Cooperative Extension Service Clinton County 2601 Business 127 N. Albany, KY 42602-9813 (606) 387-5404 Fax: (606) 387-4380 extension.ca.uky.edu

Inside This Issue:

Upcoming Meetings 1

Beekeeping Series 2

Opening Tip Farm Series 3

Understanding BVD virus 4-5

New Dicamba Products 6-7

Lasagna recipe 8

Upcoming Events in Agriculture:

Kentucky Cattleman’s Assoc. Mtg……….…..Jan 19-20th Lexington, KY

Kentucky Commodity Conference………...Jan 19th Bowling Green, KY

Twin Lakes Cattle Association Mtg…………………….Jan 24th Albany, KY

Opening Tip Farm Series Session 1……….......Jan 24th Burkesville, KY

Beef Quality Assurance Mtg…………………….…..…..Jan 26th Albany, KY

Pesticide Certification Mtg…………………..…………..Jan 30th Albany, KY

Opening Tip Farm Series Session 2……………….…...Jan 31st Albany, KY

National Cattleman’s Beef Assoc. Mtg…..…….Feb 2-4th Nashville, TN

Twin Lakes Beekeepers Assoc. Mtg……………...Feb 9th Burkesville, KY

National Farm Machinery Show……………….Feb 15-18th Louisville, KY

Opening Tip Farm Series Session 3……….…….Feb 21st Burkesville, KY

Opening Tip Farm Series Session 4……………..…...Feb 28th Albany, KY

Two Beef Quality Assurance meetings will be held on Thursday January 26

th at 1:00pm and 5:30pm at the Clinton County

Extension Office, producers approved for cost-share under the large animal investment area are required to have a valid BQA number. The BQA meeting will last approximately one hour, BQA certification cost is $5 and valid for three years. More BQA meetings will be planned for the winter, so there will be other opportunities to get BQA certified. For more information or to enroll in BQA training please call the Extension Office at 606-387-5404, space is limited.

The Clinton County Extension Service will host a private pesticide applicator meeting Monday January 30

th at 1:00pm and 5:30pm at

the Extension Office. The meetings will cover information necessary to obtain a private pesticide applicators license. The private pesticide cards are valid for three years and are required to purchase restricted use pesticides. Please call the Extension office at 606-387-5404 for more information.

Hope this newsletter finds you

doing well. In this edition you will

find several opportunities to attend

some informational and educational

meetings throughout the remainder

of the winter. On page three is

information on a new/beginning

farmer program Chelsey Anderson

and I have put together to assist

producers in making farm

management decisions whether it

be exploring the possibility of a new

enterprise or learning more about

the economics of a current

enterprise. These sessions are open

to anyone regardless of farming

experience so feel free to attend

any or all that you have interest.

The meetings held here will be at

the Extension Office, which has

limited space so please call if you

plan to attend.

Clinton County Agriculture and Natural

Resources Newsletter Winter 17’

The Clinton and Cumberland County Extension Service Beekeeper

series started back in the fall, will continue into the winter months.

On February 9th 6pm CST at the Cumberland County Extension Office

KYFDWR Private Lands Biologist Chris Mason will discuss pollinator

habitats, and On March 9th 6pm CST at the Clinton County Extension

Office the topic will be Honey quality and Marketing Speaker (TBA).

Refreshments will be served at each session. Call the Clinton County

Office at (606) 387-5404 or the Cumberland County Office at (270) 433

-7700 to reserve your spot today.

The Clinton and Cumberland County Extension Offices are partnering to host a six session series for

producers either new to production agriculture or thinking about adding a new enterprise. Each session

will begin at 6:00pm and will rotate between the Clinton and Cumberland County Extension offices. The

first session in the series will focus on programs that are available to producers, either through loans,

grants, cost-share or technical assistance. Session two will focus on soils and soil fertility, and the

economics of using poultry litter as fertilize. The remaining four sessions will focus on economics of specific

enterprises. A full schedule is listed below, a meal will be served at each session. The sessions are open to

anyone regardless of production experience however, space is limited so please call to register for sessions.

