Dairy Research and OutreachDairy research information provided byDr. Paul Kononoff, UNL Department of Animal Science

The University of Nebraska Dairy Research Unit located at the ARDC is a majorresearch and education facility of the University of Nebraska Institute of Agriculture

and Natural Resources (IANR).

University of Nebraska-Lincoln * Institute of Agriculture and Natural ResourcesIt is the policy of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln not to discriminate on the basis of gender, age, disability, race, color, religion, marital status, veteran’s status, national ethnic origin or sexual orientation.

A publication of theUniversity of Nebraska-Lincoln

Agricultural Research &Development Center and

UNL Extension in Saunders County

November/December 2009Vol. 13, No. 6

ARDC Research HighlightsAvailable Online

Have you ever wondered justwhat is going on at the ARDC?

The scope and diversity of ongoingresearch projects at ARDC make thesite one of the most unique researchfacilities in the United States. Thesize and diversity of the center offersmany research and educationalopportunities. The ARDC ResearchHighlights publication is now avail-able and provides a glimpse of therange of projects and programs cur-rently taking place at the ARDC. The publication can be downloadedat ardc.unl.edu. ❏

UNL Dairy Research Unit Mission Statement“Promoting Nebraska's dairyindustry by providing an environ-ment which enables high qualityresearch to be accomplished forstudents, producers and consumers.”

Make plansto attend

the NebraskaSoybean Dayand MachineryExpo on Friday,December 11. The event will be held at the SaundersCounty Fairgrounds in Wahoo.

This year’s featured speaker is Steve Johnson,Ph.D. Steve serves as the Farm & Ag BusinessManagement Specialist in Central Iowa for Iowa StateUniversity Extension. He specializes in topics relatedto grain marketing, government farm programs, cropinsurance and other risk management strategies. Hewrites and trains on topics related to government farmprograms, grain production contracts, farmland leasingand related crop income issues. He contributes to arti-cles featured in a variety of farmmagazines, websites, e-newslet-ters and other print and electron-ic media.

Steve’s presentation is enti-tled, “Surviving TurbulentTimes”. It’s not a secret thatthese are challenging times.Steve will take a look at cornand soybean market outlookstrategies and he will discuss the“Top Ten Best Farm ManagementPractices”.Schedule for the day includes:* View Commercial Exhibits (8:30 a.m.)* Opening Comments – Keith Glewen,

UNL Extension (9 a.m.)* How to Use Cost of Production Figures

– Tina Barrett, Nebraska Farm BusinessAssociation

* Surviving Turbulent Times; Corn and Soybean Market Outlook Strategies; Top Ten BestManagement Strategies – Steve Johnson, ISU Extension

* Break View Commercial Exhibits (10 a.m.)* Steve Johnson presentation continued* Nebraska Soybean Board Check-off Update* Improving the Quantity and Quality of Soybean

One Gene at a Time – Tom Clemente, UNLDepartment of Agronomy and Horticulture

* Soil Fertility – It’s Contribution To Soybean Yield -Rirchard Ferguson, UNL Department of Agronomy andHorticulture* The Old and the New: Controlling Volunteer Corn

in a Traited World– Lowell Sandell, UNLDepartment of Agronomy and Horticulture

* Adjourn (2:30 p.m.) ❏

8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.with a break scheduled at 10:00 a.m.so you can view equipmentand visit with exhibitorsSaunders County Fairgrounds -Wahoo, NE

Steve Johnson,Ph.D.

The UNL Dairy Research herd includes 130Holstein cows. The herd’s average annual milkproduction (rolling herd average) is 21,000pounds. Over the last year, the average fat andprotein content is 3.6 and 3.1%, respectively.Somatic cell count SCC averages 324. Goals ofthe unit are to investigate and demonstrate: 1)modern dairy production practices to UNLundergraduate, graduate, and veterinary stu-

dents; 2) how forages and fiber by-products can best supply the nutrients required for lac-tation; and 3) evaluate relationships that exist between productivity, genetics, and repro-ductive efficiency.

