roundtable in Santa Rosa

Please join NMSU Corona Range and Livestock Research Center and the Guadalupe County Cooperative Extension Service in Santa Rosa on Wednesday, October 18th starting at 8 a.m. for the next Let’s Talk! Breakfast in Town roundtable discussion, followed by Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) training or recertification. It will be held at the Blue Hole Convention Center. This is a free event to attend but please register at www.corona.nmsu.edu to allow us meal planning. Breakfast and lunch will be served. Attached is the event flyer with more details. We hope to see you there, Shad

PECANS ARE FALLING.

PECANS ARE FALLING. Pecan nuts grow in two phases. The first phase includes pollination, nut enlargement, and water stages. This usually occurs between the dates of May 1 to August 15. Phase II is kernel filling and shell hardening. This usually occurs from August 15 to November 1. Close to the date when the first phase of nut development is complete, the third nut drop, called the August drop occurs. But pecan trees can’t read a calendar and this is determined by heat units. This usually occurs from August to mid-September. This year it was more into September to now. It causes greater concern to pecan growers and homeowners because of the large size of the nuts at this time. Although the percentage shed is generally low, 8 to 10 percent. Some trees in the area this year have had very high percent shed however. Embryo abortion is considered to the reason for this late drop. By the time August/September drop takes place, the embryo has attained full size, the ovary has about completed its enlargement and the pecans will soon begin to harden. Premature shedding will occur when something affects the embryo. If the embryo aborts after the shell hardens, the nut usually matures, but will be hollow or what is commonly called a pop. Although the causal factors for embryo abortion are not known, some researchers consider the following situations, to be related to embryo abortion: • A severe drought or later stress. This is more likely to occur in poor soils and it frequently takes place during the water stage. • A prolonged period of excess moisture. Lack of air in the soil impairs the root system capacity to absorb water and nutrients required by the pecan tree. • Hot, dry winds can increase water loss by increasing the pecan tree moisture requirements due to high transpiration rates. • Insects (Shuck-worm, southern green stinkbug, pecan weevil). Puncturing of the ovary wall, the future nutshell will cause nuts to fall in 3 or 4 days. • Any physical damages that can disturb the ovary wall (shell) of pecans. In general this has been a stressful year due to the changes of temperature cool then hot, and water requirements of the trees. Rainwater not only helps supply water to the trees it also has a higher leaching capacity for leaching salts from around the roots. Salt can cause a physiological drought in the trees, which cause embryo abortion. With the rains some people did not keep up with the water requirement of the trees. Look at a sampling of the fallen nuts and check for insect damage to the shuck or the shell. Pecan Weevil has increased its territory in Texas and some counties in New Mexico so if you find a whole in the nut and a grub inside bring that to the Extension Office. If you are having a high August nut drop, all you can do is water correctly, not too much, and not too little and take care of the crop you have left. Subscribe to Eddy County Ag news at: http://nmsueddyag.blogspot.com/ Eddy County Extension Service, New Mexico State University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and educator. All programs are available to everyone regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. New Mexico State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Eddy County Government Cooperating

Put Farm Safety into Practice

Put Farm Safety into Practice As harvest begins for many across the country, it's important to remember farm safety rules that will keep everyone out of harm's way on the farm. This week is National Farm Safety and Health Week where the theme is "Putting Farm Safety into Practice." Agriculture is among the nation's most hazardous industries with a work-related death rate of 22.2 deaths per 100,000 workers annually according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. To help farmers and ranchers stay up to date on farm safety practices, the U.S. Agricultural Centers' has created a YouTube channel where they have more than 100 videos on a variety of topics, including grain bin safety, heat illness, tractor rollovers and agricultural vehicle lighting and marking requirements. Click here to watch the videos. National Sorghum Producers wishes all of our farmers a safe and bountiful harvest.