Producers attending a minimum of 4 sessions will receive an item from the Kentucky Wood Utilization

center engraved with their farm name. All sessions qualify as CAIP cost-share educational sessions.

January 24th Cumberland Co.—Programs available for producers/landowners, Speakers will be

representatives from Farm Service Agency, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Kentucky Ag Finance

Corp., and a local bank.

January 31st Clinton Co.— Soils and soil fertility, fertilizer economics, and the value of using poultry

litter as fertilize. Speaker—UK Farm Management Specialist Jordan Shockley.

February 21st Cumberland Co.— Economics of vegetable production, and Beekeeping. Speakers—

Brett Wolff (Center for Crop Diversification) and Dr. Tammy Horn Potter Kentucky State Apiarist.

February 28th Clinton Co.— Beef Cow/calf and stocker/backgrounder economics, Speaker— UK

Livestock and Forage economic specialist, Kenny Burdine.

March 21st Cumberland Co.— Row crop and non-traditional crops, Speakers—UK specialists Greg

Halich, and David Williams.

March 28th Clinton Co.— Small Ruminants, Sheep and Goat production, Speaker— Kelly Yates.

Registration will be $30 for all 6

sessions or $8 for an individual

session, to cover materials and

meals. All sessions qualify as CAIP

cost-share educational meetings.

Understanding the BVD Virus Michelle Arnold, DVM (Ruminant Extension Veterinarian, UKVDL)

Concern is mounting in KY regarding the identification and subsequent movement of cattle persistently infected with the Bovine Viral Diarrhea virus (or “BVD-PI” animals) into livestock sales. The BVD virus is known to cause severe immunosuppression and also works synergistically with other viruses to make them more deadly, resulting in substantial respiratory disease and death loss in the stocker/backgrounder industry. What is largely unrecognized is the effect of a BVD-PI calf on the cow/calf operation where it was born or raised. Infection can cause reproductive disease (delayed breeding, abortions, malformed calves, PI calves), respiratory disease, enteric (“gut”) disease and immunosuppression (destruction of the white blood cells needed to fight infection). This article addresses some of the common myths surrounding this virus by explaining the nature of the virus, its broad impact and the difficulty of controlling it through vaccination alone.

Myth #1: Since BVD is a virus, it does not last long in the environment and dies quickly when it freezes.

The BVD virus is a “single-stranded RNA virus” which is very stable under moist and cool or cold conditions. It is not affected by freezing and can easily survive at least a week in the right environment. Its enemies are soap and water and hot and dry conditions. It can only be spread short distances through large “droplets” (especially saliva and nasal discharge) and cannot be spread by the wind.

Myth #2: As a backgrounder, if the calves make it past 30 days after arrival and I have two rounds of vaccine in them, I am “home free”.

Not necessarily. The BVD virus can easily mutate or change while reproducing itself and has the ability to pick up pieces of other viruses and stick them inside its own genetic material. This can lead to rapid change (mutation) from a low virulence strain (not very “mean”) to a killer virus. If a PI animal remains in the pen, he continually sheds BVD virus that can mutate. Infection with this newly formed strain may result in a respiratory break after 30 days and can cause significant sickness and death. After infection, it takes an average of 14 days to clear the virus from a “transiently” infected calf but it may last up to 28 days or more.

Myth #3: PI calves are easy to identify because they are stunted, grow poorly and usually die young.

