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On August 12, 2017

Penn State’s Ag Progress Days, Aug. 15-17, will offer fun and educational activities for adults, children and families, while providing agricultural producers with valuable knowledge to improve their farm businesses.

The 4-H Youth Building will house several interactive exhibits and activities. Children can learn about 4-H programming in science, engineering, technology, citizenship, leadership and healthy living. They can find out how to get involved with 4-H, play with rabbits, see robotics demonstrations, and learn about farm and home safety and plant diseases.

Several other activities aimed at children and their families can be found throughout the Ag Progress Days grounds. At the Kids Climb, children can don safety equipment and harnesses and climb a tree like a professional arborist;  Shavers Creek Environmental Center will showcase turtles, snakes, birds of prey and amphibians; a  corn maze offers a fun way to learn facts about Pennsylvania agriculture; and kids can race around a track at the Pedal Go Kart Derby.

Ag Progress Days offers farm operators “one-stop shopping” to compare goods and services, see the latest machinery in action, and find out about new methods and technologies that can help them maximize productivity. Commercial exhibitors will display virtually every product category, including field machinery, milking systems, animal genetics, storage structures, seed, feed, tools, trailers, sprayers, mixers, livestock housing, utility vehicles, fertilizers, fencing, financial products, insurance and more.

Field demonstrations will give visitors a firsthand look at how the latest models from different manufacturers perform under real-world conditions.  No-till corn planters will be among the machinery demonstrated at the show.

Hosted on 150 acres of farmland at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs — along state Route 45 in Ferguson Township, Centre County — Ag Progress Days is among the largest agricultural expositions in the East. The event features 500 commercial and educational exhibits, crop displays, machinery demonstrations, guided research tours, family and youth activities, horse exhibitions, workshops and the Pasto Agricultural Museum. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 15; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Aug. 16; and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 17. Admission and parking are free.

For more information, visit the Ag Progress Days website: http://agsci.psu.edu/apd . Twitter users can share information about the event using the hashtag #agprogressdays, and Facebook users can find the event at http://www.facebook.com/AgProgressDays.

To Attend Recertification Training For Stored Grain Fumigation Applicators

Penn State Extension in York County is holding two meetings for two re-certification credits for pesticide applicators holding fumigation category 20 (grain bin) certification.  Extension Educator John Rowehl explains topics will include writing a fumigation management plan, preparation of storage structures and applicator safety. If you are in south central PA and in need of recertification credits for your grain bin fumigation license, one of these meetings might be right for you.

These meetings are on August 21, 10:30 to 11:30 am and August 29, 7:00 to 8:00 pm. Both will be held in meeting room 1 at the York County Annex Building at 112 Pleasant Acres Rd York PA 17402. There is no fee for this program but class size is limited so registration is required. Call 717-840-7408<tel:717-840-7408> or e-mail lri1@psu.edu<mailto:lri1@psu.edu> to sign-up.

To Attend The Agronomic Pesticide Applicator Schools

This year Penn State Extension is hosting two Agronomic Pesticide Applicator Schools (formerly Commercial Applicators School), offering pesticide applicators many of their necessary continuing education credits in one-day events.  Extension Agronomist Zach Larson explains both locations will feature sessions of core and category 01/PC credits and will feature application equipment representatives with equipment on-hand to demonstrate the latest in application technology.

The first event is on Wednesday August 30th at the Ag Progress Days site in Rock Springs, Centre Co, where attendees can obtain up to 6 PA core and 6 category 01/PC pesticide credits.  The school starts at 8:00 am and ends at 3:30 pm and registration includes lunch.  Those looking to attend can do so by going to the registration site http://www.cvent.com/events/agronomic-pesticide-applicator-school/event-summary-68198f8801c64852bc89292b6c21f470.aspx or by calling Blair County Extension at (814) 940-5989<tel:(814) 0940-5989>.  Specific questions about the event can be directed to Zach Larson at zmlarson@psu.edu<mailto:zmlarson@psu.edu>.

A second school will be held on Thursday September 21st at the Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Landisville.  The school offers concurrent sessions, allowing attendees to obtain up to 11 core credits or 6 core and 5 category 01 or PC pesticide credits.  The school starts at 8:00 am and end at 3:00 pm and registration includes lunch.  Those looking to register can call Dauphin County Extension at (717) 921-8803<tel:(717) 0921-8803> or follow the school’s webpage http://extension.psu.edu/plants/crops/courses/agronomic-pesticide-applicator-school for upcoming registration.  Specific questions can be directed to Liz Bosak at ejb246@psu.edu<mailto:ejb246@psu.edu>.

 

To Seed Fall Forage Crops

Pasture managers and hay producers have a window of opportunity in the late summer and early fall to improve existing or establish new stands through seeding.

Throughout Pennsylvania, forage producers should seed cool-season perennial forages between mid-August to mid-Sept.  Extension Agronomist Jessica Williamson explains at this time, the weather is still warm enough to encourage establishment while beating the potential extreme temperatures that settle into our state by mid-fall.  September rains encourage quick establishment and the warm days boost growth. When renovating or establishing pastures or hay fields, producers need to be paying close attention to two things, seeding depth and seed-to-soil contact. More failures in establishing forages are the result of improper seeding depth than any other cause! If seeding depth isn’t correct then you might as well not bother to plant. Forage seeds have a very small supply of stored energy to support the seedling until it emerges and begins making its own energy. Seeds placed too deep are not likely to emerge. Optimum seeding depth varies with soil type (sandy, clay, or loam), soil moisture, time of seeding, and firmness of seedbed but generally is not more than 3/8 inch deep. A rule-of-thumb is that “5-10% of the forages seeds planted should be on the surface after seeding”.

Ensuring that seeds are placed at the proper depth requires a firm seedbed. It is extremely difficult to accurately regulate seeding depth if the soil is soft and fluffy. Here is a rule-of-thumb regarding soil firmness: “On properly firmed soil, an adult’s footprint should not be deeper than ½ inch”. Forage seeds should be covered with enough soil to provide moist conditions for germination but not so deep that the shoot cannot reach the surface.  Proper seed-to-soil contact can be tricky when no-tilling into an established stand in an effort to restore and improve forage stands and special attention should be paid to seeding depth.

Forage seeds need to absorb at least their own weight in water before germination begins. Unless the forage seed has been planted in saturated soils, the water generally moves into the seed from surrounding soil. Adequate seed-to-soil contact ensures maximum water movement into the seed in the shortest time. Field situations (cloddy or loose soil) that do not promote good seed-to-soil contact generally result in extended germination periods and sporadic emergence. The use of press wheels on a grain drill or cultipacking after seeding can improve seed-to-soil contact.

Quote Of The Week: “We’re a blessed nation because we can grow our own food. A nation that can feed its people is a nation more secure.”  President George W. Bush