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Field Burning in Oregon Being Phased Out

Recently passed legislation in Oregon is aimed at phasing out the burning of grass seed fields. While reactions to the bill seem to be somewhat mixed, it makes us wonder if anything like this could be introduced in Oklahoma.
Comments on the original article (you can read it here) have generated plenty of debate from both [...]

More Women Run their own Farms

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More Women Run their Own Farms

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Oklahoma Wheat Commission Now has a Blog

With the ever changing scene of communications, the Oklahoma Wheat Commission has decided to participate in the blogging trend.

The blog will connect you with harvest updates, recipes, education materials and check-off information. It is the intent of the Commission to use the newest form of communications to stay in touch with producers via the World Wide Web. As most blogs do, this one offers a spot to comment, add suggestions and upload pictures.

Switchgrass—On Corn Acreage or CRP?

By Kristen Johnson
School of Natural Resourses and Environment at the University of Michigan.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has set the goal of making cellulosic ethanol cost-competitive by 2012, and by 2030, it aims to make biofuels displace 30% of the country’s projected gasoline use. Some of the primary types of feedstocks being considered to meet these goals are crop residues, perennial woody crops, and perennial grasses. Perennial grasses have been a particular focus, with switchgrass receiving the most attention. Switchgrass, a native tall-grass prairie species, is considered most promising because of its high yields, low inputs, and ability to adapt to a variety of conditions. But an important question concerning the sustainability of this feedstock is: where should this perennial grass be grown?

Switchgrass – A Viable Source of Bioenergy

Switchgrass has been researched as a bioenergy crop since the mid-1980s, because it is a native perennial warm season grass with the ability to produce moderate to high yields on marginal farmlands. It is now being considered for use in several bioenergy conversion processes, including cellulosic ethanol production, biogas, and direct combustion for thermal energy applications. The main agronomic advantages of switchgrass as a bioenergy crop are its stand longevity, drought and flooding tolerance, relatively low herbicide and fertilizer input requirements, ease of management, hardiness in poor soil and climate conditions, and widespread adaptability in temperate climates. In some warm humid southern zones such as Alabama it has the ability to produce up to 25 oven-dry tonnes per hectare (ODT/ha).

A summary of switchgrass yields across 13 research trial sites in the United States found the top two cultivars in each trial to yield 9.4 to 22.9 t/ha, with an average yield of 14.6 ODT/ha.

Golfers and golf courses benefit from use of native grasses in roughs

If you’re a golfer the chances are that you like the look of a well-manicured and highly maintained golf course. I’m pretty sure that you also like extremely green grass that cut short because it’s easy to play off.  However, two recent studies from the University of Illinois indicate that a more natural landscape that includes native grasses not only benefits biodiversity, but also saves money by reducing both pesticide and labor costs. At the same time the research shows that courses using native grasses are likely to be just as challenging.

Grain Silos – Older than Agriculture?

Recent archaeological discoveries in Jordan indicate that grain silos were being constructed some 11,000 years ago.

According to the authors of the paper “The granaries represent a critical evolutionary shift in the relationship between people and plant foods, which precedes the emergence of domestication and large-scale sedentary communities by at least 1,000 years.”

In other words, these sophisticated structures appear to be older than the practice we know as agriculture.

Oklahoma-Kansas Winter Canola Conference – July 21 – Enid, OK

Source: Grainnet.com

Call it a meeting of the minds – minds from universities, farming operations and agribusiness who will come together to learn and share about growing canola on the southern Great Plains.

The Fifth Annual Oklahoma-Kansas Winter Canola Conference is set for July 21 in the Hoover Building at the Garfield County Fairgrounds in Enid, OK, said canola breeder Mike Stamm.

Stamm, who works for both Kansas State University and Oklahoma State University, is one of the conference speakers.

Mounting evidence shows native grasses could destroy explosives pollution

By SCOTT CANON The Kansas City Star

Besides the obvious reason, TNT is not good for you.

But grass, it turns out, might be dynamite for the problem.

TNT contaminates hundreds of sites, from military firing ranges to old production dumps to waterways, and poses a threat to the human nervous system and to the liver and kidneys. It’s suspected to cause cancer. It can cause allergic reactions and attack the immune system, and it may lead to birth defects.