If it were only that easy! PI animals may have congenital defects or may appear completely normal. To illustrate, the prize-winning bull in the 2000 Wisconsin State Fair was tested and found to be a PI. The “PI” animals are the major reservoir for the virus and the reason BVD disease continues to exist. Given the importance of this issue, it is essential to understand what a “PI” truly is and how one is found. The problems begin when a pregnant cow or heifer is infected with the BVD virus between 42-125 days of gestation. The virus crosses the placenta, infecting the unborn calf. When this calf is born, it is “persistently infected” or a “PI” calf and can be considered a “carrier” of the virus for its lifetime. Most PIs are born to heifers who were naï ve at the time of exposure. PI animals are the primary source of virus transmission because they shed an extremely high number of virus particles throughout their lives in feces, urine, saliva, nasal discharge, milk, semen, uterine secretions, and aborted membranes. The virus is deposited in watering troughs, feed troughs, cattle trailers-virtually everywhere the animal goes-and picked up by the other cattle in the pen or herd. Although it is often assumed PIs will die young, some survive well into adulthood and have calves or can be fed to slaughter weight.

Myth #4: I tested all of the calves born this year in my herd and found one PI calf. The vet euthanized the PI so my other calves (that all tested negative) should be fine.

One PI calf usually indicates big problems on a cow/calf operation. Any fetus infected while in the uterus by the virus but did not become a PI will still not be normal. The virus commandeers cell functions to produce more virus that normally are used for fetal development of immune tissue. The virus destroys endocrine tissue and may destroy 20-80% of the thymus gland, an important driver of immune function in calves. These calves will have increased respiratory disease, poor performance, and reproductive issues if they reach sexual maturity. Bulls infected before sexual maturity may have BVD virus persist in the testes and produce BVD-infected semen.

Myth #5: BVD-PI is a problem for the backgrounder; there is really no economic benefit to a cow/calf producer to find a PI calf in his/her herd, especially if forced to euthanize a positive calf.

Bottom line: if one PI calf is out in the pasture constantly shedding virus during breeding season, many (if not all) of the cows/heifers will be exposed to the virus during the highest risk time that may result in very expensive clinical herd problems such as:

Poor reproductive performance/ rise in infertility (despite good nutrition and fertile bulls)

Decrease in overall pregnancy rate and % pregnant after the first service. This “delayed breeding” is often blamed on the AI technician, a dud bull or hot weather when really it is a viral problem.

Abortions, stillbirths, neonatal deaths, and weak calves

Physical abnormalities (dummy calves, eye defects, cleft palate) in neonates

Calf loss due to pneumonia or scours before weaning

Other possible sources of the BVD virus in a cow/calf herd include introduction of new cattle (including bulls) into the herd without testing for BVD, fence line contact with feeder calves or the neighbor’s herd, and populations of wild animals (such as deer) on the farm. Show cattle can bring the virus back when they return to the farm. A calf purchased from a sale to put on a cow who lost her calf at birth may be PI. A purchased pregnant cow or heifer may be negative for BVD yet she is carrying a PI calf.

Myth #6: I vaccinate my cows annually against BVD so my herd is fully protected.

Unfortunately, no. Vaccines against BVD (including those with Fetal Protection claims or “FP” vaccines) will reduce the chance of fetal exposure but protection is never 100%. Vaccines may fail due to problems with the vaccine itself, the animals, and/or management errors. The current BVD vaccines available contain BVDV 1a and BVDV2a strains. These vaccines were quite effective when strains 1a and 2a were the most prevalent types. However, the most common type of virus circulating now on farms in the US is BVDV1b so the vaccines are not as protective. Problems within the animals themselves may prevent good vaccine response. Animals that are sick when vaccinated, too stressed to respond, in poor nutritional status or too young to produce antibodies will not be protected with vaccination. A PI calf within a herd will suppress immune response from vaccine in all of the other calves it contacts. Finally, yet importantly, management errors are an all-too-common cause of vaccine failure. These may include:

Not giving 2 doses of killed vaccine as described on the label

Improper mixing of vaccine (shaking violently rather than swirling)

Failure to use modified live vaccine within 1 hour of mixing (VERY COMMON ERROR)

Inappropriate storage either before or during use of the product (must be kept cool)

Use of expired vaccine

Use of soap, detergent, or disinfectants to clean the inside of multi-dose syringes used to inject modified live vaccine (inactivates vaccine)

Poor timing: The immune system needs two weeks to develop a protective response from a vaccine before challenged with the virus.

