Week of March 16, 2026
Early Scouting for Alfalfa Weevil Recommended
The incredibly mild winter we’ve experienced this year has accelerated the accumulation of growing degree days for one of our most significant forage pests: the alfalfa weevil. For example, areas in southwestern Nebraska have accumulated an average of 318 growing degree days compared to 134 at this time last year. In addition, Kansas State University recently announced that weevils are already active in Kansas (https://eupdate.agronomy.ksu.edu/article/alfalfa-weevils-are-now-active-in-kansas-685-5 ). These factors indicate that early scouting for alfalfa weevil is critical this year.
In Nebraska, alfalfa weevil scouting is generally recommended once 200 growing degree days have accumulated. The western half of the state west of U.S. Highway 281 is at or well beyond this mark and the eastern half of the state isn’t far behind. Alfalfa producers are urged to begin scouting now, especially in fields that have broken dormancy. For fields that are still fully dormant, feeding damage from alfalfa weevil is less of a concern because they require green, growing foliage to thrive.
While there are several insecticides labeled for alfalfa weevil management, in Nebraska there have been reports of some products not performing as well as expected and resistant alfalfa weevil populations have been reported in several western states. Therefore, if you believe you have a significant early season infestation, contact your county Extension Office for further guidance.
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SOURCE: Samantha Daniel, Assistant Extension Educator Water & Cropping Systems
RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2026
With a new growing season just around the corner, it is time to finalize the coming spring and summer’s grazing and forage plans. Last fall and this winter has been dry, leaving most parts of the state in some level of drought. While we do not know for certain how much moisture lies ahead; long-term forecasts into this spring and summer suggest the possibility of drier than normal conditions.
With the possibility of droughty conditions for the coming season, an important first step is to develop or adjust a good forage and grazing drought plan for your operation. Some components of this might include things like stocking rates, turnout dates to summer pastures, purchasing any supplemental hay or feed, securing additional pasture, fertilizer decisions on introduced grass pastures, or seeding of any annual forages.
For spring or cool-season annual forages, the recommended planting period of late March to early April will be here soon. Forages would include things like oats, spring barley, spring triticale, and field peas. With that planting date, these would provide grazing beginning in late May through early July.
For the summer annual forages, the planting period is typically late May and on into the summer months. This would include things like forage sorghum, sudangrass, sorghum-sudan hybrids, pearl millet, and foxtail millet. Additionally, other species or legumes that are typical of some cover crop mixes could be part of the package as well. With a late-May or early-June planting of a summer annual, grazing should be available in July.
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SOURCE: Jerry Volesky, Extension Specialist Range & Forage
RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2026
With chick days underway at farm supply stores across Nebraska, many families and small-scale producers are preparing to welcome new chicks this spring. To help ensure strong, healthy development during those critical first weeks, Nebraska Extension will host a free webinar, “Chick Care Basics,” on April 6 from noon to 1 p.m. CT.
The webinar will feature Dr. Sheila Purdum, poultry extension specialist, and Brett Kreifels, Nebraska Extension educator. The presenters will cover essential considerations for raising chicks, including proper nutrition, housing setup, and biosecurity practices.
“Those first few weeks are foundational for a chick’s health and long-term productivity,” Purdum said.
“Providing the right feed, environment and care early on helps set birds up for success.”
As backyard poultry flocks continue to grow in popularity, Extension educators emphasize the importance of preparation before chicks arrive. Proper brooder setup, temperature management, clean water, balanced starter rations, and disease prevention strategies all play a key role in minimizing stress and supporting healthy growth.
Kreifels said the webinar is designed for those new to raising poultry, as well as anyone looking for a refresher.
“Whether you’re raising a small backyard flock for eggs or starting with chicks for a youth project, understanding the basics can prevent common challenges,” Kreifels said. “We want participants to feel confident and prepared.”
