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A Feral swine fact sheet is available at the Chouteau County Extension office or online at: https://www.animalrangeextension.montana.edu/wildlife/documents/Squeal%20on%20Pigs%20Fact%20Sheet19.pdf. Below are a few highlights from the fact sheet. Feral swine have not been documented in the state of Montana. Montana citizens need to understand how important it is to keep this pest out of our state. Feral swine are aggressive animals that can be extremely destructive to fields, fences, and facilities. Their wallows can affect ponds and wetlands, mu...
The 2021 Montana’s Next Generation Conference will provide six powerful evening sessions covering crops, livestock, family communication, business planning, and succession planning topics. Sessions will be on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m., beginning January 12. All sessions will be broadcast and accessible online. Sessions will be free, but registration is required at https://bit.ly/2Wj3SzT. Jan. 12 – Lacy Roberts, Glacier County Farm Loan Manager, will start the night off with Beginning Financial and Production Recordkeeping....
This article was written by Dennis Cash, retired MSU Extension Service forage specialist. The winter feeding is likely your single largest ranch expense. Reducing hay waste can save you money. Hay losses at feeding on most ranches averages about one fourth, but can easily approach half. During good haying conditions and with proper storage, most losses to alfalfa or alfalfa-grass hays can be minimized. Dense large round or rectangular bales are widely used, but significant losses occur when these are stacked in the open. Hay sheds and tarps...
Montana State University Extension will host a free, annual cropping seminar series January 6, 2021 in Fort Benton, Denton, Havre, Chester, Shelby, Cut Bank, Conrad, Choteau, and Great Falls. Speakers will cover grasshopper control, antagonistic effects of herbicides, management of herbicide resistant weeds, and farm and ranch safety. Due to Covid-19, presentations will be broadcast to local locations for viewing. If producers would prefer to view the presentations at home, they can contact their local extension office for the broadcast link....
There are many “tips” to caring for a Christmas tree that propose to make it last longer or stay greener. In truth, all a tree really needs to maintain freshness is adequate water. This is easily done by using the proper tree stand and keeping the water level in the stand above the base of the tree. The following tips will help to maintain the freshness and aroma of a live Christmas tree this holiday season. Use a tree stand that holds enough water for the size of the tree. The rule of thumb is one quart of water per one inch of stem dia...
Sampling of hay is essential to livestock management. Hay sampling is best accomplished with a hollow core probe consisting of a stainless-steel tube and a sharp cutting end. The Chouteau County Extension office has a hay probe available for check out. One core should be sampled from at least 20 bales from a lot of hay. A lot of hay is defined as hay harvested from a field of uniform maturity within two days. A lot should not exceed 200 tons. Poor sampling techniques and an inadequate number of subsamples (less than 20) are the largest sources...
If we continue to have drought conditions, grasshopper pest populations will explode this spring. One insecticide available is Dimilin 2L. Below are a few facts about Dimilin 2L. • Dimilin 2L is an insecticide that interferes with molting. This insect growth regulator does not poison the grasshoppers, but it controls immature grasshoppers by interfering with their normal shedding of skin as they grow. As a result, it takes time to see mortality. • Dimilin 2L is an insect growth regulator which is effective on a wide variety of insect pes...
Managing horticultural landscapes and house plants in November is important to healthy production during the growing season. Below are a few recommendations for Chouteau County gardeners. • Apply protective mulches to perennial beds. • Use a humidifier to maintain humidity for houseplants. • Prune out dead limbs of woody ornamentals. • Do not fertilize or transplant anything after Columbus Day. • Continue to water landscape plantings (trees, shrubs, and perennials) until the soil freezes. • Apply winter mulch to strawberry beds as soon as the...
On behalf of the Chouteau County Extension Office, Janell and I would like to Congratulate Julia on this achievement. The Montana Symbol of Excellence (SOE ) program annually recognizes both 4-H and FFA youth and hog breeders who raise market hogs that meet carcass merit standards and who demonstrate a commitment to excellence in producing quality pork products. The SOE program was created through a partnership between Montana Pork Producers Council (MPPC) and MSU Extension before the Pork Act of 1985. MPPC with MSU Extension Swine Specialists...
Diagnosing injury to plants from herbicides can be difficult. A new guide (EB0232) from Montana State University is intended to aid in assessing and identifying potential non-target herbicide injury. Knowing when and what was applied is vital for diagnosing herbicide injury. In addition, knowing weather conditions, soil type and soil pH, and other environmental factors that affect herbicide performance can be helpful. This guide first describes background information necessary to understand herbicide injury, then symptoms of herbicide injury...
A new Montguide is available online (store.msuextension.org) or at the Chouteau County Extension Office. The Montguide was written by Cheryl Moore-Gough, former MSU Extension Horticulture Specialist. Segments from the Montguide are below. Houseplants are raised in greenhouses under ideal conditions. As a result, it is important to care for plants properly while becoming established in the home. Houseplants have varying needs. When selecting a new plant, consider the new plant’s requirements, and match the plant to an appropriate place in the h...
Information for this article was written by Rachel Endecott, previous MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist. Successful vaccination depends on three critical factors: an effective vaccine, a functioning immune system, and administration of the vaccine before exposure to the disease. Some tips for effective vaccination include: • Read and follow label directions. If you are unsure, consult your veterinarian or call the vaccine company directly before using the product. • Sterilize equipment between uses. Modified live vaccines (MLV) are sensitive...
Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), also commonly called downy brome, is a problematic weed in winter wheat and in rangeland throughout Montana. Cheatgrass typically germinates in the autumn, overwinters, and produces seed by mid-summer. The cheatgrass life cycle is similar to winter wheat which makes it a problematic weed in winter wheat fields. Cheatgrass is an abundant seed producer. Seed is only viable for one to two years in the seedbank. Cheatgrass typically germinates from late August to early October and matures in early July. Bromes can...
The Montana Conservation Seedling Nursery (MCSN) is already receiving orders for shelter belt plantings. Rocky Mountain Juniper is the most popular windbreak species, and is sold out quite quickly. If you are interested in ordering Rocky Mountain Juniper for your shelterbelt, please place your order as soon as possible. Shelterbelt plans should be approved by the MSU Extension Chouteau County agent, Conservation District or MCSN staff. Seedlings are sold on a first come, first serve basis. Please order early. The minimum order for new...
The eastern heath snail is the only snail species that climbs to the top of the vegetation to keep cool. This behavior is the main identifier for the species. If you live in other areas of the county and have discovered this species in the tops of vegetation, please contact the Chouteau County Extension office at 622-3751. There may be some financial assistance to help manage the pest. For further information, please reference the Montana Fact Sheet on the eastern heath snail developed by the Montana Department of Agriculture....
The following information was prepared by Kevin Wanner (MSU Extension Entomologist). Emerging winter wheat can be particularly vulnerable to damage by grasshoppers. The larger adult stage grasshoppers are more difficult to control and can move into emerging winter wheat fields from surrounding grassy areas. Treatment thresholds for emerging winter wheat are lower, 3-7 per square yard within the field, or 11-20 per square yard around the margin probably requires treatment. Border treatments applied as insecticidal sprays or seed treatments are...
According to Laurie Kerzicnik (Montana State University Entomologist), grasshoppers continue to be an issue for several areas in Montana. Grasshopper infestations will continue to extend into the fall. High grasshopper populations this year could be due to a couple of factors including an abundance of a yellow sweet clover in 2019 and a cold, wet spring in 2019 where grass was abundant and rising grasshopper populations were tolerated and mostly not managed. Most grasshoppers overwinter in the egg stage in the soil. After egg hatch in mid to la...
The 2020 Chouteau County 4-H and FFA livestock carcass contest took place at Pioneer Meats in Big Timber. A total of 58 Chouteau County 4-H animals were evaluated for carcass quality by Mark King (MSU Extension Sweet Grass County). The purpose of the carcass contest is to teach 4-H youth how to correctly select, feed and finish livestock based on carcass data. If carcass criteria are met, youth can be confident they are producing a quality product that is safe, nutritious and good tasting to the consumer. Out of 36 market swine entered at the...
Rejuvra™, active ingredient indaziflam, has received approval by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use on rangeland, CRP land, and natural areas, including grazed areas on these sites. Indaziflam was previously marketed as Esplanade™; the new label for Esplanade™ will restrict its use to industrial vegetation management. Rejuvra™ is a pre-emergent herbicide used for control of annual grasses like cheatgrass, Japanese brome, ventenata and medusahead. It reduces emergence of seedlings through inhibition of cellulose biosynt...
The 2020 MSU Pest Management Tour is a last chance opportunity for private applicators in Northcentral Montana to obtain recertification credits before the December 31, 2020 private applicator expiration date. Three credits will be offered for each session. Attendees may attend both sessions to accumulate six recertification credits. Onsite programming will be offered at county locations within PAT district 3 on October 6th. Commercial and government applicator credits will also be offered. Onsite virtual programs will be available on October...
Information for this article was taken from a Kansas State University Press Release. The entire article is located at www.ag.ksu.edu. Producers often wait several weeks after harvest before making their first herbicide application to control volunteer wheat,” said Dallas Peterson, K-State Research and Extension weed management specialist. “This allows as much volunteer as possible to emerge before spraying it or tilling it the first time. Often, a second application or tillage operation will be needed later in the summer to eliminate the green...
• Water trees three times a month in addition to watering your lawn. • Deep watering to a depth of 12” inches below the soil surface is recommended. Saturate the soil around the tree within the “dripline” (the outer edges of the tree’s branches) to disperse water down toward the roots. • For evergreens, water 3’-5’ beyond the dripline on all sides of the tree. • The objective is to water slowly, dispersing the flow of water to get the water deep down to the trees roots. Watering for short periods of time only encourages shallow rooting whi...
4-H, the nation’s largest youth development organization, grows confident young people who are empowered for life today and prepared for career tomorrow. 4-H programs empower nearly six million young people across the U.S. through experiences that develop critical life skills. 4-H is the youth development program of our nation’s Cooperative Extension System and USDA, and serves every county and parish in the U.S. through a network of 110 public universities and more than 3000 local Extension offices. Globally, 4-H collaborates with ind...
MSU Agriculture research centers have three test plots for winter wheat in Chouteau County. Research plots are managed by MSU Western Triangle Agricultural Research Center (WTARC) south of the Knees, MSU Northern Agricultural Research Center (NARC) north of Loma and MSU Central Agricultural Research Center (CARC) west of Geraldine. A special thanks to John Miller (WTARC agronomist), Peggy Lamb (NARC agronomist) and Jed Eberly (CARC agronomist) for establishing and maintaining the Chouteau County test plots. The Extension office would also like...
I hope our Chouteau County gardeners have had a productive year growing vegetables, flowers, trees and shrubs. Below are a few tips for the month of August. • Renovate strawberries by mowing a minimum of every three years. Some people mow their strawberries every year following fruit production. Be sure to set the mower high enough to mow the leaves. Mowing to low may damage the crowns and kill the plant. • Topdress strawberries after harvest with a complete fertilizer like 16-16-16. • Pinch the tops of indeterminate tomatoes and reduce water...