Diagnostic testing for BVDV PI is inexpensive and easy. The most commonly used sample for identifying PI cattle is skin, usually taken as an ear notch. Blood (serum) can also be used but not in young stock (calves less than 3 months old). Any BVD ELISA positive test result (at the UKVDL) should be confirmed by segregating the animal and retesting a second ear notch or blood drawn at least 3 weeks after the first sample. True PI animals will still be positive after 3 weeks while transiently infected will test negative. Other laboratories may have different protocols so check the laboratory on the need for confirmatory testing. Remember PIs are considered defective and there is a legal, moral and ethical obligation to dispose of these animals without sending/returning them to commerce.

If you have questions, please contact Dr. Michelle Arnold at 859-257-7190.

Much of the information in this article was from a recent webinar by Dr. Julia Ridpath, an internationally-recognized expert in bovine respiratory disease and BVD.

This webinar was made available to extension veterinarians to help educate all parties involved in cattle production on the many faces of this disease

New Dicamba Products Receive Approval for Use on RR2Xtend Soybean By: JD Green UK Extension Weed Specialist.

Two dicamba formulations, XtendiMaxTM (Monsanto) and EngeniaTM (BASF), received federal EPA approval in December for use with RoundupReady2Xtend soybean. In addition to federal registration, a pesticide must also be registered and approved within a state before it can be sold. The XtendiMaxTM product received state approval in early January for applications in Kentucky. The EngeniaTM product is still pending state approval, but it is anticipated in the near future. These products can be applied before or immediately after planting Roundup Ready 2 Xtend Soybeans or as an in-crop application from emergence (cracking) up to and including the beginning bloom (R1 growth stage of soybeans). The RoundupReady2 Xtend soybean technology provides another tool for targeting weeds that have developed resistance to other herbicide chemistries, but should be combined with other herbicide options and weed management tools for best herbicide resistance management. Because of the chemical characteristics of dicamba, good stewardship by applicators will be required to lessen the potential for off-target movement and damage to sensitive crops and other plants.

Both of these formulations were developed to reduce dicamba volatility losses compared to older dicamba products. Furthermore, there are some unique differences between these two dicamba formulations relative to other dicamba products.

XtendiMaxTM with VaporGripTM contains a DGA (diglycolamine) salt of dicamba plus an additive called ‘VaporGrip’ to reduce volatility. The dicamba acid concentration equals 2.9 lb acid equivalent per gallon for this formulation of dicamba. The use rates with RR2Xtend soybean are 22 to 44 fl oz/A [0.5 to 1.0 lb ae dicamba] for preplant/preemergence applications and 22 fl oz/A for single, in-crop applications.

EngeniaTM contains a BAMPA (N,N-Bis-(3-aminopropyl)methylamine) salt of dicamba with 5 lb acid equivalent of dicamba per gallon. The maximum use rate with RR2Xtend soybean is 12.8 fl oz/A [0.5 lb ae dicamba] for single preplant/preemergence or postemergence applications. Up to two applications are allowed as a preplant/preemergence and postemergence treatment.

These newer dicamba formulations, while reducing dicamba volatility, do not totally prevent the potential for off-site damage to sensitive non-target plants. Therefore, additional label guidelines have been developed and are required for proper use and stewardship of these herbicide products. The supplemental labeling for these herbicide products should be read and fully understood before making applications. Below are a few highlights of these label guidelines and precautions.

Be aware of your surroundings relative to nearby sensitive crops and vegetation “AVOIDING SPRAY DRIFT AT THE APPLICATION SITE IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE APPLICATOR.”

May only be tank mixed with products (herbicides & additives) that have been tested and approved for tank mixing [Consult the websites listed on the XtendiMax and Engenia label within 7 days before applying for approved tank mix products; NOTE: as of now no additional products have yet been approved including tank mixing with glyphosate].

DO NOT apply with products containing ammonium salts such as AMS (ammonium sulfate) or UAN (urea ammonium nitrate) [These additives can increase the potential for volatility defeating the advantage of using these dicamba products].