Past & Planned Research Over the past 12 months the

Dairy Unit has been busy with avariety of projects. The first proj-ect evaluated different storagemethods for wet distillers grainsplus solubles and was sponsored bythe Nebraska Corn Board. A secondproject evaluated the effects offeeding low lignin brown midribcorn (BMR) corn silage in combination with dried distillers grains plus solubles. A thirdexperiment evaluated milk production when dairy cows consumed wet corn gluten feed.Over the next 12 months three experiments are planned and aimed at studying new andnovel corn milling products and different corn silage hybrids and impacts on milk produc-tion. DAIRY RESEARCH & OUTREACH - Cont. on P. 2

In This Issue...** ARDC FEAARDC FEATURE UNIT TURE UNIT

- UNL- UNL Dairy Research UnitDairy Research Unit- - About the PeopleAbout the People- Dairy Research and Outreach- Dairy Research and Outreach- Understanding Keys in - Understanding Keys in

Silage FermentationSilage Fermentation** ARDCARDC ResearchResearch HighlightsHighlights

AAvailable Onlinevailable Online** Calendar of EventsCalendar of Events** 4-H 4-H Advisory BoardAdvisory Board** Love to Garden? Love to Garden?

Consider Master Gardeners!Consider Master Gardeners!** Mead High School Student WMead High School Student Worksorks

with Entomology Departmentwith Entomology Department** Save the Date...Save the Date...

- Beef Satellite Short Course- Beef Satellite Short Course- Eastern Nebraska Meat Goat- Eastern Nebraska Meat Goat

WWorkshoporkshop- Grain Marketing Breakfast- Grain Marketing Breakfast- Nebraska No-T- Nebraska No-Till Conferenceill Conference

** Science Festival Provides Science Festival Provides Hands-On OpportunitiesHands-On Opportunities

cattle and Dr. Paul Kononoff studying nutrition. The recent goals ofthe unit have been to investigate and demonstrate: 1) modern dairyproduction practices to UNL undergraduate, graduate, and veterinarystudents, 2) how forages and fiber by-products can best supply thenutrients required for lactation, and 3) to evaluate relationships thatexist between productivity, genetics and reproductive efficiency.

StaffThe dedication of the staff at the Dairy Unit is critical to the suc-

cesses and impacts of research. Not only are the staff vital in thedaily care of the herd in a professional and humane manner, but theyalso provide researchers with critical scientific observations of ongo-ing projects.

Gene Anderson, Ag Technician I/Swing Feeder, heads up theshop/maintenance, takes care of baby calves, and feeds the livestockand performs clean up duties. He has a degree from Western IowaTech in Cow/Calf and Feedlot Management. He and his wife,Rhonda, live near Memphis and have three sons. Gene enjoys hors-es, rodeos, and camping in his spare time.

Ken Cejka, Ag Research Technician I, feeds the cows and young stock at the dairy.He also is responsible for cleaning the lots and hauling away waste. He and his wife,

Cherrie, live near Weston.He has three stepdaughters.

Don Fisher, AgTechnician I/Milker, isresponsible for milking thecows. He works on the swingshift meaning he milks boththe day and night shifts asscheduled. He attended theNational School of MeatCutting. He and his wife,Carolyn, live near Ithaca.They have a son and adaughter.

Dustin Hansen, Ag Research Technician, works as the night shiftmilker. His duties include milking the herd as well as parlor sanita-tion. Dustin lives near Ithaca. He also enjoys hunting and fishing inhis spare time.

Kevin Langfeldt is a temporty Ag Research Technician. Hisresponsibilities include feeding the livestock and manure removal.Kevin is also trained as a milker and can fill in for almost any posi-tion at the unit.

Erin Marotz, Dairy Unit Manager, provides overall managementover Dairy Research Operations. He manages all employees, facili-ties and animals. He possesses a Bachelor’s degree in AnimalScience that he received from UNL. He and his wife, Nancy, have ason and a daughter. Erin and his family live in the residence locatedonsite near the dairy research area. In his spare time, Erin enjoyshunting, showing registered Holsteins, and fishing.

Darren Strizek, Ag Research Technician II, cares for the youngstock, is responsible for pasture management, and performs thefeeding and data collecting during research trials in the nutritionbarn. He has an Associates’ degree in Production Ag from theUniversity of Nebraska School of Technical Agriculture at Curtis.He and his wife, Janice, have two sons and live near Ceresco.

