A24-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 29,1986
Century Farm
(Continued from Page Al)
own the family farm purchased in
1884 or 102 years ago.
The featured speaker of the
evening was H. Louis Moore,
professor of agricultural
economics, Penn State University.
Dr. Moore spoke on the subject
“Agriculture Our Pride Our
Problem”.
“We often take agriculture for
granted,” Moore said. “In
agriculture we have an aura of
romance and tradition. Farming
that is a so-called way of life.
Though it isn’t that way any more,
it does hold a certain aura of
tradition that is really good.
Agricultural industry and farm
retailing is the biggest industry we
have,” Moore said.
Twenty percent of our gross
national product comes from
agricultural-related industry
starting at the farm and going on
through to retail. We have
astounding technological ad
vances. Where one farmer fed 15
people in 1950, now one farmer
feeds somewhere in the 90s. This
advance has been so rapid that
USDA doesn’t even try to measure
it anymore.
Listing some of the problems of
agriculture, Moore said that our
national economy has experienced
four years of growth but farming
has not shared in this growth. “The
food security act of 1985 is the first
farm bill that didn’t have ag in the
title,” Moore said. “It makes you
think. Is it a food bill or an
agricultural bill? Other farm
problems include the fact that
exports have decreased and farm
land values have decreased,
especially in the midwest where
they have a total grain economy.
Food is cheap,” Moore said.
“There is no other way to describe
it. We spend about 15 percent of our
PFGC
(Continued from Page Al)
“Keeping input costs down is
critical,” Jorgensen continued. “
Let the alfalfa provide more of the
protein when it’s most critical.
Corn silage comes into the diet at
about 60 days post-calving up until
the cow goes dry.”
While some sources claim that
the percentage of total digestible
nutrients in corn silage averages in
the 70-percent range, in reality the
figure is closer to alfalfa’s TDN of
62 to 63 percent, according to
Jorgensen.
In one experiment he reviewed,
the researcher pointed out that
cows produced more milk on a diet
of high quality alfalfa and only 20
percent grain than they did when
grain was the predominant ration
and the alfalfa used was of lower
quality harvested in the bloom
stage.
Jorgensen stressed, though, that
realizing alfalfa’s full potential
means paying close attention to
management from planting to
storage. The legume should be
harvested no later than mid- to
late-bud stage. Forage cut early,
even when rain falls on the cut
crop, is still better quality than
alfalfa cut at the bloom stage, he
said.
Proper handling is also critical
to preserving quality, he said. “I
do not believe that equipment
companies have made much
progress in preserving the quality
of the crop in storage,” Jorgensen
said. In one Wisconsin study,
landing alfalfa with a crude
protein level of 25 percent dropped
to 21 percent protein at the time it
was fed following storage.
11 “Corn and soybeans are con
‘sidered the golden feedstuffs,”
Jorgensen summed up. “In reality
the profitability lies with the
alfalfa plant.”
While producing quality forage
is the first step in dairy
profitability, it’s equally important
to be able to utilize the forage in a
ration program. Penn State’s
incomes for food, in Russia they
spend 37 percent, and in China they
spend 60 percent. We can take
pride in the fact that farmers are
feeding our people very well and
* f
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Mahlon and Hazel G
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PFGC Honors 2 For Contributions To Forage Industry
STATE COLLEGE - The
presentation of the Pennsylvania
Forage and Grassland Council’s
Special Award and County Agent
Award highlighted the
organization’s Annual Forage
Conference held at Penn State’s
Keller Conference Center on
Tuesday.
Honored for contributions to the
state’s forage and livestock in
dustries was Mike Balas, recipient
of this year’s Special Award. Balas
Extension dairy specialist Richard
Adams addressed the subject of
formulating a nutrition program.
Ration problems that Adams
finds common among the state’s
dairymen include incorrect
amounts of concentrate, salt,
vitamin D, phosphorus, selenium
and vitamin E in the ration.
Adams stressed the importance
of monitoring every facet of the
feed program, testing all com
ponents of the ration at least
quarterly, and recalibrating
feeding equipment on a monthly
basis.
Farmers had the opportunity to
hear how several of their fellow
producers managed their forages
during a panel discussion during
the afternoon moderated by
conference co-chairman Dr.
Sidney Bosworth. The panel in
cluded Tom Craig of Murmac
Farms, Beliefonte (Centre Co.);
Ross Orner Jr. of Omer Farms,
Rockton (Clearfield Co.); and
Enos Tice of Tice-Platz, Boynton
(Somerset Co.).
Discussing crop rotations was
Penn State farm management
specialist William Waters. Waters
noted that the low price of com has
resulted in more grain being
substituted for forage crops,
making crop rotations difficult to
maintain. In general, farmers
should keep between 25 percent
and 50 percent of their cropland in
row crops at any one time, he
recommended.
very inexpensively,’’ Moore said.
In the awards program, Jay
Irwin, Lancaster County agent,
introduced the century farm
families. And Robert Zook,
chairman of the agricultural
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currently serves as editor in the
Marketing Communications
Department at New Holland, Inc.
A graduate of Penn State
University, Balas served for
several years as assistant editor of
Pennsylvania Farmer magazine
and later became editor of New
Holland News.
Balas has served on the board of
directors of both PFGC and the
American Forage and Grassland
Council. Through Balas’ efforts,
New Holland, Inc., has provided
strong financial support to state
and national forage council ac
tivities, including their forage
days, workshops, congresses and
Ag Progress Days.
This year PFGC offered its first
County Agent Award in recognition
of county agents who have
demonstrated strong support of
grassland agriculture. The
council’s first recipient is John
Shearer, county extension director
in Franklin County.
Shearer has been a consistent
supporter of a strong forage-based
dairy industry through the ex
tension programs he has in
stituted. Since Shearer began his
Franklin extension career, the
county has led all others in par
ticipation in the state alfalfa
growers program, and two grand
champions have been named from
his county.
Shearer is also credited with
bringing agencies, producers and
industry together in support of
grassland programs.
Also recognized at the con
ference were the champions of the
Ag Progress Days Hay Show held
in August. Jay McCarrell of Eighty
Four was cited for topping both the
field-cured and heat-dried
divisions. McCarrell’s entry in the
field-cured division yielded the
following percentages; crude
protein 23.8, neutral detergent
fiber 35.12, acid detergent fiber
28.96. His winning heat-dried entry
had the following analysis: CP
vv -
committee for the * Lancaster
Chamber of Commerce and In
dustry, made the presentations.
Jessica May, chairman of the
Lancaster Chamber Board,
brought greetings. James Kreider
was master of ceremonies. The
»
25.55, NDF 25.63, ADF 24.12,
David Witmer of Carlisle took
top honors in the division where
PFGC president Richard Hill (center) congratulates two
men for outstanding contributions to the forage industry.
Mike Balas (left) received the organization's Special Award
and John Shearer was the first recipient of the council’s
County Agent Award.
g Jgi ays ly. ps
Forage Conference. From left are Jay McCarrell and R. David
Witmer.
Reverend J. Wade Groff, pastor of
the Strasburg Mennonite Church.
Two 4-H speeches were given by
Stacy Nestleroth and Lorri Rutt.
And the closing remarks were
given by Richard Blouse, Jr.,
ident if hr L.
hay preservatives were used. His
winning numbers were: CP 24.26,
NDF 33.25, ADF 30.01.