By Tony Meiers

The harvest season is soon at an end. Nobody is bragging about the yields or quality. Those who seem to have bragging rights are the ones who grow hay crops for resale. Those in this business say they don't have enough hay to keep up with the demand from buyers from outside this area. Many of these buyers come from Montana and are lining up their hay needs as early as May. My sources say that, including trucking, they are paying up to and over $100 per ton. (Cont. on page 2)

1. District Manager Comments

2. Popular Trees and Shrubs

Try this if you are tire of FIGHTING Weeds

3. Conservation Tillage News

4. From the Library

This year the Mountrail Soil Conservation District planted over 181000 feet of tree rows and seeded 941 acres to grass. This years tree and shrub plantings represent a 66 percent increase over last year. Acres planted into grass were up 10 percent. This would have been even more had the weather stopped grass seeding the last two weeks prior to the June 15 deadline

Range Tour-In late June 3 Soil Conservation Districts, including Mountrail, hosted a one-day range tour workshop on the Marlowe Nelson farm. It rained from 8am until 3pm, just after the tour ended. There was a fair turnout from producers around Powers Lake and to the west and north. Turnout from southern producers was very light. The tour was held indoors due to inclement weather. The information presented was very informative and would have been of importance to any livestock producer attending. Much of the information dealt with what grasses grow best at what times of the year, the palatability of these grasses at their various growth stages, and what stages of growth are best for livestock grazing. Myself not being much of a livestock producer I did learn that there could be considerable cost savings with a well-managed grazing plan. A well-managed plan can reduce the amount of and you currently use for

livestock grazing by half, thereby livestock producers can cutting the cost of pasture rent, or can allow a producer to possibly double

the amount of head presently grazing on his or her land. As a livestock producer you should be able to figure out the savings on pasture rent by cutting in half the amount of pasture rented or by being able to double the size of your herd with the same amount of acres. Most of work involved is taking a pasture and splitting it up into smaller areas, allowing for more intensive grazing over a shorter time period. It is being proven that under short intensive grazing periods the less desirable plants tend to compete much less for space. Speakers at the range tour reported that after a couple of grazing seasons cattle would move themselves. All that is needed is to open gates at the proper intervals. I would recommend contacting Lealand Schoon , District Conservationist USDA-NRCS at Stanley ND. Lealand is a rangeland specialist. The District intends to hold another range tour sometime next summer.

2002 Tree plantings-For those of you out there planning on having trees planted next spring your ground should have been worked a couple of times already. I will be checking next springs planting sites for proper preparation of ground. If ground is not properly prepared the landowner will have to wait another year for his or hers tree planting. Included in this newsletter will be an insert of trees that can be ordered through the District. Preparation of planting site can include an application of up to 40 pounds of Treflan granules. Make sure to not work granules in to deep. The District still has plenty of room for more tree plantings. It should be noted that acreage put into trees, shrubs, and native grasses either for field, livestock, farmstead, wildlife, arboretum, etc., will save more in expenses and soil erosion in the long run than what income will be generated by today's cereal crops.

The Mountrail County Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is now offering soil quality testing with the help of a soil quality testing kit. Soil Quality is assessed by measuring a minimum data set of soil properties to evaluate the soil's ability to perform basic functions (i.e., maintaining productivity, regulating and partitioning of water and solute flow, filtering and buffering against pollutants, and storing and cycling nutrients). Soil quality integrates the physical, chemical, and biological components of soil and their interactions. Therefore to capture the holistic nature of the soil's quality all parameters in the kit should be measured. However, not all parameters have equal relevance to all soils and situations, specific land use along with climate and soil type need to be taken into consideration. This kit should be used as a screening tool to give the general trend or direction of soil quality, whether current management systems are maintaining, enhancing or degrading the soil. Most indicators in the test kit are selected primarily for agricultural soil quality assessments. There are two fundamental ways to assess soil quality: one is to take measurements periodically over time to monitor changes or trends in soil quality, the second is to compare measured values to a standard or reference soil

condition. By making use of the two ways of assessing soil quality,

the kit can be used to: A. Make side-by-side

(Cont. on page 2)

comparisons of different soil management systems to determine their relative effects on soil quality. B. Take measurements on the same field over time to monitor trends in soil quality as affected by soil use. C. Compare problem areas in a field to the non-problem areas. D. Compare measured values to a reference soil condition or to the natural ecosystem. The basic components that are measured in the test kit include; soil respiration - microbiological activity, water infiltration-the soils ability to take in water through the soil surface, bulk density-compaction and pore space, electrical conductivity-salt concentration, pH test-measures the soil's acidity or alkalinity, aggregate stability and slake test-stability of soil fragments in water, earthworms-biological activity, physical soil observations and estimations-observe soil structure, root patterns, and how to estimate topsoil depth, and nitrate levels. All tests are designed to benefit producers. If you have any further questions or would like additional information please call the USDA-NRCS office at Stanley. 701-628-2151

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(District Comments Cont. from page 1)

This might be a good time to pencil in the difference between widely variable yielding, diseased, and often unmarketable crops as compared to crops that can't keep up with the demand. The U.S. Government is also seriously looking into increasing the total CRP acreage in the next farm bill. The District does have a notill grass drill! I will let you figure it out from here.

