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How to Stop Drift
The goals of applying any crop protection products include: increasing effectiveness, mitigating drift, and maximizing profits. We will focus on mitigating drift, even though all three interact with each other.
No, It’s Not a Murder Hornet.
By now, you’ve probably read headlines about the Asian giant hornets (aka “murder hornets”) that were spotted in Washington state and across the border in Canada. It is important to note that Asian giant hornets have only been confirmed in a small area of Washington and Canada. These wasps have not been observed in South Dakota or our neighboring states.
A fly? A hornet? Nope, it’s a sawfly!
This spring, there have been multiple reports of people seeing large fly-like insects in their yards. These insects are sawflies, and all reports thus far have been the elm sawfly (Cimbex americana).
How Important Is Water Quality to Livestock?
Water is the most important nutrient to all livestock animals and is sometimes overlooked. Poor quality water can have a negative effect on growth, reproduction, and general productivity of the animal.
How Do Sulfates in Water Affect Livestock Health?
Poor-quality water will cause an animal to drink less. As a result, they also consume less forage and feed, which leads to weight loss, decreased milk production and lower fertility.
Why Those Dandelions in Your Yard Aren’t So Bad
While research has shown that pollinators, specifically honey bees, can’t survive on dandelion pollen alone, this doesn’t mean that the dandelions aren’t still important for pollinators.
Removing Young Trees From Grasslands Will Save Money and Effort
Volunteer trees can hinder the development of desirable wildlife habitat and livestock resources. Early control of volunteer woody species is the simplest and most cost-effective option for maintaining open grassland habitats.
Removing Mature Shelterbelts From Grasslands
Under what circumstances would removal of mature shelterbelts be warranted? This is a common question often asked in wildlife and conservation circles.
Huge Wasps on My Tree! No, Those Still Aren’t Murder Hornets.
Another insect that has been mistaken for the Asian giant hornet (also known by its media-popularized name of ‘murder hornet’) is the horntail wasp. Horntail wasps are wood-boring insects that are harmless to humans, as they do not have venom and cannot sting.
Dense Seeding Can Reduce Canada Thistle in Planted Grasslands
Canada thistle is a common invader in grassland plantings. Over the past decade, researchers and land managers have experimented with controlling Canada thistle in planted grasslands through increasing competition from desirable plants.