Ag News and Views: March 2007

March, 2007 Table of Contents News & Views Archive Issues

Economics
Use Price Slides to Develop a Competitive Market Price by Job Springer
The use of a price slide reduces risk in forward contracting and creates the framework for a competitive market price.

Horticulture
Oklahoma AgWeather: Online Ag Tools by Steve Upson
Thanks to the folks at AgWeather, decision making has become much easier in the last few years. AgWeather is a cooperative project between Oklahoma State University, the University of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Climatological Survey.

Livestock
National Animal Identification System Will Be Voluntary by Evan Whitley
If you are a beef producer or have ties to the beef industry, I bet you can remember where you were when bovine spongiform encephalopathy officially was discovered in the United States. The exact date was Dec. 23, 2003.

Pasture and Range
'Normal' Hard to Define When it Comes to Rain by Chuck Coffey
We lived through a significant drought in 2006. Some much-needed winter precipitation has lessened our fears, but some forecasts still call for drier than "normal" weather starting in May. Normal? Who knows what "normal" is?

Research
Understand Prescribed Burn Liability in Your State by Chan Glidewell
Why don't more people use prescribed burning in Oklahoma and Texas? One reason that comes to mind is the fact that most of the Noble Foundation's service area was under a burn ban this time last year, which happens to be the peak time for conducting prescribed burns.

Soils
It's Time to Consider Fertilizing Pecans by James Locke
Native pecan production in Oklahoma and north Texas is often considered a "Christmas bonus." If folks are fortunate enough to make a crop, it's great, but not something they have much control over.

Wildlife
Goals, Plans Essential for Prescribed Burns by Ken Gee
The Noble Foundation's Agricultural Division recently conducted its annual Prescribed Burning Workshop, and turnout was excellent. Some of us have been discussing the "how to's" and touting the benefits of prescribed burning for so long, we sometimes forget this land management tool is a new concept to some people.