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Research Identifies Cold Weather Strategies for Dairy Calf Managers

Northern NY; November 15, 2017.  As winter approaches, research funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program has identified cold weather strategies for attention by regional dairy calf managers.

“Winter weather poses a natural challenge to raising young animals. Respiratory illness in calves can negatively impact weight gain, age at their first calving, first lactation milk production, farm revenue and costs,” says project leader Kimberley Morrill, Ph.D., a regional Cornell Cooperative Extension dairy specialist, Canton, NY.

A USDA National Animal Health Monitoring Systems report that helped prompt the research in Northern New York indicated that 12.47 percent of pre-weaned dairy heifers in the United States are affected by respiratory illness with 93.4 percent of those calves requiring antibiotics.

Morrill evaluated 426 calves located across 27 farms in the northernmost counties of New York State from late November 2016 to early January 2017. In total those farms represented 2,408 pre-weaned calves, 32,269 heifers, and 33,557 lactating cows.

Among the factors Morrill measured and analyzed were temperature, humidity, dew point, wind chill, airflow, bedding, and calf age, weight, and health scoring.

Eight of the 27 participating farms had no calves with respiratory illness. On a per-farm basis, the prevalence of respiratory illness ranged from zero to 46 percent. Six farms had higher per-farm percentages of calves exhibiting signs of respiratory illness.

“Both environmental and management factors influenced the percentage of calves with respiratory illness per farm. Those factors included the type of housing system, bedding type and quality, and the number of calves per calf pen along with pen environmental quality, and weather factors,” Morrill says.

The project design included development of strategies to reduce the risk of respiratory illness in pre-weaned calves. Each farm participating in the project received an individualized report with recommendations for steps to improve their winter season calf management. Recommendations included:

• reducing the number of calves per group pen so each calf has a minimum of 35 square feet,
• increasing the calorie intake to meet daily requirements,
• adding bedding to allow for nesting,
• revising the feeding equipment cleaning protocol to reduce the risk of bacterial growth,
• revising or creating new written calf care management protocols, and
• implementing employee training in the areas of calf feeding and management.

Morrill notes that the majority of the farms participating in the project have adjusted their practices based on the recommendations received. The impact of the changes will be evaluated after the winter of 2017-18. Morrill will present an update on this research at the 2018 American Dairy Science Association meeting.

“Knowing the factors that have the greatest opportunity to enhance calf health through the winter helps farmers manage for seasonal challenges by taking the necessary steps to improve respiratory health,” Morrill added.

Earlier research funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program evaluated warm season factors influencing the respiratory health of pre-weaned dairy calves on regional farms.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides research and technical assistance to farmers in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

NNY Corn Yield Potential Research Strengthening Future Crop Production

Northern, N.Y.; October 9, 2017.  As Northern New York corn growers harvest their crops this fall, those using yield monitors are contributing data to a project prompted by regional farmers wanting to know how advances in corn breeding and production practices are impacting crop yields and if the associated nitrogen application guidelines need updating.

With funding from the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, Cornell University researchers are compiling actual yield data obtained in the NNY cornfields to evaluate the yield potential database that farmers and crop advisers use to determine the nitrogen needed via fertilizer or manure application to achieve an optimal corn crop under most conditions in the region.

The Re-Evaluating Yield Potentials of Corn Grain and Silage in Northern New York research report covering 2013 through 2016 is posted on the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program website at www.nnyagdev.org.

‘The farmers and farm advisers in Northern New York were frontrunners in the database re-evaluation that started in 2013,’ said research leader Dr. Quirine M. Ketterings of the Cornell Nutrient Management Spear Program, Ithaca, N.Y. ‘With more yield monitors in use, we now have a great opportunity to more quickly and more widely obtain real-field data.’

While Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded on-farm trials from 2013 through 2015 showed substantial agreement between yield potentials and actual yields when averaged across fields, there were notable exceptions between actual harvest and yield potential expectations in some fields.

‘Over the three-year study, one-third of fields tested yielded less than 90 percent of the yield potential, while 26 percent of the fields evaluated yielded more than 110 percent of the Cornell yield potential,’ Ketterings noted.

Increasing reliability of yield monitor equipment and data, greater yield monitor use, and development by the Cornell research team of a more reliable approach for handling yield datasets in recent months allows for much quicker evaluations of yield across a larger number of soil types.

Yield map data from corn harvesting in Northern New York will be added to the statewide yield potential database and used to refine nitrogen application recommendations for future corn planting.

Jefferson and Lewis farmers who wish to contribute to the corn yield database project may contact Cornell Cooperative Extension NNY Regional Field Crops Specialist Mike Hunter at 315-788-8540; farmers in Clinton, Essex, Franklin and St. Lawrence counties may contact Cornell Cooperative Extension NNY Regional Field Crops and Soils Specialist Kitty O’Neil at 315-854-1218. Mike Contessa of Champlain Valley Agronomics is also a key collaborator to the project.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides research and technical assistance to farmers in the six northernmost counties of New York State. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

MORE INFORMATION:
The statewide corn silage and grain yields from 1919 through 2015 show that yields have steadily increased since the second World War in New York State and in Northern New York. The data show, however, large year-to-year variation and very limited advances over the past 10 years.

