LYON COUNTY AG NEWSLETTER Dear Lyon County Farmer: There are several fall educational events in September. Enclosed are flyers for the Beef Bash, Pasture to Plate sessions, the KDA Sheep/Goat School (Lyon County Extension is one of the sites), and the Kentucky Forage and Grasslands Council fall program. General news of note is that fall army worm moth flights last week spiked at almost 500 moths last week. Watch pastures, alfalfa and soybeans for infestations. We have also had outbreaks of the yellow-striped armyworms that caused considerable damage to alfalfa fields. Sudden death is showing up in soybean fields. It s occurrence can be associated with nematodes, cool and wet soils in the spring and compaction issues. Cooperative Extension Service Lyon County 231 W. Main Street, P.O. Box 36 Eddyville, KY 42038-0036 (270) 388-2341 Fax: (270) 388-4627 http://ces.ca.uky.edu/lyon/anr/ susan.fox@uky.edu IN THIS ISSUE: Fall Armyworm Beef Bash Flyer Pasture to Plate Flyer Small Ruminant Profict School Weaning 101 Workshop KFGC Field Day USDA Risk Coverage The Wildlife Food Plot and Processing Workshop is Monday night from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Kentucky Dam Village in the conference building. We are doing box lunches for dinner. If you have not already registered we may run out of meals but you are still welcome to attend! We are hosting the KDA Small Ruminant Profit School here at the Lyon County Extension Office. This is sponsored by KDA, includes meals, and is free of charge. Come and meet other goat/sheep producers! Please see the flyer enclosed for additional information on times and registration. And last, but not least, I had my first major crash of my drone and had to send it in for repairs but it is being shipped back and I will continue to investigate applications for using drones in agriculture. (Drone Deploy). Sincerely, Susan M. Fox County Extension Agent for Agriculture/Natural Resources A large population of yellowstriped armyworms hit alfalfa fields hard the last two weeks. A single female moth can lay 2,000 eggs. Eggs hatch in 5-7 days and the larvae feed for up to 3 weeks. 2 3 4 5 6 6
Fall Armyworm Count Spikes! Dr. Raul Villanueva, Extension Entomologist On August 10, 2016, Ms. Patty Lucas (Extension IPM Specialist) checked a pheromone based trap for fall armyworms in Princeton KY, and found less than ten male moths. Then two days later (August 12), she counted more than two hundred male moths in the same trap. Last week the trap counts increased to 479 moths (Figure 2). Also, last week I found some fall armyworms on soybeans in Princeton and Lexington. This week, Clint Hardy, a County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources, reported unidentified moths flying everywhere in Davies Co. Figure 2. Trap counts of fall armyworms in Princeton and Lexington Kentucky. Notice the high numbers of moths Based on historical data, recent reports, and trap counts shown above, it is possible that fall armyworms caused some damage on pastures and cover crops. Bt corn will be not affected. Adult fall armyworms will lay their eggs on grasses. Later it can affect row crops such as sorghum, alfalfa, vegetables and other plants if grasses are not available. The presence of dark patches in pastures may be a sign of the abundance of fall armyworms. Fall Armyworm Identification and Management The fall armyworm has three yellow stripes running along the length of its body. Its head is dark brown with a light-colored, inverted Y mark on the front (Figure 3). Application of insecticides should be made when fall armyworm larvae are 0.75 inches long or smaller for best results. Figure 3. Fall armyworm showing inverted Y on the head (Photo credit Ric Bessin, UK) The College of Agriculture, Food and Environment is an Equal Opportunity Organization with respect to education and employment and authorization to provide research, education information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function without regard to economic or social status and will not discriminate on the bases of race, color, ethnic origin, creed, religion, political belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, marital status, genetic information, age, veteran status, or physical or mental disability. Inquiries regarding compliance with Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Educational Amendments, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and other related matter should be directed to Equal Opportunity Office, College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Kentucky, Room S-105, Agriculture Science Building, North Lexington, Kentucky 40546.
USDA Encourages Risk Protection Coverage before Crop Sales Deadlines FSA Newsletter The Farm Service Agency encourages producers to examine available USDA crop risk protection options, including federal crop insurance and Noninsured Crop Dis-aster Assistance Program (NAP) coverage, before the applicable crop sales dead-line. Producers are reminded that crops not covered by insurance may be eligible for the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP). The 2014 Farm Bill ex-panded NAP to include higher levels of protection. Beginning, underserved and limited resource farmers are now eligible for free catastrophic level coverage, as well as discounted premiums for additional levels of protection." Federal crop insurance covers crop losses from natural adversities such as drought, hail and excessive moisture. NAP covers losses from natural disasters on crops for which no permanent federal crop insurance program is available, includ-ing perennial grass forage and grazing crops, fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, floriculture, ornamental nursery, aquaculture, turf grass, ginseng, honey, syrup, bioen-ergy, and industrial crops. USDA has partnered with Michigan State University and the University of Illinois to create an online tool at www.fsa.usda.gov/nap that allows producers to determine whether their crops are eligible for federal crop insurance or NAP and to explore the best level of protection for their operation. NAP basic coverage is available at 55 percent of the average market price for crop losses that exceed 50 percent of expected production, with higher levels of coverage, up to 65 percent of their ex-pected production at 100 percent of the average market price, including coverage for organics and crops marketed directly to consumers. Deadlines for coverage vary by state and crop. To learn more about NAP visit www.fsa.usda.gov/nap or contact your local USDA Service Center. To find your local USDA Service Centers go to http://offices.usda.gov. Federal crop insurance coverage is sold and delivered solely through private insur-ance agents. Agent lists are available at all USDA Service Centers or at USDA s online Agent Locator: http://prodwebnlb.rma.usda.gov/ apps/agentlocator/#. Pro-ducers can use the USDA Cost Estimator, https://ewebapp.rma.usda.gov/apps/ costestimator/default.aspx, to predict insurance premium costs.