Field and Garden: Elections, pastures and not-to-be-missed garden program

Foster County producers recently elected representatives to four of our state’s commodity groups.

The new representatives and the councils to which they’ve been elected are as follows: Jeremiah Blahna, Soybean Council; Tysen Rosenau, Corn Utilization Board; Lee Gregor, Wheat Commission; and Caylor Rosenau, Oilseed Council (Canola).

Two Foster County producers are serving on-going terms as representatives: Jeff Edland, Barley Council and Kevin Wolsky, Dry Pea and Lentil Council.

The seat for our county’s representative to the Oilseed Council (Sunflower) is currently vacant.

Commodity groups exist to support their specific industry through research, promotion and education.

County representatives provide input which influences how these groups invest checkoff dollars to fulfill those purposes.

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Calving season is over for some Foster County livestock producers, while others are right in the midst of it.

A person that I spoke with yesterday said his cows won’t begin calving until May.

Producers consider many factors when choosing calving dates, including weather, marketing, labor and feed supply.

Interestingly, I’ve yet to hear a producer say that they regretted moving the calving date to late spring.

Regardless of calving time, livestock producers are eyeing hay supplies, trying to gauge if they have enough feed on hand to get their animals through winter.

The question is when will we be able to turn cattle out to pasture.

Last fall’s rain prompted growth in many pastures and set the stage for good forage production this year.

The key will be how much rain we receive between April and June.

To reemphasize the point of an article in last week’s paper, NDSU Extension specialists emphasize the importance of delaying turn out until pastures are grazing ready – that’s the three-leaf stage for domesticated pastures and the 3.5-leaf stage for native range grasses.

Pastures that were grazed last fall are going to need more time to reach that stage than those that were not grazed.

Buying hay for an additional two weeks of feeding is costly. However, turning cattle out before a pasture is ready can be even more costly, potentially reducing forage production by 40 to 60 percent across the season.

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Does the topic “Growing Tasty Taters in Your Garden” interest you? Perhaps “How to Design a Perennial Flower Garden” is more up your alley.

These are just two of twelve presentations that will be part of this year’s Spring Fever Garden Forum.

The program, which is put on by NDSU Extension, will run on Monday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. from March 21 to April 11.

The presentations can be viewed at home over the internet. However, I think it’s more enjoyable to watch together with other gardeners.

I invite you to join a group of us who will view the program in the community room of the Carrington City Library.

As an added bonus, those who attend the program will be given free seed samples to take home.

Preregistration is not required, and there’s no obligation to attend every week.

If you’d like more information about the Garden Forum, please call the Foster County Extension Office (652-2581) or e-mail me ([email protected]).