County Agent News

Dan Folske

August 30, 2010

Early-season Custom Rates Available Online

Average reported rates for most operations increased 10 to 20 percent over the last survey.

Custom rates for early-season operations for 2010 are now available at http://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/North_Dakota/Publications/Custom_Rates/index.asp.

Operations covered in this report include tillage, planting, fertilizer and pesticide application, haying operations and other custom work.

“Average reported rates for most operations increased 10 to 20 percent over the last survey conducted in 2007,” says Dwight Aakre, North Dakota State University Extension Service farm management specialist. “This report includes the number of reports summarized for each operation, as well as the range of rates, the most frequent rate reported and the average of all reports.”

Historical data is included for several operations and covers surveys going back to 1986. The data for 2010 also is broken down into four regions for many of the operations.

Custom rates include equipment, power, fuel and labor.

“Custom rates represent the market price for the services performed and may differ from the actual cost of ownership and the operation of farm machinery,” Aakre says.

A survey of late-season custom rates will be conducted in September and October. This survey will cover harvesting, grain drying, hauling rates for grain, hay and other crops and other miscellaneous operations. This report will be available in December.

Yellow Toadflax          

             Last week I wrote about Yellow Toadflax. I also had the opportunity to view some test plots near the junction of Highways 2 and 52 west of Minot.  High rates of Tordon  (2 quarts/acre) in two consecutive years showed good results but the toadflax was coming back two years after treatment. Much more promising is a new herbicide from Dupont which is showing excellent results one year after treatment. Control after just one treatment was better one year after that treatment than the high rates of Tordon were one year after the second high rate application. This new product coming from Dupont also has very good control on leafy spurge, and better control on Canada thistle than Tordon. It also promises to be more environmentally friendly. The product has cleared most of the hurdles to receive a full label from the EPA and should be readily available for 2011.

Winter Wheat Planting

            Many producers are considering planting winter wheat on PP acres this fall. It is very important that you break the “green bridge”.  The “green bridge” is those green volunteer grains and other grasses on which the wheat curl mites survive. These wheat curl mites are the deadly characters which can spread wheat streak mosaic disease to your new winter wheat seedlings this fall insuring a very poor crop next year.

If you intend to seed winter wheat and there are any green volunteers or grassy weeds out there apply a burndown herbicide ASAP.