From: Ron Hays [ron@oklahomafarmreport.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 06:39
To: ron@oklahomafarmreport.com
Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
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Oklahoma's latest farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON for Tuesday March 25, 2008!
A service of Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma, KIS Futures & the Southern Plains Farm Show!
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-- OSU Beef Cattle Specialist Worried About Mama Cow Body Condition as Pastures Start Showing a Bit of Green.
-- Wheat Crop Condition Continues Improvement as Spring Arrives...
-- Conservation Leader Thankful Oklahoma Missed the Flooding of Recent Days...
-- Southern Plains Farm Show Coming- Have You Got a Horse???
-- Who Do You Know that Needs to be in Class 14 of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program???
-- We Get Email- Apologies to Terry Pitts, Economist Called Out- As is the A.G.
-- Purvine Farms Set for Two Days of Selling Top Selections from Their Herd.
-- Finally- Where's the Beef?????

Howdy Neighbors!

Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We are proud to welcome KIS Futures as a regular sponsor of our daily E-Mail. KIS Futures provides Oklahoma Farmers & Ranchers with futures & options hedging services in the livestock and grain markets- Click here for their website or call them at 1-800-256-2555.

We also welcome Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma as a regular sponsor of our daily email update. Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma has ten branch offices to serve your farm financing needs and is dedicated to being your first choice for farm credit. Check out their website for more information by clicking here!
And our email this morning is also a service of Midwest Farm Shows, producer of the Tulsa Farm Show that is held each December, as well as the Southern Plains Farm Show in Oklahoma City this coming April! Check out details of both of these exciting shows at the official website of Midwest Farm Shows by clicking here.

If you have received this by someone forwarding it to you, you are welcome to subscribe and get this weekday update sent to you directly by clicking here.


OSU Beef Cattle Specialist Worried About Mama Cow Body Condition as Pastures Start Showing a Bit of Green.
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This past Saturday, we emceed the Heart of Oklahoma Cattle Conference in Shawnee- and one of the featured presenters was our long time friend, Dr. Glen Selk, who is the Mama Cow Specialist in the Animal Science Department at Oklahoma State University.

There was one overriding concern on Dr. Selk's mind as we sat down to record a couple of updates with him there in Shawnee- and the concern about body condition of our beef cow herd in Oklahoma is at the top of his list.

It's a combination of several things that worries Selk at this time- the start of permanent pastures starting to green up, the cost of palatable hay and range cubes to entice our cows to stick around and eat the more nutritious ration as opposed to chasing these early green plants which the cows consider pretty tasty. Dr. Selk worries that if we lose body condition now- it will prove to be a huge problem in the near future that will manifest itself as lower rebreeding rates- we talk about this with Dr. Selk on today's Beef Buzz- and we encourage you to take a listen- and then heed the advice to keep those body condition levels where they need to be when it comes to your mama cows!

Click here to listen to Ron and Glen on Today's Beef Buzz- talking Beef Cow Body Condition.


Wheat Crop Condition Continues Improvement as Spring Arrives...
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With the moisture received in both Kansas and Oklahoma (and even some in Texas) the hard red winter wheat crop condition has improved over the last week- this week's Oklahoma Crop Weather update shows that we now have five percent of the crop in excellent shape, 70% of the crop in good to fair condition and 25% of the crop in poor to very poor condition. The crop continues to lag normal development at this point- with 38% now at the jointing stage- 11 percentage points behind the five year average and 16 points behind last year's crop.

Our neighbors in Kansas are looking even better, with 8% in Excellent shape and 75% in good to fair condition. Texas has little wheat in excellent shape, 15% in good shape, 32% in fair condition and 52% in poor to very poor condition.

Beyond the wheat crop here in Oklahoma, we have a small amount of the 2008 corn crop already in the ground- still no actual percentages available- and work moving right along in fieldwork preparation for planting the spring 2008 crops. We have the Crop Weather update listed below- which includes a very favorable soil moisture update to check out as well.

Click here for the latest Oklahoma Crop Weather Update Issued Monday Afternoon.


