land and livestock post

PRSRT STDUS POSTAGE

PAIDBRYAN, TX 77802PERMIT # 23

JAMES THOMPSONStraight from the horse's mouth.PAGE 3




January 2015— Issue 1

ProperPlanting

Ways to help soil retain moisturePAGE 12

PRSRT STDUS POSTAGE

PAIDBRYAN, TX 77802PERMIT # 23

MASTERINGMEATNew A&MMaster’s focuses on industry.PAGE 3

PREVENTING FIRE CREEPMonitor thatch when burning.PAGE 4

LOW COTTONCotton prices will remain flat in 2015.PAGE 7

BETTER RELATIONSStronger ties with Cuba will help agriculture.PAGES 10 and 11

January 2015— Issue 1

January 2015— Issue 1 The Land & Livestock Post2

News

From theGeneralManagerWelcome to a new year

with the Land &Livestock Post! As I

am writing this it is still 2014,but by the time you read it, I’llprobably already have brokena resolution ortwo.

I always seta few real reso-lutions andthen a few thatI know I canstick to. I gaveup spicy mus-tard one year— that workedout so well I broke the resolu-tion on purpose in the springjust so I could give it up againfor Lent.

I always resolve to try tolose weight, and that rarelyhappens, but I once resolvednot to get any taller and so farthat one is going strong.

We have some great storieson the schedule for this year,and if you ever have anythingyou’d like to read about, justdrop me a line and I’ll see ifwe can squeeze it in.

The first story of the yearis about keeping your soilhealthy.

Every rancher is a farmerin some respect, and everyfarmer needs good soil, so itseemed a good way to kick offthe year.

We also have some infor-mation about upcoming pro-grams and events, as well asother news from around theindustry.

Hope you enjoy it, and asalways, thanks for reading.

Oh, and happy New Year!’Til Next time,

• For more information about con-tent or advertising, contact JesseWright at [email protected].

JESSE WRIGHT

TexasA&Mintroducesmaster’sof agriculturedegreewithanemphasison themeat industry

Special to The Post

COLLEGE STATION — Stu-dents seeking a master’s degreeof agriculture in animal scienceat Texas A&M University nowhave the ability to choose to fol-lowacurriculumspecificallyde-signed to emphasize the meat in-dustry,A&Mofficialsannounced.

The new emphasis for the de-gree plan provides students whohave a bachelor’s degree andsupplemental coursework andpractical experience through in-ternships toprepare foravarietyof careers in, and for future lead-ership of, the U.S. meat industry.

“The meat science program atTexas A&M is one of the leadingprograms of its kind in the na-tion. As such, we have a provenrecordof success focusingon thepreparationof youngscientiststoconduct research, perform foodquality, safety functions andinitiate product development ef-forts,”saidRussellCross,headofanimal science.

“By expanding the existingmaster’sof agriculture inanimalscience to include an emphasison the meat industry, the meatscience program is broadeningand enhancing theknowledge ofyoung people who wish to entertheprofessionalworkforceof theU.S.meatproduction,processingandsalesindustryassupervisoryor middle-management person-nel,” Cross said.

Themasterof agriculturewithanemphasisonthemeatindustryprogramwill focusontheprocessof accelerating the climb up thecorporatemanagementladderbyexposingstudents to the tutelageof veteran industry expertswithrecordsof previous industrysuc-

cess, said Gary Smith, visitingprofessor and chair of the newdegreeprogram’sexecutivecom-mittee.

Students will be required tocomplete36hoursof courseworkin meat science, management,marketing, communication andleadership, and two short-termprofessional internships withinthe meat industry customizedto meet specific student careerinterests. Students can completea graduate certificate in meatscience as a component of thisdegree plan.

“Through collaboration withour colleagues in the depart-mentsof agriculturaleconomics,agricultural leadership,manage-ment,marketingandpoultrysci-ence, studentswill be fundamen-tally exposed to interpersonalcommunication and employeemanagement skills develop-ment. This will enhance theirability to relate to and superviseemployees under their directionuponachieving full-timeemploy-ment.”

Inadditiontobeingacontinua-tionof abachelor’sdegreeeduca-tionemphasizingmeat,animalorfood science, the master of agri-culture with an emphasis on themeat industry could be used as arefresher or retooling option forindividuals who have industryexperience wanting to advancetheir careers in the meat indus-try, Smith said.

For additional informationregarding the new master’s pro-gram, contact David Forrest [email protected] or Smith [email protected] or 979-845-1541.Thedegreeplanmaybeviewed at animalscience.tamu.edu.

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News

Monitoring thatchhelps topreventfirecreep

By Frank MotalThe Samuel Roberts Noble

Foundation

Prescribed fire is a practicemany landowners use in man-aging their properties to im-prove forage quality, improvewildlife habitat or control brushencroachment. Conducting safeburns is important, but issuescan arise while burning.

One such issue is fire creep.Firecreep inthecontextof burn-ing can be defined as unnoticedsmoldering of plant material(e.g., thatch) that is thought tobe extinguished. The buildupof thatch along the fireline cancause fire to “creep” across thefirebreak, which can result in anescaped fire.

Thatch is a mat of undecom-posed, accumulated plant mate-rial next to the soil. Thatch infirebreaks is caused by mowing;mashing down tall, dense veg-etation; and weather conditionsthat are unfavorable for properdecomposition of plant mate-

rial. Dry soil aids fire creep be-cause drier soils heat up moreeasily and will remain hotterthan moist soils, keeping thatchnearest the soil surface warmand dry.

Whenusingmowedfirebreaks,water most often is applied (cre-atingawet line)alongthefirelinetokeepfireinitsdesignatedarea.When thatch is abundant, watermay not penetrate thoroughly,leavingadrylayernext tothesoilwhich can remain dry and warmafter ignition and initial wet lineapplication has occurred.

When conditions become fa-vorable, itbeginssmolderingandslowly begins “creeping” acrossthe firebreak until it reaches andignites unburned fuel outside ofthe burn unit, resulting in an es-caped fire.

This can happen later in theday when weather conditionschange, the burn crew is furtheralong the firebreak, or when theburn unit is thought to be con-tained and extinguished, andeveryone has gone home.

This is why it is importantto have a backup suppressioncrew following behind the igni-tioncrew,monitoringthefirelineall the way back to the startingpoint.

Preventing fire creep can beaccomplished with differenttechniques, including:

•Mowingat least twiceprior toburning, with intervals betweenmowings, to reduce the amountof thatchandgivetheplantmate-rial time to break down.•Raking thatch away from the

burn unit, exposing bare soil fora wet line.

• Thoroughly wetting thethatch down to the soil.• Using a leaf blower ahead

of ignition to blow thatch awayfrom the burn unit.• Where practical, using a

lawnmower to blow thatch awayfrom the burn unit.• Where practical, creating a

bare soil firebreak by disking.

Photos courtesy of The Samuel Roberts Noble FoundationAbove,previouslymowed thatch that has settled next to the soil.Right, recently mowedthatch that has not completely settled next to the soil.