Leo Sweet, Ag Research Technician II/Milker, his main responsibilities are milkingthe herd, animal health, and milking system maintenance. Leo lives in Mead with hiswife, Linda. They have one daughter. Leo enjoys fishing and spectator sports (footballand basketball) in his spare time.

StudentsGraduate and undergraduate students are involved in various aspects of dairy

research. The following is a list of students currently involved in dairy research. Amanda Gehman recently completed her Ph.D. in nutrition and will be moving to

Brookings, South Dakota to work on a Post Doctoral degree. Kim Machacek completed adegree in M.Ag. in nutrition this past spring and will continue to work at UNL as aResearch Coordinator. Ezequias Castillo Lopez is originally from the Yucatan Peninsulain southeastern Mexico, has just completed a M.S. degree in nutrition and will start work-ing on a Ph.D. this fall. Hugo Ramirez is from Chapingo, Mexico and is working on anM.S. in nutrition. Kumud Dhakal from Nepal is working on an M.S. in genetics.

The Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences (UCARE) Program,supported by the Office of Undergraduate Studies and funded by the Pepsi Endowmentand Program of Excellence funds, creates partnerships between UNL faculty and under-

November/December 2009 Extended Extended VVisionsisions Page 2

DAIRY RESEARCH & OUTREACH - Cont. from P. 1

DAIRY ABOUT THE PEOPLE - Cont. on P. 3

UNL Dairy Research Unit staff: (front l-r) Erin Marotz,Ken Cejka, and Darren Strizek. (Back) Gene Anderson,Donald Fisher, and Leo Sweet.

Dustin Hansen

About the People...Faculty

Faculty coordinating research and theUnit include Dr. Jeff Keown study-

ing breed andgenetics of dairy

Kevin Langfeldt

Dr. Jeff Keown

Dr. Paul Kononoff

This fall, over 700 studentslearned about dairy produc-tion and products at the DairyResearch Unit during the AgAwareness Festival.

At the Dairy Education Day(below), those involved in thedairy industry receive valuable

Extension andOutreachActivities

The dairy researchunit hosts an annualeducation day for thestates dairy producers.This event allows anopportunity for dairyproducers to gather andlearn of new develop-ments in dairy manage-ment. Each year over600-800 urban fourth-grade students traveland tour the dairy inconjunction with theannual Ag AwarenessFestival at the ARDC.A visit to the Dairy Unithas been included sincethe festival beganin1996. ❏

updates on research and current trends..

Science Festival ProvidesHands-On Opportunities

While attending a Science Festival at the ARDC,fifty area 7th and 8th graders learned about

opportunities in science through hands-on experientialstations. The youth learned about potential careerpaths which will help them look at science from avariety of new perspectives.

The festival was sponsored by UNL Extensionand coordinated by Karna Dam, UNL ExtensionEducator. Schools attending included: North BendCentral, Wahoo Bishop Neumann, and Wahoo Public.Topics and presenters included: Meteorology andClimatology (Ken Dewey and Deb Bathke, School ofNatural Resources), Soil Investigations (Mark Kuzila,School of Natural Resources), Turfgrass andLandscape Management Industry (Anne Streich,Agronomy & Horticulture), Power of Wind (John Hay,

Biological SystemsEngineering/Exten-sion and SaraEllicott, Extension)and LEGOMindstorms NXTRobotics (KatieLarson, Extensionand Kathy Morgan,4-H).

Studentsselected two sci-ence tracks. Eachtrack providedhands-on learningand opportunity forinvestigation.

