Drought
Eight percent of respondents indicate they will no longer own cattle in 2012, though this is only a temporary measure.
Nebraska Cattlemen is encouraging those with equipment and time to make more hay available, including grass in ditches.
Producers in the Southern Plains have to make some tough decisions during the drought.
Much of the western U.S. is also experiencing drought. But Missouri is the only Midwestern state with such severe conditions with suffering corn crops and hay in short supply for cattle.
Ongoing drought and wildfires have cattle ranchers in at least five Southwestern U.S. states scrambling for hay or pastureland, while others are selling off some of their herds.
Already short on hay and forage after a hard winter, ranchers in North and South Dakota are continuing to reduce herds in response to severe drought conditions.
Producers should be proactive in case drought is a problem this year.
University of Missouri Extension has released a guide for farmers thinking about using a forage irrigation system.
Feeding hay is just one strategy to consider when trying to compensate for drought-stressed pastures.
Improved management adapted to changing rangeland conditions will be a key to surviving three back-to-back years of drought.
Drier weather in the last month has led to slow growth of forages in parts of the Midwest, meaning livestock producers need to double check their forage supplies for the rest of the season now.
The drought has had lasting effects on farmers across the country—cattlemen in particular.
Even after storms dumped many inches of snow in February, water shortages and dirt-dry pastures across the Great Plains are shrinking herds.
Winter wheat could still present good grain opportunities for farmers, experts say, but a lack of moisture has stressed pastures.
Though it’s possible some Texas producers could ship hay north, it might not happen for a number of reasons.
With ramifications of the drought in the Southern Plains still being felt, producers should take precautions for forage production in 2012.
Some fall rains making it appear as though some drought-weakened pasture resources are healthier than they might be.
The changes extend the emergency grazing period and allow feeding of hay from expiring CRP acreage.
With pastureland scorched, feed costs have skyrocketed. The past decade of setbacks has shrunk Canadian herd to 30-year low.
The cattle herd is finally recovering from the severe drought that the northern Plains experienced earlier this year. This drought is still a reality, hitting portions of South Dakota hard.
Wildfires have burned wide swaths of the western U.S. the past week forcing evacuations of communities, cattle to move pastures and highway closures.
Forest Service using new tech for post-fire work in Montana
North Dakota’s largest livestock group and its biggest corn organizations have launched efforts to help ranchers devastated by a summer of drought.
Several devastating fires are currently raging in the western U.S.—and hot and dry weather will only exacerbate wildfire danger through the weekend.
A new study by the University of Nebraska shows that wildfires across the great plains region are becoming more frequent.
The U.S. Drought Monitor shows that most of the Dakotas are experiencing drought conditions that experts say are harming farmers and cattle producers.
Cattle on feed continues to increase, while drought conditions go away in the Northern and Southern Plains.
The beef industry is still rebounding from 2012’s drought and now cattlemen are facing new challenges.