the progressive rancher may/june 2015

NCA 2009 President’s

Award Recipient

Ads sent to or built by The Progressive Rancher become property of this magazine.

The Progressive RancherOwner/Editor/Publisher – Leana Stitzel

[email protected] Design/Layout/Production – Joshua Rinard

[email protected]

Published 9 times each year, The Progressive Rancher is mailed to more than 7,000 approved addresses, and has digital and print readership reaching more than 30,000.

The Progressive Rancher is published monthly. The views and opinions expressed by writers of articles appearing in this publication are not necessarily those of the editor. Letters of opinion are welcomed by The Progressive Rancher.Rates for advertising are available upon request. Advertising in The Progressive Rancher does not necessarily imply editorial endorsement. Liability for any errors or omissions in advertisements shall not exceed the cost of the space occupied by the error or omission.The Progressive Rancher is free to people working and active in the livestock industry. The Progressive Rancher is donated to the agricultural industry. If you are not currently receiving this magazine on a regular basis, and would like to be a part of The Progressive Rancher family, contact us by e-mail at [email protected], today, so we can include you on our mailing list. If you have moved or changed addresses, please notify us, by e-mail, so we can keep you informed. All requests for the magazine must be made by e-mail.

Leana Stitzel, Owner/Editor1188 Court St., #81, Elko, NV 89801

(208) 733-1828 • [email protected]

Cover Photo: by Lynn Conley2014 Eureka Fair Photography contest winner.

WWW.PROGRESSIVERANCHER.COM

In this Issue...Riding for the NCA Brand ............... 3

Nevada Cattlemen’s Assn. ............... 5

NRRC ............................................... 8

Eye on the Outside ......................... 10

NV CattleWomen ........................... 12

Beef Ambassador ........................... 13

Talking about NCBA ....................... 15

Nevada Farm Bureau ..................... 16

Fumes from the Farm ..................... 18

American Lands Council .................19

Beef Checkoff ................................. 20

Nevada FFA .................................... 22

Water .............................................. 24

So Knotty Designs............................ 26

Gov. Priorities Constrain Sage .......30

Press Release .................................32

Coloring Page ................................. 34

Look Up .......................................... 35

Salt Cedar Control ........................ 36

Curlycup Gumweed ...................... 40

Humboldt Watershed .................... 44

Ramblings ...........................................46

Edward Jones Financial Focus ........47

ELKO FEDERAL CREDIT UNION•ShareDraftAccounts•TimeshareCertificates•ATMCards/DebitCards•IRAs•Visas

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© The Progressive Rancher Magazine. All rights reserved.

The Progressive Rancher www.progressiverancher.com 2 April 2015

mailto:[email protected]



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www.elkofcu.org

Defending the Cow with Sound Science

We have all heard of the great Chicago fire of 1871. Supposedly Mrs. O’Leary’s milk cow Betsy ignited the fire by kicking over a lantern at milking time. The fire destroyed more than three square miles of city, killed 250 people,

and left 100,000 homeless. Cows have always been an easy target for blame.

As with most stories, it turns out old Betsy probably was not the cause of the fire. The Chicago Title Insurance Company recently revisited their case files and concluded that “Chicago burned because all the factors favored a fire and no one was paying proper attention.” Chicago had become an over-crowded, wood-built, bone-dry city with a poor fire department. Rainfall had been only 28 percent of normal that summer, and the population had recently grown by a factor of ten. Someone had to be blamed for this destructive fire so it was Mrs. O’Leary and her cow. The facts do not support the kicked-over lantern theory, but we will probably never know the actual cause.

There are a lot of similarities between the above story and today’s situ-ation with our western rangelands. The only ingredient the desert lacks is water and it seems that every time blame needs to be assigned for any envi-ronmental or natural resource issue, the cow is the easy target.

In defending the cow, the beef industry stands behind sound science. We have long argued that sound science levels the playing field and the truth will come out with sound science. But as of recent it seems as though bogus or pseudo-science has just as much or more impact on the media and the pub-lic as does sound science. Case in point is the recent comments relative to the listing of the sage grouse. Nevada Cattlemen’s Association goes to great lengths to site only relevant and defendable science, however, the reality is that sound science in many of our opponents’ minds is the work that most closely aligns with their desired outcome.

Coming from an academic background I find it disturbing that sound science does not seem to matter when it comes to issues influenced by public policy or with social media input. Pseudo-science is used routinely by ani-mal welfare and environmental activists to further their cause and to a large extent that strategy has worked. Case in point is the direction the feral horse situation continues to evolve as a result of misinformation and the misuse and abuse of social media.

Sound science is required, however, when the cow has her day in court. Court decisions must be made based on defendable sound science. It is our hope that the judicial system cares about the truth and can distinguish be-tween good science and pseudo-science.

