April Newsletter

Planting Bare-root Apple Trees
Matt Rodriguez, Extension Agent, Horticulture

During our recent small fruit plant sale, we successfully sold a variety of apple trees, offering at least five distinct cultivars: Wolf River, Liberty, Freedom, Crimson Crisp, and Honeycrisp. We recommend that you plant your trees as soon as possible. In the packet accompanying your order, you will find essential plant care information tailored to the specific varieties you purchased.

You should have purchased two varieties as apples require at least two different varieties as they are not self-fertile. In order to achieve the highest quality fruit, cross-pollination needs to occur. All of the varieties sold should bloom at the same time to increase your chances of cross pollination. If you are looking for more information, refer to our Small Fruit Plant Sale page.

The first step with any planting, no matter what you plant, is site selection. Fruiting plants require full sun, meaning 8 plus hours at a minimum. They also need good drainage, very few plants like wet feet (oversaturated roots). Apples like a pH of around 6.0 to 7.0. This allows for the maximum nutrient uptake. Apple trees can be planted from late fall to early spring. The most important thing to remember when planting apple trees is to dig the hole approximately twice the diameter of the root system and at least 2 feet deep. That’s a big hole to dig, but it’s worth it. With our clay soils we need to break up the compaction and allow for the roots to grow deep and out from the root ball.

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Controlling Flies on Cattle
Damon Pollard, Extension Agent, Livestock

Cattle producers are faced with the task of controlling flies during these warm months of late spring and summer and horn flies and face flies are key pests of cattle in Burke County. Both species breed in fresh pasture manure piles but present very different threats and management problems. Fortunately, there are a variety of fly control options.

Horn flies are blood feeders. They stay on the animals a majority of the time, taking up to 30 small blood meals per day. More than 100 flies along the sides and backs of an animal each day during the fly season can rob producers of 12 to 15 pounds of weaning weight on spring calves and reduce gains on older animals. Because horn flies spend so much time on the animal, many control methods are quite effective.

On the other hand, face flies spend about 90 percent of their time off of the animals and visit them only to feed on liquids around the eyes and face. This makes for difficult control because face flies visit hard-to-treat areas for very short time periods.
One viable control option is insecticide-impregnated cattle ear tags or fly tags, which release small amounts of an insecticide, distributed over the animal during grooming or rubbing.

Hurricane Helene Tax Considerations for Farm Business Owners

Free Online Training Event

Topic: Tax Planning

Do you own a farm and have been affected by Hurricane Helene? Plan to join Nicholas Brown from NC State University to obtain information about upcoming tax filing requirements, agricultural resources available to you, and present questions that you may have that will be helpful to the rebuild of your farm and business.

Zoom link registration provided after verified class registration

Speaker(s): Nicholas W. Brown, JD Assistant Extension Professor NC State University College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Agricultural and Resource Economics

Pasture Stocking Rates
Damon Pollard, Extension Agent, Livestock

Stocking rates are positively related to forage health. Overstocking stresses forage
stands and eventually leads to low producing pastures.

When talking about pasture stocking rates, we can lump all livestock together by
converting them into the concept of an animal unit. An animal unit is based on the
beef cow and her calf, which is one animal unit. The bull is also one animal unit, as
is one horse. Sheep and goats, due to their small size, take 6-8 head to equal one
animal unit.

It generally takes 2-3 acres to support one animal unit in hay and pasture. If hay is
cut elsewhere and brought in it reduces the acres needed. Acreage needed can also
be reduced through improved pasture management and improved forage varieties.
A really good manager can support one animal unit on an acre and a half.

Stocking rates as high as 2 animal units per acre are present in Burke County, and
not even weeds can produce in this setting. Two acres per animal unit allows
producers to mitigate drought and reduce hay feeding days as more grazing days
are available and forage could be stockpiled.

Pasture management is more complex than just putting the right number of head on
the right number of acres, however, getting the stocking rates right is basic to any
good management system.

Burke County 4-H Calendar
Nicki Carpenter, Extension Agent, 4-H Youth Development

April 7
5:30 - 7:00pm

4-H Foundations

April 15
5:30 - 6:30pm
4-H Jr. Beekeepers Meeting

April 26
West District 4-H Qualifying Horse Show
WNC Agricultural Center, Fletcher, NC

April 28
5:30 - 7:00pm
Teen Leadership