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Pre-plant wheat schoolBy Richard C. Snell Barton County Extension Agent We may have more questions than answers about the wheat crop we just harvested. Perhaps a good fall crop will make us forget the disappointing wheat yields. In the meantime, there are decisions and choices to be made for the next wheat crop. We hope to answer some of these on the evening of Aug. 15. Farmers, landowners and agri-business folks should mark their calendar for the evening of Aug. 15. That's when we will be doing a pre-plant wheat school in Barton County. It will be held at the old 4-H grounds on Highway 281 between Great Bend and Hoisington. There is just one catch. I need you to pre-register by noon Aug. 14. Call the office at 620-793-1910 and tell how many will be coming or e-mail me at rsnell@oznet.ksu.edu. It won't cost you anything, but I do need a head count. We will not have the meeting unless we get 10 people to sign-up in advance. We will have Jim Shroyer, myself and a farmer panel here to talk about varieties, seed quality, fertility, nitrogen management in no-till and conventional wheat, as well as various wheat diseases. We will begin at 6 p.m., so that you can get in a mostly full day before you come even if you have to drive an hour or so. Also it should provide an opportunity for those who work a full time job other than farming. We will plan to roast a few hot dogs at the beginning and finish up at about 9:15 p.m. Fall crop tour This is a busy time of year for farmer meetings and plot tours as we try to catch crop growers between preparing wheat ground and the fall harvest. On the evening of Aug. 21 the Golden Belt Residue Management Alliance will hold their annual fall-summer (whatever you want to call it) crop tour. The tour will begin at 5 p.m., from the Great Bend Co-op in Pawnee Rock. From there will we do some car-pooling so many can leave their vehicles there. We will finish the tour with a meal on top of the historic Pawnee Rock, just before dark. Some of the stops will include: the Ron Koelsch farm where he has converted a flood irrigation system to a center pivot; also, we will look at no-till dryland sunflowers on the Steve Hetzke farm, north of Pawnee Rock. Weather permitting, we will look at no-till corn, milo and soybeans planted on the contour of some steep land by Dale Unruh. We will also look at some irrigated no-till fields of full season and double crop. In addition to the farmers who will speak, we will have a special guest speaker as well. There is no charge for the program. Reservations are helpful but not required. We hope you can attend. Fall gardens This summer's cooler weather and rainfall has created ideal conditions for planting a fall garden. Crops that can be planted now for fall gardening include all of the crops that we normally associate with a spring salad garden. These include lettuce, radishes, spinach, and similar crops. There still is time to get another crop of green beans to develop along with some summer squash (if your summer squash have bitten the dust already). If you can find plants, there still is time to grow cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. One of the challenges of this time of year may be finding what you want at the nurseries and garden stores. Catalog ordering may be a possible option, if you act quickly. Planting a fall garden is just like planting a spring garden with some big advantages. You will find the weed pressure to be much less and insect problems are far fewer than in a spring garden. Seeds will germinate very rapidly so that you will have crops up and growing in just a few days--compared to several weeks in the spring. There are a few 'downers' to fall gardening and one of those is that you must provide some regular, frequent watering until the crops are up and growing. This might mean a daily watering if necessary. It is best to plant seeds deeper than you do for a spring garden since soil is cooler and more moist down a little deeper. As far as soil preparation is concerned, don't get too excited about deep tillage for a fall garden. Lightly work the soil enough to establish a seedbed; reserve your deep tillage for later in the fall. Also, don't concentrate on adding a lot of fertilizer or organic matter. Did you know? --The annual K-State Risk and Profit Conference will be held Aug. 16 and 17 in Manhattan. A variety of topics on crops and livestock economics will be covered. --The Dryland Ag Day at the Tribune, Kansas Experiment Field will be held on Aug. 14 at 9 a.m. --A field day dealing with Implementation of Nutrient Plans For Livestock Operations, will be held on Aug. 13 at 8:30 a.m., at the K-State Animal Science Farm. --The annual field day at the K-State Experiment Field at Hesston will be held Aug. 16 at 6 p.m. --The Scandia Irrigation Experiment Field will hold their fall field day at 5:30 p.m., on Aug. 21. --K-State and the Kansas Livestock Association will hold Ranch Management Field Days at Russell Springs on Aug. 16; Augusta on Aug. 21; and Oskaloosa on Aug. 23. Date: 9/6/07
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