It is time to register for this year’s Cow College which will be held in January. There will be sessions in Waupaca and in Clintonville. Please sign up on the downloadable sheet below and indicate which sessions you plan to attend. The deadline is Dec. 31.2009 Cow College Registration Form
Corn Growers Meeting In January
The Wisconsin Corn Conference will be held Jan. 21st at Best Western Grand Season in Waupaca. Seating is limited to 100, so be sure to get your registration in soon!Download form below.
2009 Wisconsin Corn Conference Registration Form
We’re Online! (And you found us!)
Check out our new blog for the latest Farm Business Production Management information. You will also find helpful links and resources to help you stay informed!
Blog address: http://fbpm-fvtc.blogspot.com
Upcoming Events
- The Wisconsin signup for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) will will be Dec. 1, 2008 – Jan. 30, 2009, for 2009 funding. Web info: http://www.wi.nrcs.usda.gov/
- Wisconsin grain trials will be available after Thanksgiving. These will be published in Farm papers.
- Jan. 20 - Cow College Tour will be in Clintonville in the afternoon.
- Feb. 26 - Management class will be at FVTC.
- Mar. 5 - Snap Plus class will be at FVTC-Clintonville Center.
Nutrient Management Plans
Beginning 2009, everyone spreading manure and applying fertilizer will need a nutrient management plan for their farm or rented land. This nutrient management plan will require Snap Plus reports to be produced for your yearly cropping/fertilizing and manure application.
You have two choices to get this accomplished:
1. You can contract with a certified agronomist, private or through a fertilizer plant.
2. You can have your soil tested and do your own nutrient management plan.
FVTC will train you how to update your cropping, fertilizing and manure application records using a computer program called Snap Plus.
Snap Plus is a program that is FREE from the State Department of Agriculture. We will train whoever is interested using their own farm soil test. If you are a student at FVTC, you can use the computer lab and create your own reports. You will be able to buy a memory stick from FVTC for $20.99 + tax, or bring your own to store your information on from year to year. If you have a computer/laptop at home, we can load the program onto your computer at no charge. You then can do the updates on your own home computer/laptop whenever cropping and nutrient changes take place.
If using your laptop, please bring it along to class.
Download registration form below. Registration deadline is Feb. 16.
March 4th
12:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
FVTC Waupaca Regional Center
Contact Lynn if interested.
Farm Futures: Report on Fertilizer
Fertilizer prices drop further, but bottom may be close
Weekly Fertilizer Review for Nov. 14, 2008
Fertilizer prices remain on a downward spiral with news of more plant shutdowns surfacing around the world this week, even as the industry met in Charleston, S.C., for its annual outlook conference. But while demand expectations are being scaled back after farmers balked at high prices, there are signs the market may be closing in on a seasonal bottom. Moreover, chaos could emerge in 2009 as farmers who rejected fall applications due to high prices and harvest delays scramble for product in a pipeline that could be dented by the on-going financial crisis.
The good news is that wholesale prices for most products in the U.S. are now starting to reflect the freefall seen internationally. Anhydrous ammonia at the Gulf was quoted at $317 a short ton, down more than $200 from last week and $525 off its highs from earlier in the fall. If international prices are any indication, ammonia may have more room to fall, with the short ton forward price out of the Black Sea down to $208. That would translate into a farm gate price of around $500 a ton or less, so producers should be urging their suppliers to start looking for product and getting deals together.
This unfortunately may be difficult to do. Some suppliers are still sitting on high-priced inventory they may be forced to write down. Others may find it difficult to obtain credit, or to get barges up river before it closes for the season.
As a result, USDA quoted farm gate prices in Illinois at little changed from fall highs, averaging $1,125 a ton.
Other fertilizer product prices are fading faster for farmers, though offers to the farmer remain high. Urea at the Gulf was quoted at $282 this week, down a little from last week, although forward prices out of the Black Sea are stabilizing, with January quoted higher than December. However, China announced a cut in its export tax, which could put more product on the international market soon.
DAP at the Gulf is also lower, falling $100 or more in the latest week to $595, with January prices bid at $450.
Meanwhile, natural gas in storage increased 62 billion cubic feet in the latest week, more than the 45 bcf expected by analysts. The government earlier in the week said industrial demand for gas is expected to fall due to the weak economy, with prices average $6.82, $1.35 lower than its previous forecast and less than 2007. Natural Gas futures edged closer to a test of $6 after release of the storage report today.
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