Evangeline Ag News. October 2010 CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES MASTER FARMER PHASE I TRAINING SCHEDULED

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1 Evangeline Ag News News and information for our parish s agricultural producers and dealers CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES October 2010 _ October 15 Drop off Heifers for McNeese Heifer Development Program 20 Master Farmer Program (Phase 1) - Distance Education Sites 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m Commercial Pesticide Applicators Training - Country Inn & Suites, Pineville 22 Pre-vac Sale - Kinder Livestock Auction Company at Mansura Barn November 10 Crawfish Referendum - Evangeline LCES office - 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. 21 Evangeline Cattleman s Association Beef Classic Open Beef Cattle Show - Chauncey Pitre Memorial Building Thanksgiving Holidays MASTER FARMER PHASE I TRAINING SCHEDULED Many of our agriculture producers and/or landowners have become aware of the Master Farmer Program. They are also aware of the point credits offered for the NRCS, EQUIP and other programs by completing the Master Farmer Phase 1 Training. The next Master Farmer Training will be conducted on Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2010, broadcasted over the distance education network. This will also be the only training conducted this fall. Our two closest sites for attending this training are the Dean Lee Research Station on the LSU-A Campus and the Acadia Parish Extension office in Crowley. Unlike the trainings in the past, this will be held on one day only. The material is now presented in a shorter time frame and the first session will begin at 8:00 a.m. All producers must attend this session. The cattle BMP session will begin at 10:45 a.m. and the row-crop session will begin at 2:00 p.m. and will conclude at 4:30 p.m. The training will be taught from the Dean Lee Research Station through the distance education learning system. All sites available are listed below: - Dean Lee (large conference room) - Oak Grove - Acadia Parish Extension Office (small room) - Red River Research Station - Macon Ridge Research Station (Scott Center) Once again, this will be a one-day training, and will be the only training for Master Farmer offered this Fall. Registration forms may be picked up at our office or downloaded from the Master Farmer Program website. n/master_farmer/registration+form/ The completed registration form should be brought in to the AgCenter or NRCS office at least a day before the scheduled training. If you have any questions, you may contact Ms. Donna Morgan at her office at or on her cell at You may also call or come by the LSU AgCenter office at 230 Court Street in Ville Platte, , for information, and/or registration forms. 1

2 COMMERCIAL PESTICIDE APPLICATOR CERTIFICATION TRAINING Individuals that need first time certification in a commercial category may attend this conference in Pineville, Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010 and Friday, Oct. 22, The conference is devoted to the information required for the first time certification and cannot be used for recertification. Registration will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 21, The conference will conclude with the certification examinations on Friday afternoon, Oct. 22. There will be a $ registration fee payable to VMCI, and a separate $25.00 exam fee payable to LDAF for each exam taken except the General Standards Examination. The conference will be held at Country Inn and Suites, 2727 Monroe Highway in Pineville. The phone number for Country Inn and Suites is To obtain the required study manuals, contact Ms. Karen Nix at the LSU If you have any further questions, please call Ms. Nix at LOUISIANA CRAWFISH PROMOTION & RESEARCH REFERENDUM The Louisiana Crawfish Promotion & Research Board is announcing the 2010 Crawfish Referendum will be held at each parish Extension office on Wednesday, Nov. 10, This referendum is to reauthorize the assessments on artificial bait and on sacks used to package live crawfish. The Referendum, authorized in 1983 & 1985 by Acts of the Louisiana Legislature, was created to further the Research and Promotion of Crawfish Aquaculture in the State of Louisiana. The referendum is held every five (5) years, to determine the sentiment of the crawfish producers of Louisiana as to whether they favor or oppose an assessment of : -- one-quarter of one cent (1/4 cent) per pound on all artificial crawfish bait sold in Louisiana -- one cent (1 ) for each sack holding less than 25 pounds of crawfish -- two cents (2 ) for each sack holding 25 lbs. or more To be eligible to vote, producers will have to show recent proof of purchase of the materials or supplies from which check-off funds are collected. They will have to provide proof of purchase of a minimum of 100 pounds of bait or 100 crawfish sacks during the preceding 12 months. The Louisiana Crawfish Research & Promotion Board administers the funds generated from the assessments, which usually range from $80,000 to $100,000 per year. Board members represent producers of farmed crawfish, wild crawfish fishermen, crawfish processors, crawfish bait suppliers, retail outlet and restaurant owners, the Louisiana Farm Bureau, and landowners engaged in crawfish production. The funds are spent to promote Louisiana crawfish, for research on crawfish production and to provide educational information about crawfish nutritional value. This authority, to check off fees on bait and sacks, must be reauthorized every 5 years. In the past, the Cooperative Extension Service has facilitated this voting by allowing producers to cast their ballots at parish Extension offices. The date for voting has been designated as Wednesday, November 10, 2010 by Cooperative Extension Service Administration, with input from the Crawfish Promotion & Research Board. Each parish with operating offices will have the necessary crawfish referendum ballots on hand on the day of the vote in the event a qualified producer wishes to participate. Voting in the Evangeline Parish Cooperative Extension Service office will be from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon, and 12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 10, Producers are encouraged to bring proof of eligibility as described above to be eligible to vote. If anyone has any questions about the referendum, please feel free to call our office at , or come by at 230 Court Street in Ville Platte. 2

