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While drought conditions have improved in some areas at the time of this writing, severe drought is still affecting most of the West where cow-calf production is centered in rangelands highly dependent on rainfall.
The most recent Drought Monitor map confirms the Mountain region and parts of the Northern Plains region are currently the most affected by drought conditions.
In response to historic drought conditions, the USDA is offering $41.8 million through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to help agricultural producers in Arizona, California, Colorado and Oregon alleviate the immediate impacts of drought and other natural resource challenges on working lands.
Current drought conditions are prompting cattle producers to consider options for reducing stocking rates on rangeland and pasture as we look forward to this spring and summer. There are three main options to reduce stocking rates: supplement/substitute feed, ship cattle to non-drought areas or sell cattle.
This spring, Texas A&M AgriLife extension specialists came together from animal science, rangeland, wildlife and fisheries management, along with agricultural economics to discuss a timely topic – drought.
South Dakota farmers slogged through two wet years before the rain shut off in the middle of last growing season. Now a warm start to winter without much snow cover has farmers heading into the next crop year short on moisture.
Most hay producers in the Southeast irrigate their hayfields on a set schedule to provide 1/2 – 1 inch per week. Unfortunately, in a drought year, this level of irrigation may not be sufficient to replace water lost through evapotranspiration.
Alfalfa is undoubtedly the most important forage crop grown in the U.S. It is easy to see why it gets the title “Queen of the Forages,” with hundreds of thousands of acres planted across the country.
Let’s talk about water – irrigation water – specifically, the things affected by irrigation water: summer forage, business risks and the possibilities for change.
The U.S. Drought Monitor map continues to feature a lot of undesirable colors. Widespread drought conditions continue across many parts of the U.S., and experts are predicting these conditions are not going away any time soon.
