases due to moistu epresent in developing heaqs,which can take more time ~odry, compared with moisturein the stem. t

Ensure baled sm Ilgrains arc dry enough, esp -cially before storing insi ebuildings, to prevent h. Yfires. Using a' conditionbrcan aid in dry down. If tThecrop is later in maturity, coh-ditioners may increase shat-tering losses, however.

An alternative to mak-ing dry hay is makingbaleage, which .works wellfor storing smal1 grain for-age. Regardless of the mois-ture content at which hay isharvested, ensure enoughwrap is used (at least 6 mllsii,which typically means sevento eight wraps when a(i;-counting for the stretch ofthe plastic film.

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