3 2010 SOYBEAN VARIETY TEST PLOT RESULTS On May 19 of this year Dr. Ron Levy, State Soybean Specialist; Keith Normand, Extension Associate; Mr. Mike Dischler, Cooperating Grower, and I planted 12 Maturity Group Five varieties of soybeans in a variety yield test plot at Mike Dischlers farm near St. Landry. All twelve varieties were Roundup Ready varieties grown on 38 inch rows. They were not irrigated nor were they sprayed with a fungicide. Glyphosate was used twice at the 32 ounce rate of 4# material during the growing season for weed control. Insecticide was applied once, utilizing Brigade at the 2 ounce rate per acre. Although all will agree this is some of the better crop land in the parish for soybeans, Mother Nature did not cooperate very well with much needed rainfall. Yields were still good for this area and when you consider overall parish soybean yields being reported now, yields were very good. The table below contains the yield and test information. The plots averaged a little over one-half acre each. Variety Name Core Harvest Harvest Plot Row Acreage CF Bu/A Bu/A Rank Test Wt Moist Wdh Lgh Block (lbs) (%) (in) (ft) per plot Raw Adjusted Wt (lbs) Pioneer 95Y70 Y Delta Grow 5280 Y Terral TV54R28 Y Hornbeck R5525 Y Asgrow 5606 Y Delta King DK5363 Y Croplan RC5663 Y NK S57-K3 Y Terral TV55R15 Y Delta Grow 5300 Y Pioneer 95Y20 Y Delta King GP-533 Y Mr. Dischler cutting one of the test plots. A harvest aid, Gramoxone, was used to assist in drying down the foliage in the field allowing the beans to be removed earlier. This allowed the beans to have much less damage and weathering compared to waiting for the plants to dry down on their own. This also attributed to the fact that these varieties did not shatter or split as severely, compared to beans that are left to naturally dry down. The use of a harvest aid has several advantages for the grower, especially if we would have had inclement weather or a storm approaching. 3 Combine dumping test plot yield into weigh wagon, which after weighing and pulling a moisture sample, we transfer into the producers truck.