Conservation Leader Thankful Oklahoma Missed the Flooding of Recent Days...
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Recent rains in surrounding states should serve as a reminder of the repair needs of Oklahoma's aging flood control dams and Conservation infrastructure caused by the record rains of 2007, said Scotty Herriman, president of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts (OACD). "The terrible flooding we have witnessed in states like Texas, Missouri and Arkansas should remind us of what happened in Oklahoma last year," Herriman said. "Oklahoma's flood control dams and Conservation infrastructure suffered major damage that must be repaired if we are to continue to provide the protection our citizens have enjoyed for the last half century."

According to information released by the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, over $30 million dollars is needed to repair the damage to Oklahoma's flood control dams and Conservation infrastructure caused by the flooding of 2007. Of this money, over $15 million alone is needed to address dam rehabilitation and operation and maintenance needs. The Conservation Commission has also proposed that $8 million be made available to landowners on a cost- share basis to repair damaged conservation practices such as terraces, waterways, and farm ponds and that another $3 million be appropriated to restore riparian systems damaged in Caddo County. Funds have also been requested to address road-side erosion and purchase equipment.

We talked this past week during the Conservation Day activities with Clay Pope of the OACD about the need for these monies to be allocated by the state here in 2008- as well as other legislative efforts of Conservation interests during this year's legislative session. Please click on the link below and take a listen to Clay, who covers a lot of ground with us on several issues that are important to conservation.

Click here to listen to Ron and Clay talk Conservation Priorities at the State Capitol here in 2008.


Southern Plains Farm Show Coming- Have You Got a Horse???
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We are inside of a month away from the fourth annual Southern Plains Farm Show, which is owned and operated by Midwest Farm Shows, the company that also produces the annual Tulsa Farm Show held each December.

The 2008 Southern Plains Farm Show is shaping up to be a dandy, with hundreds of exhibitors and right at a thousand product lines of goods and services that these exhibitors will be spotlighting. There are "early bird" incentives to arrive before noon at this year's event- including a thousand dollar "farm show bucks" drawing each day of the show- you enter by arriving before noon when the drawing is held- you must still be at the show to win- the thousand bucks can be spent with any farm show vendor that day at the show.

One feature that we are helping with here in 2008 is in securing a couple of horses that are candidates for some horse training with Scott Daily, this year's featured horse trainer. If you have a horse that has a bit of an attitude- I need to hear from you. Give me a call at 405-841-3675 or email me at the email address found below at the bottom of this daily email- and we will be in contact to get more information and possibly line your horse up for some one on one training with Scott Daily!!!!
Linked below is a conversation that we had this past Thursday during the Oklahoma Youth Expo with John Sampson about the upcoming Southern Plains Farm Show- take a listen and see what's coming up at this year's event!!!!

Click here to listen to Ron and John talk Southern Plains Farm Show!!!!


Who Do You Know that Needs to be in Class 14 of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program???
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As most of you well know, I have been involved with the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program in one way or another for many years- all the way back to Class One of the OALP. For the past several years, I have been the Advisory Council Chairman and I was pleased to be a part of Class 13's International travels to China and South Korea- which we reported about extensively here in this daily email- and now it's time to start focusing on Class 14!

OALP began 26 years ago and continues to grow and offer participants new and exciting opportunities, said Joe Williams, OALP director. "OALP is an intensive two-year program at Oklahoma State University that focuses on the development of leaders in the agriculture and agri-business world," Williams said. "The agricultural world continues to grow and expand. Each OALP class has been exposed to the cutting-edge changes that are occurring in agriculture and agri-business. Our goal is to teach members to think outside of the traditional agricultural framework." In addition, by becoming involved in OALP participants will be better prepared and more able to meet the changes in this ever-changing industry.

Applications for OALP's Class XIV are available online at the OALP website- which we have linked below. The deadline to submit an application and letters of reference is May 16. The class is limited to 30 participants, targeted between the ages of 25 and 45. Applicants must be actively engaged in production agriculture or in a related agribusiness occupation. Please note if you are slightly beyond the upper target- give me a call and let's talk- I think you would find the program very useful and in the last couple of classes we have considered and accepted folks who have a lot to give- and are willing to step up to the trough and drink from the leadership development opportunities that are sprinkled throughout the two year program!

Click here to jump to the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program website.