Currently, only Turbo TeeJet TTI 11004 nozzles can be used with these products [To control droplet size use within the maximum pressure range allowed by the nozzle manufacturer; consult label websites for other approved nozzle options].

Optimum wind speeds 3 to 10 mph (max 15 mph).

Avoiding applications when temperature inversions are likely to occur (i.e. calm wind conditions) is just as Important as avoiding applications under conditions of high winds.

Maximum application equipment speed of <15 mph.

Boom height less than 24 inches above target pest or crop canopy.

Maintain a downwind buffer of 110 feet or 220 feet (depending on product application rate) to protect sensitive areas. Do not apply if wind is blowing toward adjacent commercially grown dicamba sensitive crops.

For sprayer cleanout use a triple rinse procedure.

Scout fields before and after application for weed resistance management. In Kentucky, applicators will need to be extra cautious about making an application where sensitive crops such as tobacco, grapes, landscape plants, fruit trees, vegetables, greenhouses or home gardens are growing nearby. There may be some crop field sites where this technology will not be a good fit because of nearby sensitive sites. Applications of non-approved dicamba products on RoundupReady2Xtend soybean are prohibited.

The availability of this technology provides another tool for managing weed problems in soybean, but we all must practice good stewardship to maintain their availability. The EPA is concerned enough about off-target damage from use of dicamba products, particularly in light of problems from illegal use of dicamba in areas such as Missouri and Arkansas this past summer, that the registrations for use of these products were granted for only 2 years. Extension of the registrations will depend on whether we can use this technology in a responsible way.

Using Cover Crops for Grazing Cattle

The use of cover crops prevents soil erosion, increases soil organic matter and microbial activity, improves

soil water retention, recycles nutrients and decreases soil compaction. Cover crops also provide an excellent

way to extend the grazing season. In Kentucky, commonly used cover crops for grazing include cereal rye,

wheat, and annual ryegrass. Winter legumes such as crimson clover, hairy vetch, and winter peas, can pro-

vide high quality forage for grazing. Legumes provide the additional benefit of nitrogen fixation. Brassicas,

such as turnips, are high quality, deep rooted and grow in dry conditions.

Cereal rye is a great choice for those needing fall and early spring grazing. Rye also has the advantage of

growing under a wide range of soil conditions. Wheat produces less than rye in the fall but matures later in

the spring extending the grazing season well into April. Annual ryegrass is a great fall and winter cover crop

to graze if planted in September to ensure establishment. It has an extensive root system that establishes well

in almost all soils.

Brassicas make excellent feed and produce highly digestible fiber. This highly digestible forage has a rapid

rate of fermentation that can lead to a buildup of gas that may cause bloat. Using feed additives such as

poloxalene or ionophores, as well as providing long stem roughage, can aid in the prevention of bloat.

Grazing can begin after cover crops grow six to eight inches tall for grasses and above ten inches for

brassicas and legumes. Ideally, livestock should be moved twice weekly. A good option is to strip graze

cover crops. With strip grazing, a set amount of forage is allocated at a time which meets the needs of the

livestock.

When grazing cover crops, do not overgraze an area, making sure to leave four inches of plant cover. Once

forage is grazed to this height, cattle should be rotated to another area to optimize future regrowth. A good

management practice is to observe the amount of ground cover frequently for overgrazing or undergrazing

and adjust rotation of cattle accordingly. Application of grazing practices on cover crops can aid in the

distribution of manure and increase soil organic matter. In order to reduce animal compaction, plan and

utilize a sacrifice area during wet conditions.

A cover crop demonstration plot was planted at the Clinton County Extension office in October 2015. The

plots consist of wheat, annual ryegrass, cereal rye, black forage oats, crimson clover, and mixtures of wheat/

ryegrass, wheat/cereal rye, and wheat/crimson clover. Feel free to stop by the plots at the office anytime to

view the progress of the plot or to discuss cover crops for grazing, we are planning to host a field walk to

discuss the potential of each species for grazing.