Steps to keep burns from spreading

See SAFETY, Page 21


NewsBeef Symposium to address emerging big-picture issues

By Kay LedBetterTexas A&MAgriLife Extension Service

AMARILLO—Big-pictureemerging is-sues in the beef and ranching industrieswill be addressed at the Southwest BeefSymposium, jointly hosted by the TexasA&MAgriLifeExtensionServiceandNewMexico State University Cooperative Ex-tension Service.This year’s conference, themed “Look-

ing to the Future,” is set for Jan. 14-15 atthe Wyndham Garden Hotel, 3100 Inter-state 40West in Amarillo.

“After some very rough years ofdrought, we will address issues of con-cern to the industry at large, but also atthe ranch level,” said Ted McCollum,AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialistin Amarillo. “Hopefully, we have turnedthe corner and are beginning to stabilizethe national cow inventory.”Registration is $80 and includes a steak

dinner on Jan. 14, lunch on Jan. 15, re-freshments and symposiumproceedings.

RegistrationisrequiredbyJan.9andseat-ing is limited to150,McCollumsaid,advis-ing participants to register early. Otherswill be put on a waiting list.Registeronlineatagriliferegister.tamu.

edu or by phone at 979-845-2604.The opening session from 1-5 p.m. on

Jan. 14 will include:•TheBeef Industry:What’s inStoreOver

the Next Five Years and Next 10 Years?,Darrell Peel, Oklahoma State University,Stillwater, Oklahoma.•RanchingStrategies for theLongTerm,

Clint Richardson, Triangle Ranch, Pa-ducah.• Regulatory Issues Facing the New

Mexico and Texas Cattle Industry, KarenCowen, New Mexico Cattle Growers As-sociation,Albuquerque,NewMexico;andRoss Wilson, Texas Cattle Feeders Asso-ciation, Amarillo.•Where Do I Go to Get Help with Regu-

latory and Legal Issues on My Property?,Tiffany Dowell, AgriLife Extension agri-cultural law specialist, Amarillo.

Jan. 15 issues and speakers will be:• Rangeland Resource Management in

the Panhandle: A Long-TermPerspective,Andrew Bivins, JA Ranch, Amarillo.

• Tipping Points for Juniper and Mes-quite Control: Canopy Cover and ForageProduction, Jim Ansley, Texas A&MAgriLife Research rangeland ecologist,Vernon.

• Evaluating the Current Costs and Fu-ture Value of Rangeland ImprovementPractices, Richard Connor, rangelandeconomist, Texas A&M University, Col-lege Station.• Climate and Weather Outlook: Better

DaysAhead?,BrianBledsoe, chief meteo-rologist, KKTV, Colorado Springs, Colo-rado.• Heifer Development Strategies, Andy

Roberts,U.S.Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service LivestockandRangeResearchLaboratory,FortKe-ogh, Montana.• Genetic Management Tools for Com-

mercial Cow-Calf Producers, JoePaschal,

AgriLife Extension livestock specialist,Corpus Christi.•BullPerformance in thePasture:What

We Know; What We Are Learning, BruceCarpenter, AgriLife Extension livestockspecialist,Ft. Stockton.Formore information, go to the sympo-

siumwebsiteaces.nmsu.edu/ces/swbeef/or contactMcCollumat 806-677-5600 or [email protected].


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News

Cottonpriceswill remainflatheading into2015

By BLAIR FANNINTexas A&MAgriLife Extension

Service

Cotton prices are projected toremain flat heading into 2015 asChina continues to hold largesupplies of cottonand consump-tion rates remain low, accordingto a Texas A&MAgriLife Exten-sionService cotton economist inCollege Station.

John Robinson gave a cot-ton outlook presentation at the26th Texas Plant Protection As-sociation Conference in Bryanrecently.“The cotton market is not

booming as yarn prices remainflat,” Robinson said. “We’re notin a recession, but in a periodof low growth and modest con-sumption.Wedon’t seeanything

that would pull up cotton pricesin the near term.”

Robinson said speculativefunds have been swinging fromnet short to neutral, and cottonfutures have just hung in therearound 60 cents.Consequently, cottonhasbeen

ranging in the mid to upper 60s,he said.For now, Chinese policy is one

of the major influencers of themarket, Robinson said.

“That, and the fact that moreof the Chinese new crop cottonand reserves are getting used byChinaratherthanbuyingU.S.ex-ports continues toweighheavilyonmarket prices,” he said.“If youhavecotton in the loan,

Iwould thinkaboutselling it andmaybeuseacalloptionstrategy,”

hesaid. “Theendof theyearcar-ryover is projected to be morethan4millionbales.That’smorethan enough cotton to fulfill de-mand.”The 2015 outlook has projec-

tions of 15 million to 16 millionbales produced in the U.S., hesaid.“We will still plant plenty

of acres despite projections offewer planted acres,” Robinsonsaid. “At least 15millionbales ofproduction isprojected for2015. Idon’t seeanyreasonfornewcropprices to be higher than old cropprices.”Meanwhile, during the as-

sociation’s awards luncheon,the Norman Borlaug LifetimeAchievement Award was givenposthumously to Tom Cothren,a longtime Texas A&M AgriL-ife plant physiologist. Cothren

came to Texas A&M in 1982 af-ter serving on the faculty at theUniversity of Arkansas. He re-ceived many honors during hisyears of teaching and research,including Fellow of AmericanSociety of Agronomy, Fellow ofCropScienceSocietyof America,Outstanding Research Awardin Cotton Physiology and theSpecial Achievement Award forTeaching from Texas A&M. Healso served on the Faculty Sen-ate at Texas A&M.TexasA&Mstudentsalsowere

represented well in the postercompetition. First place winnerwas graduate student KateHar-rell fromthedepartmentof ento-mology.Graduate studentKevinCoxfromthedepartmentof plantpathologyandmicrobiologywassecond place winner, and thirdplacewent toBlakeBaumann in

the department of soil and cropsciences. Josh McGinty and Sil-vano Ocheya received graduatestudent awards.

Texas A&M AgriLife Exten-sion Service horticultural spe-cialist Joe Masabni received theassociation’s Academic-AgencyAward. AgriLife Extension cot-ton program specialist DaleMott, who served as associationpresident for2014,capturedthirdplace in the pest identificationcontest.GaryBradshaw, consul-tant from Richmond, capturedfirst place, while Webb Wallace,consultant from Harlingen, wasawarded second place.Larry McAnally received the

TPPA Consultant Award. Don-nie Dippel, president of theTexas Ag Industry Association,received the Ray Smith Leader-ship Award.

Texas A&MAgriLife Extension Service photo by Blair FanninJohn Robinson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service cotton marketing economist,projects cotton prices will be surpressed in 2015 due to a world glut.


