Cooperative

Extension Service

Wolfe County

20 N Washington St

PO Box 146

Campton, KY 41301-0146

(606) 668-3712

Fax: (606) 668-3732

www.ca.uky.edu/ces

Greetings!

Summer is almost upon us. Soon hay season will be in full swing and we’ll be trying to get the hay

up before a pop-up summer storm. In this issue you will find information on baleage (aka haylage)

and how you can get your forage crops harvested at a higher moisture content that traditional

hay.

There is also information about controlling mosquitoes around your home, maintaining your lawn,

growing hydrangeas, and tips for cattle production.

I know calendars are filling up fast, so here are some dates to mark down:

- June 8: Growing Ginseng and Appalachian Forest Botanicals for Market (6:00pm

At Community Building at Robinson Center, Jackson, KY)

- June 13: Insect and Disease Management Options for Vegetable Gardens

(6:00pm at Robinson Center Auditorium in Jackson, KY)

- July 13: Pasture to Plate (5:00pm Morgan County)

- September 15: East KY Hay Contest (6:00pm at Robinson Center)

- September 17 (tentative): East KY Bred Heifer Sale (Lee City Stockyards)

- October 1: Mountain Field Day (Robinson Center)

Be safe, be healthy, and be happy!

Heather K. Graham

“The farmer has to be an optimist or he wouldn’t still be a farmer.” Will Rogers

Wolfe County June 2016

Ag Newsletter

Controlling Mosquitos Where You Live Sources: Lee Townsend, UK entomologist

Controlling mosquitos is challenging to say the

least. You may even think you are fighting a never-ending

battle. With mosquito-borne diseases like the Zika virus be-

coming more prevalent, it’s even more important to know

how to take control of these pests around your home envi-

ronment. Learning to do a few simple things could help pro-

tect you from more than the itchiness of a mosquito bite.

All mosquitos need standing water to develop

through their larval stages and that doesn’t necessarily

mean a lake or pond. It also includes bird baths, kiddie

pools and even discarded soda pop cans. The key to con-

trolling them around your home is to stop them from breed-

ing in the first place.

Some things you can do include:

Drain and remove trash, bottles, and any debris that

holds water.

Recycle any unused containers that could collect water,

especially old tires.

Change water weekly in bird baths, wading pools, wa-

tering troughs and animal bowls.

Fill in holes, depressions, and puddles in your yard.

Make sure your culverts and ditches are draining

properly

Check and clean out clogged gutters to ensure drain-

age.

Keep ornamental ponds stocked with fish.

Fix leaky hoses and faucets.

Drain water from flowerpots and garden containers.

Turn over wheelbarrows, buckets, and other items that

collect water.

Adjust tarps covering woodpiles, boats, and grills to

remove standing water.

Encourage natural enemies of mosquitoes, such as

warblers, swallows, martins, and other insect feeding

birds.

It’s a good idea to start these practices early in the

season. Just because the mosquitoes aren’t biting yet,

doesn't mean that they’re not developing.

For more information about mosquito control, visit http://

www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology/entdept/faculty/Brown/

index_files/Page601.htm

Photo: University of Kentucky

Timely Tips

Dr. Roy Burris, Beef Extension Professor, University of Kentucky

General

Harvest hay. Work around the weather and cut early be-

fore plants become too mature. Harvesting forage early

is the key to nutritional quality. Replenish your hay sup-

ply!

Rotate pastures as needed to keep them vegetative.

Clip pastures to prevent seedhead formation on fescue

and to control weeds.

Prevent/control pinkeye.

Maintain salt-mineral feeders. Provide free choice miner-

al.

Maintain a clean water supply.

Ensure access to shade for very hot and humid days.

Spring-Calving Herd

Observe performance of bulls during breeding season.

If the number of cows returning to estrus is large, try to

determine the cause and consider changing bulls.

Breeding pastures that contain fescue should be low

endophyte (if available) and contain legumes.

Fall-Calving Herd

Finish collecting cow and calf weights at weaning.

Pregnancy test cows.

Consider selling open cows and heifers, cows weaning

lightweight, poor quality calves, and problem cows.

Make initial selection of replacement heifers.

