rm & Ranch
tension Corner
County Extension Educators
Anderson, Agriculture Educator
Stiegler, Horticulture Educator
& Brett Morris, 4-H Youth Development
ews
of America Cow-
Conference Slated for
sixth annual Crossroads
Cow-Calf confer-
will take place Nov. 19
Cleveland County Fair-
The main focus of
will be practical
tips and profitable
for producers.
sponsored by
Cooperative Exten-
and Cleveland
Cattlemen's Asso-
It will begin by holding
concurrent morning ses-
will spotlight and dis-
atrition, fertilizer
th
Discussions held
the sessions will center
common questions
those in this industry.
Selk, Oklahoma State
Cooperative Exten-
specialist, will
the afternoon session
a live demonstration
scoring of beef
This will be followed
live demonstration
proper injection
.dehorning and other calf
Ing techniques by Dr.
)atrick, OSU Coop-
Extension veterinarian.
will begin at 8:
and is $15 at the door
in advance. The fee will
the cost of lunch and writ-
materials that will
to all participants.
at the conference, par-
will not only gain valu-
Lhat will benefit
Operations, they can also
the tradeshow exhibits
to win the drawing
for a pair of boots and steaks.
Producers interested in
attending the conference can
pick up a registration form
at The Payne County OSU
Cooperative Extension Office.
Time to Supplement Cows
Grazing Summer Grasses
In the book "A tour on the
Prairies" Washington Irving's
notes for October 31, 1832,
make some of the following
observations, "Our horses were
generally much jaded by the
fatigues of traveling and hunt-
ing, and had fallen away sadly
for want of good pasturage" also
"the late rains seemed to have
washed away the nourishment
from the scanty herbage that
remained" and "our horses had
lost flesh and strength rapidly".
At the time he was making
these notes Washington Irving
was somewhere south of the
Cimarron and Arkansas Rivers,
somewhere in East Central
Oklahoma, and his traveling
group was about to turn back
towards Ft. Gibson as a result of
these and other circumstances.
Today we recognize that
Washington Irving's comments
are due to the low nutritional
value of warm season plants
as they reach maturity at the
end of the growing season. It
is also the reason cows begin
to lose condition at this time of
year. Even though the forage
supply is adequate and the grass
appears green, it is most likely
too low in protein to supply a
cow's nutritional requirement.
The bottom line for this dis-
cussion is, if you have cows
grazing bermudagrass or warm
season native grass, stockpiled
over the summer -- it is time to
begin a winter supplementation
program.
Supplementation guidelines
for cattle that are grazing or
being fed hay are available in
Extension fact sheet number
3015 available on line at http:
//www.ansi.okstate.edu/exten/
beef/or by contacting the Payne
OSU Cooperative Extension
office.
Using Wheat Pasture as a
Winter Supplement for Cows
and a Creep Feed for Calves
Limited grazing of wheat
pasture has proven to be the
best and also more efficient
approach for utilizing this high-
quality forage with mature beef
cows. Allowing her to graze on
wheat pasture for one day and
returning her to dry pasture
grass or hay for 2 - 3 days can
meet the protein requirements
of a dry cow. A pattern of one
day on wheat and 1 day off,
should meet the protein needs
of the same cow after calving.
The day on wheat pasture
should be defined as that
amount of time required for
the cow to graze her fill of
wheat forage (3 - 5 hours) and
not a full 24 hours. This short
time on wheat allows the cow
to gather adequate amounts of
protein to carry her over the
ensuing days on dry grass or
hay. A 3 - 5 hour grazing limit
helps to avoid the unnecessary
loss of valuable forage due to
trampling, bedding down and
manure deposits. Under normal
weather conditions in the fall,
enough wheat forage should be
accumulated by early December
to supply the protein needs of
about 1 to 1.5 cows per acre
throughout the winter months
When limit grazing is practiced.
Wheat pasture creeps provide
yet another alternative use of
quality small grain pasture in
the cow-calf operation. When
dry grass pastures or haying
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THE PERKINS JOURNAL, Thursday, November 13 2003-A5'
areas areimmediatelyadjacent Deadline nears for Disaster
to wheat pasture, the opportu-
nity becomes available for small Loan applications
grain pasture creep feeding of
fall-born calves. Creep gates,
placed between the cow pas-
ture and wheat field, will allow
calves free access to wheat
forage while restricting the
cows to their dry pasture win-
tering area. Compared to dry
wintered calves, nursing calves
allowed access to quality forage
of this type could improve their
daily gain by .5 to .75 pounds
per day.
Producers who decide to use
continuous grazing programs,
should watch out for the pos-
sibility of"grass tetany." Grass
tetany will normally strike when
cows are grazing small grain
pastures in the early spring or
late fall and the danger will tend
to subside as hot weather arrives
in April and May. A mineral
deficient condition primarily
due to calcium, and to a lesser
degree to magnesium, is thought
to be the major factor that
triggers the disorder and nor-
mally affects older cows that
are nursing calves under two to
three months of age. Dry cows
are seldom affected. It is known
that factors other than simply
the magnesium content of the
forage can increase the prob-
ability of grass tetany. High
levels of potassium in forages
can decrease absorption of mag-
nesium and most lush, immature
forages are high in potassium.
High levels of nitrogen fertil-
ization have also been shown
to increase the incidence of
tetany although feeding protein
supplements has not. Other
factors such as the presence of
certain organic acids in tetany-
causing forages have been
linked with tetany. It is likely
that a combination of factors,
all related to characteristics
of lush forage are involved.