Topics will include:
- Chick nutrition and starter feeds
- Brooder set-up and housing considerations
- Temperature and ventilation management
- Biosecurity best practices to protect flock health
Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions during the session.
The webinar is free, but advance registration is required. To register, visit go.unl.edu/chickcare
SOURCE: Erin Laborie, Extension Educator Livestock Systems
RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2026
Common Sense Farming and Ranching
Alfredo DiCostanzo, Beef Systems Extension Educator
University of Nebraska
Week of March 9, 2026
Games that teach
Recently, with great help from my office coworkers and some external advice, I completed an adaptation of a board game I developed to teach college students about the cow-calf production calendar and record-keeping. The adaptation involved a Nebraska-based cycle including grazing corn stalks, developing record-keeping sheets, and streamlining actions played when drawing a card after landing on a dice roll at one of the 16 spaces on the board. I am extremely grateful for the assistance and advice of the individuals that contributed to this revised edition of what is now called “Moo & More.”
The game was recently featured at the Women in Ag Conference on the last session on Friday, February 27. Over 48 women of various ages and levels of experience participated. After a brief introduction, teams played through one production cycle (playing from November of one year to November of the following year) to get a feel for the game. After this “dry run,” teams were asked to play subsequent cycles permitting for record keeping of cattle inventory and financial record keeping.
My expectation for their experience playing the game was that participants have fun. Based on the level of excitement (and noise) in the room, this expectation was met. Another expectation I had was that participants would learn (or be reminded of) that record-keeping is not easy, but it permits deeper analysis of decisions made. Again, based on players’ reactions (excitement or defeat), I believe this expectation was also met.
An interesting observation I made when conducting practice runs or after observing results of life and weather events, health and genetic decisions and reproductive response on financial records kept by participants at the Women in Ag Conference is just how much simulated wealth a cow-calf operation can generate currently.
The game was set up with current bred cow, bull, and calf prices and corresponding cull prices for cows and bulls. For simple reference, bred cows were worth $4,000, a weaned calf brought $2,500, cull cows or bulls were worth $3,000, hay bales were worth $50 and access to corn acres cost $100. Hay inventory needed to be 3 bales per wintering cow with access to 2 acres per cow.
Despite reproductive rates between 58% and 100% (obtained by rolling two dice) and the effects of various events resulting from genetic or marketing decisions, health management, or life events, most “operations” gained wealth over time. For simple effects that could be simulated with this game, a cow would need $350 to winter (hay and access to corn stalks). If that cow weans a calf worth $2,500 the income potential over winter feeding costs is $2,150.
For a weaning rate of 80% out of 20 cows simulated while playing this game, income from selling calves would be $40,000 while income from selling open cows would be $12,000. Expenses to keep 16 pregnant cows during the winter would be $5,600 (hay, $150, access to corn stalks, $200 or $350 multiplied by 16). Before long, this simulated enterprise would have $52,000 in income against $12,000 in expenses ($30,000), plus 16 cows and one bull in inventory: not bad for a very small cow-calf operation.
Although many other expenses must be subtracted from this income (grazing acres, taxes, etc.), simulations performed by participants of the Women in Ag Conference while playing Moo & More revealed the importance of record-keeping but, more importantly, motivated them to manage their own operations strategically to make the most out of current production conditions.
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Week of March 23, 2026
Health and reproduction
As 500-lb feeder steer prices reach past $5/lb., the influence of two key elements of husbandry, herd health and reproduction, becomes more obvious. Take a herd of 100 cows exposed to bulls in the summer of 2025. If all the cows exposed would deliver a live calf at weaning in the fall of 2026 weighing 500 lb and selling at $5/lb, the gross income for that hypothetical herd would be $250,000: a worthy financial objective.
The moment any of us reads this, reality drives our reaction: there is no way we could ever gross $250,000 from these 100 cows. Pregnancy or weaning rates of 100% are difficult to achieve in the best of circumstances. Many factors including those external to management contribute to pregnancy or weaning rates under 100% (examples: accidents or predators).
