Check out our website for information that you might have missed:
https://stokes.ces.ncsu.edu/

July 19, 2024

Tree Seedlings for Sale

The N.C. Forest Service will begin taking orders on July 1 for it's annual tree seedling sale. 

• Tree seedlings can be ordered from the online seedling store at www.buynctrees.com.
• Tree seedlings can also be ordered by phone at 1-888-NCTREES (1-888-628-7337) or 919-731-7988.

Containerized seedlings will be available this fall for planting. 

Wool Pool

The Wool Pool will be held on Tuesday, August 13 from 5:00-6:00 p.m. in conjunction with our Sheep and Goat Field Day in King. The event will be held in the Capella Community on Covington Road  Please see prices, learn more and register at https://stokes.ces.ncsu.edu/2024/07/2024-piedmont-nc-wool-pool/. 

Drought

April conducts a weekly drought monitor report every Tuesday morning and a new map is released every Thursday. Feel free to send your drought updates to her at awbowman@ncsu.edu. Stokes County is currently mostly D2:

• Dryland crop yields are low

• Swimming areas and boat ramps begin to close

• Voluntary and mandatory water use restrictions are implemented, people are asked to refrain from nonessential water use

• Wildfires are difficult to extinguish

with the Southwestern part of the county reaching D3 status:

• Aquatic wildlife is dying; fewer trout are stocked

• Hay is scarce, producers are purchasing outside of state;

• nitrate levels in forage are highHydropower generation decreases

• Landscaping and greenhouse businesses lose revenue

• Outdoor burn bans are implemented; wildfires are widespreadVoluntary conservation is requested even in sufficient water level areas;

• mandatory restrictions become more severe and fines are given to violators;

• stream levels are extremely low

We are so dry that forages are not re-growing and practically everyone is overstocked. Remove animals from pastures that are overgrazed (around 4" for most of our forages) and utilize a dry lot to feed hay. Most of our crops are going to have very poor yields and many farmers are cutting grain crops for silage or hay. It is highly recommended that you test drought stressed crops for nitrates and leave 12-18" of stubble to avoid the highest concentration of nitrates. 

We advise you to always conduct a forage analysis on your hay, but that is even more critical this year. Nitrate and aflatoxin tests are free at the NCDA&CS lab. If you are going to take the sample, I encourage you to pay the $10 and have the nutritional contents tested as well. 

Learn more at:

https://stokes.ces.ncsu.edu/2024/07/early-drought-management-tips-for-pasture-based-livestock-producers/

Forage Contests and Livestock Shows

Many fairs have hay contests that producers can enter. I am not sure what kind of quality you have this year. The end of May was too wet to cut and we've been to dry to get a second cutting. However, for local fairs, everyone should be in the same boat.  

Stokes County Fair, page 44 (hay, silage, eggs, and livestock), entries due Sept. 1

Carolina Classic Fair, page 22 (hay, and silage), page 51 (livestock), entries due Sept. 6

NC State Fair Forage entries due Sept. 15; requires a nutritional forage sample from NCDA&CS

NC State Fair Livestock

View more information about the Stokes County Fair, Carolina Classic Fair, and the NC State Fair livestock shows here. 

Parasites and Deworming

As aforementioned, the drought is resulting in overgrazed pastures and we are seeing increased internal parasite loads as a result. Eggs are found on forages at much higher concentration at 2" and below. We have a new microscope and fecal egg count kit courtesy of the Equine Work Group at NC State University to help you with internal parasite management of all livestock species. We are NOT a veterinarian and cannot make diagnosis or medical recommendations, but we can help you use the microscope. You can certainly take samples to your local veterinarian, and/or mail them off for analysis. 

We are seeing a LOT of parasite resistance to our dewormers due to overuse, so we recommend deworming only when necessary AND conducting a fecal egg count reduction test (do samples before and after deworming). Your animals are possibly anemic if they have a heavy parasite load from the Barber Pole Worm and may need supportive care in addition to deworming. 

How to Collect a Fecal Sample (hand-out)

Why and How to Do Fecal Egg Counting (video)

Five-Point Check (article) - eye, body condition, soiling, bottle jaw, nasal discharge

Internal Parasite Identification (article)

See our Frequently Asked Questions for a list of Veterinarians (#1), what to do with dead livestock (#11), and more. 

Re-seeding Pastures in the Fall

September 15 - October 15 is considered the ideal time to plant Tall Fescue. That means you should be:

• ordering seed
  

• reserving the no-till drill at your local farm store or our Soil and Water Conservation office
  

• applying herbicides (if needed and just before a rain - we are too dry now for the herbicide to be taken up by the plant).
  

Learn more at https://grasslandrenewal.org/2024/07/16/timely-tips-july/?mc_cid=851d5854f9&mc_eid=c07166f59c.

See other planting dates and recommended depths at https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/planting-guide-for-forage-crops-in-north-carolina. 

4-H Poultry Show

The registration deadline for the North Central District 4-H Poultry Show is Friday, August 16. We will hold an optional question and answer Zoom on Wednesday, August 7th at 6:30 p.m. Chicks will be picked up in late September. Each youth will receive five chicks and will be expected to show three of them at the show in the spring. Youth must also complete a project record book telling what they've done and learned, and must participate in education Zoom sessions (they will be recorded). Learn more and register at https://davidson.ces.ncsu.edu/2024/07/north-central-district-4-h-poultry-show-entries-due-august-16/

REMINDERS

Upcoming Virtual Forage Meetings

• Graze 300 program, Bobby Clark, Virginia Tech, August 22, 3-4 pm. Registration link.