When conditions for occur-
rence of tetany are suspected,
cows should be provided
mineral mixes containing 12
to 15 percent magnesium oxide
and be consumed at 3 to 4
ounces per day. It is best for
the supplements to be started
a couple of months ahead of
• the'period of 'tetany danger
sO'dt ,pfaperine' ca lye
established. Because tetany
can also occur when calcium
is low, calcium supplementa-
tion should also be included.
Risk of grass tetany can
be reduced through the use
of mineral supplements
also containing approximately
15 percent calcium. Symptoms
of tetany from deficiencies of
both minerals are indistinguish-
Farmers and ranchers in the
following Oklahoma counties
are reminded of an upcoming
loan application deadline with
the Farm Service Agency:
Blaine, Caddo, Canadian,
Cleveland, Comanche, Creek,
Garfield, Garvin, Grady, King-
fisher, Lincoln, Logan, Major,
McClain, Noble, Okfuskee,
Oklahoma, Payne, Pontotoc,
Pottawatomie, Seminole, and
Stephens.
According to Tracy Imke,
Farm Loan Manager, produc-
ers in these counties have until
January 12, 2004, to apply.
The counties were included in
a Secretarial Natural Disaster
Determination due to physical
and production losses caused
by severe storms and tornadoes
that occurred May 8 through 30,
2003. As a result of the Deter-
mination, loans are available
to assist farmers in recovering
from physical and production
losses. Farm and ranch opera-
able without blood tests and
the treatment consists of intra-
venous injections of calcium
and magnesium gluconate,
which supplies both minerals.
Cows grazing lush small grain
pastures should be fed mineral
mixes containing both calcium
and magnesium.
Bits of Brilliance
"Never approach a bull from
the front, a horse from the
rear or a fool from any direc-
tion."
4-H News
Payne County Spring Live-
stock Show Market Steer
Nominations
County nominations for market
steers will be held on Nov. 20, at
the Payne County Expo Center
Sale Coliseum, from 4 p.m. till
7 p.m., those of you enrolled
in the beef project should be
watching your mail boxes for
nomination info. If you do not
receive anything please call the
Extension Office so we can get
a nomination form to you. New
for 2004*** all market steers
must be nominated at county
tors who have suffered qualify-
ing losses may be eligible tb
FSA emergency loans to cove
actual physical and production
losses.
Emergency loan funds ma2,
be used to purchase seed, fertil-
izer, fuel, and repairs. "A farme
can use the money for the mosl
essential operating and living
costs," Imke said. To be eli-,
gible for a loan, an applican h
must have suffered losses as .
direct result of the disaster anti
be unable to obtain credit from.
other sources. Loans covering',
actual losses are at an interesl
rate of 3.75 percent per annum
The amount of the loan is deter:
.mined by actual certification ot ,
loss less any compensation ,
received, repayment capacity ol
the borrower, and availability of'
security.
Farmers and ranchers who
believe they can qualify mayl
contact the County FSA Office
for additional details.
Oklahoma Wheat
Growers Convention
Set for Dec. 2
All wheat producers from across
the state of Oklahoma are invited to
attend the 2003 Oklahoma Wheat
Growers Convention and Trade
Show to be held at the Cherokee
Strip Conference Center in Down-
town Enid, Oklahoma on Tueay,
Dec. 2.
The one-day event will begin at
12 noon with the opening of the
trade show and wrap up with an
evening session beginning at 6:
30 p.m. featuring Cowboy Poet
Joe Kreger and a delicious dinner
catered by Klein's Catering of
Perry, Oklahoma. The afternoon
session will begin promptly at
1 p.m. with a welcome from
Oklahoma Secretary of Agricul-
ture Terry Peach. Following the
welcome vice president of the
National Association of Wheat
Growers (NAWG) and Darren
Coppock CEO of NAWG will
cover current legislation impacting
wheat growers and the new lqome-
nominations : it" you nnt focus ,
litlv"nomlnafed'fortlle : : e !
Oklahoma Youth Expo.
County Record Book Work-
shop
4-H members new to record-
keeping as well as experienced
record keepers are encouraged
to attend the county 4-H record
book workshop which will be
held on Monday, Nov. 24 at 7
p.m. in the Extension Office
conference room.
i
Perkins
Almanac
High Low Rain
Sunday 11/2 72 47 .02
Monday 11/3 81 68 0
Tuesday 11/4 73 68 0
Wednesday 1115 44 38 0
Thursday 11/6 40 32 0
Friday 11/7 52 29 0
Saturday 11/8 48 35 .13
Weather Information is complied by Rick Matheaon
at the OSU Agronomy Research Station.
a
accurate petcepaom about today/s
American farmer. Loft Sachau
from tile Wheat Foods Council wig
present "Fighting for the Image 9 f
Grain Based Foods."
The convention will also include
the development and updating
of policy for the organization
and lead into another short break
before the evening dinner and
entertainment.
The event is free to the public
due to the generous sponsorship
of Agripro Wheat, Farm Credit of
Oklahoma, Monsanto Crop Pro-
tection, Wheeler Brothers Grain
Company, Bayer CropScience,
Machinerylink.com, W.B. Johm
ston's Grain & Seed Company
Tauber Small Engine and the
Oklahoma Wheat Commission.
The Oklahoma Wheat Growers
Association, as a member of the
National Association of Wheat
Growers, is a nonprofit partnership
of U.S. wheat growers who, by
combining their strengths, voices
and ideas, are working to ensure a
better future for themselves, their
industry and the general public. '
We Salute the Perkin=-Tryon FFA and 4-
Cody Wehr Kyle Dollins
P-T 4-H Rec. Leader P-T FFA Reporter
Thanks for attending the
Perkins-Tryon 4-H and FFA
Pork Chop Dinner & Auction
Harris 66
Perkins
H