SCIENCE FESTIVAL- Cont. on P. 4

November/December 2009 Extended Extended VVisionsisions Page 3

November17 2011 Planning Meeting 9 am - 4 pm17 Saunders County Extension Board 7 pm - 9 pm18 Livestock Advisory Meeting 7 pm - 9 pm

December2 Rabbit and Poultry Advisory Meeting 6 pm - 7:30 pm2 Horse Advisory Meeting 7:30 pm - 9 pm3 4-H Curriculum Update 9 am - 4 pm14 Beef Satellite Shortcourse21 Beef Satellite Shortcourse22 Grain Marketing Breakfast 7:45 am - 10 am

January11 Beef Satellite Shortcourse15 Nitrogen Management Training18 Beef Satellite Shortcourse

DAIRY ABOUT THE PEOPLE- Cont. from P. 2

graduates by providingfunds for research. Thispast year, two studentsconducted two UCAREprojects at the Dairy Unit.Anna Geis and ChristinaHeine are juniors inAnimal Science. The firstevaluated the brownmidrib 3 mutation of for-age sorghum. The secondproject, funded by theNebraska Corn Board,evaluated storage methodsassociated with wet dis-tillers grains plus solubles.During the upcoming aca-demic year, they will bebusy finishing lab workand their final report. ❏

may occur beyond 21 days if improper silage production practices cause undesirable orabnormal silage fermentation. The various phases of the normal fermentation process tendto overlap one another due to the variety of fermentation bacteria present and their toler-ance to the presence of oxygen and different forage acidity levels. Lactic acid-producingbacteria begin to grow and multiply shortly after the chopped forage is placed in the silo.They reach near peak populations during the third phase of the fermentation process,which is complete within three to four days. Silage that has undergone proper fermenta-tion will have a pH of 3.8 to 4.5 for corn silage and a pH of 4.0 to 5.0 for haylage.

Respiration PhaseRespiration is a set of metabolic reactions that

occurs in living plant cells. These reactions requireoxygen and are ultimately an attempt to process andstore energy. In the case of the ensiling process,respiration activity is important because it results inan anaerobic condition that is required for bacteriain the ensiling process. The respiration phase itselfbegins as soon as the chopped forage is placed inthe silo. Green plants, when chopped and placed inthe silo, continue to live and respire for a short peri-od of time. The reduction in the concentration ofoxygen occurs because the plant cells within thechopped forage mass continue to respire and as aresult utilize oxygen. During this time, aerobic bac-teria, naturally present on the stems and leaves ofplants, begin to grow. The respiration phase willusually last from three to five hours, but this timedepends on the supply of oxygen present. This phase should be kept as short as possibleto avoid improper fermentation. Practices used to exclude oxygen from forages are: 1)finely chop forage 2) harvest at proper moisture to have greater packing density.

Fermentation PhaseGood Bacteria: Lactic acid bacteria (LAB). The term lactic acid bacteria actually

refers to bacteria that produce lactic acid as a main end-product of fermentation. Althoughthe presence of these bacteria on the growing plant is small, a major source of inoculationof these bacteria onto forage appears to occur from cutting and harvesting machinery. Theultimate domination of LAB in good quality silage occurs rather rapidly and the produc-tion of acid, especially lactic acid, is a most important change in the fermentation process.If pH is not lowered rapidly enough in the early stages of fermentation, undesirablespecies of bacteria will compete for nutrients and reduce the chances of obtaining a stablesilage. Thus, many of the management aspects of silage making are designed to lower thepH rapidly to allow the lactic acid bacteria to proliferate prior to other species becomingthe predominant species. Problem bacteria: Clostridia ferment sugars to lactic acid andbutyric acid. Domination by this type of bacteria in silage is generally considered detri-mental to forage quality. There are two major factors that are key in inhibiting the growthof clostridia. Firstly, low pH prevents the growth. Secondly, clostridia grow best in moistenvironments, thus avoiding the harvest of excessively moist moisture levels is critical.Silage is an economical way to harvest and store feed and aspects of fermentation shouldbe understood to maximize productivity. ❏

Understanding Keys inSilage Fermentation

The ensiling process may bedescribed as taking place in discrete

phases. Normal silage fermentation iscomplete in about 21 days. A final phase

Save the Date...

Get out your calendar and make note of the fol-lowing upcoming programs. And watch for

more details as the dates draw nearer.

* Dec. 14 & 21 and Jan. 11 & 18 - BeefSatellite Shortcourse

UNL Extension's Beef Satellite Short Course willlook at issues currently facing Nebraska’s beef pro-ducers. The Beef Short Course will present the latestresearch-based information on herd health and prof-itability.