We Get Email- Apologies to Terry Pitts, Economist Called Out- As is the A.G.
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We credited J.C. Banks with comments in our Monday email on cold weather conditions not being good for cotton and that early planted cotton often ends up injured as a result. J.C. dropped us a note and told us that, in reality, he has just reviewed the article and that the author was really Terry Pitts, and J.C. writes us that "Terry is the new entomologist/pathologist that works here at the Research and Extension Center at Altus. He has a lot of experience in entomology and plant pathology with several years experience with seed treatments."

A week ago Monday, we had a story from an economist that was claiming that federal biofuels policy is boosting corn prices tremendously to the advantage of a "relatively small number of grain producers- mostly in the midwest." That did not set well with one Panhandle grain producer who fired back to us in response, "This economist bozo seems to be in the running to be in the group whose motto is "Figures can lie and Liars can figure". Most economists want to blame ethanol for every woe possible, but they do not want to face reality that exports are way up. Most economists also recognize that when something has been depressed, corn prices, etc., they will rebound above the stability level in a sine wave type of movement. Also, on his comment that the prices are going to a relative few, where has he been? There are danged few farmers left. If he thinks farming is so easy and a gravy train like being an economist, he can come and join us."

Another producer wanted to vent a bit after the stories we did about the request for an injunction by the Oklahoma Attorney General that would mandate a complete stoppage of all chicken litter being applied in the Illinois River Watershed. We offered as a sidebar to that story a recent article about the contingency fee lawyers hired by the AG on behalf of the state of Oklahoma to do battle with the poultry industry over chicken litter and the contention that the poultry companies should pay big bucks similar to what Big Tobacco pays because of the harm done to the environment from chicken litter being applied to farmland and then becoming a part of watershed runoff and polluting the the waters of eastern Oklahoma. This producer wrote us about those lawyers "The lawyers get rich and who cares who goes bankrupt. The poultry companies can recover and move their operations to Mexico or wherever they choose. A few thousand poultry producers, many of whom are saddled with large mortgages on their property, or next if Drew gets his way, a few thousand ranchers means nothing to him or the people he has representing the state of Oklahoma. If the AG's office could not handle the litigation on this suit it should never have been filed. The Oklahoma legislature and Governor Henry need to step in and stop this foolishness. I have never in my life until now been ashamed to be an Okie or a registered Democrat until now."


Purvine Farms Set for Two Days of Selling Top Selections from Their Herd.
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Chet and Stephanie Purvine have a great set of cattle they will be offering next weekend on March 29 and March 30 at their Farm in Fay, Oklahoma. This is their fifth annual Production offering- and will be featuring their bull offering on Saturday and then some excellent females on Sunday afternoon. The Bull Sale begins 1:30 PM on Saturday the 29th- Selling over 70 head of service age bulls featuring the best in Angus, SimAngus, Maine/Mainetainer and Chiangus Composite Genetics.

On Sunday at 4:00 PM, Chet has lined up a select set of bred fall calving females including a great set of first calf heifers, AI'd to popular calving ease sires and proven cows, bred to today's hottest AI sires. This sale will feature a group of fall born show heifer prospects. Several Mainetainer, Sim-influence and Chiangus females, including daughters of Sweetness, Goliath, Hannibal, Golden Child & more.

For more information, give Chet a call on his Cellphone at 580-623-3693. We also have their Sale Flyer on our website's Calendar page linked- and we have that link for you below- or you can jump straight to their website at WWW.purvinefarms.com.

Click here for our calendar page- and scroll down to March 29 to get the link for the Purvine Farms Sale Bill!


Finally- Where's the Beef?????
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Exploring on the Internet is kinda like going on a snipe hunt when we were kids- you never know what might turn up- and that was the case last night as I was looking at the Drudge Report- there was a listing of great old commercials-including a string of Youtube videos featuring Clara and her "Where's the Beef?" commercials as well as a classic one that I had never seen for McDonalds and their introduction of their Clown. I have linked them for you- for no particular reason- call it "research" into food industry history if you must- click here to see "where's the Beef" and more

Our thanks to Midwest Farm Shows, KIS Futures and Farm Credit of East Central Oklahomafor their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked at the top of the email- check them out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis!

We also invite you to check out our website at the link below to check out an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.

Click here to check out WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com



God Bless! You can reach us at the following:
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phone: 405-473-6144
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