Complicating our mission to utilize sound science in range management and agriculture is the redirection and reduction of our land grant systems in the United States. The University of Nevada, College of Agriculture in Reno is a prime example of this. At one time UNR supported a fleet of agri-cultural researchers dedicated to producing sound science in defense of the cow and the livestock industry. UNR College of Agriculture staff has been reduced to only a few faculty members with the education and background required to perform this much needed research. Complicating their efforts are split appointments between teaching and research. Funding is scarce to non-existence for research efforts in support of agriculture but abound for research efforts in support of the environmental movement. When does it reverse itself? Somehow the national livestock industry must find a way to reverse this trend placing political pressure on our land grant universities to

produce sound research in the area of sustainable livestock production and range management.

Case in point is the need for a sorely needed study which will very clearly show the economic, social and stewardship contributions that feder-ally owned grazing lands offer to rural economies and the contribution the remaining 13% of private land and water makes to the sustainability of the public lands, wildlife and resources. These important contributions to rural areas of the west are hard to quantify in a defendable manner. Information of this type, generated and published by reputable third party land grant universities (independent of the livestock industry) is vital, yet for the most part current information is non-existent. With that said, NCA and the Public Lands Council is collaborating with our western land grant universities in-cluding UNR to conduct such a study to defend livestock grazing in the west showing the economic contributions made by the cow as she grazes our public lands. The UNR Gund Ranch is providing partial funding for this project on a state and local level.

Sound science utilized in the science based investigation by Chicago Title Insurance Company cleared old Betsy of causing the 1871 fire. The public per-ception, however, is always going to be that Mrs. O’Leary’s cow was to blame for that great Chicago fire. The livestock industry cannot give up on sound science as the basis for our defense of the cow. We must continue to subscribe to sound science and demand that our opponents do the same.

The Nevada Cattlemen’s Association’s mission continues to be to pro-mote, preserve and protect a dynamic and profitable Nevada beef industry. Should you like to visit with NCA staff or leadership feel free to contact NCA at 775-738-9214 or my NCA e-mail address [email protected]

Ron Torell, President Nevada Cattlemen’s Association

Nevada Cattlemen’s AssociationExecutive Director PositionThe Nevada Cattlemen’s Association (NCA) is currently accept-

ing applications for the position of Executive Director for their dues-based membership organization. Candidates should be self-starters, motivated with knowledge, interest and background

in the livestock industry. Candidates should be advanced planners proficient with computers and must have excellent verbal and written communication skills. Important aspects of the job include: budget development, event plan-ning, membership recruitment, monthly publications, website maintenance, manage a two employee office, liaison between other associations, state and federal agencies, policy development and membership support. The position requires extensive travel in and out of state. The successful candidate should have strong interpersonal skills and be able to represent NCA at the local, state, and national levels. The salaried position is based in Elko with pay commen-surate with experience and skill level. NCA is a not-for-profit organization that works to protect the future of ranching in the state of Nevada with a mission to promote, preserve and protect a dynamic and profitable Nevada beef industry.

Start date: as soon as possible. Applications should be sent to [email protected] or P.O. Box 310, Elko, Nevada 89803. For additional information contact the NCA president Ron Torell at 775-385-7665 or NCA president elect Dave Stix Jr. 775-741-7849. Deadline for applications is June 1, 2015. Please visit our web page www.nevadacattlemen.org for an overview of our association.

The Progressive Rancherwww.progressiverancher.com April 2015 3

Ranch Labor & Beef Quality Assurance

It is hard to find a good job. Take for example my first job out of college. The “Help Wanted” ad should have read: “Cowboy wanted. Work daylight to dark, seven days a week. Benefits include a run-down house, one cull-

market-ready cow per year for meat, generator for electricity, no phone services available. Family man preferred. Spouse cooks for crew. Pay $1500/month. Phone numbers of health insur-ance companies provided. Must like living in isolation in remote, scenic, central Nevada. Send picture of your horses. Alkali soil garden space provided with 90-day growing season. All the hard work and fresh air you can stand.”

A cowboy’s celebrated lifestyle working on a ranch along with all of the fresh air he/she can stand does a poor job of paying the bills. When was the last time you had one of your employees ask for longer hours and less pay? Agriculture’s low profit margin does not allow it to compete with other industries for pay and benefits. Lack of insurance benefits for those with a family is one of the main reasons many good cowboys leave the profes-sion and become weekend cowboys. The mining industry in northeastern Nevada employs many talented cowboys. These cowboys left the livestock industry for shorter hours, better pay and a package of benefits including a retirement plan. One cannot blame them.

What is the solution for the labor issue within the livestock industry? The obvious is finding, hiring and retaining quality employees at a competi-tive salary with benefits. If a qualified and energetic person is hired, own-ers/managers must oftentimes pay them more than they themselves make in order to hang on to them. The cowboy’s paycheck is guaranteed while the owner/manager’s pay is at the mercy of Mother Nature and the market. For this reason many owners/managers simply do without qualified ranch hands and try to get by with less labor and oftentimes inexperienced labor.

Statistics show that the average ranch size has increased significantly over the past forty years and is expected to continue in that trend. The economy of size is ever-present with today’s agricultural production. Simple economics dictate larger ranching operations are more profitable because fixed and variable costs are spread out over more units. This puts the small family-owned and operated ranch at a disadvantage when hiring and retain-ing quality labor with benefits.