Spring Lawn Care Tips Andy Rideout

Springtime always brings with it a renewed interest in

maintaining a healthy lawn. Spring is the time to prepare

your lawn for the rest of the year. There are many good

management practices that will help you keep a healthy

lawn throughout the season.

Mowing at the proper height is a great start. The recom-

mended mowing height for tall fescue is 2 to 3 inches, and

for Kentucky bluegrass the height is 2 to 2.5 inches. Mow-

ing at the best height for the grass encourages a deeper

root system, discourages weeds, and helps reduce water-

ing. Setting up your mower is a relatively easy task. Park

your mower on a concrete or other hard surface and

measure from the blade to the surface to get the proper

height. There is no need to be exact but within ¼” inch is

great. Following recommendations for mowing height and

frequency will make your lawn care duties easier and re-

sult in a more attractive yard.

A good sharp blade throughout the mowing season is also

very important. Surgeons use very sharp instruments so

the cut will heal quickly. When your mower blade cuts the

tip of the grass blade, the wounds are susceptible to in-

fections and insects. The sharper the blade, the quicker

you grass will recover and minimize potential disease in-

fections.

A good fertility program for your lawn should be based

upon a soil sample. Most of the time, you should not apply

nitrogen in the spring. Nitrogen promotes top growth and

will only increase your time on the mower. For most

lawns, nitrogen should be applied in the fall to help devel-

op the roots, increase density, and prepare the plant for

the spring green up.

While mowing the lawn, what should be done with the

grass clippings? The answer is, leave the clippings on the

lawn. Leaving grass clippings on the lawn saves time,

money, and energy, since you don’t have to stop and

empty the bagger or buy trash bags. Clippings also add

free fertilizer to the lawn, possibly as much as 25 percent

of the lawn’s annual nutrient needs. Remember, grass

clippings are not accepted in the garbage. Grass clippings

do not increase thatch. Clippings contain 75 to 85 percent

water and decompose quickly. Thatch is a tight, intermin-

gled organic layer of dead and living shoots, stems, and

roots that develops between the green leaves and soil

surface. A little thatch is good, since it helps moderate

temperature extremes at the soil surface and provides a

cushion effect on the surface.

Weeds can be a big problem in home lawns. Good weed

management starts with a healthy lawn so make sure you

are mowing at the proper height and fertilizing correctly

before attacking your weeds. There are two types of weed

control-pre-emergent control and post-emergent control.

Pre-emergent is the best way to control the most common

home lawn weeds, such as crabgrass, dandelion, and

many others. Most pre-emerge products come in combi-

nation with a fertilizer so make sure the nitrogen content

is very low.

Timing your pre-emerge application is important. You

must make sure that you get it applied before the weeds

you are trying to control start growing. As soil temperature

increases this spring, your weeds will start to germinate.

Instead of monitoring your soil temperature, there are

“indicator” plants that will let you know when you need to

apply your weed control. A good indicator plant for pre-

emerge application is the forsythia. When you see the

bright yellow flowers starting to bloom, it is time to apply

your pre-emerge. Make sure to follow all label directions

when applying control products.

Different grass varieties and soil types require unique

management practices. The extension office has detailed

information on home lawn maintenance and can take your

soil samples to help you customize your lawn mainte-

nance.

Wrap it Up and Improve Your Forage

Dr. Jeff Lehmkuhler, Extension Beef Specialist and Dr.

Ray Smith, Extension Forage Specialist, University of

Kentucky One should not complain about spring rains, but when it

begins to interfere with hay making, the gloves are

thrown off and it is go time. This seems to be the case

every spring in the Bluegrass state. The spring rains

helps the cool-season forages grow, but it impedes our

field work. Since we can’t control the weather or the for-

age from maturing, we have to dig deeper into the

toolbox to find some help. Harvesting high moisture for-

age as baleage may be the tool of choice for some. Sev-

eral folks have called about wrapping annual cereal grain

forage this spring. Let’s talk a few minutes to cover some

basics so any forage made as baleage this summer has

the best chance of resulting in a high quality winter feed.

1. Forages need to be cut at the boot to early

flower stage for optimum quality. This helps

ensure adequate soluble carbohydrates for

the microbes to ferment and drop the pH to

preserve the forage.