Each of the more than 600 soil types found in New York State has an estimated yield potential in the Cornell University soil database.

Weather-related conditions from drought to excessive rainfall impact year-to-year differences in crop yield, thus, multiple years of data need to be collected for each soil type of agricultural importance.

NNYADP Apple Pest Research Equipping Growers for Quality Harvest

Northern NY; September 5, 2017.  Technical assistance and outreach funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is informing commercial apple growers in the northeastern region of New York State to effectively manage key orchard pests.

Cornell Cooperative Extension educators with the Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program received funding to help apple growers identify apple pests and learn their life cycles.

The educators also provided assistance with pest scouting and trapping and education on integrated pest management (IPM) that uses computerized modeling to guide orchard treatments when pest pressure reaches economic damage thresholds.

When pest counts are low, growers save time, labor and money by eliminating orchard treatments.

Applying IPM practices also pays off at harvest. The apples grown under the IPM practices in Northern New York orchards in 2016 were harvested at 96.6 percent Extra Fancy grade quality.

The Identification and Grower Education of Key Pests in NNY Apple Orchards project report posted on this website indicates that apple growers are making good use of IPM practices to specifically target such orchard pests as apple maggot and codling moth.

“The application of IPM in small orchard blocks in 2015 was so successful that growers applied the practices to entire orchard blocks in 2016, and they are continuing to do so in 2017,” said Michael Basedow, a tree fruit specialist with the Cornell Cooperative Extension Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program.

Pest activity varies from orchard to orchard and year to year. Compared to other areas of the state, the cooler climate of Northern New York generally delays pest emergence by 7 to 14 days making real-time monitoring a critical activity for apple growers.

“Diligence in scouting and trapping helps growers quickly identify and respond to specific pests in their orchards,” Basedow explained.

The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provided funding to continue educational outreach and technical assistance for regional apple growers in 2017.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides research and technical assistance to the six northernmost counties of New York State: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

Identification & Grower Education of Key Pests in NNY Apple Orchards: Report
Appendix

 

Western Bean Cutworm, an emerging pest of field and sweet corn in the Eastern U.S, prompted the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program to fund field research in 2016. The results of those trials are now posted at www.nnyagdev.org as the work continues in cornfields this summer.

In 2016, Northern New York farms had the highest trap counts for Western Bean Cutworm (WBC), according to scouting reports by Cornell Cooperative Extension field crops specialists and the statewide NYS Integrated Pest Management (IPM) WBC monitoring network. Nine of the top 10 highest trap count sites for WBC moths in 2016 were in St. Lawrence, Jefferson, Franklin, and Lewis counties.

While no economically-significant infestations have yet been recorded, corn growers are concerned that kernel feeding damage by the WBC larvae present an opportunity for mold and pathogen growth that would impact feed quality, animal health, and milk production.

The 2016 field research on working farms in Northern New York evaluated the effectiveness of corn seed modified to include a Bt trait developed to manage WBC. The research was prompted by reports that some Bt corn was not adequately managing WBC.

“The 2016 research trials evaluating Bt corn with the Cry1F and Vip3A traits side-by-side showed failure of the Cry1F trait to adequately control Western Bean Cutworm. The Vip3A trait has worked well in Northern New York,” said Cornell University Cooperative Extension North Country Regional Agriculture Team Field Crops Specialist Michael Hunter.

Hunter and Cornell University Cooperative Extension North Country Regional Agriculture Team Field Crops and Soils Specialist Kitty O’Neil conducted the 2016 field trials in cooperation with Cornell University entomology, plant pathology, and IPM specialists.

The WBC research continues with new funding from the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program in 2017. As of late July, two cornfields in Jefferson County were found to have enough WBC egg masses and newly-hatched larva to require an insecticide treatment.

Female WBC moths look for pre-tassel corn to lay eggs. The eggs hatch and growing larvae eat tassels and make their way down the plant to the ear where they eat silks and, eventually, developing kernels underneath the husks. Peak population numbers occur in late July and early August.

“This year, because the corn tasseling is later than normal, Western Bean Cutworm damage may be partly avoided. The larva do not eat corn leaves so if there is no tassel for the larva to feed on, they will starve to death,” O’Neil explained.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides research and technical assistance to farmers in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

Lowville, NY.  The results of the first-ever survey of bee colony health in Northern New York will be presented along with an assessment of the impact of parasites, pathogens and pesticides on bee colonies statewide at the Cornell Cooperative Extension Lewis County office in Lowville on Tuesday, August 1 from 6 to 8 pm. Cost is $5 per person. Pre-registration is requested by July 27 at 315-376-5270 or http://ccelewis.org.

Cornell University Honey Bee Extension Associate Emma Mullen will talk about the factors that stress bee colonies and can reduce honey production. Mullen will present information on the levels of mites and viruses in colonies locally and statewide and suggest ways beekeepers can keep their bees healthy.

Mullen served as project leader for the Northern New York bee health survey project funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program. The survey was the first of its kind for the northern region of New York state. The survey documented seasonal colony losses and the levels of key parasites and viruses in both commercial-scale and hobby bee colonies. The complete survey report is on this website under Horticulture: Beekeeping.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides research and technical assistance to farmers in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.