By Gary Stone, Nebraska Extension Educator
The Yonts Water Conference will be held on Wednesday, April 10, 2024 at the Panhandle Research, Extension, and Education Center, in Scottsbluff. The morning begins at 8:30 a.m. with registration.
The conference will begin at 9 a.m. with Dr. Xin Qiao, Nebraska Extension water and irrigation management specialist. He will discuss ways to improve irrigation efficiencies and give a research update on new irrigation technologies.
With the recent warm weather in Western Nebraska, army cutworms have been spotted in southern Sioux County and central Lincoln County. With spring approaching, this pest may be seen in Nebraska crop fields in the near future. It is an important time to scout for army cutworm, particularly in winter wheat and alfalfa.
The University of Nebraska – Lincoln Panhandle Research, Extension and Education Center will again offer the “Panhandle Research, Extension and Education Center Student Scholarship.” Two scholarships of $1000 each will be awarded. The application period will be open from March 1 to April 15, 2024.
By Karla Wilke, Nebraska Extension cow-calf and Stocker management specialist, and Kacie McCarthy, cow-calf specialist
Getting first-time mother cows bred for the second time is probably one of the strongest challenges for most beef producers. It can be extremely frustrating at the time of pregnancy diagnosis to find a high percentage of those young cows, the future of the cowherd, to be open. More importantly, it is expensive.
In addition to the loss of income from the potential calf crop, is the depreciation of the cow. If a bred heifer is developed or purchased for a value of $2800 and is sold as a slaughter cow after one calf for $1350 (current market value in Nebraska), then the depreciation cost of that cow is $1450. That is a substantial loss.
By Chabella Guzman, UNL PREEC communications
The Nebraska Extension will host an in-person Part 107 Remote Pilot Knowledge Test for drones on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, at the Panhandle Research Extension and Education Center in Scottsbluff.
“Many farmers don’t know they need a license to use drones to evaluate or take pictures of something to be sold, such as cattle or crops,” said Dirk Charlson, Nebraska Extension, educator of digital agriculture. “With heightened interest in spraying drones, which are practical for spraying chemicals, it's bringing new people to the world of drones.”
Nebraska Extension will teach a Food Safety Training and Certification Program, ServSafe, by the National Restaurant Association on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 in Scottsbluff.
ServSafe is the food service industry’s premier food safety training and certification course. It is recognized by more federal, state, and local health jurisdictions than any other food safety training program in the United States. The class will discuss providing safe food, forms of contamination, the flow of food, preparation, service, food safety management, and more. Participants will also receive the 7th Edition revised ServSafe Manager reference book.