2. Forage should be baled at the proper mois-

ture, 40-60%, to ensure a successful fermen-

tation. Higher levels of moisture increases

the risk of a clostridial fermentation and botu-

linum growth. Too dry impedes fermentation

and again to lead to a poorly preserved for-

age. Obtain a windrow moisture meter, bale

moisture probe or utilize the microwave tech-

nique for determining moisture levels in for-

age.

3. Slow down the tractor speed when baling to

ensure a tightly wrapped bale is made, par-

ticularly with cereal grain forages. It is im-

portant to limit the amount of air or oxygen so

that anaerobic fermentation occurs soon af-

ter baling.

4. Wrap bales in plastic ideally within 6 hours of

baling to limit air and oxygen exposure.

Stretch film should be applied to provide 6

millimeters of plastic thickness. This is often

accomplished by having 6 layers of plastic.

At a minimum 4 layers of plastic should be

applied, but 6 millimeters is recommended to

limit oxygen from getting through the plastic.

5. Allow the bales to ferment for 4-6 weeks.

Samples should be obtained and analyzed

for pH and ideally a fermentation profile

which will provide the level of acids in the

silage. This information is important to help

determine the quality of silage made and

whether there is a potential risk for a disor-

der.

There are thousands of bales made for silage annually

with few cases of botulism or listeria occurring in animals.

The key to lowering the risk of poor fermentation is fol-

lowing the five basic steps outlined above.

Growing Hydrangeas in Kentucky

Michael Boice and Lauren State

Primarily known as a source of summer color flowering June

through August — long after most shrubs have finished. Hy-

drangeas’ interesting bark and flower heads can also provide

winter texture when left untrimmed until spring. Four species

are commonly used in Kentucky landscape plantings.

Big Leaf Hydrangea is the most widely used hydrangea spe-

cies. Its large flowers range from white to pink to blue. While

white cultivars remain white, pink or blue cultivar color is deter-

mined by soil pH and availability of aluminum. A soil pH range

between 5.0 to 5.5 will generally produce the blue flowers, and

a pH of 6 and above inspires pink flowers. Most cultivars of this

species bloom on the previous season’s wood. If temperatures

drop too low, the flowers for the next season will be lost. New

selections like “Endless Summer” bloom on current season’s

growth, providing blooms even if flower buds are killed by late

spring frosts.

Continued on next page

Smooth Hydrangea is popular for its large, white blooms from June to September every year on new growth. Removing the

flowers as they turn brown will encourage a second flush of flowers in August. Part shade is best in locations where the

weather is generally hot and dry. This hydrangea grows three to five feet tall, making it a possible choice in smaller landscape

spaces. There are several good cultivar selections, but the most popular is “Annabelle.”

Panicle Hydrangea is one of the larger shrubs growing six to ten feet tall and six to ten feet wide depending on the cultivar.

This plant will grow best in full sun. Enjoy the white to purplish-pink flowers from June to September. Blooms can be pruned

when they turn brown or during the winter. One popular selection of this species is “Limelight” with large, light green flowers

that mature to white.

Oak Leaf Hydrangea, native to the southeastern United States, is known for its large, oak leaf-shaped foliage, and is a popular

landscape choice for areas with part shade. The white to purplish-pink flowers are four to twelve inches long with three- to four

-inch wide panicles. The flowers are abundant and fragrant. In the fall, the foliage turns to shades of red, orange-brown, and

purple, adding additional color to the landscape.

If you would like to receive this newsletter via email, please contact our office.

Ingredients

Herbed Pork Chops

4 Kentucky Proud pork loin chops, 3/4 inch thick 4 tablespoons chopped fresh Kentucky Proud herbs (chives, basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary--any com-bination.) 1 cup reduced-fat Italian dressing.

Directions

Place chops in resealable plastic bag. Add dressing and herbs; seal and refrigerate 8 to 24 hours. Remove

chops from marinade; discard marinade.

Grill chops over medium-high heat (or broil 4 inches from heat) for 8 to 10 minutes, turning once.

Credit: Kentucky Proud

Cooperative Extension Service

University of Kentucky

Wolfe County

20 N Washington

PO Box 146

Campton, KY 41301-0146

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

In This Issue

Controlling Mosquitoes Where You Live

Timely Tips

Spring Lawn Care Tips

Wrap It Up and Improve Your Forage

Growing Hydrangeas in Kentucky

Herbed Pork Chops Recipe