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NewsAgriLifeExtensionBrazosCountyofficeshowcasesprograms toofficials


Service

Highlights in agriculture andnatural resources, family andconsumer sciences, 4-H andyouth development, and com-munity economic developmentwereshowcasedat the2014TexasA&MAgriLifeExtensionServiceBrazos County InterpretationLuncheon for Elected Officials.The recent event, attended by

BrazosCountyofficialsaswellasrepresentatives from Bryan andCollege Station school districts,was held at Traditions CountryClub in Bryan.“Texas A&M AgriLife Exten-

sion is committed to making adifference in the lives of thosehere in Brazos County,” saidWade Ross, chairman of the

Brazos County Leadership Ad-visory Board. “It’s truly a bless-ingtohaveyoursupport for theseprograms that help strengthenand improve the lives of manythroughout our community. Weappreciate your continued sup-port.”Program results and impacts

were given by Jim McCord, ag-riculture and horticulture; GiaYarbrough, Prairie View A&MUniversity-Cooperative Exten-sion;andJessicaPaul, familyandconsumer sciences.Livestock, forage and horse

production continue to be thethree largest agricultural com-modities in Brazos County, Mc-Cord said. Highlights includedthe 2014O.D. Butler ForageFieldDay, attended by 193 people fea-

Texas A&MAgriLife Extension Service photo by Blair FanninThe Brazos County Interpretation Luncheon for Elected Officials was held recently atTraditions Country Club in Bryan.Attending theluncheon were members of the 2014 Brazos County Leadership Advisory Board serving the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension ServiceBrazos County office, from left, Jim McCord; Wade Ross, chairman; Sara Mendez; Jessica Paul; Dusty Tittle; Devorah Yarborough;and Stacy Colvin.

SeeOFFICIALS, Page 16


NewsScholars seek tohelpcattle industrycombatdrought

SILAS ALLENAssociated Press

OKLAHOMACITY—Severalyears of drought have forcedmanyof Oklahoma’sranchers tosell off cattle to stay in business.Now, a group of animal re-searchers and climate scientistsis looking at ways to make thestate’scattle industrymoreresis-tant during periods of drought.Oklahoma State Universityreceived a $1 million grant fromthe U.S. Department of Agri-culture earlier this year to helpbeef producers adapt to dryconditions,TheOklahoman(bit.ly/1BXJ1A2) reported.Researchers there are work-ingwith the OklahomaMesonetweather network to look at howmuch water cattle consume anddevelop tools to help rancherssee how climate conditions areaffecting their cattle.Megan Rolf, an OklahomaState animal scientist, said thepurpose of the grant is two-fold:Researchers are lookingat the

amountof feedandwatercertainbreeds of cattle consume, withthe long-termgoal of developingcattle that aremore adaptable tocertain climate conditions, in-cluding drought.The group also is workingto expand the Mesonet’s cattlecomfort index, a tool that showsranchershowclimateconditionsare affecting their herds.The amount of feed andwater

cattle consume can vary widelydependingonthebreed,Rolf said.Brahman and other cattle thatwere bred for tropical climatestend to dowell on lesswater, shesaid. But those breeds haven’tgained favor among ranchers inthe United States.“We don’t really use those

breeds very much here in theU.S., for a variety of reasons,”Rolf said.Eventually, researchers hopeto develop cattle that consumeless water, while keeping themeat quality and other charac-teristics that have made breedssuch as Angus and Hereford

popular in the United States,Rolf said.Albert Sutherland, the Okla-homaStateMesonetagriculturalcoordinator, said the group alsohopes to expand the tools theweather network offers to farm-ers.The network’s cattle com-

fort index shows ranchers howtemperatures are affecting theirherds.Thegroupplanstoexpandthe indexto includeother factorslike relative humidity and windspeed,hesaid.Thosetoolsareex-pected to go online in late 2016,he said.Thegroupalsoplanstoexpandthe cattle comfort index to coverthe entire United States, Suther-landsaid.As it existsnow, the in-dex covers onlyOklahoma.Thatexpansion could take place nextyear, he said.Climate scientists say adapt-

abilitywillbekeyforfarmersandranchers as drought becomesmore common due to climatechange. In a national climate as-sessment released last year, sci-entists warned new agricultureand livestock practiceswould beneeded to copewith drier, hotterconditions in the Great Plains.Cattle represent the largest

agricultural commodity inOkla-homa,withcashreceipts totalingnearly$3billionperyear,accord-ingtotheOklahomaDepartmentof Agriculture, Food andForest-ry. But the industry has felt theimpact of drought for the pastfour years. Cattle ponds in west-ern Oklahoma have dried up,and ranchers have been forcedto reduce their herds to stay inbusiness.Charlie Swanson, a rancherin the southwestern Oklaho-ma town of Roosevelt, said the

droughthas lefthiminadifficultposition. During normal condi-tions, most ranchers cull theirherdsabiteachyear,hesaid.ButSwansonsaidhe’shad to cull hisherdmore severelyover thepastthree years than he ever has inhis three decades of ranching.Most ranchers in the area aredoing the same, Swanson said.

Southwestern Oklahoma hashad some rain over the past fewweeks, and more is expected.That rain has helped replenishthe grass, Swanson said, butit hasn’t been enough to turnthings around completely.“We’re still in drought,” hesaid. “We’re not out of it by anymeans.”

Photo courtesy of noaa.comPonds such as this in Southwestern Oklahoma were unable to provide enoughwater to cattle during the recent drought. Oklahoma State Universityis developing cattle better able to survive future droughts.


NewsAmerica’sgrowerseager fornormalizedrelationswithCuba

By STEVE KARNOWSKIAssociated Press

MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. ag-riculture has a big appetite forfreer trade with Cuba. Fromwheat to rice tobeans, the indus-try stands to be one of the big-gest beneficiaries of PresidentBarack Obama’s plan to easeeconomicand travel restrictionsimposedagainst thecommunist-ruled island.Agricultural exports have

been among the few exceptionsto thehalf-century oldU.S. tradeembargo, though they’ve beensubject to cumbersome rules— requiring cash paymentsup front before products areshipped, and that the paymentsgo through banks in other coun-tries that charge hefty fees fortheir services.As a result, Latin American

and Asian countries with fewerrestrictionsandeasierfinancinghave gained market share in re-cent years.Theremovalof suchtradebar-

rierswillmakeU.S. agriculturalproducts “far more price com-petitive” in Cuba, U.S. Agricul-ture Secretary TomVilsack saidDec.17astheObamaadministra-tion announced plans to restorediplomatic relations and to tryto persuade Congress to lift theembargo.MajorU.S.farmgroups,includ-

ing the American Farm BureauFederation and National Farm-ersUnion,aswellas leadingagri-businesses such as Cargill Inc.,long have advocated normalizedtraderelationswithCuba,amar-ket of 11 million consumers just90miles off U.S. shores.Salesof U.S.agriculturalprod-

ucts toCubapeakedatmorethan$710million in2008,before there-cession,but fell to$350millionby2013, according to the U.S.-CubaTrade and Economic Council.Frozen chicken, soybeans andsoy products, and corn are themain products Cuba now buysfrom the United States.It’s hard to quantify just how

much of a boost the plannedchanges will give to U.S.-Cuban

agricultural trade, said C. ParrRosson III, head of the agricul-tural economics department atTexas A&M University. But hepredicted it could grow to $400million to $450 million within acouple of years.“That’s just a back-of-the-

envelope estimate on my part ...but the market can make thoseswings very readily,” he said.Cuba remains a poor, relative-

ly small country, Rosson said.Its economy shifts dependingon remittances sent home byCubans living abroad, tourism,and nickel exports, he said. Butliberalized rules for remittancesand tourism should provide anearly boost in demand, he said,and easier banking rules willeventuallymakeadifference too.The boost would be even biggerif Congress ever dismantles theembargo, he said.“We’re talking a monumental

move to lift the embargo rightnow,” he said. “But things canchange.”Wheatgrowers in theMidwest