Confirmation Hearing Held for Two USDA Nominees

Confirmation Hearing Held for Two USDA Nominees The Senate Agriculture Committee held a confirmation hearing Tuesday for Steve Censky, the nominee for deputy agriculture secretary, and Ted McKinney, the nominee for the newly created position of undersecretary for trade and foreign agriculture affairs. The nominees only received questions from six of the 21 committee members during which they addressed key topics such as crop insurance, trade barriers, rural broadband expansion and climate change. The committee is expected to vote on their nominations sometime next week once they resume from the three-day Rosh Hashana recess. The House is also in recess this week only having pro forma sessions on Monday and Thursday; however, GOP leaders are planning to roll out their tax reform plan next week once they resume Monday, September 25.

Aamodt Settlement Act Signed into Law by Interior Secretary Zinke

Aamodt Settlement Act Signed into Law by Interior Secretary Zinke by lajicarita By KAY MATTHEWS On September 15 Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke took a few minutes out of his attack on our national monuments to announce in the Federal Register that all conditions of the Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act have been met and it is officially a done deal. This adjudication determines both ground and surface water rights of the four Pojoaque Basin pueblos, Nambe, Tesuque, San Ildefonso, and Pojoaque, and all non-pueblo residents. As I’ve laid out in previous La Jicarita articles, these conditions stipulate that 1) the necessary water supply that must be delivered to the Pueblos via the Pojoaque Basin Regional Water System—2,381 afy—has been permitted by the State Engineer; and 2) “The State has enacted necessary legislation and has provided funding as required under the Settlement Agreement.” As I’ve also laid out in previous La Jicarita articles, Taos County has filed an appeal of its protest of the Top of the World water transfer that supplies part of that water to the Pueblos. And the County of Santa Fe passed a resolution in 2015 stating that it will not appropriate its share of the $261 necessary to fund the Regional Water System “until the legal status of County Roads running through the Settling Pueblos has been resolved.” San Ildefonso Pueblo is claiming that county roads that cross through its “external boundaries” belong to the pueblo and is seeking easement payments. The county claims that it has rights of way on all the roads in question. There has been no resolution of this controversy that has pitted the Pueblos against the non-Pueblo residents of the affected county lands. Dave Neal, an officer of the Northern New Mexicans Protecting Land, Water, and Rights (NNMProtects), a group of Valley residents who have fought both the Aamodt Settlement and to resolve the road easement issue, told La Jicarita that Zinke has extended the deadline for this road resolution from September 15 to November 15, but that the county remains determined that no funds will be released until county residents are assured easements. Even with this extension, could this mean that the Settlement may actually come up short on its requisite water supply and funding and fail to be implemented (the State also failed to pass a required $9 appropriation in last year’s legislative session)? Another possible roadblock would be the failure to complete the Regional Water System by 2024, the deadline stipulated for completion in the Settlement Act. None of this seems to bother the powers that be behind this 51 year old adjudication who have pushed this controversial project through the legal process with little regard for fairness, cost, burdensome bureaucracy, the abrogation of the transfer protest process, the cumulative impacts of moving paper water from basin to basin, dipping one more straw into the Rio Grande, and most importantly, the changing nature of our environment and climate that could easily render water supply inadequate or even nonexistent. The legal process does allow for a challenge to the Final Decree, which is being mounted by many of the 300 plus non-Pueblo Pojoaque Valley residents who objected to the terms of the settlement but whose objections were dismissed by the court overseeing the adjudication. They have now filed a notice of appeal to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, represented by Blair Dunn of the Western Agriculture, Resource and Business Advocates law firm. This will be an uphill battle considering the forces deployed against it. Just one last note about Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. While questions should always be raised about how local communities are consulted when public lands are assigned certain restrictions, such as national monument designation, that’s not really what Zinke’s agenda is about. His aim is to aid and abet the movement within the Republican Party to privatize as many public lands as possible in order to turn them over to the extractive industry. As Outside Magazine reported on Zinke’s secret memo to Trump on his review of the monuments, which was leaked to the press, the GOP’s official platform states: “Congress shall immediately pass universal legislation providing for a timely and orderly mechanism requiring the federal government to convey certain federally controlled public lands to states.” The American Lands Council, based in Utah, is spearheading the movement, which makes the Bears Ears and the Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments the most vulnerable. lajicarita | September 21, 2017 at 11:02 am | Tags: Aamodt Adjudication Settlement, American Lands Council, Bears Ears National Monument, Department of the Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, NNMProtects | Categories: Acequias, Climate Change, Groundwater, New Mexico Office of the State Engineer, Private Property, Public Lands, Water Adjudication, water and acequias | URL: http://wp.me/p2bCkq-1JR