On September 5 the USDA-NRCS office in Stanley held a soil quality test kit demonstration on a piece of ground owned by Bryan Rosencrans. John Stika, Area III soil agronomist, conducted the test in front of several area farmers and about a dozen school kids from Powers Lake. Despite the fact that the water infiltration tubes bent because the ground was so dry, all went well. Area farmers and school kids learned how to test for water infiltration, which didn't take long and microbial activity. The microbes had to be woke up, as John put it, with a dose of water so carbon dioxide discharge could be recorded. Some of the more interesting discussions came after all testing was done.

Question-Does anhydrous ammonia destroy beneficial soil microbes? Answer-Only for a short period of time for those in the "hot zone". With more microbes per spoonful than people on earth they eventually multiple and move back into the anhydrous zone to capture the nitrogen and release later. It is the microbes that release nitrogen to the plants.

Question-What is the best way to crop after alfalfa. Answer-It is recommended to no-till your way through a field that has been in alfalfa for a number of years. Take last cutting as late as possible so the alfalfa will winter kill. Then follow with a hay crop such as oats. There will usually be some regrowth of the alfalfa. Tillage prior to first crop destroys beneficial effects of alfalfa roots, which help provide for better water infiltration.

It is also being learned over the years that the old way of leaving black fallow was not for moisture retention but was for creating more nitrogen. Black fallow is a two edged sword. Soil microbes are disturbed with cultivation thereby creating more nitrogen. On the other hand a producer looses a half-inch of soil moisture each time they cultivate.

Fact-Any tour and or demonstration held by your local Soil Conservation District and USDA-NRCS office is presented with the intention of helping farmers, ranchers, and general landowners derive the most benefit from the use of their soils while also minimizing soil erosion.

Sometime this early or mid-winter the Mountrail Soil Conservation District will send out a survey that will attempt to determine to what extent farmers in the county practice some form of minimum or no tillage farming and more importantly to what extent they do not follow any type of conservation tillage. There will be a number of questions asked about type of tillage etc,. Hopefully the information received back will help the District to seek out and provide incentives to those who may be interested in some sort of conservation tillage but have not yet made the attempt.

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Low maintenance is important so that you won't need to go in and mow 3 times a summer. Blue Grama and Sideoats Grama are considered short grass, rhizomatous grass species. They generally grow between the heights of 6 to 12 inches tall. They are rhizomatous so they fill in the bare spots, but are very low competition on the trees. Low competition is important for early tree growth. There are weedy grasses such as Smooth Bromegrass, Crested Wheatgrass or Quackgrass. They are high maintenance, highly competitive with trees for moisture, cool season species. The advantage of using Blue Grama or Sideoats Grama is they are warm season grasses. The trees will be actively growing starting as soon as May. Blue Grama and Sideoats Grama, being warm season grasses, generally start actively growing in late June. This results in low competition and your trees get the advantage of more moisture.

Our recommendation would be that you seed the Blue Grama at a rate of 1.3 Pure Live Seed (PLS) pounds per acre or Sideoats Grama at a rate of 5.7 PLS pounds per acre, between the dates of May 10 and June 15. Remember that these are warm season grass seeds, therefore shallow seeding is a requirement! If you decide to broadcast the seed, consider doubling the seeding rate and also using about 10 pounds of oats per acres as a carrier. Oats will give you quick cover (which also competes against weeds) if used at this rate. A light dragging or harrowing may be necessary to incorporate the seed into the soil. Doing this right before a spring rain would perfect. The initial investment of establishing Blue Grama or Sideoats Grama will pay off in the long run. Both grasses have a positive aesthetic value.

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By Tony Meiers

I recently coordinated a tree disease workshop held at the NDSU Extension Research Center in Dickinson ND, which was attended by several SCD personnel from Western ND. We started the workshop off with a look at a Green Ash tree. This particular tree showed signs of a whitish film on the leaves. An ash bug causes this white film. Any other leaf deformities are caused by ash anthracnose. Usually defoliating bugs and fungi are not harmful except if the tree is completely defoliated each year.

