DR. MARVIN H. HALL Extension Forage Specialist Penn State As the snow blows and the thermo meter dips below freezing, the last thing on most people’s minds is mak ing hay or grazing pastures. However, now is an excellent time to complete a few tasks that could help you achieve maximum forage produc- MmO M " THE POWER TO IMPLEMENT —PRECISION FARMING YEAR ‘ROUND A rJyw GyMytMJ jjj J The optional elevator-mount moisture sensor provides accurate moisture readings even in the toughest conditions. Visa & Mastercard accepted with all orders Web Site: http:/www.gvm.inc.com CALL TODAY FOR OUR NEW 300 PAGE 1998 PRODUCT CATALOG Winter Activities Which Increase Forage Production And Make Life Less Stressful In The Spring tion next summer. During the spring, time is a very limited commodity with fields to be worked, crops to plant, and forages to be harvested. Shifting some of that work load to winter can improve the timeliness of completion and reduce your stress level in the spring. Soil test and develop a fertilization plan. While ideally this should have The Ag Leader PF3OOO Precision Farming System is a general-purpose monitor/controller. On a system measures and displays yield, moisture, combine speed, gram flow, and acres per hour. The PF3OOO also displays and records average yield, average moisture, acres, distance, wet bushels, and dry bushels of each load as well as field totals. 4MI INCORPORATED Foraging Around, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 7, 1998—Page been done and some of the needed fer tilizer added last fall, now is not too late. Collecting the soil samples now will be a little more difficult than in the fall, but it is important to get the soil test information as soon as possi ble so that deficient nutrients can be applied in a timely manner. Develop a fertilization plan (including manure It organizes data by year, farm, field, grain, and load for easy identification. Data can be transferred to a computer to print a summary of all fields. Also, print yield and moisture maps if you are using GPS and a memory card. 374 HEIDLERSBURG ROAD BIGLERVILLE, PA 17307 800-345-3546 OR MIKE MACHEK 800-899-5502 application) that provides adequate nutrients when they are needed by the plant but does not over fertilize. If you are going to be seeding for ages this spring, now is the time to se lect and order a species and variety that will meet your needs and environ mental constraints. To insure avail ability of the seed you want when you want it, select and order now. iSI IMi SRAM MEMORY CARD 199 If pasturing is a part of your forage system, construct new fences or repair and maintain existing fences. While this may be an impossible task with the winter weather, planning and ordering supplies now will speed up the task when the weath er does break. Repair and main tain forage harvesting and handling equip ment. Nothing can be more frustrating than having equipment break down when work needs to be done. Granted, not all problems will be eliminated, but the potential for ma chinery problems can be minimized by in specting and replac ing worn or broken parts now. Think about alter native options if some of your forage fields don’t survive the win ter. I realize that it is tempting fate to even mention it, but when you deal with a per ennial crop such as forages, the possi bility of winterkill is always present. A few minutes spent now thinking about different options and what if scenarios may save you some sleep less nights in April and make the forage portion of your farm operation run smoother next sum mer.
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