A4 - Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 11, 2014 Index Five Sections SECTION A Scientists Weigh In on GMO Debate..........A1 Farmers Gear Up for Grain Harvest.........A1 KILE Clinic a Hair-Raising Experience....A1 Farmers Check Out Interseeder Results...A1 West Lampeter Fair Livestock Sale............A2 Livestock & the Environment.....................A4 Southdown, Border Leicester Top Sheep...A5 Low Grain Prices Pose Challenges.............A7 Editorial........................................................A8 Commentary.......................................... A8, A9 Bible Speaks..................................................A8 Now Is the Time............................................A8 National Ag News.......................................A10 Rodale’s ‘Coach’ Walks Report to DC.....A11 Dairy Week in Review................................A12 Downer Cows: Should They Stay or Go?...A12 Bedford FFA Tops Stockman’s Contest...A13 Study Calculates Beef Sustainability........A13 Berkshire, Chester White Top Swine.......A15 Farm Calendar......................... A16, A17, A18 Ag News Briefs...........................................A19 Beef Quality Care Matters........................A20 Tunis, Horned Dorset Reign Supreme.....A21 Midwest Cattle Sweep KILE Supreme....A24 Ag Science News.........................................A26 Markets.......................................................A27 Weather.......................................................A43 SECTION B Home on the Range......................................B2 Dairies Prosper in Asian Interludes...........B3 Shepherds Strut Their Wool Stuff..............B4 On Being a Farm Wife.................................B5 You Ask, You Answer...................................B6 Family Living Focus.....................................B7 Cook’s Question...........................................B8 Rural Ramblings..........................................B9 Kid’s Korner...............................................B10 Mailbox Markets........................................B11 Public Auction Register.............................B19 Antiques Center.........................................B25 Antiques Detective.....................................B26 SECTION C Classifieds.....................................................C1 SECTION D Classifieds.....................................................D1 Ohio Town Capitol of Pumpkin Pies..........D2 SECTION E Corn Talk & Foraging Around...................E1 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Subscription Price: $49.00 per year; $86.00 - 2 years $56.00 per year outside of: PA, NJ, MD, DE, NY, OH, VA & WV $97.00 - 2 Years Non-Refundable Lancaster Farming (ISSN 0023-7485) is published weekly for $49.00 per year; $86.002 years by Lancaster Farming, P.O. Box 609, 1 E. Main Street, Ephrata, PA 17522. Periodicals postage paid at Ephrata, PA 17522. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to LANCASTER FARMING, 1 East Main Street, P.O. Box 609, Ephrata, PA 17522. Circulation Advertising: (717) 721-4412 (717) 721-4411 Ephrata (717) 733-6397 Lancaster (717) 394-3047 FAX 717-733-6058 Missed Carrier Delivery Saturday 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (717) 291-8611 www.lancasterfarming.com Research Affirms Complexities of Nitrogen Losses Livestock & the Environment Virginia Ishler There are many complexities involved in trying to balance manure and cropping management strategies to minimize nutrient pollution and gas emissions. Nitrogen is quite volatile in the agricultural system, so it is evident there needs to be longterm solutions that make sense both at the local level and globally. To achieve this, there has to be a better understanding of the fate of all forms of nitrogen emitted from agriculture. The Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, or SARE, project that I have written about several times is evaluating this specific quandary. Emily Duncan, a graduate student in soil science and biogeochemistry is evaluating shallow disk injection and broadcast manure application at the field scale over a complex crop rotation. She is attempting to quantify the fate of nitrogen in crops, soil, water and air. Her main goal is to evaluate the tradeoffs in environmental impacts and nitrogen efficiency associated with these dairy manure ap- plications in a no-till cropping system. Although her project is not yet complete, it is important to note how much is involved in collecting data to answer some of these difficult questions. In past studies, the measurements taken have been focused on much smaller scales and taken place during shorter time periods. Duncan’s approach is to research trends over annual and cropping rotation periods that most closely reflect on farm practices. She is monitoring the various forms of nitrogen, not only in runoff water but also as gaseous emissions, soil storage and plant biomass to account for crop uptake. At the Penn State agronomy farm, she has 12 plots that are hydrologically isolated so that surface and subsurface waters are captured for each plot. This enables a water budget to be established for the site using weather station data in conjunction with