expectnewexport opportunitiessince Cuba now buys nearly allits wheat from Canada and Eu-rope. Cuba hasn’t bought U.S.wheat since 2011, but could im-port at least 500,000 metric tonsof it annually, according to theNational Association of WheatGrowers.“If Cuba resumes purchases

of U.S. wheat, we believe ourmarket share there could growfrom its current level of zero toaround 80-90 percent, as it is inother Caribbean nations,” AlanTracy, president of U.S. WheatAssociates, said in a statement.Drybeans,drypeas, lentilsand

potatoes are also big parts of theCuban diet. That creates moreopportunities forfarmersincold-er states such as North Dakota,though they’ll still have to com-petewithcheaperChinesebeans,said Bill Thoreson, president ofthe U.S. Dry Bean Council.“If we have normalized trade

relationswith themandare abletodoawaywithsomeof thebank-

ing regulations, I believe there’ssome real potential to do busi-nesswithCuba,” Thoreson said.Rice producers in southern

states and California are hopingtoresumeexports toCubafor thefirst timesince2008,according tothe USARice Federation.“It’s an enormous rice mar-

ket,” said Dwight Roberts, CEOof the U.S. Rice Producers Asso-ciation.Roberts saidbelieves im-ports of U.S. rice could somedayreach the levels Cubans boughtbefore the revolution.

• Associated Press writer Blake Nichol-son inBismarck, NorthDakota, contrib-uted to this report.

• See Improved, Page 11 Photo courtesy ofwww.greatbendpost.com

America’s wheat growers hope tobenefit from stronger relations withCuba.


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NewsImprovedrelationswithCubawillbenefitTexasproducers


Service

Efforts to normalize U.S. andCuba diplomatic relations willhave potential positive implica-tions for Texas agriculture, ac-cording toaTexasA&MAgriLifeExtension Service economist.ParrRosson,whoheadstheag-

riculturaleconomicsdepartmentat Texas A&MUniversity in Col-legeStation,saidtherewillbe im-mediate increases in the amountof U.S. food exported to Cuba.“Withinayear to twoyears,we

should see U.S. exports to Cubareturn to the $400million to $450million range.“The combination of allow-

ing up to a four-fold increase inremittances along with an in-creased role for U.S. banks maylead toa 15 to 30percent increaseinU.S. foodexports,”Rossonsaid.Currently, Cuban-Americans

and others are limited to remit-tance of no more than $500 perquarter to persons in Cuba.Rosson said under the new pro-gram, that limit would increaseto $2,000.Texas supplies Cuba with

several export items, includingchicken leg quarters and corn.

Pork, cot-ton andd a i r yproductsproducedin Texasalso areexportedt h e r e .Morericeexpor tsalso areexpected.A growingtourismmarket inCuba also hassparked demand for items suchas condiments, bottled water,beer, wine and spirits.“These are products that we

are seeing more interest in dueto the growing tourism marketin Cuba.”Rosson said in addition to al-

lowingU.S.andother travelers touse credit cards, this will boostdemand for foods.“Also expect to see themarket

for used agricultural equipmentto increase,” Rosson said.Workshops previously have

been conducted to assist educat-ing producers on export tradewith Cuba, partnering with theTexas-Cuba Trade Alliance andFree Trade Alliance, he said.

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News

Healthy groundFuturegenerationsdependonus tokeepsoilhealthy

By RoBeRt FeaRsSpecial to The Eagle

Now that we’re finally re-ceivingmoisture in someparts of the state, it’s timeto assess condition of oursoil and determine if our

current landmanagement practicesimprove soil health or cause it to dete-riorate. Soil health is directly related toranch productivity and has a tremen-dous influence on the future life style ofour children and grandchildren.According to the U.S. Department of

Agriculture’s Natural Resources Con-servation Service, world population isprojected to increase from 7 billion in2013 tomore than 9 billion in 2050.Fourteenmillion acres of prime farm-

land in the United States was lost to de-velopment from 1982 through 2007. Im-proving soil health is a key requirementfor long-term, sustainable agriculturalproduction and soil conservation is notjust the farmer’s job.We all are respon-sibile formaintaining soil in good condi-tion, regardless of howwe use the land.Soil Health Key Points, a fact sheet

published by NRCS lists “four ways tobegin your path to healthy soils” lists:

Keep it coveredA covered soil holdsmore water by

binding it to organicmatter and losesless water to runoff and evaporation.The amount of organicmatter increasesin soil when it is covered by vegeta-tion and dead plantmaterial residue.Organicmatter holds 18 to 20 times itsweight in water and recycles nutrientsfor plants to use. One percent organicmatter in the top six inches of soil holdsapproximately 27,000 gallons of waterper acre.If we have bare spots in our pastures,

we have unhealthy soil and need to dosomething about it. We commonly saythat whenwe feed a cow, we actually arefeeding her rumen bacteria. The same isfor soil. If we keep the soil microorgan-ism populations healthy, we will havehealthy soil.

“Soil microorganisms exist in largenumbers as long as there is a carbonsource for energy,” said James Hoor-man, cover crops andwater qualityassistant professor at The Ohio StateUniversity.“Bacteria, due to their large numbers

yet small size, tend to dominate inmostsoils. This is especially true in tilledsoils. Fungusmay be a factor of 50 timessmaller in number, but due to their largesize, they are similar in biomass to bac-

Photos by Robert FearsThis unhealthy soil has bare spots and has been grazed too close to the ground. A consistant ground cover will hwlp soil absorb and retain moisture.

On the cover: Pastures should be planted through existing vegetation with a drill to avoid soil disturbance.

See SOIL, Page 13


News

teria if the soil is undisturbed.“Fungus decompose the hard

to digest organic compoundssuch as lignin while bacteriabreak down the readily avail-able and easy to digest organiccompounds such as sugars andproteins. There aremoremi-crobes in a teaspoon of soil thanthere are people on the earth,”Hoorman said.“A cover crop is needed on

the soil 24 hours a day, sevendays a week to build organicmatter, hold water and stoperosion,” said Ray Archuleta,Resource Conservation Serviceagronomist. “Continuous live ordead cover helpsmaintain soilhealth and protects it from heatand raindrop impact. Soil needsarmor.”“Organicmatter retains soil

nutrients andwhen there islittle or no organicmatter, ni-trogen is leached from the soilas nitrate,” saidWillie Durham,Resource Conservation Serviceagronomist. “The nitrates areleached into groundwater or

carried into ponds, lakes andstreams by run-offwater.”“Nutrients as well as soil

water are retained by organicmatter,” Archuleta said. “Forevery 1 percent organicmatteradded to soil, water is increasedby 19,000 gallons.”

Do not disturb“Do not disturb”means to

avoid tillage. When plantingwinter pastures or other supple-mental forage, use a sod seederinstead of plowing the soil.No-till soils remain open to

the surface; thus, water can fil-trate through their pores with-out destroying aggregate integ-rity. There is organicmatter inno-till soils that allow them toabsorb and hold water.One of the keymethods of

restoring soil health is to letnature do its work by avoidingtillage. In addition to organicmatter andmicroorganisms,a healthy soil is full of earth-worms. Soil is normally inhab-ited with earthwormswhen it

Soil, from Page 12

Table 1. Suggested forage residue levels formaintaining soil stablity and plant vigor

Vegetation type

Tallgrass

Midgrass

Shortgrass

Pounds/acre

1,200-1,500

750-1,100

300-500

Stubble height

12-14 inches

6-8 inches

2-3 inchesTaken from Stocking Rate: The Key Grazing ManagementDecision by Robert K. Lyons and Richard V. Machen, Texas A&MAgriLife Extension bulletin L-5400 published in June 2001.

