Volume 15, No. 9 –
September 2012
The summertime Farm Tour concludes
Thursday, September 13 with a trip to Steve Walker’s farm in Bullock. Please note the change in time: We
will gather at 5 p.m. at Buckhorn Springs Farm. We’ll learn a little bit about
freeze branding, followed by a business meeting and dinner.
News, Views, and Mostly
Other Matters
By Paul Westfall, Extension Livestock Agent
I would have sworn that I just got through
writing a MoosNews article, but Laura Gabel insists that it has been a whole
month! Here goes for September:
First, I want to thank Kent Currin, Steve
Walker, Bette and Doan Laursen, Kay Stark, Fred Smith and Sam Brake for their
help and support of the VA/NC Forage and Grassland Association Summer Tour that
was held at Dr. Poore’s place in Virgilina. These folks let us use their
trailers to haul people around to different stops around the farm. Steve and
Kent also served as drivers for the event. This all helped to make the day go
more smoothly and make a quality event happen. There were over 170 people there
that day learning about growing high quality forage, including using summer
annuals, growing “crazy” mixtures of forages, utilizing what’s in the pasture,
moving from toxic endophyte fescue to non-toxic endophyte fescue pastures,
low-stress cattle handling, and a couple of good presentations from the host,
Dr. Matt Poore, and from Johnny Rogers, a grass/cattle farmer from Person
County. His talk on “Six Habits of Highly Effective Grass Farmers” is worth the
price of admission.
Remember that the cattlemen’s meeting is being
held on a member’s farm again in September. This time, we are meeting in
Bullock at Buckhorn Springs Farm – Steve Walker’s place. There is a bit of a
time change for this meeting. We’ll still have dinner at 7 p.m., but the
program itself will start about 5 p.m. that may be a bit early for some folks,
but come on to the farm as early as possible. The program is being conducted
before we have dinner because Steve wants some help working some heifers.
Actually, the program is on demonstrating the use of freeze brands on cattle
and Steve has some heifers that he wants to get freeze branded. Gary Gregory
from N.C. State will be presenting the program, which includes getting set up
and ready to actually place the brands.
You may know that freeze branding – if done
properly – does not damage the hide underneath the brand, thus making this a
more desirable way of permanently identifying cattle in keeping with BQA
standards. However, if not done properly, this method can leave scarring on and
under the hide, which can lead to price discounts.
Here are the directions to Steve Walker’s place
from Oxford. Follow US 15 North through Stovall to Bullock. In the middle of
Bullock (don’t blink!), turn right onto Buckhorn Road. Follow Buckhorn Road for
2.1 miles (according to Google maps – I don’t think it is quite that far) and
look for the driveway on the right. I’ll put a sign up at the end of the
driveway.
Now to the management tips: If additional
forage needs are anticipated, consider getting some winter annuals planted.
That needs to be done soon, though, for best results. Take stock of your hay
supply so additional cuttings or purchases can be made. Send samples of the forage to the lab for analysis. Keep a close
check on supplemental feed prices. Corn and byproduct feeds such as cottonseed
can usually be bought cheaper in the fall. (keep in mind that corn is more than
$8 a bushel right now). Plan where winter grazing will be over-seeded into
pastures. Graze these areas close or clip prior to planting.
Managers of spring-calving herds should wean
calves according to pasture conditions and marketing plans. Wean all the
heifers and select replacements based on weaning weights and other data you may
have. Use weight data to project needed gain between now and breeding (March).
Consider options for selling weaned calves, including back-grounding or
maintaining ownership through the feedlot. Deworm calves at weaning. It’s also
a good idea to separate cull cows from the herd at weaning and get them ready
to move down the road. For late calves (weaning in late October or November),
consider creep feeding and vaccination for respiratory diseases 45 days prior
to weaning.