surface and subsurface runoff data. There are collection houses near the plots where water can be sampled when it rains or storms. They serve not only as a central point for water sampling but also house data loggers that record the volumes of runoff that occur with each precipitation event. The most common manure management strategy for no-till farming is broadcast manure application because it can be spread quickly in the field without disturbing the soil. Yes: 92% What’s Missing? Check out what you’re missing in the other two editions of Lancaster Farming by going to the website www.LancasterFarming.com. Here’s just a taste of what you will find this week: Southern Edition: Pumpkins and Christmas trees work in tandem on southwest Virginia farm. Go to www.LancasterFarming.com/ news/southeedition/ or scan this QR code to see this and other top stories or to www. LancasterFarming.com/specialsections/south/ to see all the pages unique to the Southern Edition. Northern Edition: Maine teenagers get a crash course in hard work on the state’s potato farms. Go to www.LanLANCASTER FARMING STAFF Our 59th Year of Publication casterFarming.com/ news/northeedition/ or P.O. Box 609, Ephrata, PA 17522 scan this QR code to (717) 733-6397. Fax: (717) 733-6058 see this and other top William J. Burgess stories or to www.LanPresident and Publisher casterFarming.com/ (717) 721-4417, [email protected] specialsections/north/ J. Peter Lindquist to see all Vice President the pages (717) 721-4414, [email protected] unique to the NorthNEWS ern EdiDennis Larison, Editor tion. (717) 721-4425, [email protected] Charlene M. Shupp Espenshade Special Sections Editor (717) 721-4426, [email protected] For address change form or new subscription see near Mailbox Markets. Anne Harnish, Food and Family Editor (717) 721-4428, [email protected] Members of North American Agricultural Journalists Pa. Newspaper Publishers Association and National Newspaper Association National Advertising Representative J.L. Farmakis, Inc. Phone (203) 834-8832 Chris Torres, Regional Editor (717) 721-4457, [email protected] PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR Lancaster Farming is protected by federal copyright statue. No part of this newspaper may be broadcast, reproduced or republished in any form or by any means without the prior, written permission of our General Manager. The advertiser agrees that Lancaster Farming, Inc. shall not be liable by reason of any error, omission and/or failure to insert an ad, or any part of an ad, beyond liability for the value of actual space occupied by the ad or item in which the error, omission and/or failure to insert occurred. Lancaster Farming, Inc. reserves the right to reject or cancel any advertisement at any time. NON REFUNDABLE However, this causes envi- lyzed to determine how much ronmental losses through am- nitrogen they consumed. All the sampling for this monia volatilization and provides the potential for manure project has occurred over sevto wash off to the closest water eral years — 2011-2013 — and body if it rains soon after ap- represents differing weather events, i.e. drought versus wet plication. In contrast, shallow-disk in- conditions. The results are expected to jection is a modified method of application where coulters vary depending on the weather cut a slit into the ground 4 to and growing conditions, and to 5 inches deep and manure is illustrate once again the volatilpumped through hoses into the ity of the whole farm system. To date, Duncan has been slit. After injection, closing able to conclude that manure wheels follow to close the ma- injection reduces ammonia volatilization. Shallow disk injecnure-filled slot, which plays a tion did not increase nitrogen key role in significantly reduc- losses in leachate or overland ing ammonia volatilization by flow, and there was greater acreducing the air-manure con- cumulation of nitrogen in corn tact time. stalks in 2012 or 2013. Greater amounts of manure Yields and harvest removal left on the soil surface during did not differ when compared broadcast applications provide with broadcast manure applicaa higher likelihood of volatil- tion in 2012. ization loss. Inquiries related to her reTo determine the amount search can be directed to Emily of nitrogen stored in the soil at [email protected]. pool, deep soil cores are colVirginia “Ginny” Ishler is a lected twice a year from each nutrient management specialplot — after harvest and before ist and manager of Penn State manure application. University’s dairy complex. Duncan is checking for levels of niThis Week’s Poll: trate, ammonium Are you pleased with how the fall’s harvest and total nitrogen. During the corn- is shaping up this year in your growing season, ad- area? ditional soil samples  Yes are taken to deter-  No mine if the crop re-  Unsure Vote at www.LancasterFarming.com quires more nitrogen than was provided. Previous Poll: At the end of the Should states do more to help farmers when growing season, neighbors try to shut down their operations? plant samples are Unsure: 2% gathered and anaNo: 6% chart by amCharts.com Tired of taking Round Bales apart by hand? 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