I have talked before on here about the rising cost of fertilizer. Looks like we are now seeing that reality before us. Seems like every week I get a new report of fertilizer and it has went up. This is going to impact input costs on every producer in Faulkner County. Urea and DAP are the two products making the biggest jump. Right now potash seems to be going up but not at the rate as the other two.

The chart below is a survey done by the USDA in Illinois. You can see just a few weeks ago Urea was up $71 and DAP was up $97 a ton. Today Urea is already over $500 a ton here locally. If we look at this time last year, Urea was $363, DAP was $399 and potash was $364.

When you add the increase in diesel fuel to this equation that really makes for a long expensive summer. Make sure you budget accordingly this year, and use your inputs wisely.

With the increase in fertilizer prices it is even more important to soil sample to know exactly what your crop needs. This is the first step in coming up with an effective plan for this growing season. This is the perfect time to pull samples.

Taking a soil sample is easy and doesn't take a lot of time. Take a bucket and a soil probe or shovel and sample several areas in a field. Take soil at a depth of 4 to 6 inches deep. You don't want to go any deeper than 6 inches because the top 4 to 6 inches is all that you can effectively change with fertilizer applications. Mix all those samples from that one field in the bucket and put in a gallon sized plastic bag. If you have a plastic bag at least half full that will be enough for us to put in a box and send off. Make sure you label that bag with the name of the field. Bring your sample to the Extension Office and we will get it sent off. Soil samples are free and results take about 2 weeks.

I have scheduled two more Pesticide Applicator Trainings for March 30, 2021 at the Faulkner County Extension Office located at 844 Faulkner Street in Conway. Times will be at 2:30 and 5:30. Cost for the training is $20.

I can only have 9 participants per class so please call or email and register. Participants must wear a mask at all times during the meeting and they will be spaced out safely.

To register call the office at 501-329-8344 or email Mindy Beard at rbeard@uada.edu.

The 2021 Rice Management Guide is now available for download. I also have some hard copies that I will get out to everyone growing rice. This publication is a must have for anyone growing rice in Faulkner County.

It is amazing what a week will do for crops in Faulkner County. Last week wheat looked rough to me. It had been wet and cold and just not allowing for any growth. This week wheat looks bright green and healthy. Everything looks like it has jumped 6 inches. Oats look even better than wheat right now.

We were able to apply nitrogen this week to most of the wheat and oat fields. That was exactly what we needed at his time. Weeds have been sprayed although we didn't have a lot that needed controlled. The next couple of weeks we should have some good growth and be ready for the next application of fertilizer.

Below are the links to the Enlist and Paraquat Trainings. Enlist training is required every year.

Just like wheat in the county most of the winter annuals that were planted have been fertilized. Ryegrass has also jumped and is looking much better. Up until this week we only had minimum growth, but now it looks like we are back on schedule to get some grazing in the next few weeks. This is going to be a big help as hay supplies continue to dwindle. We should turn cattle in on winter annuals when we are around 6 to 8 inches in height. To learn more about grazing and stocking rates look at the publication listed below.

One of the most asked questions this week was is it still safe to spray my pastures or hay fields for winter weeds. The short answer to that is yes it is, but the more complicated answer is with what.

As I walked a bermudagrass field this week I looked down and could see several green shoots close to the ground. So the question is, how bad will glyphosate hurt that new green grass. The answer is how big a risk taker are you. If we spray glyphosate right now on those shoots that are low to the ground and somewhat protected by the old dormant grass more than likely won't even get the spray on them. But if it does, then you will have some damage. My biggest fear is to stress this new growth out with an application of glyphosate then get a cold snap or even worse a freeze. This could set us back big time. So on the field in the picture above we decided to skip the glyphosate and just go with 2,4-D and metsulfuron. I think applying glyphosate now is too big of a risk.

The ACA Area 7 Conference will be held March 23 at the Conway Expo Center at 6 pm. This is a good chance to get out for an in person meeting. Come out and visit the Extension Booth and say hi to me and pick up some educational material. Check with the ACA magazine or Facebook page to RSVP.

This week Dr Josh Maples talks about Imports and Exports.

The weekly livestock market report is available on the Arkansas Department of Agriculture website.

ACA Area 7 Conference - March 23, 2021 at 6:00 pm at the Conway Expo Center

PAT Training - March 30, 2021 at 2:30 and 5:30 pm at the Faulkner County Extension Office. Call 501-329-8344 to register or email Mindy Beard at rbeard@uada.edu.

Please make sure to change my email in your address book.

My new email is klawson@uada.edu.

The Extension webpage address is uaex.uada.edu.

For more updates on upcoming events and to keep up with what's going on in agriculture in Faulkner County follow me on Facebook and Twitter

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