* Dec. 22 - Grain Marketing BreakfastGrain marketing breakfasts are offered several

times throughout the year by UNL Extension, theSaunders County Corn Growers Association, and theSaunders County Soybean Growers Organization.Come and learn valuable marketing tips.

* Febr. 6 - Eastern Nebraska Meat GoatWorkshop

The second Eastern Nebraska Meat GoatWorkshop will be held Saturday, February 6, 2010 atthe August N. Christenson Building, located at theARDC.

Speakers are lined up for the program. RandySaner, UNL Extension Educator inLincoln/McPherson Counties, will present parasitemanagement and FAMACHA training. Brian Faris,Extension Sheep and Meat Goat Specialist fromKansas State University will also present some veryvaluable programs.

We are very excited to host a second ExtensionMeat Goat meeting in this part of the state and hopeyou will be able to join us for this educational day.Watch for further details in the January/FebruaryExtended Visions or on the UNL Extension inSaunders County website,http://saunders.unl.edu/home or call the office at(402) 624-8030 to have a program flyer directlymailed to you.

* Febr. 17 - Nebraska No-TillConference

Why are some producers successful with no-tilland others are not? This year’s Nebraska No-TillConference addresses that question by letting success-ful producers and agronomists share their experienceswith no-till. While every farming situation is differ-ent, understanding how some producers overcamehurdles can extend their success.

The Nebraska No-Till Conference will be held onseparate days at two sites: Tuesday, February 16 at theAg Center in Holdrege and on Wednesday, February17 at the ARDC.

For more information, contact UNL ExtensionEducator, Keith Glewen at (402)624-8030. ❏

4-H Advisory Board

The 4-H Motto is “To Make theBest, Better”. That is our con-

tinued goal in Saunders County… tocontinue to make our 4-H programbetter.

Meetings have been scheduled with the intent ofevaluating what the Saunders County 4-H programcurrently has, looking ahead at where we want to be,and building the path on how we are going to getthere. See the calendar on this page for dates/topics.

In order to stay focused within specific areas andto allow participation of individuals in the areas thatinterests them, the meetings have been divided up bysimilar subject matter. All 4-H parents, volunteers andyouth who have an interest in any of the programs areencouraged to attend. We are also accepting agendaitems you would like discussed.

A special meeting will be held in January for allstatic exhibit projects (anything that goes in the 4-HBuilding during the county fair). A date and time willbe included in the next newsletter.

For more information, contact UNL ExtensionEducator, Karna Dam at (402)624-8030. ❏

November/December 2009 Extended Extended VVisionsisions Page 4

Mead High School Student Works withEntomology Departmentby Mike Schwab, FFA Reporter

Mead FFA Vice President, Don Treptow worked with UNL’sDepartment of Entomology at the ARDC this summer from

June to August. He worked from 8:00-4:30 Monday-Friday. Duringthe course of his day, Don did anything from setting up tent trapsover corn to placing box traps over the base of the corn plants totrap corn root-worm beetles. The main insect that they workedwith was the corn rootworm beetles. Modified dust-busters were

used to suck the beetles out ofthe tents and then the beetleswere collected and jars werereplaced on the box traps tocollect more beetles. Afterbeing collected, the beetleswere then processed by puttingsome in alcohol and puttingothers in boxes to examine howthe corn they ate effected repro-duction.

Other assignments Donworked on included: diggingand washing roots to examinedamage caused by rootwormbeetles on different varieties ofcorn, setting up irrigation, sift-ing dirt for work in the lab,

This issue of Extended Visions was produced and edited by Deloris Pittman, Marketing & Promotions Manager. Extended Visions is published bimonthly by theUniversity of Nebraska-Lincoln ARDC & University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in Saunders County, 1071 County Road G, Room A, Ithaca, Nebraska, 68033-2234.

For more information, call 402-624-8000 or 1-800-529-8030. Check out our web site at http://ardc.unl.edu. E-mail dpittman1@unl.edu.© 2009 University of Nebraska–Lincoln Agricultural Research & Development Center

Mark Schroeder, Director, University of Nebraska-Lincoln ARDC * Keith Glewen, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension Educator Unit LeaderDairy research information provided by Dr. Paul Kononoff, UNL Department of Animal Science

.