Photo by Robert FearsOvergrazing is a primary factor in deterioration of soil health.

See HEALTHY, Page 18


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NewsMowngrass smell sendsSOSforhelp inresisting insect attacks

By Kathleen PhilliPsTexas A&MAgriLife Extension

Service

COLLEGE STATION — Thesmell of cut grass in recentyears has been identified as theplant’swayof signallingdistress,butnewresearchsays thearomaalso summons beneficial insectsto the rescue.“Whenthere isneedforprotec-

tion, the plant signals the envi-ronment via the emission of vol-atile organic compounds, whicharerecognizedasafeedingqueuefor parasitic wasps to come tothe plant that is being eaten andlay eggs in the pest insect,” saidMichael Kolomiets, Texas A&MAgriLifeResearchplantpatholo-gist in College Station.Theresearchstemsfromalook

at the function of a large familyof lipid-derived molecular sig-nals that regulate differentialprocesses in humans, animalsand plants, according to Kolo-miets, whose research was pub-lished inThe Plant Journal.In an effort to better under-

stand these signals, the U.S. De-partmentof Agricultureisgrant-ing Kolomiets $490,000 in 2015 tostudy how the signals also mayimpact drought tolerance.Themolecular signals are less

understood inplants than inani-mals and humans, he noted.

“People take certain drugssuch as aspirin to suppress theactivityof these signals, becauseoverproduction of these mole-culesmay lead to headaches andpain and all sorts of disorders,”Kolomiets said.“It’s the same group of me-

tabolites that are produced bythe plants, but we know so littleabout them.”Yet a plant does “communi-

cate” when attacked —whetherby blade of a mower or jaws of apredatory insect—byproducingdefensiveproteinsandsecondarymetabolites either to repel thepest or make itself less appetiz-ing,hesaid.Whathappensnext iswhat scientists have been trying

to figure out.The best characterized mol-

ecule of the fatty acid-derivedsignals is called jasmonic acid,because it was first isolated asa volatile produced by jasmine,Kolomiets said. Jasmonic acid,one of perhaps 600 oxylipinmol-ecules identified in plants, isknowntohavediverse functions.Another volatile group derivedfrom fatty acid is known as thegreen leaf volatiles.To test how it functions in

plants during insect attacks,Kolomiets and his team used amutant cornplant that couldnotproduce the green leaf volatiles,mown-grass smell when cut ortorn.Andthat’swhentheyobserved

that the parasitic wasps didn’tpay attention to plants withoutthe green leaf volatile.“There are actually two roles

for this molecule,” he said.“First, it activates the jasmo-

nate hormone, which involvesactivation of defenses againstinsects on the plant. Then thismolecule, since it is a volatile,attracts parasitic wasps. Theycome to the plant that is beingchewed up by insect herbivoresand lay eggs in the caterpillar’sbody.“Wehaveproventhatwhenyou

delete these volatiles, parasiticwasps are no longer attracted tothat plant, even when an insectchewson the leaf. So thisvolatileis required toattractparasitoids.We have provided genetic evi-dence that green leafy volatileshave this dual function — in theplant they activate productionof insecticidal compounds, butalso they have indirect defensecapability because they send anSOS-typesignal thatresults inat-traction of parasitic wasps.”Kolomiets testedthephenome-

naboth in the laband in thefield.“Wedidnothave todoanyarti-

ficial infestation,becausewehadplenty of insects,” he said. “Wehave discovered that even underthefield conditionswhen there’senough insect pressure, then the

plantsaremoresusceptible to in-sect damage when they lack thegreen leaf volatiles.”Kolomiets hopes to continue

the research by testing the im-pact of the presence of jasmo-nates and green leaf volatiles inother grassy crops such as sor-ghum.“This is justatipof theiceberg.

We have found that this gene isrequired for many, many differ-entphysiologicalprocesses, suchas drought tolerance,” he said.“Weobservedthatmutantplantsare drought susceptible as wellas susceptible to insect feeding.Wearetryingtoidentifytheexactfunction of green leafy volatilesin drought tolerance and how itworks.”Such findings may help plant

breeders know how to developnew varieties that are more re-sistant to insects and drought,he noted.

Texas A&MAgriLife Research photo by KathleenPhillips

The smell of cut grass in recent years hasbeen identified as the plant’s way of sig-nalling distress,but new research says thearoma also summons beneficial insectsto the rescue, according to Michael Kolo-miets,Texas A&MAgriLife Research plantpathologist in College Station.


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NewsLIVESTOCK MARKET REPORT

MilanoResults of the Milano Livestock

Exchange’s Dec. 16 sale:Steers: 300-400 lbs., $280-

$365; 400-500 lbs., $274-$323;500-600 lbs.,$247-$267; 600-700lbs., $226-$233.Heifers: 300-400 lbs., $236-

$257; 400-500 lbs., $230-$281;500-600 lbs.,$209-$297; 600-700lbs., $193-$257.Slaughter bulls: $120-$132.Slaughter cows: $81-$116.Bred cows: $1,550-$2,900.Cow/calf pairs: $!,650-$3,175.

Brazos ValleyResults of the Brazos Valley Live-

stock Commission’s Dec. 16 sale:Head: 827Steers: 200-300 lbs., $3350-

$390; 300-400 lbs., $295-$375;

400-500 lbs., $255-$320; 500-600lbs., $235-$290; 600-700 lbs.,$210-$239; 700-800 lbs., $205-$215.

Heifers: 200-300 lbs., $285-$355; 300-400 lbs., $245-$295;400-500 lbs., $225-$280; 500-600lbs., $217-$250; 600-700 lbs.,$195-$225; 700-800 lbs., $185-$200.Slaughter bulls: $116-$140.Slaughter cows: $80-$118.Bred cows: $1,175-$2,225.Cow/calf pairs: $1,850-$2,850.

CaldwellResults of the Caldwell Livestock

Commission’s Dec. 17 sale:Head: 425Steers:200-300 lbs.,$325-$410;

300-400 lbs., $300-$350; 400-500lbs., $250-$310; 500-600 lbs.,

$225-$260; 600-700 lbs., $210-$230; 700-800 lbs., $210-$250.Heifers: 268-330 lbs., $325-

$395; 300-400 lbs., $270-$370;400-500 lbs., $240-$280; 500-600lbs., $225-$255; 600-700 lbs.,$215-$270; 700-800 lbs., $200-$210.Slaughter bulls: $85-$122.Slaughter cows: $110-$136.Stocker cows: $1,400-$2,500.

BuffaloResults of Buffalo Marketing’s

Dec. 13 sale:Head: 1,246Steers:300-400 lbs.,$315-$390;

400-500 lbs., $275-$345; 500-600lbs., $250-$310; 600-700 lbs.,$220-$260; 700-800 lbs., $210-$220.Heifers: 300-400 lbs., $245-

$355; 400-500 lbs., $230-$310;

500-600 lbs., $220-$285; 600-700lbs., $195-$255; 700-800 lbs.,$175-$210.Slaughter bulls: $105-$133.Slaughter cows: $65-$119.Bred cows: $1,450-$2,475.Cow/calf pairs: $1,100-$1,900.