Next the group looked at a tree with webworms. Webworms will create an unsightly mass of webbing, usually located on a particular branch of the tree. Control of these webworms is not necessary except for aesthetic reasons. Generally control consists of removing the web and worms by hand, if the branch is within reach. Other options are to remove the infected branch, but be sure that this branch will not affect the overall growth of the tree. Spraying is the last option for those squeamish about using their hands. Make sure openings in the web have been made to allow for spray to penetrate. Any insecticide should work. Make sure to use the proper precaution and follow labels at all times.

From here the group moved to a Cotoneaster shrub. This particular shrub suffered from a mild case of leaf skeletonization.

This disease will give the leaf a see through appearance. This is caused by a fly. The next most common disease of Cotoneaster is fire blight. Fire blight gives leaves a burned look and

the most effective treatment is to cut the Cotoneaster shrub down to the ground, remove cut branches, and allow shrub to regrow. Tree nutrition, soil management, and chemical control are other options but not as effective as pruning. Fire blight occurrence comes in cycles and this year has been bad for Cotoneaster.

A short walk led us to an American Linden. This one suffered from sunscald. American Linden's are prone to sunscald because of their thin bark covering. These trees should be wrapped around the trunk each winter and then remove the wrap after the snow has melted.

What was also very noticeable was how the ground at the base of the trees at the research center was prepared. Many of the trees had a covering of wood chips several inches deep and as wide as the branches spread out. Many of these trees were full grown and they still maintained a mulch cover around the base. The mulch was pulled back from the very base of the tree so as to not cause any root problems.

Helping Heifers Calve Easier: Research is being done that reduces calf deaths by up to 55 percent and heifer deaths by 80 percent with proper management. Red Clover silage Boasts Benefits over Alfalfa silage: ARS dairy scientist Glen A. Broderick reports that switching cows from alfalfa to red clover could help reduce excess nitrogen in manure.

Cutting through wheat sawfly dilemmas-Scientists are using a new technique called coupled gas chromatographic- electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) to pinpoint exactly which chemicals are critically important to sawfly activity. Coping with Swine Manure: Scientists have devised a quick, effective, and relatively inexpensive new technology for removing the ammonia form of nitrogen from large-scale swine production facilities by using a Japanese pellet technology. Large populations of bacteria are entrapped in polymer gel pellets to break down the ammonia. For many more articles on agricultural research visit the website listed above.

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CONSERVATION TILLAGE NEWS

By Tony Meiers

35 Easy Ways to $ave Money:

1. Use new technologies-yield monitors and GMO'S
2. Eliminate deep tillage; 3. Reduce No-Till planter speed-

Reducing ground speed to 4.5 mph during no till corn planting will significantly improve uniformity of planting depth and spacing. 4. Soybean Population-Yield tends to be higher with lower rates along with better standibility and less disease problems. 5. Variety Selection-Test results still showed large variation between hybrids. 6. Strip-Till-9 to 14 bushel advantages when planting corn into soybean stubble. 7.Take Advantage of Product Guarantees. 8. Contract On-Farm Storage-When used properly, on farm storage will pay for itself in 3 or 4 years.

9. Use Pop-Up Fertilizer-By placing the nutrients close to the seed allows for quicker uptake and helps give a corn plant a boost. 10. Use Seed Firmers. 11. Plant Seed at Correct Depth.

12. Carry a Soil Thermometer in the Tractor Cab-If the ground is to cold have the patience to wait. 13. Use Trash Wheels and Set Them Right. 14. Blade or Smooth Waterways-Modern spray controllers have lag time that can deliver too much or too little herbicide if you are constantly changing speeds. 15.Spot Soil Test And Spot Treat Eroded Areas-Eliminating the weak areas of production is the key to improving profitability in any system. 16. Add An Insecticide Like Pounce In Your Pop-Up Fertilizer to Combat Wireworms.

17. Soil Test-Use grid sampling or test your fields by soil type.

18. Purchase Fertilizer in The Winter. 19. Think about Labor- You should need one man per 1200 acres. 20. Purchase Seed in the Fall. 21. Operate dryer and fans with off-peak electricity as much as possible. 22. Zone-till corn on Soybean stubble.

23. Watch machinery costs. 24. Tune up machinery in winter- The goal is to get it ready to work, not work to get it started.

25. Use a consultant for fertilizer and lime recommendations.

26. No-till, No-till, No-till-No tilling 100percent saves soil, moisture, labor, fuel, and time while increasing yields in a dry year. 27. Cover crops-save moisture, hold weed pressure down, and keeps the ground mellow. 28. Kill your cover crops early-Takes away all competition for moisture. 29. Get planters in good operating order. 30. Soil test every field every year-Know exactly what nutrients your crop took off in a dry year. 31. Use alternative nutrients-If available in your area.

32. Use government programs-state and federal-Also buy crop insurance. 33. Shop for chemicals. 34. Rotate your no-till crops every year-Rotating your crops helps control insects and weeds while increasing yields. 35.Scout your fields and use insecticides when necessary.

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