Nebraska Extension Educator - Holt/Boyd Counties - LaDonna Werth
Nebraska Extension Educator - Holt/Boyd Counties - Amy Timmerman
Nebraska Extension Educator - Brown/Rock/Keya Paha Counties - Brittany Spieker
Nebraska Extension Educator - Holt/Boyd/Garfield/Loup/Wheeler Counties - Bethany Johnston
Nebraska 4-H Assistant - Holt/Boyd Counties - Debra Walnofer
November 19: Livestock Risk Management Workshop, 10:30am-2:00pm, Holt County Annex, O’Neill, NE
November 21: Holt County Shooting Sports Club Meeting, 7:00pm, Holt County Annex, O’Neill, NE
November 28-29: CLOSED: Holt and Boyd County Extension Offices
December 5: Pesticide Applicator Nebraska Department of Agriculture Walk-In Testing, Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County Conference Rooms, Lincoln NE, 9:00am-2:00pm
December 11: 2025 Landlord/Tenant Cash Rent Workshop, 1pm-4pm, Holt County Courthouse Annex. Register at 402-336-2760 - For more information: https://cap.unl.edu/land25
December 8: Holt County 4-H Shooting Sports Kick-Off Meeting, KC Hall, O'Neill
“Sparks” in Youth
In the 4-H world, we talk a lot about helping youth find their “spark,” and how it is different for each child. Wisconsin 4-H defines spark as, “a passion for a self-identified interest or skill, or a capacity that metaphorically lights a fire in a young person’s life, providing energy, joy, purpose, and direction.” Sometimes it is easy to think to yourself, “how I can help youth find their spark and how they can use it one day to become an entrepreneur or make a career out of it,” but it is important to look at it a little differently.
When thinking about how to engage youth, it is important to look at it from the lens of the child. They do not need to know what they are doing for the rest of their life when they are in elementary school, but they want to learn and engage in today. Instead of encouraging youth to always look at the future, we should be providing opportunities for them now, and if they don’t make it a job or find their lifelong passion, they have the experience and memory. From the experience they could learn something new, or it could lead them to something that is new!
In a world of everything being fast, it is important to provide real and rich experiences with our youth. This does not mean it is necessary to take them on a vacation all the time, but it is important to provide activities that help them develop problem solving and critical thinking skills. Doing art projects, STEM activities, and giving children the freedom to play outdoors are all ways to let the kids work their imagination and work through those skills. Although the kits we buy from the store can make cool projects and help youth work on following directions, try encouraging youth to work with supplies and let them build, problem solve, and use their creativity. This will let them be their own leaders and not comparing their project to a picture. By doing this, you may spark something in them that they didn’t know they loved! And remember, even if it isn’t something they make a career out of, they will learn skills they will take with them forever!
To learn more about providing youth with influential experiences, visit the Nebraska 4-H Website.
Source: Jordan Wilbur - 4-H Assistant, Nebraska Ext in Buffalo County (UNL For Families – November 18, 2024)
LaDonna Werth
Extension Educator
Phone: 402-336-2760
E-mail: LWerth2@unl.edu
Guide to Selection and Care of Poinsettias
The poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) is one of the most popular potted flowers in the United States and one of the most beautiful symbols of the holiday season. These colorful plants can be found in nearly every household or business during the December holiday season. Careful selection and proper care of these festive plants will insure enjoyment during the entire holiday season.
Selecting the Best Poinsettia
Types
Poinsettias are available in red, pink, white, and gold. Marbled and bicolored poinsettias are also available. Modern varieties are compact, durable, and hold their bracts for several weeks. The colorful part of the poinsettia commonly referred to as the plant’s flowers are actually modified leaves or bracts. The true flowers are yellow to green, button-like objects located in the center of the bracts.
What to Look For in the Garden Center
When selecting a poinsettia, choose a plant with dark green foliage and brightly colored bracts. The leaves and bracts should not have yellow or brown spots or edges. The true flowers (the yellow to green, button-like objects located in the center of the colorful bracts) should be shedding little or no pollen.
Amy Timmerman
Extension Educator
Phone: 402-336-2760
E-mail: atimmerman2@unl.edu
Avoid poinsettias with wilted foliage or few to no lower leaves. The branches of poinsettia are easily broken or partially broken when moved around. Check for broken or partially broken stems and handle them carefully to ensure you don't break any branches after purchasing.
Also, check the plant for insects. No one wants to bring an insect-infested poinsettia into the home.
Care for Your Poinsettia
When given good care, poinsettias should remain attractive for several weeks, well after the Christmas and New Year’s Day holidays.
Protect From the Cold
To prevent damage from cold temperatures, purchase the poinsettia at the end of the shopping trip, place the poinsettia in a plant sleeve or carefully wrap it before going outdoors, and set the plant in a heated vehicle. Most garden centers and greenhouses will wrap the plant for you but many big box stores do not. You may have to request a bag or sleeve to wrap the plant yourself. Exposure to freezing temperatures, even for a brief moment, may cause the leaves to blacken and drop.
Provide an Ideal Indoor Location
As soon as you get home, carefully unwrap the poinsettia. It is usually best to carefully cut off the protective sleeve rather than attempt to slide the sleeve down and off. Place it near a sunny window or other well-lit area. Do not let the plant touch the cold window pane. Also, keep the poinsettia away from cold drafts or heat sources such as exterior doors that open and shut or heat registers. Poinsettias prefer temperatures between 60 and 70°F.
