ISU Extension
Agronomy- Extension
IA State Univ.
IA Dept. of Ag
IA DNR

Northwest Area Extension

June 2004

In this issue
Asian Soybean Rust Action Plan
Beef News
Reducing Feed Cost in the Swine Herd
Maintaining Spreading Distance
Results of Cash Rent Survey Released

Asian Soybean Rust Action Plan
Todd Vagts, ISU Extension Crop Field Specialist

Team Members - The likelihood that soybean rust will enter the U.S. in 2004 is low, but Iowa State University and others are developing an action plan to prepare for and respond to Asian Soybean Rust when it does enter the U.S. and Iowa.  The team members represent ISU, IDALS, the Iowa Soybean Association/Iowa Soybean Promotion Board and the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.  The team’s purpose is to develop a comprehensive system to detect and respond to the introduction of Soybean Rust in Iowa.

Training - The team plans to hold five training workshops for more than 2,000 crop consultants and advisers during the last week in June (2004) to help them identify Asian Soybean Rust. These crop professionals are likely to be the first to detect the disease if it hits Iowa fields.  The goal is to keep farmers, crop consultants, extension specialists and researchers informed on how to spot the disease, where to take samples for accurate identification and how to minimize yield loss. 

Practice run - Earlier this year team members tested how quickly the first samples could be verified by the USDA. An ISU Extension field crop specialist initiated the test by taking a false sample to the Plant Disease Clinic at Iowa State. It took less than 30 hours for the sample to make its way from the field to the clinic and on to Beltsville, MD for official confirmation by the USDA.

Distribution - Currently, soybean rust is found on every continent in the world except North America. The fungus was first identified in Japan in 1902. It was discovered in Australia in 1934 and from there it traveled to Africa. Brazilian soybean producers first experienced the disease during the 2002-2003 growing season.

Environmental conditions - In general, conditions that promote good growth and full canopy development of the soybean crop are also the conditions most suitable for development of soybean rust. Temperatures in the range of 60 to 82°F are optimal for infection and spread of the pathogen as long as there is at least 6 to 12 hours of moisture. Moisture, as rain or dew, promotes the spread of the pathogen once infection has taken place. The normal temperatures and moistures found in the North Central region of the U.S. are well within the ranges that would result in severe yield losses.

Host range - Asian Soybean Rust (Phakopsora pachyrhizi) infects over 95 species of plants including soybean and related Glycine species.  Included in the list is Kudzu (Pueraria lobata), which is widespread in the U.S. and could serve as an inoculum reservoir or bridge host for soybean rust in the southern U.S.  The large number of host species increases the likelihood that this pathogen will survive and over winter in the southern U.S., as well as in Central America.

More Information –
Soybean Rust Update:  http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/icm/2004/3-22-2004/soyrust.html
USDA Soybean Rust Risk Analysis: http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/reports/erssor/field/ocs-bb/2004/
Soybean rust questions and answers:  http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/icm/2002/11-18-2002/soybeanrust.html

Information Sources:
http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/news/2004releases/rust.html
http://www.apsnet.org/online/feature/rust/

Beef News
Beth Ellen Doran, ISU Extension Beef Field Specialist

Feedlot EMS Will Begin 2nd Year - The Feedlot Environmental Management System (EMS) program just celebrated the successful completion of its first year.  The number of participants who began to build clean water diversions increased by 120%.  The number of participants who began to analyze manure for nutrients and who began building solids settling structures was doubled and tripled, respectively.     

The Feedlot EMS is a producer-driven plan that involves managing the feedlot to improve the environmental and economic bottom line.  The EMS involves four face-to-face workshops throughout the year with an on-site assessment of each participant's feedlot.  During the year, the producer plans, implements, checks and improves the environmental management of the feedlot.  Program cost  is $300.

A really big advantage to a Feedlot EMS is that it is recognized and encouraged by the Environmental Protection Agency.  But there are other advantages such as protecting property value, reducing livestock health risks, documentation of stewardship and protecting the well-being of your family, employees and neighbors.  An EMS puts a producer in the lead.  It is an individual plan, not general guidelines that everyone has to follow.  If you would like to enroll in the Feedlot EMS or would like more information, please contact Beth Doran (712-472-2576) or Dennis DeWitt (712-336-3488).

Wildlife Research - Students of Dr. Jim Pease, Extension Wildlife Specialist at Iowa State University, will be collecting data on private working farms in the Loess Hills of Woodbury County during the next 8 weeks.  A grant from the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture will allow them to document the bird use (both game and non-game birds) of rotationally grazed pastures.  This is an extension of ISU research conducted two years ago at the ISU McNay Farm in Lucas County.  To view a summary of that research, go to http://www.leopold.iastate.edu and click on the article featured in the left hand column about cattle and birds.  What Jim and his students hope to find is that birds and cattle can co-exist on properly managed rotationally grazed pastures.

Corn Co-Products Research - Beef Field Specialists, Dennis DeWitt and Beth Doran, are cooperating with Dr.'s Dan Loy and Allen Trenkle, ISU Department of Animal Science, to research the variability of high moisture corn co-products.  These products include condensed distillers solubles, wet distillers grains and modified wet distillers grains.  Monthly samples are being collected from Little Sioux Corn Processors, Marcus; Midwest Grain Processors, Lakota; Quad County Corn Processors, Galva; and Siouxland Energy and Livestock Cooperative, Sioux Center.  The samples will be analyzed to evaluate within and between plant variation, seasonal variation and year-to-year variation for dry matter, crude protein, fiber fractions and certain major minerals.

 

Reducing Feed Cost in the Swine Herd
Dave Stender, ISU Extension Swine Field Specialist

Feed cost became a more important factor in the cost of swine production recently.  The general rule of thumb increases cost of gain $0.50/cwt for every $0.10 increase in a bushel of corn.  Therefore, if corn goes up $1.00/per bushel, then the cost to raise a pig increases by about $5 per hundredweight.  Similarly, a $10/ton increase in soybean meal (SBM) price increases the cost of gain about $0.35.  A $30/ton increase in SBM price would then increase the cost of gain about $1 per hundredweight.
 
A common question is whether protein (lysine) levels should be adjusted as prices of corn and beans change.  Higher lysine levels improve feed efficiency and lean gain.  Protein levels should always be adequate, but may be adjusted slightly in relation to the corn to protein price relationship.  Another rule of thumb is that when 100 bushels of corn and a ton of SBM are equal in price, then energy and protein are about equal in cost.   For example, $2/bushel corn corresponds to a $200/ton value for soybean meal in terms of energy and protein content.  If we take today's cost of 100 bushels of corn worth $280 and a ton of bean meal worth $320, protein is slightly more expensive than energy.  We should not short the pigs on protein so keep the protein at least adequate, but overfeeding protein is more expensive in this ratio than normal.  Make sure your feeding levels are close to the lean gain requirements of the pigs, now is not the time to err by overfeeding protein.
 
Reducing market weights will save feed - gains above 240 pounds are probably greater than 4.0 to one feed/gain.  Over 260 the conversion may be over 4.5:1 especially for earlier maturing genetics.  Selling larger less efficient hogs at a lower weight and replacing them with smaller, more efficient pigs will save feed.  Forty pound pigs will convert at 2:1 or better.  Even with a high feed price, there is still a substantial return over feed cost for heavy (>240) hogs.   Heavier weight pigs tend to spread out overhead costs such as facility and initial feeder cost.  If the final finishing ration is 7 cents per pound and the conversion is 4.5, then the cost of gain is $31.5/cwt for feed.  As long as the net market price is over $31.5 there is a positive return over feed. 
 
Make sure to adjust feeders properly, unadjusted feeders have been shown to waste more than 10% feed.  That is about $6 to 7 dollars per hog with current feed prices.
 
Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) are readily available because of the growing ethanol industry and work well in swine diets.  There is a calculator available for determining the value of distillers relative to the corn/soybean meal price.  Call Dave Stender at (712)225-6196 or email dstender@iastate.edu for more information. 
 
Synthetic amino acids can reduce the amount of extra protein in the diet.  This is worth looking at when SBM is high priced relative to corn.  Prices of DDGS and synthetic amino acids increase with the price of soybean meal, but there generally is a small cost savings when adding these ingredients to your ration.
 

Maintaining Spreading Distance
Kris Kohl, ISU Extension Ag Engineer

All producers, regardless of size, must observe the separation distance to open water when applying solid or liquid manure.  This is especially true at this time of the year when manure is applied to pasture ground near the creek.  The measurement is taken from where the closest drop falls – not where you drove.  For this reason, be sure to observe at least the separation distance and then some.

The required separation distances are:

High-quality water – 800 ft  (Little Sioux River from Spencer to Cherokee and many lakes with public facilities.)

Other water sources - Sinkholes, abandoned well, drinking-water well, designated wetlands, any creek with a bed & bunks or cistern – 200 ft.

If permanent grass buffer exists, the separation distance reduces to 50 ft.  For a complete list, check with your Iowa State University Extension office.

Results of Cash Rent Survey Released
By Ron Hook, ISUE Farm Management Specialist

The recently released Iowa State University cash rent survey shows modest increases in the overall average rent per acre for most counties in northwest Iowa.  The largest increase of $10 was reported in Lyon County with the overall average cash rent reported at $134.  Sac County reported the largest decrease of $4 from $142 to $138 per acre.

Cash rental rates presented in FM-1851, “Cash Rental Rates for Iowa – 2004 Survey”, are the result of a survey of farmers, landowners, agricultural lenders, real estate brokers, and professional farm managers.  The survey is sent out annually in March with tabulated results released to the public in May.

These individuals supply information based on their best judgment about typical cash rental rates for high, medium, and low quality cropland in their counties as well as land devoted to hay production, oats, pasture and cornstalk grazing.

Kossuth and Calhoun county respondents reported increases of $9 per acre to $136 and $140 per acre respectively.  Sioux County respondents indicated overall rent down $3 per acre to $133 per acre.  Palo Alto County respondents indicated no change from the $127 per acre figure reported on the 2003 survey. 

An increase similar to the overall average rent amount was reported for high quality land.  The largest increase of $16/acre was reported in Plymouth County followed closely by Monona County at $15/acre.  Sac, Woodbury, Carroll and Palo Alto Counties each showed a small decrease with O’Brien County showing no change from 2003. 

When comparing rental rates for various parcels of land it is important to remember that there are many circumstances that may justify higher or lower rent in certain cases.  Some of these are:  small size or unusual shape of fields, high or low fertility, USDA program signup, difficult or restricted access to fields, and presence of terraces or creeks that affect the time it takes to plant and harvest.

The full survey summary is contained in ISU Extension publication FM-1851, “Cash Rental Rates for Iowa,” available at county Extension offices in Iowa, the ISU publications office at (515) 294-5247, or from the ISU Extension home page at http://www.extension.iastate.edu/pubs/fm3.htm

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