NMSU rodeo team competes in Tsaile, Arizona; Freshmen bring their game

NMSU rodeo team competes in Tsaile, Arizona; Freshmen bring their game DATE: 09/21/2017 WRITER: Savannah Montero, 575-646-1614, smontero@nmsu.edu CONTACT: Logan Corbett , 270-293-9242, lcorbett@nmsu.edu The New Mexico State University rodeo team brought some heat to the game during the Dine College National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association rodeo Sept. 15-16 in Tsaile, Arizona. “I am extremely proud of the freshmen,” said Logan Corbett, NMSU rodeo coach. “This first rodeo was new territory for them and they competed great.” The NMSU men’s team placed second and the women’s team ended up obtaining third. Broc Lindburg, freshman from Las Vegas, received first in the average of a long and short round in the saddle bronc riding event. Jace Cooley, senior bronc rider, finished second. Cauy Pool, NMSU freshman, placed second in the bareback riding event. “I did pretty good. I’ve been practicing and working out a ton in order to be competitive in college rodeo,” Pool said. “So, the fact that I got second at my first one really makes me confident for the season.” He explained that it was an awesome rodeo with great horses. Derek Runyan, of Silver City, New Mexico, and Trevor Scott, of Twin Falls, Idaho, split fourth in a four-way draw in the tie-down roping average. NMSU team roping partners Lucas Mckenzie and Carl Sweazea took second place in the average for the weekend. Anna Barker, senior from Rochester, Washington, ran two quick barrel racing runs to end up splitting second overall for the first rodeo. Hometown cowgirl of Las Cruces, New Mexico, Zoanne Billings won second in the breakaway roping during last week’s rodeo. “It felt really good to place well this weekend,” Billings said. “I had been in a slump the past two seasons, so it gave me a big confidence boost to score and rope sharp and I am excited for the rest of the season.” Lauren Kelsey, freshman of Oxford, Colorado, received fourth overall in the breakaway event. Savannah Montero, senior of Winnemucca, Nevada, placed second in the goat tying competition. “I was ecstatic with my two runs,” Montero said. “I tied two quick runs in the low sevens and my horse worked great. It is going to be a tough year in the goat tying event; there are tons of great competitors this season.” Bailee Johnston, NMSU freshman, had a wild goat tying run during the first round. She said her horse ran left in order to avoid a collision with the goat, then the horse ran over Johnston. “She stepped on my upper leg as she went over me and I got up to finish my run because I was always taught to keep going no matter what,” Johnston said. “My adrenaline helped me finish my run and I was glad I was able to do that, even though I was sore when I got out of the arena.” Luckily, the team has their Student Athletic Trainer Michael Gregory attend the college rodeos. “My goals for this season are mainly to do everything in my power to keep all of you healthy and competing,” Gregory said, “by providing treatment when needed and educating the athletes on how to manage injuries when we’re not at the events.” The next NIRA rodeo will be held at Cochise College in Douglas, Arizona, Sept. 22-23. For more information contact Corbett at lcorbett@nmsu.edu. - 30 - Follow NMSU News on Twitter: http://twitter.com/nmsunews Follow NMSU News on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NMSUNews

Details still sketchy on pistachio grower requirements under FSMA

Details still sketchy on pistachio grower requirements under FSMA Western Farm Press By Cecilia Parsons Uncertainty exists with the deadline for pistachio growers to comply with the Produce Safety Rule (PSR) in the Food Safety Modernization Act drawing near…On-farm contamination of pistachio nuts with salmonella or E.coli can come from humans, soil, water, and animals. Awareness of how these sources can possibly introduce pathogens to a crop can comes from evaluating management practices and the observation of daily operations. Just because pistachio nuts don’t hit the ground during harvest does not eliminate contamination risks, says Harris. For example, dust from a nearby dairy can be a source especially around pistachio harvest…the two most common pathogens found on pistachio nuts are the salmonella strains Montevideo and Senftenberg. More here