4 2010 CALF TO CARCASS PROGRAM UNDERWAY On Tuesday, October 5, eight beef cattle producers from Evangeline Parish delivered 78 young steer calves to the Dean Lee Research Station. Upon delivering these calves, the 45 day pre-conditioning program for the LSU AgCenter Calf to Carcass Program is underway. The producers actually started their participation with the selection, tagging and age and source certifying of their steer calves prior to the delivery day. Upon delivery the calves were all ear tagged, wormed, given a vaccine booster, and weighed individually prior to penning for the pre conditioning period. During this pre conditioning period calves will acclimate to each other, establish a pecking order, and begin eating in a bunk feeder and drinking in a large trough. This will better prepare them for the environment, and stresses associated with being trucked to a large feedlot in Oklahoma, where the final feeding period will begin. Research tests with prior feeding programs have proven the pre conditioning period really helps all the cattle, and cuts the sick calves down to almost nothing. Producers participating in this years program include: Tom Ardoin, Terry Ardoin, Billy Campbell, Kyle Fontenot, Jake Guillory, Winston Guillory, Lamar Johnson, & Nick Ortego. Their calves will form a single load which will be pre conditioned at Dean Lee Research Station, and then trucked around late November to the feedlot in Oklahoma. Producers will retain ownership of their calves through the feeding period, and also receive premiums paid for the fed calves and source and age verification at the time of sale. As part of this program producers have the option to go on the Calf to Carcass Trip Tour, which is held in the Spring of the year, just prior to the calves being sold. Many of this years producers got involved in the program after going on the LSU AgCenter, and Louisiana Cattleman s Assoc. sponsored tour last Spring. The Spring tour is open to any interested individuals, who may want to see what this program is all about. You do not have to have animals in the program. We will advertise the Calf to Carcass Tour as we get into next Spring, to keep you posted if anyone is interested in going on the tour. Pictured here are producers and Dean Lee Station personnel processing the calves as they come out of the working tub into the squeeze chute. Pictured from left are: Nick Ortego, Jake Guillory, Winston Guillory, AlvinWilson, Tom Ardoin, Kyle Fontenot, Terry Ardoin, Dr. Tim Page, coordinator of the Calf to Carcass program (seated), and Billy Campbell. In the background are some of the Dean Lee Research Station personnel working the alleyway and the hydraulic controls on the squeeze chute as the calf enters the chute. This is another shot of the same group of producers working a calf in the chute. From left is : Nick Ortego, Jake Guillory, Winston Guillory, Alvin Wilson (in the tub), Tom Ardoin, Dr. Page (seated), in back left with syringe is Terry Ardoin, pulling a vaccine dose is Jeff Gurie from Dean Lee, ear tagging the calf is Kyle Fontenot, supervising Kyle is Billy Campbell. 4

5 STATEWIDE OUTDOOR BURN BAN DECLARED Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M., and State Fire Marshal Butch Browning have declared a statewide burn ban. The order was issued October 2, 2010 at 4:00 p.m. and will remain in effect until rescinded. The burn ban was put in place after Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry firefighting crews responded to more than 30 wildland fires on Friday and Saturday. An estimated 1,000 acres of forestland has already burned over the two-day period. LDAF fire reports for August-September period indicate 407 wildland fires burned more than 3,458 acres within the state. During the same period in Aug.-Sept. 2009, 56 fires burned 152 acres. The figures represent a 726 percent increase in wildland fires and a 2,270 percent increase in acreage burned. Strain said large areas of Louisiana are measuring more than 600 on the Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI). A link to the KDBI website is listed on the LDAF website at The KDBI measures soil moisture levels to an eight-inch depth and indicates the dryness of a land area. Any area over 600 on the KBDI map is very susceptible to wildfire, Strain said. All caution should be used when planning a controlled burn, outdoor cookout or using any outdoor flame. The LDAF extends wildfire detection and suppression services for 18.9 million acres. Of the 18.9 million acres, the LDAF only receives wildfire detection and suppression funding from landowners for 53 percent of the protected area. LIST UPDATING If you have an address, please call our office at , or send an to me at (kfontenot@agctr.lsu.edu) or my secretary, Susan Fontenot at (slfontenot@agctr.lsu.edu). We will put you on our electronic mail list to receive this newsletter as well as other informational crop situation bullets that we receive during the year. Also, this is a very convenient way to send in DD-50 information and also to receive the printouts on the field. You may also visit the LSU AgCenter home page at ( where you may find information on many different and varied topics. For rice-specific information, go to where you will find current information dealing with many facets of rice production and the industry itself. If you have any questions, please contact the office of the LSU AgCenter at 230 Court Street in Ville Platte, or call me at , and we will try to answer any and all questions you may have on these topic. Keith Fontenot County Agent Evangeline Parish The current ban shall not apply to prescribed burns by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, by those trained and certified by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, or by those who conduct prescribed burning as a generally accepted agriculture practice as defined by the Louisiana Right to Farm Law (R.S. 3:3601 et seq.). Contact: Sam Irwin - sirwin@ldaf.state.la.us 5

6 October 2010 Evangeline Ag News News and information for our parish s agricultural producers and dealers 6