Page 2—Foraging Around, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 24, 1998 Striving For Quality? (Continued from Paae 1) Steigman farms on fields adjacent to Small Valley Hill on 100-foot wide strips that contain timothy and alfalfa mixes. The soil is a Calvin Leek Kill shaley silt loam. Steigman deals with the challenges of clay bottoms and some compaction on the fields. Soil pH poses a challenge, especial ly in spots. “We lime regularly,” he said. Careful records are kept to ensure that the proper nutrients are available for all crops. Steigman manages about 40-50 acres of com on the two farms. He grows about 30 acres of field soybeans. Some were double-cropped after barley. Steigman also grows IS acres of edible beans for the organic market, and about 30 acres of straight nurn to Page 7) alfalfa.‘He maintains about 40 acresW^'^* 8 m alfalfa- timothy mix. Steigman noted this was the first year he participated in the annual con test at Ag Progress Days. He submitted three different samples in different categories. He may enter yet another category in next year’s contest. For the award-winning sample, “I went to the bam and picked out a square bale from the mow and that was it,” he said. “I never thought to analyze it myself.” Steigman was surprised when the near-infrared forage testing revealed exactly how good the bale was at the contest. The later-cutting alfalfa mix, harvested in mid-June, was the second cutting. The Hesston bales were taken as received —one of about 131 entries in 21 classes on Aug. 19 at the contest in Rockspring. A note to Steigman reads: “Congra tulations, Joel! Sample in Class #4 was a real beauty,” by Marvin Hall, Penn State forage specialist and contest coordinator. The mixed grass-legume hay sample showed an as-received analysis VltWi>f •' '■ k,M varfctfesta unspmyfd£smeil ‘^Wav’ 1 ‘ ' - - '■' ""* cr LU CL " J -*V •Extra <■ t y’h *>** 3 % v 7 w $ I Xr X +Tf>' 1 5 LU I • tvp : , S r p * o D CD CO <\ o LLI ; 3 '} „ O’ W-'-V 1 LU - LL '* k, s• ’ 'j. ; ", t j djj trl . i *'j| GOL Steigman also wraps hay, including straight alfalfa, an alfalfa/ timothy mix, and straight grass (timothy and reed canarygrass). into large square bales. About 300 bales stand in outside storage for sale. - 0 N 4 imß? '- k ARV' $! > 7' Vs* I 4 ,i ~r-*\ * " fc'S*}'/' 1 vymrer ifi. -f to ailti wiafor ; ’ ; >£»i CO : ♦ 'VO *r I , c ’ iCO ' • c ' , o ,:, - > Z ,fl»h > ': jK# --4-u.lt , m ~ O O 5 op ■ ’. ‘im 5 •»- tl m U) H O o 3D Z , Jr*‘i essential C ■* ~, * ? ,i* jl ,x PS i H tfi ■? s 9
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers