EDWARD J. WOODS
County Agent
Stay Off Wet Ground
Don’t let spring fever get the
better of your good judgement. As
you yearn to get into the fields and
gardens, remember what you are
trying to accomplish. You want
seeds to germinate rapidly and
seedlings to emerge quickly. The
longer it takes for this to happen,
the greater the opportunity is for
disease and insects to attack,
weaken, or destroy the seed and
planting.
Follow weather predictions
closely and delay planting until
soil moisture and temperature
conditions are favorable for good
germination, and until the risk of
frost injury has passed. To prevent
soil compaction and surface crust
ing, don’t work soils when they
are too wet.
Control Weeds In Pastures
A variety of weeds will grow in
pastures some may even pro
vide some nutrition to livestock.
One weed that is a problem for
dairy cows on pasture is wild gar
lic or onion because of the flavor it
gives milk.
That flavor is a less than desir
able for many people. Both can be
controlled along with many other
broadleaf weeds by the use of
Banvel or 2,4-D or a combination
of these materials.
Treatment should be done in
» I
Before Planting, Observe Weather Predictions
advance of the pasture season with
careful consideration for the num
ber of days between the applica
tion of the herbicide and the start
of pasturing. According to the
Pennsylvania “Agronomy Guide,
1989-1990” the following restric
tions apply; 2,4-D Amine, 7 days
for dairy cows; 2,4-D Ester, 7 days
for all livestock; and Banvel, 7
days if less than 1 pint per acre is
used, up to 60 days if over 4 pints
is used for lactating dairy animals.
Always read and follow all label
directions when applying pesti
cides.
Grass Tetany Warning
Washington County cattlemen
should be alert for signs of grass
tetany. This disease of early pas
ture usually attacks milking dairy
cows and beef cows nursing
young calves. It is caused by defi
ciency of magnesium and early
signs may be trembling or twitch
ing of the muscles. Severely
affected cattle may die suddenly
with violent convulsions.
When the disease occurs, addi
tion of magnesium oxide at the
rate of 1/2 oz. to 1 oz. per cow dai
ly as a supplement to the ration is
good for prevention. Add magne
sium oxide to the grain mix or top
dress the silage fed daily. It will
also pay to feed cows on early pas
ture at least 3 to 5 pounds of good
legume or mixed legume hay.
A good insurance is to supply a
complete salt-mineral mix con
taining at least 10 percent magne
sium, 10 percent phosphorus, and
13 percent calcium. Make sure
cattle are consuming at least two
ounces of mix per day. If con
sumption is below this level, try
adding 20 percent bran, dry
molasses or ground oats to the
mix. There are also commercial
molasses-mineral blocks formu-
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MlEii
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lated to prevent tetany using one
block per 15 cows.
Long-term prevention of grass
tetany requires addition of dolo
mitic limestone to soils to improve
magnesium content, but this
method may require 3 years. In the
meantime, magnesium oxide sup
plementation is good insurance
against a disease problem which
can be very expensive.
• Thorough surface preparation
• Brush applied
• Trim designed
• Roofs and exteriors
• Primers, paints, coatings for
all types of surfaces
• Linseed oil base barn paint •
will not harm livestock
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