M.E.A.D.Making Education inAgriculture Different

Love to Garden? Consider Master Gardeners

Each winter, when the weather is cold and snowy, afew hardy individuals are learning to become better

gardeners through University of Nebraska- LincolnExtension’s Master Gardener program. Master Gardenertrainees attend a series of classes, learning about a widerange of horticulture topics such as soils, fertilizers,botany, vegetable gardening, plant diseases, insects andweed control, to name a few. Forty hours of classroominstruction gives Master Gardener trainees a good founda-tion in general horticulture, plant selection, and insect &disease control.

After training, Master Gardeners assist UNLExtension staff in providing horticulture information tothe residents of their county. Answering questionsphoned-in to the Extension Office, diagnosing plant sam-ples, working at the county fair and helping maintaincommunity gardens are a few of the ways MasterGardeners benefit their community.

Why do these people get involved? First, becausethey love gardening. Each Master Gardener has their ownspecial area of interest, one particular type of gardening ortype of plant that they love to grow, whether it is roses,herbs, water gardening, wildflowers, fruit trees or vegeta-bles. Master Gardeners love to share their enthusiasmand knowledge with each other. And second, MasterGardeners gain a sense of satisfaction from making a con-tribution to their community.

How do you become a Master Gardener? Trainingclasses start January 30, 2010 at UNL Extension’s Dodgecounty office located at 1206 West 23rd Street, Fremont.Classes will be held on a combination of Tuesdayevenings, 6:30-9:00 p.m., and Saturdays from 9:00a.m. to4:00 p.m.. Trainees must attend all class sessions. Thecost of participating is $150 per person, which includes 40hours of classroom training and two books, the MasterGardener manual and Integrated Turfgrass Managementfor the Northern Great Plains.

After training, new Master Gardeners are required tovolunteer 40 hours back to their community through avariety of activities. Are you interested in becoming aMaster Gardener? Contact Sarah Browning, UNLExtension at (800) 830-4855 for more information or anapplication. Or visit http://mastergardener.unl.edu andclick on “Become a Master Gardener” to apply on-line.Everyone is welcome so please join us. ❏

Mead FFA student, Don Treptow collects rootwormbeetles from corn plants inside a tent trap while work-ing with UNL’s Department of Entomology at theARDC this summer.

assisting professors when needed and also help keeping up with maintenance around theinsect lab. Don’s favorite thing about work was the people he worked with and the inter-esting research in which he participated in. ❏

SCIENCE FESTIVAL - Cont. from P. 4

In the Meteorology and Climatology session, students developed the knowledgefoundation used in meteorology and applied it to severe weather with a "teaching tor-nado generator".

The Soil Investigations session helped increase student awareness of the value ofsoil. Activities were directed at learning more about soil profiles, soil texture, parti-cle size, soil erosion, and organic matter.

Turfgrass and LandscapeManagement Industry is a part ofone of the fastest growing seg-ments of the nation's agriculturaleconomy. In this session, stu-dents learned how to use aStimpmeter and infiltrometer anddiscovered how different grassesand management practices affecteach. They also saw how UNLuses the "Turf Blimp" to assessturfgrass stresses on sports andgolf course turfs.

During the Power of Windsession, students learned aboutengineering design, about windturbine designs and how theywork. Students designed, builtand tested wind turbine blades,and then discussed the pros andcons of each design and how thedesign process worked.

The LEGO Mindstorms NXTRobotics session introduced stu-dents to robotics. Students builtand programed a simple LEGORobot to move, turn, and solve achallenge. The workshop includedan overview of the GEAR-Tech-21 robotics, GPS, and GIS 4-H curriculum and how these technologies can beapplied in agriculture.

To learn more about this program, please contact UNL Extension Educator, KarnaDam at (402)624-8030. ❏

Send me information about becoming aMaster Gardener!

Return to: University of Nebraska- Lincoln Extension1206 West 23rd Street, Fremont, NE 68025or call (800) 830-4855

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Photos courtesy of Bob Feurer, North BendCentral Public Schools and Ken Dewey , UNLSchool of Natural Resources.