Indian Summer
For better or worse we are having what I grew up calling an Indian Summer. For those of you who have never heard of an Indian Summer, Webster defines it as a period of warm or mild weather in late autumn or early winter. A second definition offered is a happy or flourishing period occurring toward the end of something. So, I hope you are all having a happy and flourishing end to this growing season. While the weather has been very nice and pleasant, it is not great for dryland small grains- they need a drink.
There is a La Nina weather pattern that is giving us this nice fall weather.
According to the National Weather Service, this La Nina weather pattern is predicted to last possibly through March of next year.
That would mean below average rainfall and above average temperatures for the winter. Given a choice, I would much rather have these conditions during the winter as opposed to the summer months.
Of course, I am sure Mother Nature will defy all the predictions and throw in some bad cold weather just to keep us on our toes.
Given these predicted conditions and the fact that we have made a good hay crop, this may not be the best year to grow small grains.
Please do not start cussing me; I love small grains and there is nothing better for putting weight on calves, but they are not cheap to grow and this year there may be alternative feed choices that are cheaper without the risk associated with small grains. According to A& M Extension Economists, the 2024 estimated small grain production for grazing is predicted to cost $309.07/ acre. That includes the variable cost of seed, fertilizer, labor, repairs, interest, fixed cost of machinery ownership, depreciation, and land lease. I am sure many of you can get by a little cheaper as you may already own the equipment, but it is still an impressive figure. Even if you do everything right, you still have to have rainfall to get any return on this investment and unfortunately that does not look favorable this winter.
Peanut Field Day
We had an excellent peanut field day in late September. We had a couple of very good research trials on Mark Allison’s farm. Mark always grows some good peanuts with excellent yields. We had the top peanut specialist talk to the group and explain some of the latest peanut research and varieties to watch for in the future. The Diesel Nut was also discussed and there is still an expectation that this may be a potential new crop for us. As research and logistics are worked out, we will see. While peanuts are not the cash crop they once were, they are still about as profitable as anything we can grow in the county.
We have excellent agriculture businesses in the county and area that help support our agriculture educational programs and research. Here is a list of the ones that supported this field day: Farley Farm Supply, Central Texas Farm Credit, Texas Bank, SureGrow Ag products, Ferti-Tex AgriServices, Texas Peanut Association, WWC Enterprises, CenTex Irrigation, Certis Biologicals and of course a big thank you to Mark Allison for being such a good cooperating partner of these trials and the field day.