rmers have a. Jves once a plan Is in place to ensure the balance
of nutiiant naada and ,'lronmentel stewardship tor thslr high-producing cropland,
according to specialists at the Nutrient Management tor Pennsylvania Pork Produc
ers on Wednesday at Yoder’s Restaurant. Here, Jeff StoltzfUs, Eastern Lancaster
Adult Farmer Instructor, right, helps Dave Brubaker, Hershey Ag representative, dur
ing the nutrient assessment workshop part of the meeting.
TR
OUNTY
Swine Producers Discover
(Continued from Pag* A2S)
Normally, a hog will produce
about two tons of waste per year.
Using a strawdust bedding at
15-25 inches reduces that amount
of waste to only about 450 pounds
a year manure and sawdust
combined.
The material is basically com
posted, which would require turn
ing and other management tech
niques, to ensure that the manure is
ready converted and odor is
reduced. A drawback is that about
26 cubic feet per meter of air flow
would be required per pig per day
using the bedding system. The
material would have to be mixed at
least once a week which would
translate into additional labor
hours per day, depending on the
size of operation.
Kephart said that this operation
is in use in England and other
European countries. In this coun
try, the question would be, what
'Llhcntfr’Fiinlftii, S«urday,~llarch‘ 5, l9W4fc9
about excessive summertime
heating?
Kephart said the concept “is
neat, but the logistics are a bit of a
disaster.”
Pennsylvania generates about
28 million tons of manure, with
more than half of that generated by
the counties in the southeast alone,
according to Gerald Martin, asso
ciate, Pequea-Mill Creek Project.
Martin told the farmers that
“life isn't as simple as it used to
be," since World War 11. when the
advent of cheap, available nitrogen
sources boosted crop output tre
mendously and paved the way for
high-intensity livestock
production.
Back then, the farm ilelf pro
vided all the inputs. But ever since,
farms have become increasingly
surrounded by urban areas and
have easy access to additional feed
sources. This translated into addi
tional manure and manure
problems.
Farmers need to do
more, as part of their
social responsibility, to
ensure environmental
stewardship and achieve
the balance necessary
for crop nutrient needs.
With the experiences
of the Rural Clean
Water Project, results
indicated that nutrient
management plans pro
vide the most effective
approach to improving
water quality where
there was a contamina
tion of groundwater
from nutrients, accord
ing to Martin.
To help the farmers
who attended, a work
shop outlined ways in
which to see if a balance
can be obtained on a
farm. The form, repro
duced in this issue of
Lancaster Farming,
can be used if there is an
excess of nutrients, or a
deficiency in nutrient
needs on the farm. This
form was prepared by
the Lancaster County
Cooperative Extension.
On page I, crop nutri
ent needs, farmers fill in
the spaces marked D,
for yield goal and in E,
how many acres and
multiply those factors
based upon crop nutri
ent needs. On page 2,
nutrients produced, far
mers fill in D, number of
animals in the opera
tion; make an adjust
ment in E, for number of
months out of year that
the facility is needed;
weight adjust, in F, for
more accurate animal
weight determination;
and then multiply those
factors to obtain how
many nutrients are
being produced.
The final figures sub
tract what lies in excess
because of the legume
crops, and then sub
tracts what is needed
from what is produced.
Farmers should start
seeking help now to
begin writing nutrient
management plans. The
Lancaster County Con
servation District has
personnel to write plans
for farmers, at this time,
for no charge. But that
couid change in the
future.