JordanResults of the Jordan Cattle Auc-

tion’s Dec. 18 sale:Head: 2,065Steers:200-300 lbs.,$320-$370;

300-400 lbs., $300-$372.50; 400-500 lbs., $270-$340; 500-600 lbs.,$250-$302.50; 600-700 lbs.,$230-$260; 700-800 lbs, $220-$242.Heifers:200-300 lbs.,$280-$350;

300-400 lbs., $260-$390; 400-500lbs., $240-$307.50; 500-600 lbs.,$220-$280; 600-700 lbs., $215-$270; 700-800 lbs., $210-$233.Slaughter bulls: $126-$141.Slaughter cows: $103-$127.

Bred cows: $1,450-$3,300.Cow/calf pairs: $1,950-$3,775.

NavasotaResults of theNavasota Livestock

Auction Co.’s Dec. 13sale:Head: 1,940Steers: 150-300 lbs., $225-

$460; 300-400 lbs., $225-$400;400-500 lbs., $185-$350; 500-600 lbs.,$175-$285; 600-700 lbs.,$170-$242.50.Heifers: 150-300 lbs., $195-

$385; 300-400 lbs., $185-$335;400-500 lbs., $185-$320; 500-600 lbs.,$175-$285; 600-700 lbs.,$170-$250.Slaughter bulls: $100-$141.Slaughter cows: $85-$113.Stocker cows: $1,300-$3,500.Cow/calf pairs: $1,800-$3,500.

— Special to The Post

turing five demonstration plotson sandbur, Yaupon control, aswell as new technology in weedcontrol and foragemanagement.The Youth Commercial Heifer

Programhad32youthparticipat-ing and raising a pen of heifers.The project includedworkshops,reproduction, recordkeepingandinterviews.The program brought in

$249,600 in total sales given di-rectly to youth participants.

In horticulture, 85MasterGar-deners gave 5,084 service hoursto AgriLife Extension programs,the equivalent of a $110,780 gift toBrazos County.

They also earned 534 hours ofcontinuing education.The family and consumer sci-

ences division hosted a Multi-County All Star Childcare Pro-vider Conference, which wasopentoBrazos,Burleson,Grimes,Lee, Milam, Walker and Wallercounties.

It was offered to 121 providers,resulting in 847 hours credit. Anadditional 110 providers weretrained beyond the conference,resulting in 110 hours credit.

Officials, from Page 8 CropsConferenceset for Jan.27-28By Kay LedBetter

Texas A&MAgriLife ExtensionService

CHILDRESS — Texas andOklahomaofficialsalongtheRedRiver will address the issues ofimportance to regional farmersand ranchers on both sides ofthe state line at the annual RedRiver Crops Conference on Jan27-28.The two-day event is designed

toprovidecropproductioninfor-mationforSouthwestOklahomaand the Texas Rolling Plains,said Stan Bevers, Texas A&MAgriLife Extension Service ag-ricultural economist inVernon.The eventwill beginwith reg-

istration from 7:45-8:15 a.m. onJan. 27 and continue through4:15 p.m. each day at the FairPark Auditorium, 1000 Com-merce St. in Childress.Preregistration by Jan. 23 is

encouraged, Bevers said. Thefee is $25 foroneorbothdays.Toregister,print the formatagrisk.tamu.edu/.Make checks payable to the

RedRiverCropsConferenceand

mail to 100 N.W. Ave. E, Court-houseBox9,Childress,TX79201-2351.In-season and summer crops

will be featured on Jan. 27.Discussion topics will includea long-term weather forecast,canolaandotherspecialtycrops,adiscussionof the2014 farmbilldecisions, wheat management,stocker cattle and amarket out-look.Cottonwillbe featuredonJan.

28,with topics includingmarketoutlook, variety discussions,herbicide options, seed treat-mentsanddiseasemanagement,irrigation and new technologyfrom industry representatives.The conference alternates be-

tween Oklahoma and Texas.In the Red River region, ob-

staclescanincludelimitedwaterandlandresources,andweatherextremes, such as hot and drysummers and bitterly cold win-ters, he said.Formore information,contact

a localExtensionoffice in eitherTexas orOklahoma, or call Bev-ersat940-552-9941,extension225.


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NEWS YOUCAN USERIGHTIN YOURMAILBOX

NewsConsequencesofTexasdroughtcontinue to linger


Service

Texas agriculture industryexperts discussed the future ofwater and its impact on cropproduction before 287 attendeesatthe26thTexasPlantProtectionAssociation Conference held re-cently at the Brazos Center inBryanBillDugas,actingvicechancel-

lor foragricultureandlifescienc-esandactingdeanof theCollegeof Agriculture andLife Sciencesfor The Texas A&M UniversitySystem, opened the conferencewith welcoming remarks.“Your efforts are to be com-

mended in bringing together ev-eryone in this setting to discussthese important issues,” Dugassaid. “Though we’ve receivedrain, drought is still an issue inTexas andwill continue to be anissueinTexasas35percentof thestate is still in extreme or excep-tional drought status.”“Looking at a 50-year horizon,

by 2060 there will be 80 percentmore Texans living here in thestate,” said Carlos Rubinstein,chairman of the Texas WaterDevelopment Board and one ofthe general session speakers.“That’smorethan57millionpeo-pleneedingwaterhere inTexas.”Rubinstein said by 2060, Texas

will be short 8.3million acre feetof water if current water plangoals are not met.“We all remember 2009 and

howdry itwas,”hesaid. “In2011,Texasused18millionacre feetof

water. So, where is the water go-ing to come from?”Rubinstein said a state water

plan, which serves as a modelto others, aims to solve the chal-lenges.Hesaidaboutone-thirdofthe water needed will be met byconservation and reuse.“Tome, that’s thecheapestwa-

terwecanhavebecauseit’swaterwe already have,” he said.Another third will come from

proposednewwater sourcesandinfrastructure, such as incentiv-izing seawater and desalination.Rubinstein said “there’s no

magic bullet” to solving Texas’futurewaterneeds,but theagen-cy does have dedicated financ-ing to fund local water projects,something that wasn’t availablein the past. The funding is a re-sult of Texas voters passing anamendment in 2013 authorizing$2 billion from the Rainy DayFund to create the State WaterImplementation Fund for Texasor SWIFT.SWIFTfundswillbeusedto le-

verage loanstodevelopapprovedwater projects. The water devel-opment board currently is ac-cepting applications until Feb. 3.Loans are not made to for-profitentities.Water districts also will play

an important role, Rubinsteinsaid.Not fewer than 20 percent of

the funds will be used for con-servation and not fewer than 10percent will be used for agricul-ture and rural water, he noted.“That’s a floor, not a ceiling,

andIhopewecangoabove that.”TravisMiller, interimdirector

forstateoperations for theTexasA&MAgriLifeExtensionServicein College Station, discussed thehistoricalandeconomic implica-tions of drought to Texas.“It’s very important that you

are here and part of this dia-logue, as this is a very importantissue,” Miller said. “We’re nottalking aboutwater, but the lackof water.”Miller said during the Dust-

Texas A&MAgriLife Extension Service photo byBlair Fannin

Carlos Rubinstein, chairman of the TexasWater Development Board and one of thegeneral session speakers at the 2014Texas Plant Protection Association Con-ference.

