Al6—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 9,1981 Lou Moore says , “Livestock prospects to improve 99 UNIVERSITY PARK The livestock economy has for more than a year been beseiged with low cattle and hog prices, high interest rates, weak consumer demand, and (since last fall) higher feed prices. Improvement should come soon and substantial price rises for both cattle and hogs are expected, according to H. Louis Moore, livestock Marketing Specialist. The recent pig crop report in dicated hog farmers have finally gotten the message they were producing too many hogs. The cut in numbers is greater than earlier expected. In December, producers said they planned to cut the December 1980 - February 1981 pig crop by 6 percent. This was a modest cut and was based on the prospect that tlfe hog market would improve as the new year began. When prices actually drifted lower in the new year, producers lost all enthusiasm for the future. Actually farrowings during the period dropped by 10 percent. The number of market hogs on farms at the beginning of March was down 8 percent and the breeding herd is down 11 percent. Hog production will drop progressively as the year con tinues. Price improvement should begin soon and rise to at least the mid-$5O range by summer and should remain at $5O or above for the remainder of the year. While this price improvement will be welcome news to hog producers, profits will be elusive. High feed costs and other costs associated with the hog business SMOKER'S SALES SERVICE, DR. RD #2. BOX 21 NEW HOLLAND, PA 17557 ♦♦♦ We Have SR2I2 h.p. Lister Diesels, as is or rebuilt • Good used diesel • New Sputnik wheels engines and parts We mount diesels on balers, crimpers, compickers, etc. Install a blower fan for better diesel & refrigeration cooling. Longer lifeon diesel. DEALER FOR QUINCY AIR COMPRESSORS DEALER FOR LISTER DIESELS Contact Tim’s Diesel Service Star Rt. 2 Rebersburg, PA FOR PROMPT SERVICE CALL 717-354-4158 OR IF NO ANSWER CALL 717-354-4374 brings the break-even price to about $53 for efficient producers. It appears that the planned cut in production will bring producers up to the break even level by mid year, but the profits will not be sufficient to encourage a return to overproduction. Most of the reduction in hog numbers is being made by small operators. The larger producers are increasing their share of the market and do not (because of the high investment in specialized facilities) have the option of cut ting production during periods of price adversity. In 14 states last year, operators with 50Q or more ho.— nor fr were only 6 percent of the total number of hog farmers, but they handled 44 percent of the total hog numbers. As hog production begins to drop, competition from beef will ease too. Beef supplies were up sharply, in the January-March period, mostly as a result of heavier weights fed in cattle and an increase in slaughter of non-fed animals. Now that many of the over finished cattle have moved to market, beef production should at last begin to drop. Combined with a decline in hog slaughter and an increase in consumer taste for beef as warmer weather arrives, the stage is set for cattle pnces to move above the $7O level by early summer. Price improvement and the greening of pastures will result in increases in feeder-cattle prices this spring. As in hogs, price increases will SALES & SI FOr use, p & DEUTZ Dl Jester) DIESEL POWER 2 Cyl. F2L-912 For lower cost per hour power, rely on be somewhat illusionary. For most cattle feeders, the breakeven price is well over $7O. But Jo sell cattle at near the break-even price is progress in these volatile times. All prospects for livestock are based on the assumption that feed prices remain at near current levels for the months ahead. If livestock producers are to profit in 1981, they must get help from the weather. A bumper com crop is needed to keep feed prices from moving sharply higher next fall. Dwarf can double apple yields UNIVERSITY PARK - Walls of fruit on dwarf apple trees, grown on trellises, can double the yield of standard trees of similar age, according to results of several years of experiments at Penn State. “Such apple trees grown this way can produce average yields of 1000 bushels per acre when 8 to 12 years old,” declared Loren D. Tukey, scientist m fruit culture with die College of Agriculture. “This yield is twice -that of standard trees of similar age,” he said. Tukey called the tree form a low trellie hedgerow. The hedgerow increases the volume of tree devoted to bearing fruit while using fewer limbs for support, he —■ Wheeling Chcmneldrain PAINTED STEEL ROOFING/SIDING Tops in durability' Heavy gauge galvanized steel panels are maintenance free and corrosion'resistant. Many colors and sizes are available. Call us tor low prices - j (717)354-7561 i Fetterville Sales R D 2, Box 267 East Earl, Pa. 17519 Complete Line of Accessories Available 1 The reserve is depleted and a crop of less than 7.7 billion bushels will force prices higher, reducing feeding margins for livestock producers. The U.S. has produced a 7.7-billion-bushel crop only once in 1979, when production totaled 7.9 billion bushels. So far in 1981 the weather has not cooperated. Most of the nation reports very dry conditions for this time of the year. Subsoil moisture is a problem for most states, and the crucial spring planting season is here. trees on trellises explained. Tukey has experimented for 20 years with several orchards using dwarf apple trees grown on M. 9 „and M. 26 rootstocks. Such root stocks help to increase maximum plant density for fruiting areas. Dwarf trees grown on trellises also produce large crops sooner than standard trees. Such apple tree systems are called intensive plantings. “In intensive plantings, the major cost facto? in establishment is the greater number of trees being used rather than the cost of the support system required,” Tukey affirmed. Since the trellis-trained dwarf trees are only 6 to 8 feet tall, smaller sized equipment can'be used than for standard trees. Energy per unit of production is lower than on standard trees, Tukey noted, since yields are earlier and higher. The low-trellis hedgerow con .sists bf a series of posts and four wires, each 18 inches apart, with the top wire at 6 feet. The trees are trained on these wires. ' The most common tree training system is one Tukey calls the “oblique palmette.” This tree form inclines limbs at a 30 to 45 degree angle from the horizontal and extends branches into adjacent trees —a wallfor bearing fruit. - The low-trellis hedgerow requires a major management change from handling individual trees. First, the outer fruiting mantle or fruitbearing area is developed. After this, training and pruning is almost totally devoted to caring for the fruit mantle and Aluminum in Stock in Milt Finish & White Urethane & Fiberglass Insulation We Blow insulation in ceilings. The extent of the problem is perhaps best illustrated by reports of barge traffic on the Mississippi River. Barges are having trouble finding depths adequate for moving at a time of the year when we would normally be hearing about floods on many major rivers. Heavy and regular rains will be needed throughout the growing season. The 1981 grain market will be very sensitive to feather news as the growing season begins. regulating growth of trees. -j Another tree form, the slender spindle, resembles a small Christmas tree in shape. A pole at each tree supports the central trunk. Unlike the oblique palmette, a row consists of a group of in dividual trees. “Yields of intensively grown apple trees should reach 900 to 1200 bushels per acre annually,” Tukey stated, “hi our research orchard at Rock Springs in Centre County, ap ples have generally measured 2 % inches in diameter or larger for 65 percent of the crop. Fruit size has been an important factor in achieving high yields.” _ A report on the Penn State research with dwarf apple trees on low-trellis hedgerows will be published in the Spring issue of “Science in Agriculture,” the quarterly inagazaine of the Agricultural Experiment Station at Penn State. To be included on, the mailing list for all issues, write I to 229 Agricultural Administration 1 Building,' University Park, PA. I 16802. I —Special Sale — on 4 x 8 x 1 !4" Urethane - $ 13.75 nu LANCASTER FARMING FOR COMPLETE AND UP-TO-DATE MARKET REPORTS
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