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Oklahoma's 2013 winter canola and winter wheat crops are facing one more night of freezing temperatures- with some of the temperatures likely to set records here for the latter part of April. The temperature map we are showing you on our website- Click here to jump there- shows the number of hours of freezing temperatures we have had at any one location for the past 48 hours. You will be able to add a couple more hours to most of those totals before things warm up later on this Wednesday morning. A lot of counties have already spent three, four,five and even six hours below freezing.

There is a tremendous fear of the additional damage this widespread outbreak of arctic air may cause for both the wheat and canola crops- already stressed by drought and several earlier frigid mornings since mid March. The 2013 crops are far less developed than we saw in the 2012 season- and after harvesting a great deal of our wheat and canola in May last season- we will return to a June harvest schedule for this year- at least for those fields which survive these latest sub freezing temps. Wheat that has survived previous freeze mornings will not show any signs of damage for about seven days- and Canola also will need a few days to show how badly it has been burned back by the freeze.

Tim Bartram of the Oklahoma Wheat Growers pointed us to a blog posting from Limagrain Wheat Breeder Marla Barnett with some good info on wheat freeze damage- this based on the freeze of about ten or twelve days ago- click here to read Marla's thoughts (Be nice to her- she's a fellow Kentucky Wildcat).

On a related weather note- the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts organized a time of prayer at the State Capitol on Monday to pray for rain- and to get church congregations statewide to pray on three specific dates in the months ahead- click here for details of that gathering in the Rotunda area of the state capitol building.  I might suggest to Clay Pope and the those that were there to pray to add one additional post script to your prayers- let this be the last night/morning of the season where we face a HARD freeze.  Amen and Amen.

Study Says Use of Biotech Crops Increases Farmer Profits and Environmental Sustainability 

Biotechnology-improved crops have delivered important economic and environmental benefits over their sixteen years of widespread adoption, according to a report released today at the BIO International Convention. The report, "Global Impact of Biotech Crops: Economic & Environmental Effects 1996-2011," is the eighth annual research conducted by PG Economics, an agriculture research firm based in the United Kingdom.

"Biotech crops have enabled farmers around the world to increase their incomes and yields while using less pesticides and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions," said Graham Brookes, director of PG Economics and co-author of the report. "Further, the research shows that an increasing majority of these benefits go to farmers in developing countries."

Dr. Cathleen Enright, executive vice president for food and agriculture for the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), points out that the report's findings regarding biotechnology's contributions to the environment are equally significant.

Click here to read more.

Beef, It's What's For Dinner Tagline Spruced Up for New Ad Campaign

The new "Beef. It's What's For Dinner." consumer advertising campaign is premiering this month, bringing the recognizable tagline to older millennials and Gen-Xers. The new campaign, funded by the beef checkoff, will feature sizzling beef recipes, juicy details about essential nutrients and the voice of one of Hollywood's most promising new talents.

"This campaign builds upon the core benefits that only beef offers -- its great taste and 10 essential nutrients. While most folks just look at beef for its sizzle or great flavor, it's made up of more than that. Its nutrients are what make it the most powerful protein and what makes beef above all else," says Cevin Jones, chair of the checkoff's Domestic Consumer Preference Committee and producer from Eden, Idaho. "It doesn't hurt that the voice delivering the message on the other side of the radio epitomizes health and sizzle too."

The new "Above All Else" campaign aims to reach the next generation of beef eaters - the older millennial and Gen-Xer, aged 25 to 44 -who care about food and nutrition.

You can read more by clicking here.  