SeeWATER, Page 19


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News

contains organic matter. Earth-worms are major decomposersof dead organic matter andderive their nutrition from bac-teria and fungi that grow on it.

“Earthworms dramati-cally alter soil structure, watermovement, nutrient dynamicsand plant growth,” said CliveEdwards of The Ohio State Uni-versity. “They are not essentialto all healthy soils, but theirpresence is usually an indicatorof a healthy system.

Earthworms perform severalbeneficial functions:• Mix and aggregate soil.• Stimulate microbial activity.• Increase infiltration.• Improve water-holding ca-

pacity.• Provide channels for root

growth.• Bury and shred plant resi-

due.“Under normal no-till soil

conditions, certain types ofbacteria decompose plant resi-due material, organic matterand manure,” Archuleta said.“These bacteria are part of thenatural decomposition process.They convert organic material

into available plant nutrients.Tillage exposes organic matterand the biotic cementing agentsand causes them to consumebacteria.

“These bacteria have incred-ible ability to digest lots of car-bon and multiply rapidly.

“It is decomposition gonewrong, just like cancer devoursthe human body and causes itto malfunction. Tillage stimu-lates the soil bacteria to feedon the body (the soil structure)and aggregation is diminished.When this happens, soils donot store water and nutrientsefficiently and function is di-minished.”

Use cover, rotationMaintaining a continuous

vegetative cover on pasturesprovides armor to protect thesoil. This can be accomplishedby keeping stocking rates inbalance with available forageand avoiding overgrazing.

“Heavy stocking rates aredetrimental to both land re-sources and livestock perfor-mance,” said Robert Lyonsof the Texas A&M AgriLifeExtension Service. “Over time,heavy stocking causes the morepalatable and productive foragespecies to disappear. These de-sirable forages are replaced byless productive, less palatableplants that capture less rainfall,thus lowering the capacity ofthe soil to store moisture andincreasing the risk of erosion.”

“Over the short term, a heavy

stocking rate may lower foragequality by removing green foli-age and forcing animals to con-sume dead, standing forage,”Lyons said.

“Over the long term, a heavystocking rate removes almostall edible forage so that onlyimmature plants remain. Whilethis immature forage is highquality, there isn’t enough of it.

“A major goal in grazingmanagement must be to leaveenough forage in a pasture toprotect the soil and maintainplant vigor (Table 1). In grazing,both forage quality and quan-tity are important, and both af-fect livestock productivity andnet profits.”

Develop a soil healthmanagement plan

According to the fact sheet, asoil management plan is a road-map to soil health, which is bestdeveloped with help from theNatural Resource ConservationService.

The plan outlines a systemof practices needed to enhanceforage production and soilfunction, and improve or sus-tain water quality, air quality,energy efficiency and wildlifehabitat. In addition, it providesenvironmental, economic,health, and societal benefits.

Implementation of a soilhealth plan saves energy by us-ing less fuel for tillage and nu-trient cycling is maximized. Italso saves water and increasesdrought tolerance of the ranch

by improving infiltration andwater holding capacity as soilorganic matter increases.

There are less disease andpest problems when soil is

healthy. As soil health is im-proved, plants become health-ier which increases incomesustainability for farms andranches.

Healthy, from

Published by Bryan-College Station Communications, Inc.(979) 776-4444 or (800) 299-7355

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Published by Bryan-College Station Communications, Inc.,P.O. Box 3000, Bryan, Texas 77805.E-mail: [email protected]

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The Post is printed in part on recycledpaper and is fully recyclable.

Photo by Robert FearsSoil needs to be continually covered with vegetation to provide armor.


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bowl of the 1930s, Texas andOklahomawerehardesthit.Morethan 3.5 million people were dis-placed as result of the drought,relocatingtoCaliforniaandotherstates, Miller said.

“The whole population was af-fected, not just agriculture,” hesaid.

During the 1950s drought, 25percent of Texas’ rural popula-tion moved to urban areas.

Economic losses have beenstaggering to Texas agriculture,Miller said. The 2011 droughtled to $7.6 billion in agriculturallosses, which were on top of $3.6billion in losses in 2009 and $4.1billion in 2006. In 1998, droughtlosses were put at $2.4 billion.

Hardest hit has been Texas’beef cattle industry, Miller said.Texas beef cow numbers were5.35 million head in 2005. In 2014,that number was cut to 3.91 mil-

lion head.“Beef cattle are our most

valuable, marketable commod-ity in Texas,” Miller said. “Thatdecline was due to loss of foragebase, the resources to stock andrestockcattle, andpricesbecametoo high to restock. We’ve seen a27 percent decrease in the num-ber of mother cows and state-wide. That’s been a huge loss ofresource as far as cattle are con-cerned.”

As a result of fewer mothercows and calves to market, it’salso led to closures of packingplants. Miller noted the closureof San Angelo Packing Inc. inApril 2013 and the Plainview Ex-cel plant in February 2013, elimi-nating 2,000 jobs.

Water, from Page 17


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ScoringhelpsassessBovineRespiratoryDiseaseBy Bryan nichols

The Samuel Roberts NobleFoundation

The Bovine Respiratory Dis-ease Symposium was held July30-31, 2014, in Denver, Colorado.This meeting is held once everyfive years to discuss strides thathave been made in dealing withBovineRespiratoryDisease. Theagenda, among other topics, in-cluded discussion on current ex-periences in the beef and dairyindustries, subclinical effects ofBRD, and new research on iden-tifying genetic markers that willhopefullyaid in identifyingcattlesusceptible to Bovine Respira-tory Disease.

One topic was discussed thatcattlemen always are trying toimprove upon – how to decidewhether or not to pull and treata calf. The acronym that manyuse as a guide is “DART,” whichstands for depression, appetite,respiration and temperature. Ifcattle are exhibiting symptomsrelated to these attributes, theymayrequire treatment, butwhatmagnitude and combination ofthese symptoms warrants treat-ment? To start, all producersshould form a relationship witha veterinarian to help answerthese questions. Below is someinformation gathered from vet-erinarians, other professionalsand personal experience.

One system presented at thesymposium was designed fordiagnosing and treating dairycalves. This system uses six clin-

ical signs, which are classifiedas either normal or abnormal.The symptoms of cough, eyedischarge, respiration and fever(above 102.5° Fahrenheit) are as-signed a score of 2 each if pres-ent. Nasal discharge is assigned4 points. Calves exhibiting eardroop or head tilt are assigned 5points. If a calf has a cumulativescore of 5 or higher, he is classi-fiedashavingBovineRespiratoryDiseaseand is treated.Forexam-ple, a calf exhibits eye discharge(2 points) and nasal discharge (4points). This calf has a cumula-tive score of 6 and therefore istreated. If the calf exhibits nasaldischarge only (4 points), thenhe would be pulled and his tem-perature would be measured. Ifthe temperature is greater than102.5° F, he would be treated.If the temperature is less than102.5° F, he would not be treated.

