Managing for Heterogeneity on Rangelands in the Nebraska Sandhills
The Nebraska Sandhills is one of the most intact grasslands in the Great Plains of North America. The topography and soil substrate of the Sandhills has limited farming development and allowed for this region to be one of the prime native working landscapes for cattle production in the United States. While range managers use the Sandhill’s nutrient rich forage for grazing to support livestock, pride is also taken in the abundant wildlife and plant habitat this ecosystem provides.
Spanish:Sandhills Rangeland Monitoring Cooperative (SRMC) Hosts Rangeland Monitoring Webinar February 25th
The SRMC is a collaborative project between UNL Extension, USDA-NRCS, and cattle producers in the Sandhills of Nebraska. The SRMC conducts and evaluates monitoring data on a growing number of ranches in the Nebraska Sandhills, connecting ranchers, range managers, scientists, and the public in a network of knowledge exchange relating to rangeland health and management.
Spanish:Improvements to Livestock Risk Protection Insurance Implemented in January 2021.
After remaining relatively unchanged since inception in 2002, several enhancements and improvements to the Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) insurance program have taken place over the last 18 months. Several changes that affect the cattle industry took effect on January 20, 2021.
They include:
Spanish:Winter Interseeding Legumes
From a forage perspective, winter is typically a time for using the resources we have on hand and planning ahead to next year’s growing season. However, there may be some opportunity to take this time to improve your pasture with some alternative legume seeding options.
Spanish:Calving Season – Not the Time to Skimp on Nutrition
The 2020 drought across the Great Plains has made hay scarce for many producers. Additionally, the pandemic has affected oil prices which in turn has impacted ethanol production and subsequently reduced the supply of distillers grains, a supplementation staple for many beef producers in the region. This tight feed supply may have resulted in pregnant cows entering the calving season with little to no extra body condition reserves.
Spanish:February 2021 Beefwatch Webinar Series Registration Now Open
The BeefWatch Webinar Series is designed to highlight management strategies in grazing, nutrition, reproduction, and economics to increase cow/calf and stocker production efficiency and profitability. Each session will feature industry experts and plenty of opportunity to interact to get your questions answered. More information about the BeefWatch Webinar Series can be found on our webpage: https://beef.unl.edu/beefwatch-webinar-series.
Spanish:The New Face at Nebraska BQA
The Likelihood of Regional Triggers Under the Industry’s Proposed '75% Rule'
This article was first published by In the Cattle Markets.
Spanish:Unit Cost of Production Workshop Valentine, Nebraska February 3 and 4
A two-day workshop this February will provide hands-on learning for cow-calf producers to learn how to calculate unit cost of production (UCOP). The meeting will take place February 3 and 4 (Wednesday and Thursday) at the Niobrara Lodge, 803 E Highway 20, Valentine, NE, from 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. CST.
Spanish:Annual Cow Costs – The Big Three
When looking at annual cow costs and doing an economic analysis, three categories tend to make up the largest percentage of total costs: feed, labor/equipment and cow depreciation. Other expenses occur, such as breeding expense and veterinary costs, but they tend to be significantly less than the “Big Three.” To conduct an economic analysis, break the ranch into enterprises to understand where value is being created and costs are occurring. Land ownership, hay production, cow-calf and replacement heifer development are four of the major enterprises on many ranches.
Spanish:The Livestock Indemnity Program Year-end Updates
This article is a summary of the December 10, 2020 Cornhusker Economics article titled: “The Livestock Indemnity Program: A Case for Managing Risk with Good Recordkeeping.”
Spanish:Considerations for Maintaining Condition in our Breeding Bulls during Winter
For bulls coming out of the breeding season, body weight loss may have occurred, and we need to make sure that we get bulls back in condition before the next season. Also, with the weather starting to change, starting to think about how we are going to manage our breeding bulls through the winter to prepare them for the next breeding season will be important. This will be a good time to evaluate body condition and ensure that bulls have adequate protection from harsh weather.
Spanish:Adding Sheep to a Cattle Operation in central Nebraska - A Producer’s Perspective
Multi-species grazing can be an option to more fully utilize grazing resources. In this month’s BeefWatch Producer Perspective Podcast, Jim Jenkins from Custer County, Nebraska discusses why he made the decision to add a band of sheep to his operation and the opportunities he sees for sheep to complement cattle in Nebraska.
Topics discussed include:
Spanish:The New Face at Nebraska BQA
Greetings Nebraska Beef producers! My name is Jesse Fulton. I am the new Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) State Coordinator for Nebraska. For the past five years, I was with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) where I worked on the Producer Education team. My duties at NCBA included working on the National BQA and Beef Quality Assurance Transportation (BQAT) program, managing the National Cattlemen’s College event, Cattlemen’s Webinar Series, and the 2016 National Beef Quality Audit.
Spanish:January 2021 Beefwatch Webinar Series Registration Now Open
The BeefWatch Webinar series is designed to highlight management strategies in grazing, nutrition, reproduction, and economics to increase cow/calf and stocker production efficiency and profitability. Each session will feature industry experts and plenty of opportunity to interact to get your questions answered. More information about the BeefWatch Webinar Series can be found on our webpage: https://beef.unl.edu/beefwatch-webinar-series
Spanish:Making Dollars out of Decisions: Three State Beef Conference
Annual Beef Heifer Replacement Forecasts for the 2020 – 2021 Production Season (Summary Briefing)
What is a respectable beef replacement heifer value for the coming 2020-2021 production season? The weather and COVID-19 gave the beef industry a wild ride this past year and may affect the decision to buy or sell replacement animals for the upcoming year.
Spanish:Winter Tetany in Beef Cattle
Grass tetany is considered a problem that usually occurs when cattle or sheep are eating lush, spring grass or annual cereal forages such as rye, wheat or triticale; but, it can also occur when cattle are being fed harvested forages.
Spanish:Livestock Facility Inspections: Do I need one? If so, what should I expect?
Inspections collect information about livestock facilities and are how the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE) determines whether the facility is in compliance with regulations. There are two different kinds of inspections for livestock operations. Initial inspections help NDEE determine whether a permit is needed. Routine inspections allow the NDEE representative to make sure permitted operations are in compliance with their permit.
What facilities need to be inspected?
Spanish:Cornstalk Residue Grazing with Weaned Calves, Dry Pregnant Cows or Pairs – What Supplementation Do They Need?
With approximately 9.8 million acres of corn yielding an average of 182 bushels/acre, cornstalk residue can be an accessible and economical winter grazing forage option for producers in Nebraska. Historic research at the University of Nebraska has suggested cattle select mostly dropped corn, husks, and leaves. The total digestible nutrients (TDN) of the selected diet can be variable, but tends to range from 50-60% TDN.
Spanish: