Latest Updates from cropwatch.unl.edu

Significant snowfall and extreme cold are headed for Nebraska beginning Monday, Jan. 8.

Extended for an additional year, the ARC and PLC programs will provide assistance to producers facing commodity market volatilities throughout the 2024 crop year

Participants who register for the 2024 Nebraska Women in Ag Conference before Feb. 9 can take advantage of a discounted rate for attending the two-day event in Kearney. The 2024 conference highlights include keynote speakers Ashley Machado, Dr. David Kohl, John Noltner, and more than 20 workshops on risk management of production, marketing, finances, human and legal.

Benson Bounty presents ‘Planting a Profitable Pollinator Habitat with Native Nebraska Plants,’ a SARE-funded project that explored the profitability of growing native perennial plants and marketing them through a variety of channels. (Photo by Sydney Seh) This year's conference features more than 30 sessions on agricultural and local food systems, including farm financial and transition planning, farm skills, field crops, livestock, farm and food policy, urban ag and local food access, and more.

The Eastern Nebraska Corn and Soybean Expo on Jan. 25 combines two events at the University of Nebraska Eastern Nebraska Research, Extension and Education Center near Mead, Nebraska. Free to attend, the new corn and soybean expo combines two previous extension events — the Fremont Corn Expo and the Nebraska Soybean Day and Machinery Expo — into one full day of research, presentations, industry updates and more.

The upcoming farm succession workshops are sponsored by the Nebraska Rural Response Hotline, Nebraska Department of Agriculture Beginning Farm Tax Credit and Negotiations programs, the Farm and Ranch Project of Legal Aid of Nebraska, and the Nebraska Farmers Union Foundation. Hosted in Stuart and Greeley, the workshops will cover basic estate and succession planning to assist farm and ranch families in creating or reviewing their plans.

While fall and winter weathering can reduce its nutritional quality, cornstalks are still a great and economical winter feed source if supplementation is managed appropriately. Considerations for grazing cornstalks with snow cover and utilizing low-quality hay and silage during periods of low supply and high feed costs.

Historical crop progress data for Nebraska is available at USDA. While winter wheat condition has remained unchanged since the last NASS report in November, soil moisture supplies experienced a decline during the mild weather in December.

Image by Carolina Córdova Following eight successful events that stand to impact nearly 13 million acres of U.S. farmland, preparations are underway by the UNL Soil Health Team to deliver another year of sustainable ag research and innovation insights.

USDA map for hardiness zones in Nebraska. The new hardiness zone map for Nebraska has shifted the southern-most regions into a new zone — a refinement to the map due to a nearly doubled amount of available weather station data for the region.

For every degree of cold stress a cow faces, they increase their energy requirements by 1%. It's important to provide shelter and adjust feed to help cattle meet these energy requirements and avoid body condition loss. Extension educators provide recommendations on preventing body condition loss in cattle during low temperatures and ways to safely feed heat-damaged hay and silage.

Historical results for the national USDA NASS pollination survey are available at USDA. The survey was sent to 15,500 operations nationally and collected information on acres pollinated, colonies used, and dollars spent for a variety of different crops.

Historical potato production reports for Nebraska are available at USDA. Russet potato production in Nebraska is up 29% from last year, according to USDA NASS's latest report.

Historical small grains data for Nebraska is available at USDA. County-level estimates for 2023 small grain acreage, yield and production are now available on the Quick Stats online database.

Though the farm finance and ag law clinics are offered monthly at sites across Nebraska, remote sessions are another option — call the number below to arrange a one-on-one meeting via phone or virtual platform. Nebraskans can attend one of the three dates scheduled for free, in-person farm and ag law clinics in January 2024, or call to arrange a virtual/phone appointment.

This chart demonstrates the setbacks for applying manure in Nebraska. Producers applying manure during the winter should target level ground, well away from ditches or water bodies. (UNL Water image) Manure application during winter can be a difficult management decision. Consider these points when making winter manure application decisions about where, when and how to apply manure.

To help prevent farm foreclosures, USDA will cover approximately $80 million in delinquencies for an estimated 210 borrowers whose qualifying guaranteed loans were flagged for liquidation as of Nov. 30, 2023. USDA will also provide approximately $128 million for an estimated 1,120 borrowers with currently outstanding direct Emergency Loans as of Nov. 30, 2023. Borrowers can submit requests in person at their local FSA office or by sending in a direct request via the assistance portals on farmers.gov by Dec. 31, 2023.

Activities like gathering, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distributing locally and regionally produced food, including specialty crops and grains for eating will be considered for the USDA grant funds. Designated for Nebraska food and farm businesses, the funds will support expanded capacity for food crops for activities that happen post-harvest and prior to the arrival at a retail market.

Todd Scholz, vice president of research and members services of the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council, discusses what’s new in the pulse crop arena. (Photo by Chabella Guzman) USDA recently announced its expanded revenue protection for dry pea production in Nebraska, which is set to begin with the 2024 crop year.

A water-saving strategy, deficit irrigation represents an important concept in managing water use through irrigation as groundwater depletion rises across the U.S. Cornhusker Economics experts examine the financial impact on producers of using a deficit irrigation strategy in corn.