Author’s note: calculations and scenarios are oversimplified to permit reflection on the importance of the concepts. Example, we know we must keep heifers for replacements from this calf crop.
A calf weaned from this herd could gross $2,500. Any cow failing to become pregnant or any live calf at birth failing to reach weaning age will detract from this value.
So, can we make up the gross income at weaning each open cow fails to bring? One way to make this income loss is to wean heavier calves. In a herd of 100 cows, the remaining calves must weigh at least 5 lb more to make up for loss in productivity from one open cow. (5.05 lb heavier to be exact but for the sake of this discussion, it will be rounded down).
If breeding failure is low, it is easy to make up production lost to open cows. As more cows are open, it becomes increasingly difficult to make up for them.
Five cows open at pregnancy check represent 2,500 lb to be divided by 95 calves reaching weaning (26 lb extra per calf). Ten open cows would represent 5,000 lb to be made up by 90 calves requiring these calves to weigh 56 extra lb at weaning. If the lactation period is 200 days, a 100-cow herd with 5 or 10 open cows would demand 0.13 and 0.28 lb greater daily gain from the remaining calves.
By now, the reader should be wondering how this extra gain will be achieved, how price slides for heavier calves or how “fleshy” calves will affect price.
Now, assume that this hypothetical herd had 100% calving rate from 100 cows exposed: there were 100 calves born alive. In the subsequent 200 days of lactation, 5 calves succumb to preventable diseases. Again, to achieve equal productivity, the remaining 95 calves must make up 2,500 lb, or, if 10 calves are lost prior to weaning, the remaining 90 calves would have to make up 5,000 lb.
Cows open at pregnancy check are the result of poor reproductive health (reproductive disease, poor body condition, poor nutrition) or poor reproductive management (insufficient cow:bull ratio, poor body condition, etc.). Calf losses between birth and weaning are likely the result of poor herd health, poor nutrition, or management.
If we take the difference in gross income between the hypothetical herd weaning 100 calves weighing 500 lb selling at $5/lb from 100 cows and the same 100-cow herd weaning only 95, 90 or 85 calves weighing the same weight and selling at the same price, then, under these circumstances, the differentials in gross income would be $12,500, $25,000, or $37,500, respectively.
A producer with average weaning rates of 85% successfully investing up to $125 per cow in better herd health and reproductive management to improve weaning percentage to 90% would break even with their current gross income prospects.
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Week of February 9, 2026
USDA Cattle inventory analysis
The last few weeks, I have made some projections for the US cattle inventory as we awaited the release of the official USDA cattle inventory. Also, I contributed my projections on beef production using USDA reports through October of 2025.
It is time to review how well these projections aligned with actual reports and either accept defeat and go back to my role as a nutritionist or continue playing with statistics released by the USDA. Incidentally, this country is blessed to have a reliable and consistent statistical service such as the USDA and other government agencies. This information helps producers make informed decisions.
The USDA inventory reported a total of 37.175 million beef and dairy cows in 2026. In 2025, the inventory was at 37.272 million cows. (I carried figures out to three decimal places as these reports are quite close). My projection, listed in this column in the second week of the year, was 37.6 million cows. The difference is a 1% over-projection from my estimate. This value is close to the error range of USDA reliability estimates.
At the end of 2025, the US produced 25.6 billion pounds of beef under federal inspection compared to 26.6 billion pounds of beef under federal inspection in 2024: a difference of 1 billion pounds. My projection, listed in this column in the last week of 2025, was 25.6 billion pounds.
The analysis of departures from actual estimates obtained officially is helpful to determine if the projection methods are correctly applied and whether they should be deployed in the future. It also helps to have some expectations of what inventories and beef supply levels are to provide anticipated action.