Managers of fall-calving herds need to move
heavy-springing heifers to clean pastures where they can be checked 2-3 times
daily. Establish an ID system and tag the calves at birth. Gather and clean
your calving supplies. Be ready to assist with calving difficulties and to
castrate, implant and deworm calves at birth. Feed requirements of late
gestation cows increase 10-15 percent during the last 30-45 days prior to
calving (i.e., about 1 lb. of extra TDN per day). On fall pastures, cows may
need a small amount of supplemental feed.
I look forward to see you at the meeting!
**********
From the President’s pen
Greetings, Cattlemen – if you missed our last
meeting at the Slaughter farm, you really missed a great meeting and great
fellowship. Paul and Sherby had a good slide program on what was going on at
Sherby’s farm, giving us bunches of good ideas to take back to our own farms.
Our September meeting will be at Steve Walker’s farm out next to Bullock, NC.
Demonstration will start at 5 p.m. on freeze branding, followed by dinner.
Because the days are getting shorter, we thought it be better to start earlier.
E.B. Harris has asked the Granville Cattlemen’s
Association if we would like to furnish the concessions at his Oct. 6 sale out
at the arena. I’ve spoken to our board and some other members about this,
earning some exposure for our association. All thought it was a good idea, but
it will be a group effort. It should be lots of fun, and will give us a chance
to meet others in the cattle business. We are planning to serve beef hot dogs,
steak burgers, drinks, chips, etc. More details at the meeting on Thursday!
Looking forward to seeing all Thursday night. And
don’t forget – bring a friend!
- Kay
**********
State Fair
The North Carolina State
Fair is set for Oct. - . Check the NC Department of Agriculture’s website for
information about buying your tickets early and for the complete schedule of
events. NCStateFair.org
August Meeting
Minutes
Granville County Cattlemen’s Association
Minutes: August 9, 2012
The Granville County Cattlemen’s Association met on August 9, 2012, at 7:00 p.m.
on the farm of Sherby and Janet Slaughter on Huntsboro Road. President Kay Stark presided over the
business meeting following a steak dinner. Minutes of the July meeting were approved. The Treasurer’s report was
accepted. A profit of $5400 was
reported on the Earth Roast.
Members were asked to register for the grass and forage workshop
by August 10. This workshop will be held on the farm
of Dr. Henry Poore in Virgilina, VA, on August 23, beginning at 2:30 p.m.
Following business, Paul Westfall and Sherby Slaughter presented a
slide program of the Slaughter Farm.
Members were shown gates and waterers made on the farm from recycled
materials and placed for ease of cattle access and movement. Recycled materials were used to build
the well house and utilized in the workshop and other buildings on the
property. Cows are fenced out of
streams and creeks. Fence chargers
and the importance of good grounding in order to get adequate voltage was
emphasized.
The meeting adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Y. Gill,
secretary
**********
GCCA Classifieds
Fall
is time to plant!
Fall
plant sale – 25 %
Discount!
Tell a friend.
Backyard
Plantation Nursery
Charles Easton
**********
Upcoming events:
Ø First Annual Farm Tour in Person County –
Weekend of Sept. 15-16, 2012.
Purchase a $20 button and you’ll be able to visit a number of
participating farms
between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. both days. This event is sponsored by the
Person County Museum and Cooperative Extension. Note: One button per carload,
not per person!
Ø Vineyard workshop in Warren County coming
up – call the extension office for more information.
**********
Can you hear us
now?
Thanks to Sherby
Slaughter, the GCCA membership gets a reminder phone call a couple of days
before each month’s regularly scheduled meeting. Please let us know if you have
NOT been receiving this recorded message – we strive to keep the members
informed and are happy to add or update information whenever we need to. Plus,
we just like to see you at the meetings!
Contact Laura
Gabel via email lssantos@mindspring.com
or leave a phone message at 919.693.8099 with any updates.
**********
President, Kay Stark 2012:
Jimmy Morgan, David Owen
Past President, Joy Morgan Marshall 2013:
Sherby Slaughter, Steve WalkerVice President, Larry Medlin 2014: Linda Currin, Wendy Lane
Treasurer, Sandy Gabel
Secretary, Jean Gill
Newsletter, Laura S. Gabel
