Livestock
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In trying to keep up with current climate science, I often run across articles that I think are interesting or challenging. Here are a few of the articles that have caught my eye in recent weeks. Cosmos magazine describes an counterintuitive impact of a warming climate at the end of the last Ice Age–a temporary…
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Spring has sprung with a vengeance, and warmer weather means that severe weather is more likely. That can contribute to power outages, road blockages, flooding, and other things that may affect agricultural production. Winter weather like ice storms can also cause problems for farmers trying to take care of their livestock, and get milk to…
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Earth.com had an article this week by Chrissy Sexton about some new research scientists from Minnesota have published in Nature Climate Change. The research concerns the impacts of increasing rainfall variability on the carrying capacity of grazing lands. As rainfall becomes more variable, the number of animals that can be supported by an acre of…
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The Panhandle Ag Extension team recently produced a video which describes cool season forage production issues this year. According to their web site, “This video highlights the differences in cool-season forage types and varieties on February 15, 2018, that were planted November 1, 2017. The challenging weather this season ( very limited moisture from October…
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The Panhandle e-News blog from northern Florida posted a useful article this week on management of cool-season forages. This is particularly challenging this year following a late start last fall and the cold weather conditions this winter. It includes an interesting photo comparison of crop conditions for ryegrass planted at three different times during the…
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The Southeast Cattle Advisor published a useful guide on alfalfa by Dr. Jennifer Tucker this week. If you are growing or planning to grow alfalfa for a forage crop this year, you should check this out! You can read it at https://www.secattleadvisor.com/2018/02/09/alfalfa-in-the-deep-south-three-things-to-do-by-spring/.
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The recent expansion of drought across parts of the US has caused livestock producers some concern that we are going back into a period similar to 2011 and 2012, where large extents of drought in the central US forced many livestock producers to liquidate their herds. This is discussed in this recent video and article…