Given the current inventory and knowledge of beef supply in 2025, I might suggest that beef production in 2026 might not differ much from that in 2025. Recently, I also provided information that suggests that Mexican feeder cattle will not be crossing the border any time soon or in 2026.
This leads one to think that the US cow herd is in a short-term balanced state between the cow inventory and beef production. This is important as rapid oversupply of feeder cattle will quickly lead to declining prices. Maintaining the current situation or permitting the herd to expand to moderate levels (about 28 million beef cows), but no more, will prevent prices from dropping dramatically leading again to overcorrection in the opposite direction.
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Rural Health
Hannah Guenther, Extension Educator
Week of March 16, 2026
Brake for Breakfast: A drive-thru event brings cancer prevention directly to Nebraskans.
Nebraska Medicine | Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, Nebraska Extension, and the Elkhorn Valley Public Health Department invite the community to enjoy a free breakfast and learn about cancer prevention at Brake for Breakfast on Friday, April 24, from 7 to 9 a.m. in Norfolk, Nebraska.
Brake for Breakfast is a statewide drive-thru event designed to make cancer prevention easy, accessible, and engaging for all Nebraskans.
At locations across the state, volunteers will hand out a free breakfast along with a personalized checklist to help participants understand which cancer screenings they may need based on their age and risk factors.
“Early detection saves lives,” said Rachael Schmidt, DNP, FNP-C, AOCNP®. “Brake for Breakfast brings screening awareness directly to communities in a convenient, welcoming format.”
At each event, attendees will receive:
- A grab-and-go breakfast
- A “Check Yourself” cancer screening checklist
- Information about how to access local screening services
- Navigation resources for people who are overdue for screening
- A QR code to subscribe to the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center’s Prevention & Screening Newsletter
This initiative supports the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center’s mission to reduce cancer burden, promote early detection, and improve outcomes across Nebraska’s diverse communities. Through its partnership with Nebraska Extension, the event continues to expand its reach into rural communities across the state.
This year, Brake for Breakfast will take place in 10 Nebraska communities: Norfolk, Ord, McCook, Scottsbluff, Valentine, North Platte, Beatrice, Omaha, Kearney, and Grand Island.
The Norfolk Brake for Breakfast event will be held at Prime Stop South on April 24 from 7 to 9 a.m. As always – with earlier screening, comes better detection, which leads to better treatment and increased mortality. To learn more about your personal risk, scan the QR code or visit https://go.canceriq.com/ nebraska-patients to take the cancer risk assessment today. Your assessment results can be emailed to you and will also be reviewed by a member of our team.
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Week of February 16, 2026
The Great American Melting Pot
Did you watch the Super Bowl? We sure did. Charlotte is an avid Seahawks fan, so our house was tuned in (me especially for commercials and snacks). As the confetti settled, I couldn’t help but notice some of the conversation afterward, including criticism that the halftime show “wasn’t American enough.” I promise this isn’t a politically charged article, and I’m not here to point fingers or take sides. But it did get me thinking about what we mean when we say American especially when it comes to food.
So many of the foods we proudly label as “American” were brought here by immigrants, adapted over time, and eventually woven into our everyday lives. My own family history reflects that. My family comes from Swedish immigrants, which has shaped our gatherings with foods like potato sausage, rice pudding, and rye bread. Adam’s family has German roots, and I still remember trying dumplings simmered in sauerkraut for the first time at Grandma Irene’s table.
So today, I wanted to shed a little light on the origins of some of our country’s favorite foods, in hopes that we can better appreciate the many hands and cultures that shaped our food system.
Hamburgers & Fries - When I think of classic American meals, a hamburger and fries is usually the first thing that comes to mind. But the hamburger has German roots. The “Hamburg steak” (a seasoned ground beef patty) was popular in the 19th century and brought to the United States by German immigrants. Over time, it was adapted into the sandwich we know and love today.
