17
shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com
March 17, 2015 • Page 17
NATIONAL
AG WEEK
SD Farm & Ranch Recognition
HURON — Farm and ranch families who
have enjoyed ownership of their South
Dakota farm or ranch for 100 or 125 years
have the opportunity to be honored on
Thursday, Sept. 3, during the South Dakota
State Fair in Huron.
Agriculture has long been the foundation
of South Dakota history. The South Dakota
Farm Bureau (SDFB) and the South Dakota
Department of Agriculture (SDDA) would like
to recognize and honor these longstanding
South Dakota families.
To qualify as a South Dakota Century
Farm or Ranch, a family must have retained
continuous ownership of at least 80 acres of
original farmland for 100 years or more. If
the family ownership of land has reached 125
Master Gardener Volunteers
years, they may apply to be recognized as a
Quasquicentennial Farm or Ranch.
Documentation of the original date
of purchase must be included with
the application. Application forms are
available online at www.sdfbf.org by
clicking “All About Ag” and then “CenturyQuasquicentennial Farm & Ranch Program”
or call the SDFB at (605) 353-8052. The
deadline to apply is Thursday, Aug. 13, 2015.
The South Dakota Farm & Ranch
Recognition program was initiated in
1984 by the SDFB. Since then, the SDDA
has joined the program. There have been
2,770 century farms and ranches and 250
quasquicentennial farms and ranches
recognized thus far.
n SDSU iGROW
U.S. Farm Bill Payments to Peak
Government support for
U.S. grain farmers under
the new five-year farm bill
will peak with the coming
2015 crop, the Food and
Agricultural Policy Research
Institute said in a new
report.
The 2014 farm bill
replaced traditional direct
payments to farmers with
support tied to market
prices, with farmers needing
to choose one of two basic
formulas by March 31.
One, called Agriculture
Risk Coverage (ARC), makes
payments based on moving
five-year average prices at
the county level. The other,
called Price Loss Coverage
(PLC), provides payments
when national average
prices fall below fixed
reference prices. Farmers
commit to one option for all
five years.
“Payments under 2014
farm bill programs increase
when crop prices fall,” FAPRI
said in its 2015 U.S. Baseline
Briefing Book. The think tank
estimated that $3.9 billion in
ARC and PLC payments for
last year’s 2014 crop would
be made after fiscal 2016
begins on Oct. 1.
“ARC spending is greatest
in 2015/16 but declines in
later years as the moving
averages that determine
benchmark revenues adjust,”
FAPRI said. “Projected
average ARC and PLC
payments peak with the 2015
crop at about $6.5 billion but
decline to $3.4 billion for the
2018 crop.”
FAPRI, based at the
University of Missouri,
said actual ARC and PLC
payments are likely to differ
greatly from the projected
averages, given price and
yield volatility.
The projected farm
support payments are
separate from the huge
U.S. private crop insurance
program, which the
government both guarantees
as a reinsurer and subsidizes
by paying 50 percent or
more of farmer premiums.
FAPRI estimated crop
insurance net outlays would
average more than $8 billion
per year over the next 10
years.
Because of expectations
of lower prices, U.S. farmers
are projected in 2015 to
reduce corn, wheat and
cotton acreage while slightly
increasing soybean area,
FAPRI said.
The institute said it
expected average corn
prices to recover to $3.89
per bushel for the 2015/16
marketing year because of
reduced U.S. production,
while continued large global
supplies would pressure
wheat to $5.17 and soybeans
to $9.29.
FAPRI expects milk, hog
and poultry prices to fall
in 2015 as lower feed costs
and record 2014 prices
boost production. Cattle
and beef supplies are tight
in 2015, but prices will begin
to decline in 2016 as beef
production starts to expand.
Master Gardener Endowment
BROOKINGS — Each year, South Dakota Master Gardeners and Master Gardener groups are
eligible to receive funds from the South Dakota Master Gardener Endowment for projects that
support or promote gardening education and experience.
The South Dakota State Master Gardeners Executive Board determines the amount of funds
available each year and selects the worthy applications.
Applications can be found at iGrow. Applications are due by March 20, 2015 and should
be submitted electronically to David Graper by mail at David Graper, Box 2140C, Brookings,
SD 57007.
The South Dakota Endowment Grant program was developed in honor of Mr. Earl Dailey, a
Pennington County Master Gardener who envisioned the establishment of this endowment and
award program.
Dozens of grants have been disbursed since 2006 when the first grants were awarded.
Grant recipients are expected to provide a brief presentation at the State Master Gardener
Annual Update, to be held in Pierre this year in September.
n SDSU iGROW
n Reuters (AP)
Third and Fourth Grade Essay Contest
MILLER — South Dakota Ag in the
Classroom (SDAIC) and South Dakota Farm
Families are sponsoring an essay contest for
all South Dakota third- and fourth-graders
and high school seniors in South Dakota.
