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a father and son inspecting a show goat in a competition.

Bringing Home Your 4-H Goat Project

Sales and transport is a stressful time for any animal. Reducing stress factors due to transitions start before the actual purchase of your new project. Managing proper nutrition and disease management are just a couple factors to help your project get off to a great start.

male 4-H youth showing a black beef cow

Why Tattoo Your 4-H Livestock?

Proper identification of animals helps create an honest record keeping system. With current DNA blood typing procedures animals can be identified through parentage, but when it comes to everyday practices on the farm or ranch a good tattoo can be a huge time saver in the event of a lost ear tag.

South Dakota corn late plant date map. View pdf map: https://legacy.rma.usda.gov/fields/mt_rso/2018/final/sdcorn_grain_nonirrigated.pdf  View text in Excel: https://legacy.rma.usda.gov/fields/mt_rso/2018/final/sdcorn_grain_nonirrigatedtext.xlsx

Late Plant Crop Insurance Dates

Crop insurance late plant dates are fast approaching for planting small grains in South Dakota. Late plant dates for corn, soybean, and sunflower are nearing as well. Producers will want to work with their crop insurance agent to explore planting options and reporting of prevent plant areas.

A healthy, growing soybean field. Farmyard in the background.

Soybean Growers Sought for On-Farm Research Program

We want you! SDSU Extension and the South Dakota Soybean Research and Promotion Council are seeking South Dakota Soybean Growers willing to participate in a farmer-led on-farm research program.

Grassy pasture with a small hill of dirt in the foreground. There is green grass at the base of the mound.

Are Ant Mounds in Pastures Bad?

We often receive reports of large ant mounds in a pastures and rangeland. These mounds are the creation of thatching ants, which are common in South Dakota. Although these mounds are often considered a nuisance, the ants may play an important role as predators of potential pest insects.

a flooded wheat field with some emerging wheat plants.

Wet Feet in Wheat

Given the widespread wet conditions present this spring, there are many areas in winter wheat fields with both ponding and saturated (or waterlogged) soils. Producers may want to consider soil conditions and evaluate extended weather forecasts when deciding whether or not to retain a winter wheat this spring.

Two, dark green aphids on a bright green leaf.

Aphid Populations Being Observed in Wheat

During the past couple of weeks, reports of aphid populations in wheat fields have slowly been increasing. Typically, the initial aphid populations are observed earlier in the season, but the 2019 spring may have delayed infestations.

Color-coded map of the United States indicating predicted precipitation for July 2019. South Dakota is set to experience above normal precipitation.

July 2019 Climate Outlook: Challenges Continue

This year’s seasonal pattern of wetter than average conditions is projected to continue through July and the rest of the summer season. The latest climate outlook, released June 20, 2019, shows an increased chance of wetter than average conditions in the next one to three months for the state of South Dakota.

an image of a field of soybeans

Soybean Production: Cost-effective pest management practices

Chemicals were one of the most expensive individual costs in soybean production, behind only to seed in the non-land cost category. The average cash-rent soybean production farms incurred a crop chemical cost of $39/ac in 2015, an 88% increase from 2010.

group of cattle resting in spring pasture. Courtesy: Krista Lundgren/USFWS

Parasite Control for Cow Calf Operations

Spring is coming and with calving season underway it is important to keep our eyes forward on to the next step in production.