And French fries? They aren’t French at all. (There’s your fun fact for the day.) Fried potatoes are believed to have originated in Belgium, where fried foods were a staple. European immigrants brought this tradition to the U.S., and fries eventually have become the perfect companion to burgers across diners and drive-ins.
Apple Pie - Apple pie is often called “as American as apple pie,” but the apples we use today like Granny Smith aren’t native to North America. They were brought by European settlers, along with pie-making traditions. Early colonists embraced pie because it was a practical way to preserve fruit, and it quickly became a staple in American kitchens.
Hot Dog - What feels more American than eating a hot dog at a baseball game? Once again, we can thank German immigrants. Their sausage-making traditions were introduced to the U.S. and quickly adopted because they were affordable and easy to preserve.
Corn - If there is one food that truly is American, it’s corn. Corn was cultivated, prepared, and stewarded by American Indian tribes long before Europeans made contact. It formed the foundation of Indigenous food systems across North America. Cornbread, grits, tortillas, and many other staples all trace their roots back to this land. It’s hard to imagine what the world’s food system would look like today without corn!
Our food, our country, and our culture have always been shaped by many backgrounds coming together. That’s what makes the American food system so great! Each culture brought something: ingredients, techniques, traditions and over time, those contributions have blended into something we can proudly call American.
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Week of February 2, 2026
Sleepless in Nebraska
Eat fruits and vegetables, drink water, move your body, increase your protein – we all know that these are important aspects of taking care of our health, but what about sleep? Sleep plays a huge role in our health, safety and overall wellbeing and unfortunately many of us aren’t getting enough of it. 1 in 4 Nebraskans is not getting the recommended about of sleep each night. So today let’s talk about sleep including how much we need to be getting, the stages of sleep we go through each night, and finally 3 tips to help you sleep better.
Are you getting enough sleep?
- Infants (4-12 months) need to be getting 12-16 hours per 24 hours
- School Age (6-12) need to be getting 9-12 hours per 24 hours
- Teens (13-18) need to be getting 8-10 hours per 24 hours
- Adult (18-60) need to be better 7 or more hours per night!
What happens when you sleep? During our nightly rest, we travel through a series of stages of sleep that each play a vital role in restoration and restfulness.
- First, we drift into light sleep which is the beginning of sleep. Our heart rate decreases, our body temperature decreases as our body prepares to enter deep sleep. During this stage we can be easily woken up and this makes up for about 50% of our sleep each evening. This means it is very important to reduce any outside stimuli from phones to pets for a goodnight of sleep
- Next, we enter deep sleep which is only about 15-20% of our sleep but it’s extremely important because this is where learning and memory storage take place along with energy restoration, cell regeneration, growth and repair of tissues and bones, and the strengthening of our immune system. While in deep sleep, we can sleep through most disturbances but if we are woken up you will feel groggy and disoriented.
- Lastly, we have REM (rapid eye movement). In this stage our body actually becomes paralyzed because we are actively practicing and rehearsing skills along with problem solving and neuro stimulation which is associated with behavior.
We travel through each of these stages 5-6 times each night!
So what can you do to sleep better? Here are three tips …
- Set your nighttime room temperature to 60-68 degrees. Your body has to cool down in order to sleep which means it is important that your sleeping room remains cool. Keep the doors closed, the curtains drawn, and think about using a fan. Traveling soon? Most hotel rooms are set between 72-75, drop the temp so you can enjoy a quality night’s sleep.
- Set a caffeine curfew. Try to limit caffeine consumption 8hours before bed time. It is possible to sleep with caffeine in your system, but it is going to reduce your quality of sleep keeping you in the light sleep stage most of the evening. Try to reduce or limit caffeine consumption after 3pm.
- Limit blue light before bed. Scrolling has become apart of the nighttime routine for many, but bluelight actually has the ability to stop melatonin production making it challenging to fall asleep after looking at a phone, tablet or TV. Instead of scrolling try to read, journal or incorporate some light stretching into your nighttime routine.
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