District Court Dismisses Endangered Species Act Mega Lawsuit

The U.S. District Court of Northern California granted motions brought by both CropLife America (CLA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to dismiss the lawsuit Center for Biological Diversity and Pesticide Action Network North America v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). U.S. District Judge Joseph C. Spero presided over the hearings in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) "Mega" lawsuit and ruled that plaintiffs had not alleged specific government actions sufficient for the lawsuit to proceed. Plaintiffs have 30 days to file an amended complaint in accordance with the court's order, or 60 days to appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The plaintiffs sought to restrict the use of valuable crop protection and public health products for American farmers and consumers by alleging that the existing and long-standing registration of more than 380 chemicals may negatively impact 214 species in 49 states. If the court had agreed to the full demands of the plaintiffs, agriculture and public health protection in the U.S. would have been drastically and negatively altered by attempts to impede pesticide registrations established under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA).

Click here for more of this story.  

BigIron.com Revolutionizes Sales of Used Ag and Heavy Equipment

Selling farm equipment at auction used to involve lots of planning, preparation, and headaches. It involved bringing lots of people to your farm or transporting your equipment somewhere else. The process could be costly and, if there wasn't enough interest among local buyers, your returns could be meager.

As an auctioneer, Mike Wolfe saw exactly those same pitfalls and knew there had to be a better way. He is now a district manager with Big Iron, an online equipment auction service. Mike manages Oklahoma, and large parts of Arkansas, Texas and New Mexico. 

"Big Iron is an auction company, but it's an online auction company. It's all by internet. We were traditional auctioneers for years, we did on-site sales, now we do everything on the internet."

Wolfe says the concept has caught on and they have thousand of items listed for sale at any one time.

"We sell a lot of farm equipment. We sell a lot of transportation equipment from pickups to semis. And we sell some construction equipment and some oilfield equipment. I guess our biggest market is agricultural equipment. We'll sell anything from farm tractors to a combine."

BigIron.com auctions close every Wednesday beginning at 10 a.m.  Click here to go to their site for the items closing today.  

You can read more about Big Iron or listen to my conversation with Mike by clicking here.

 

Eastern Oklahoma Farm Community to Gather This Thursday in Poteau

The 7th Annual Eastern Oklahoma Ag Trade Show will be held again this year at the LeFlore County Fairgrounds west of Poteau, Oklahoma just off Highway 271, Thursday, April 25, 2013.

Speakers will be on hand to discuss a variety of agricultural topics. The doors will be open to the public at 8:30 am for visiting the exhibitor booths. The morning speaker sessions will begin at 9:00 am. Topics for the morning sessions will include the following: Cattleman program - 300 day grazing by Dr. Shane Gadberry with University of Arkansas, Poultry Credit - Generator Maintenance by George Humphries, Mena Electric, and Poultry Credit - Clean Water Improves Flock Performance by Mary Scantling with University of Arkansas.
 
The afternoon session beginning at 1:30 pm will focus primarily on horticulture. Dr. Jim Shrefler with Oklahoma State University.

Over 25 exhibitors are expected to be on hand at the event. Display booths will range from ag chemicals, farm equipment and supplies, metal and fencing supplies to feed and seed dealers, lending institutions, and government services. Pre-registration to attend the trade show is not necessary. Everyone is invited and welcome to attend. Over 300 attended last year's event.

Click here to read more.  

Bill to Help Manage Feral Hog Population Sent to Governor

Legislation sent to Gov. Mary Fallin will provide landowners with a tool to help manage the feral hog population in Oklahoma, according to the bill's author.

House Bill 1920, by state Rep. Dustin Roberts and state Sen. Mark Allen, provides a permit for individuals to conduct aerial hunting on private land to shoot feral hogs, coyotes or coyote-dog crossbreeds. The permit holder must either be a commercial big game license holder, a landowner hunting on his own land or a contracted aerial hunter who will be hunting only on the land of the individual he is contracting with.

"The concerns we had with this legislation were about the safety of the public that might be down on the ground and so we made sure to set limits on where the hunting could take place," said Roberts, R-Durant. "The feral hog population is a menace in Oklahoma and I think we need to continue to look at what tools we can provide to help contain it. It is a concern I hear constantly about from rural Oklahomans." 

You can read more by clicking here.