When receiving cattle at theNoble Foundation, a similar sys-temisused.Symptomsof BovineRespiratory Disease include de-pression/lethargy,unwillingnessto consume feed, gaunt appear-ance, isolation, labored breath-ing, coughing, nasal discharge,eye discharge, droopy head orears, and weakness or “knuck-

Photo courtesy of The Samuel Roberts NobleFoundation

Using a system to determine treatmentof diseases such as Bovine RespiratoryDisease introduces more objectivity intodecision-making.

See SCORING, Page 21


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ling” of hind fetlocks. Cattle arescored as follows: 0 = no symp-toms; 1 = mild exhibition of oneortwosymptoms;2=mildexhibi-tion of more than two symptomsorsevereexhibitionof oneor twosymptoms; 3 = severe exhibitionof more than two symptoms; 4 =very severe exhibition of severalsymptoms. If cattle score a 1 or2, they aremoved to the chute. Iftheyexhibitatemperatureof 104°F or greater, they are treated. Ifthe temperature is less than 104°F, they are not treated. If cattlescore a 3 or 4, they are treatedregardless of their temperature.Using a system such as one of

these introduces more objectiv-ity into decision-making. Used

in conjunction with adequaterecordkeeping, it allows a pro-ducer to identify progress. Forexample, a producer follows theaboveprotocolanddoesnot treatcalves that exhibit a score of 2with no fever.That producer’s records, how-

ever, indicate that 90 percentof those cattle are being pulledagain within the next three daysand requiring treatment.This information may justify

an adjustment to the protocol orscoring system.At the heart of this discussion

is the need to use data to assistindecision-making.Recordshelpmake objective decisions andmonitor the success or failure ofdecisions that have been previ-ouslymade.

Scoring, from Page 20

Disked strips work well as longas any grass or thatch is proper-ly turned under. If not, fire cancreep through the disked stripwhere plant material is contigu-ous, escaping outside of the des-ignated burn unit.

Abundant thatch infirebreaksshouldbemonitored throughoutthedayof theburnandaddressedquickly if it begins smoldering.Checking the amount of thatchprior to a burn and deciding inadvance how you will deal withit will assist you in conducting asafe burn.

SAFETY, from Page 4

Earth-KindLandscapeShortCourseBy Kathleen PhilliPsTexas A&MAgriLife Extension

Service

Professionalswhomanageandmaintainurbangreenspacesareencouraged to attend the Earth-Kind Landscape Short CourseJan. 21-23 in College Station,according to organizer Meng-meng Gu, Texas A&M AgriLifeExtension Service horticulturespecialist.The eventwill be at theThom-

as G. Hildebrand Equine Com-plex, 3240 F&B Road. Registra-tion is $375beforeJan. 9and$435after. Single-day registration isavailable for $135 prior to Jan.9 or $150 thereafter. Register atagriliferegister.tamu.edu/hor-ticulture.“The course will benefit mu-

nicipal, school and city waterpersonnel, particularly those

interested in developing sus-tainable urban landscape con-servation programs,” Gu said.“Information about all urbangreen spaces – from residentialto parks, commercial propertiesand golf courses – will be pre-sented.”The three-day course will fea-

ture a variety of AgriLifeExten-sionspecialists fromthroughoutthe state.Continuing education units

willbeoffered forTexasNurseryandLandscapeAssociationcerti-fied professionals and for TexasDepartment of Agriculture li-censed pesticide applicators.A second three-day short

course will be held at the FortWorth Botanical Garden fromSept. 23-25, Gu said.Formore information, contact

[email protected].


Jesse Wright [email protected]

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NewsResearchshows ibuprofenmayextend life inhumans, animals

By Kathleen PhilliPsTexas A&MAgriLife Extension

Service

COLLEGESTATION—Acom-mon over-the-counter drug thattackles pain and fever also mayhold keys to a longer, healthierlife, according to a Texas A&MAgriLifeResearchscientist.Reg-ulardosesof ibuprofenextendedthe lifespan of multiple species,according to research publishedin the journal Public Library ofScience-Genetics.“We first used baker’s yeast,

which is an established agingmodel, andnoticed that theyeasttreatedwith ibuprofen lived lon-ger,” saidMichaelPolymenis, anAgriLifeResearchbiochemist inCollege Station.“Then we tried the same pro-

cess with worms and flies andsaw the same extended lifespan.Plus, these organisms not onlylived longer, but also appearedhealthy.”He said the treatment, given

at doses comparable to the rec-ommended human dose, addedabout 15percentmore to thespe-cies lives. Inhumans, thatwouldbeequivalent toanotherdozenorso years of healthy living.Polymenis, who also is a pro-

fessor in the biochemistry andbiophysics department at TexasA&M University, collaboratedwith Brian Kennedy, the presi-dent and CEO of the Buck In-stitute for Research on Aging inNovato, California, along withseveral researchers fromRussiaand the University of Washing-ton.Ibuprofen is a relatively safe

drug that was created in theearly 1960s in England. It firstwas made available by prescrip-tion and then, after widespreaduse, became available over-the-counter throughout the worldin the 1980s.The World Health Organiza-

tion includes ibuprofen on its“List of Essential Medications”

needed in a basic health system.Ibuprofen is described as

a“nonsteroidalanti-inflammato-ry drug used for relieving pain,helping with fever and reducinginflammation.”Polymenis said the three-year

projectshowedthat ibuprofenin-

terferes with the ability of yeastcells to pick up tryptophan, anamino acid found in every cellof every organism.Tryptophan is essential for

humans, who get it fromproteinsources in the diet.“We are not sure why this

works, but it’s worth exploringfurther.“This study was a proof of

principle to show that common,relatively safe drugs in humanscan extend the lifespan of verydiverse organisms.“Therefore, it should be pos-

sible tofindothers like ibuprofenwithevenbetterability toextendlifespan, with the aim of addinghealthy years of life in people.”“Dr.Polymenisapproachedme

with this idea of seeing how hiscell cycle analysis correspondedwithouragingstudies,”Kennedysaid.“Hehad identified somedrugs

that had some really uniqueproperties, and we wanted to

know if they might affect aging,sowedid thosestudies inour lab.We’re beginning to find not justibuprofen, but other drugs thataffect aging, so we’re really ex-cited about it.“Our institute is interested in

finding out why people get sickwhen they get old.“Wethink thatbyunderstand-

ingthoseprocesses,wecaninter-vene andfindways to extendhu-manhealthspan,keepingpeoplehealthier longer and slowingdown aging. That’s our ultimategoal.”Chong He, a postdoctoral fel-

low at Buck Institute and leadauthoronthepaper, said lookingdeeper into the common drugsthat target individual diseasesmight shed light on understand-ing the aging process.“We have some preliminary

data on worms that showedthat this drug also extended thehealth span inworms,” she said.“Itmadethemlivenot just longerbut alsomore healthy.“You canmeasure the thrash-

ing of the worms. If they’rehealthy, they do have a tenden-cy to thrash a lot, and also wecan measure the pumping asthey swallow, because if they’rehealthy, the pumping is faster.“Ibuprofen is something that

people have been taking foryears, and no one actually knewthat it canhavesomebenefits forlongevity and health span.”The research was funded by

theNationalScienceFoundation,theNational Institutesof Health,the Ellison Medical Foundationand the Glenn Foundation forMedical Research.

Texas A&MAgriLife Research photoby Kathleen Phillips

Ibuprofen, a common over-the-counterdrug worldwide, added to the healthylifespan of yeast, worms and flies in arecent study.


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