• The science behind organic soil amendments for pastures, Alex Woodley, NC State, September 19, 3-4 pm. Registration link. 

• Stockpiled tall fescue for winter grazing, Miguel Castillo, NC State, October 3, 3-4 pm. Registration link. 

FAQ & Email Updates on Our Website

We have added a few Frequently Asked Questions to our website. Visit it at https://stokes.ces.ncsu.edu/stokes-county-livestock-forage/frequently-asked-livestock-questions/. 

You can also access copies of previous email updates from our site at https://stokes.ces.ncsu.edu/stokes-county-livestock-forage/stokes-livestock-email-updates/. 

Sheep and Goat Health Field Day

Tuesday, August 13, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.  Join Dr. Truman Sanner from Rocky Creek Veterinariy Services at Sunset Acres north of King to learn about parasites, vaccines, and how to draw blood for pregnancy and disease testing.  Note: this will be held on Johnson Road, King. 

Please Register at https://go.ncsu.edu/sheepgoat24 by August 12.

Egg-Cellent Egg

Youth may submit up to 2 packs of 1/2 dozen eggs by September 17 to be judged on their quality at the annual Egg-Cellent Egg Judging Competition. Register at

https://go.ncsu.edu/2024eggcontest

** IMPORTANT DATES to remember: (Dates are subject to change)
August 2 - Registration Ends
August 6 at 5:30pm - Initial Training via zoom - Zoom will be recorded

August 22 - Egg-citing, In Depth Egg Training- Zoom will be recorded

August 23 - Registration fee is due to the Hoke County Office
September 18 - Eggs & supplemental portion submissions due by noon 
October 3 at 5:30 pm - Winners announced on Zoom

Beef Reproduction Conference

The Applied Studies in Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle Conference will be held September 4-5 at the Classic Center in Athens, Georgia. Visit https://beefrepro.org/arsbc/ to view the schedule and to register. Registration closes August 20th. 

BQA Awards

2025 Beef Quality Assurance Producer Award Nomination Application. Funded by National Cattlemen's Beef Association and Cargill, the awards will honor those operations that recognize outstanding members of the beef industry in five categories: Cow Calf, Feedyard, Dairy, Educator and “Marketer”.

https://www.bqa.org/beef-quality-assurance-awards

Dairy Goat Management for the Homesteader

Interested in raising dairy goats? Join Area Specialized Dairy Agent, Marti Day, via Zoom for a discussion about feeding your dairy goat. We will discuss nutrition, as well as visual hay analysis versus chemical analysis. In addition, we will also share information about milk quality, mastitis, and food safety.  Register at https://go.ncsu.edu/stokesdairy24.  

Pasture Walk - Save the Date

We are planning a Pasture Walk on Tuesday, September 24 at 6:30 p.m.  We will discuss rotational grazing, cost-share assistance and other programs from Soil and Water Conservation, forage species, and more. Come learn about some improved forage varieties at this pasture walk. 

Tips and Tidbits

You can submit soil samples for no fee April through November to the NCDA&CS Agronomic laboratory. Kits are available for free in our office.

Livestock Emergency Response Trainings

Visit the North Carolina Animal Emergency Response Working Group website/ NCAERWG to access the list of upcoming trainings and to register. Registration is required.

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Calendar of Livestock Events

July 22 Dairy Goat Management, 6:30 p.m. Stokes Extension, 700 Main Street, Danbury

July 29-31 Carolina Meat Conference, Boone

August 2 Registration closes for the 4-H Egg-cellent Egg Contest. https://go.ncsu.edu/2024eggcontest

August 7 4-H Poultry Show Question and Answer Zoom, 6:30 p.m.

August 8 Feeder Calf Sale, Stanly County Livestock Market, Norwood

August 9-11 NC Jr. Beef Roundup, Fletcher

August 13 Piedmont Wool Pool, 5:00-6:00 p.m. (held in conjunction with the Sheep & Goat Field Day)

August 13 Sheep and Goat Health Field Day, 6:30-8:30 p.m., King; Register at https://go.ncsu.edu/sheepgoat24

Aug 16 Registration deadline for 4-H Poultry Show

Aug 22 Graze 300 Program, Zoom, 3-4 p.m.

Sept 1 Entries due for the Stokes County Fair

September 4-5 Beef Reproductive Strategies Conference, Athens, GA; https://beefrepro.org/arsbc/

Sept 6 Entries due for the Carolina Classic Fair

Sept 11 Goat show at the Stokes County Fair, 5 p.m.

Sept. 13 Sheep show at the Stokes County Fair, 5 p.m.

Sept. 14 Hog show at the Stokes County Fair, 2 p.m.; Cattle Show, 3 p.m.

Sept 15 Entries due for the NC State Fair

September 17 Egg-cellent Eggs due for 4-H Egg Judging Contest https://go.ncsu.edu/2024eggcontest

Sept 19 Organic Soil Amendments for Pastures, Zoom, 3-4 p.m.

September 24 Pasture Walk, 6:30 p.m. - Save the Date

September 26 Feeder Calf Sale, Stanly County Livestock Market, Norwood

October 3 Stockpiled Tall Fescue for Winter Grazing, Zoom, 3-4 p.m.

November 14 Feeder Calf Sale, Stanly County Livestock Market, Norwood

November 9, District 4-H Horse Clinic at Piedmont Saddle Club in Colfax for youth and their parents - Save the Date - you don't want to miss this FREE clinic. 

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