Watering
Water needs can be determined with your finger. Check the potting soil daily. When the soil surface becomes dry to the touch, water the plant until water begins to flow out the bottom of the pot. The pots of most poinsettias are placed inside decorative pot covers. When watering a poinsettia, carefully remove the pot cover, water the plant in the sink, then set the poinsettia back into the pot cover.
Improper watering is responsible for most poinsettia problems in the home. Keeping plants too wet (watering too frequently or allowing water to collect in the decorative pot cover) often results in the yellowing and loss of the poinsettia’s lower leaves. Leaves will curl and drop when plants are allowed to get too dry.
Source: Aaron Steil Iowa State Consumer Horticulture Extension Specialist (Yard and Garden - October 2022)
Grazing and baling corn stalks is a typical farm practice for many producers. Using the stover and fallen grain has feed value. Cows return manure and organic matter to the field, and stover bales can be used as part of low-cost winter feed rations for the cow herd.
Approximately 1 ton of stover is produced per 40 bushels of dry (10% moisture) corn. Grazing and baling generally removes 50 to 80% of the stover on the ground.
Reasons for Stover Removal
Low-cost feed and winter feed are some of the reasons for grazing and baling corn stover. Extending the grazing season and keeping cows out of feed yards allows manure to be naturally replaced in the field without equipment.
Non-cattle producers may also consider removing some stover from the field to warm the soil sooner in the spring. If the corn crop averaged 180 bushels per acre, there would be 4.5 tons of stover on the soil. The stover can be a blanket, keeping the spring sun from warming the soil and delaying planting.
Removing some of the stover may also make planting more manageable in the spring due to a reduction in ‘trash’ on the ground, especially in high-yielding corn fields.
Bethany Johnston
Extension Educator
Phone: 402-336-2760
E-mail: bjohnston3@unl.edu
Considerations
Erosion should be considered before baling corn stover. Highly erodible fields, either from wind or water runoff, should be analyzed carefully before the stover is removed.
Another consideration is nutrient removal. Some nutrients are in the stover; if they are removed via grazing and baling, they must be replenished for the next crop. Additionally, fields low in organic matter may not be the best candidate for baling. Soil tests should be used to identify the nutrient needs of the next crop. Table 1 shows the typical nutrient contents in stover and their values per ton and total per ton.
Based on those numbers, every ton of stover removed removes $24.48 of nutrients. If 180 bushels of corn were grown, resulting in 4.5 tons of stover per acre, and 50% of the stover was removed (2.25 tons), the nutrient value removed would be $55.08 per acre.
The daily grazing rate allows flexibility for the landowner and the cattle owner, as they can monitor the amount of stover removed. As cattle generally consume dropped ears of corn and husks first, they can be removed before they move on to the leaves and stalks. If baling the acres, the amount of stover removed will depend on the equipment used. Baling alone will not remove as much of the stover as raking and baling or using a stalk chopper combined with raking and baling.
The value received for grazing corn stover runs $0.50 to $2.00 per head per day, with many corn owners charging $1.50 per head per day. Corn stover prices have ranged from $25 to $100 per ton, depending on the year. Prices are lower when other, better-quality forages are available, and the bales will predominantly be used for bedding.
Decision Making
The landowner must compare the cost of nutrients removed from the field versus the income potential from selling the stalks. They will also want to consider the value of an earlier planting date and reduced stover to plant through.
Grazing and baling corn stalks may have financial and agronomic benefits for the landowner and provide feed resources for cattle producers. Based on corn yield, nutrient costs, the amount of stover removed, and the value of the harvested product, determine the correct amount of stover removal for the field.
Source: Heather Gessner - SDSU Extension Livestock Business Management Field Specialist (SDSU Beef – October 23, 2024)
News Release
Livestock Risk Management Workshop in O’Neill - November 19
While cattle prices remain high, learn how to protect against future price drops with these insurance tools. Learn management strategies through an interactive computer program with different market scenarios.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Agricultural Profitability and Nebraska Extension will host a risk management workshop in O’Neill to update livestock producers on the latest insurance options and risk management planning strategies. Join us on Tuesday, November 19 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. CT at the Holt County Annex, 128 N. 6th Street.
Attendees will learn strategies designed to reduce risk exposure to achieve a profitable outcome in uncertain times. Current issues facing the cattle industry will be discussed to help producers to make more informed decisions. The goal of this program is to provide producers with the tools and resources needed to navigate the volatile livestock market and better manage risk through the creation of a risk management plan.
Topics will include managing drought risk with USDA’s Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage (PRF) Insurance and managing price risk with USDA’s Livestock Risk Protection (LRP). PRF is an annual sign-up due on Dec. 1. LRP can be purchased most business days. The Weaned Calf Risk Protection Program, new this year, will also be discussed.
The workshop is free to attend. Lunch will be provided by the Tri-County Bank. Registration for a meal count is required by Nov. 18 by calling Nebraska Extension in Holt County at 402-336-2760. Walk-in’s are welcome that day.
This material is based upon work supported by USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2023-70027-40444.