GIVE THANKS
Yes, I do believe it was a million dollar rain over most of Barton County recently, and then some. The newly planted wheat was looking pretty weak prior to the rain. Some of it would not have come up without that rain, which varied from .75” to 3” in this immediate area.
I had 2.44” on the 11th and 12th and another .07” on the 14th. So that 2.5” is more than we typically get in the month of November. That will help make up for the .10” I had for October that put us behind for the autumn.
I know some of you out in far southwest Kansas did not receive much but it is like comparing us with eastern Kansas. They will almost always get more because that is just the way the climate and rainfall pattern is. It is almost like this; if you want it hotter - move to south Texas, if you want it colder - move to Minnesota, if wetter, then to Louisiana.
So much for that! Anyway, what I really want to write about today is giving thanks. It is Thanksgiving you know and that is what the meaning and purpose for Thanksgiving is and was. Hopefully we don’t practice giving thanks to God only once a year.
Now I will be the first one to tell you that I am not very good at giving thanks. I tend to complain and whine too much like most of us. So, I talk a lot better game than I practice, so I am pointing the other four fingers back at me. I am trying to do better.
If you are in crop production agriculture, you had really better give thanks. We have or have had $12 soybeans, $5 corn and $6 wheat. There were great selling opportunities.
We had a good fall harvest. In some cases the milo was better than last year. Soybeans and corn were generally not as good as the last three years but we have been living in a dream world the last three years with corn belt weather.
We had an exceptional wheat harvest over most of the county. In the southern third of the county and even farther south, it was only average or a little bit less. However prospects for the next wheat crop should be better now with the rain.
If you are not a farmer, you have plenty to eat, a roof over your head and clothes on your back. That’s really all we can expect.
We still live in a great country, in spite of the economic downturn, with more freedom than most.
Most of us have good health, friends and family. Some folks are out of work and that can ruin your thankful attitude. If you happen to be someone who is sick right now, have had a loved one die recently or suffered other hardship; financially, physically, or emotionally - my heart goes out to you. There is help and support out there for you if you are willing to ask. The rest of us should be looking to help.
May God bless you and grant you a Happy Thanksgiving!
TROUBLE WITH MOLES AND GOPHERS? - MARK DOWN SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4
If moles and gophers have been tearing up your property, plan now to attend a control and trapping demonstration on Saturday, Dec. 5. It will begin after lunch at around 1:15 p.m. The location will be the Jim and Marlies Stevens home and yard at 547 SE 40 Road, which is 4 miles south and 5 miles east of Great Bend.
Charlie Lee, Extension Wildlife Specialist from Kansas State University in Manhattan will be here to talk about various control methods. This will be outside, so dress warm.
No reservations are needed. I will have more information next week. Call me at 620-793-1910 if you have questions.
MORE ON WHEN DO THINGS REALLY GO DORMANT?
I had one more thing that I didn’t mention last week about determining dormancy in plants. Just because a plant or tree loses its leaves, doesn’t mean it is dormant. A tree can lose its leaves from stress in warm weather. That doesn’t mean it is dormant then or when it loses its leaves in the fall.
It’s like spraying glyphosate (Roundup) on buffalo grass. There can’t be any green on the leaf, stem or root. It has to have stopped activity completely. Cool season grasses don’t do this much at all in the winter until it gets really cold.
One hard freeze doesn’t cause dormancy. Usually, it has to freeze at night on a daily basis for several nights, in order for plants to go dormant. When we get into the 20’s for daily lows for a week, then you can say we can say things are dormant to prune and cover.
DID YOU KNOW
We will be hosting a leasing workshop in Barton County in January and an agricultural profitability conference in February. For more information, go to www.agmanager.info. Several of these are being held around the state starting in December.... The first of the ag lease workshops will be on December 1 in Goodland and Dec. 2 in Scott City.... An agricultural Profitability Conference will be held in Wichita on Dec. 7.... K-State will hold the Kansas Income Tax Institute for professional tax preparers in Salina, Dec. 7-8 and Dec. 8-9 in Wichita.... A poinsettia open house will be held in Manhattan on December 1. Also, that same day in Manhattan, a workshop on Culture and Care of the Christmas Flower will be held. Call 785-532-1434 for more information on both events... The annual Kansas Turfgrass Conference will be held Dec. 7-9 in Topeka... The Kansas Livestock Association will hold their annual convention and trade show, Dec. 2-3, at Century II in Wichita…. The Russell Area Chamber of Commerce will hold an Agriculture & Oil Exposition at the AmericInn in Russell, on Dec. 1 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Among the topics will be wind leases and animal rights.