The themes of the contest revolve around
conservation and preservation of natural
resources. The topic for the third and fourth
grade contest is “How Do Farmers Turn
Waste into Something Useful?” and the senior
contest topic is “How Are Farmers Actively
Working to Preserve and Protect the Environment?”
“Protecting the environment is something
farmers and ranchers do every day,” said
Ann Price, SDAIC director. “If they don’t
protect the natural resources they are given,
there won’t be any way to grow the crops
and animals that feed us.”
n PROTOCOLS
From Page 13
for at least 1 hour per check
period. This results in a total
of 3 hours minimum with 5
to 6 hours of heat detection
being better. Recommended
heat detection protocols for
heifers include:
1 Shot PG (Prostaglandin)
7 Day CIDR® - PG
MGA® - PG
Heat Detect and Time AI
(TAI) Protocols: These protocols include a combination
of both heat detection and
timed insemination. Heifers
observed in heat should be
inseminated 6 to 12 hours
after standing heat. Heat
detection should be done
for approximately 3 days
after PG injection, all heifers
not showing heat will be
given an injection of GnRH
and inseminated (i.e. timed
insemination). The amount
of time spent on heat detection is reduced with early
responders having a better
chance of conceiving compared to a single fixed-timed
AI. The recommended Heat
Detect and Time AI protocols include:
Select Synch+CIDR® & TAI
MGA® - PG & TAI
14-day CIDR® - PG & TAI
Fixed-Time AI (TAI)
Protocols: With a fixed-time
protocol, all heifers are
inseminated at a pre-determined time and no heat
detection has to occur. In
general heifer pregnancy
rates for fixed-time AI protocols tend to be 5 to 10%
lower than heat detection
alone. When considering
these protocols, synchronize
Call Classifieds
665-5884
Winners in the third and fourth grade categories will receive a classroom pizza party
and a certificate. The winner of the high
school contest will receive $250 cash.
Entries are due April 4, 2015, and winners
will be announced on or before April 10.
Entry forms must be included with all
entries and can be found at www.agclassroom.org/sd or www.agunited.org. Third- and
fourth-graders should submit their 100-250
word essays and seniors should submit their
500-1,000 word essays to Ag Week Essay
Contest, c/o South Dakota Ag in the Classroom, PO Box 402, Miller, SD, 57362 or email
them to sdagclassroom@yahoo.com with the
subject line “Ag Week Essay Contest.”
Contact Ann Price at sdagclassroom@
yahoo.com or 605-853-6040 with questions.
n South Dakota Department of Agriculture
no more females than can be
inseminated in a 3 to 4 hour
period of time. Recommended Fixed-Time AI protocols
include:
7-day CO-Synch + CIDR®
5-day CO-Synch+ CIDR®
MGA® - PG
14-day CIDR® - PG
For more information
related to estrous synchronization, contact Robin
Salverson, SDSU Extension
Cow/Calf Field Specialist at
605.374.4177 or Dr. George
Perry, SDSU Extension Beef
Reproductive Management
Specialist at 605.688.5456.
n South Dakota Department
of Agriculture
When you finish
reading, Please
RECYCLE.
Gardeners help answer local gardeners’ questions.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF iGROW
Organic Producer Surveys Due April 3
BROOKINGS — National
Agriculture Statistics
Service (NASS) mailed its
2014 Organic Producer
Survey to organic producers
nationwide. Participation is
mandatory.
“I urge all South Dakota
organic producers to fill
out the survey as the
data collected is crucial
to developing agriculturerelated programs that
Hoxeng Crop Insurance LLC
For Your Crop
Insurance Needs
MPCI & Crop Hail
33 years of crop insurance experience.
Dave Hoxeng
directly affect the life and
communities of growers,”
said Alvaro Garcia, SDSU
Extension Agriculture and
Natural Resources Program
Director & SDSU Professor.
M.T. & R.C. SMITH
INSURANCE
Serving the Yankton Area Since 1949
Home, Auto, Business, Life, Bonds
209 W. 4th St. • Downtown Yankton, SD
605-665-3611
smithins@iw.net
Office: 605-267-2767
Cell: 605-661-1136 • 1-855-969-2767
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer
Farm safe
farm aware
KEEP EQUIPMENT 10 FEET CLEAR OF OVERHEAD POWER LINES
For more information, call 800-245-6977.
n SDSU iGROW
“Don’t Gamble” - Insure With
44867 303rd St. • Volin, SD 57072
Overhead power lines are necessary to deliver electricity to farmsteads.
But the electricity can be deadly if wires are touched by large equipment.
Farmers and their equipment should always be at least 10 feet clear of
overhead power lines.
Online responses are
by April 3, 2015. The online
survey can be found at the
USDA Ag survey website.