In order to solve their employee dilemma, small cattle operations unable to hire full-time employees have come to rely on their family, neighbors, friends, and/or weekend cowboys to work either voluntarily or at reduced pay. Since lack of experience may come with utilizing this form of labor, everyone shouldn’t be expected to know what and how to do things simply because they are wearing a cowboy hat and/or their great granddad was a rancher. By taking the time to train and explain how things are done and employing patience a safer and more efficient work environment is created. Maintaining user-friendly facilities and cattle is paramount. Plan ahead by having the day’s needs and directions lined out in advance. Prepare to do less in a day and make the day’s job enjoyable, not drudgery. Keep in mind that 99% of success is attitude.

An integral part of agriculture involving the qualified and experienced labor pool of self-reliant, problem-solving self-starters is slowly diminish-ing. Today more and more of the population is being raised away from the rural agricultural lifestyle where livestock handling skills are learned at an early age. This is reducing the qualified agricultural labor pool. Produc-ing a safe and wholesome product for today’s consumer and raising cattle in a humane and environmentally friendly way is absolute in today’s age. By requiring all volunteer as well as paid employees to become Beef Qual-ity Assurance certified these accepted industry production practices are reinforced.

Through this monthly column our hope is to update those involved in the Nevada Livestock industry about the issues NCA is working on for our mission continues to be to promote, preserve and protect a dynamic and profitable Nevada beef industry. Should you like to visit with NCA staff or officers in person feel free to contact NCA at 775-738-9214 or my NCA e-mail address [email protected] 775-385-9214 or [email protected] and request a hard copy study manual and test.

Ron Torell, President Nevada Cattlemen’s Association - Joe Glascock, NCA BQA Committee Chairman and Coordinator

Become Nevada BeefQuality Assurance Certified

Joe Glascock, NCA BQA Committee Chairman and Coordinator

Cow-calf producers are the very first link in the production chain. You can take the first step in producing a wholesome and safe product by becoming Nevada BQA certified. By implementing BQA practices on your ranch you have made a commitment to

the industry goals of providing a safe and wholesome product to today’s con-sumer. BQA certification is voluntary and easy. The incentive is the personal satisfaction that you, as a beef producer, are doing everything in your power to produce a wholesome product. By becoming certified, you are increas-ing consumer confidence in your product: “Beef.” By increasing consumer confidence through your actions you will in turn increase demand for beef.

Nevada Beef Quality Assurance certification can easily be accomplished by visiting the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association web site http://www.nevada-cattlemen.org Click on the membership button then on the NCA policy/committee button. Nevada Beef Quality Assurance manuals as well as the printable test with certification instructions is easily accessible. You may also contact the NCA office at 775-385-9214 or [email protected] and request a hard copy study manual and test.


By Stephanie Licht, Nevada Cattlemen’s Association Executive Director

Initiates Young Beef Leader Program

Both Nevada Cattlemen’s Association (NCA) and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) are recognizing and placing a high degree of importance in focusing efforts to interest and recruit “Young Cattlemen” both in belonging to

and taking active roles in our beef industry organizations. Caterpillar sponsored an NCBA Young Beef Leader Roundtable Feb.

5 attended by representatives from 36 state and breed affiliate organizations as a state sharing forum and discussion of what the new program might include and how it would be conducted. From that meeting representatives from seven NCBA regions were elected to serve on a Steering Committee for the new program.

Amber Miller represented Nevada Cattlemen’s Association (Region VI) at the YBL Roundtable and was elected by her regional peer participants to also serve on the resultant Steering Committee. The first YBL Steering Committee meeting will be April 23-24, 2015 in the NCBA Denver Offices to establish the future direction of the program and develop a plan of work.

The NCBA Young Beef Leader program will place particular attention on creating a strong state/national partnership, with NCBA state and breed af-filiates playing a key role both in guiding the new program and in developing young leaders now and in the future. Funding and staff support from NCBA will make additional state initiatives possible. For more information about the program please contact Sara Arp, [email protected], PH (303) 850-3389 | C (303) 345-7997.

Introducing NCBA Region VIYoung Beef Leader - Amber Miller

Additional involvement for the couple includes membership in the Western Bison Association, several capacities of service in their Church, cheering Tanner and Holland on in their many activities, and involvement in various other local community groups. Additionally Amber enjoys the ranch wife life, cooking, pistol shooting and teaching the kids at home.

After returning from the National Cattlemen’s San Antonio Con-vention, Amber was chosen through the Nevada Cattlemen’s Executive Committee application process to serve as Ne-vada’s representative to the 2015 NCBA Young Cattlemen’s Conference (YCC) and Tour. New-mont Mining Corpora-tion is partnering with Nevada Cattlemen’s As-sociation in sponsoring Amber’s attendance in the program which runs from May 27 to June 4, 2015.

This prestigious national Young Cattle-men’s annual event has proven to be an effec-tive vehicle in identifying and developing potential industry leaders. The primary YCC objective is to cultivate leadership qualities in young cattle-men and women and ex-pose them to all aspects of the beef industry. The tour helps reinforce and increase understanding of all areas of the beef industry ranging from industry structure to issues management, from production research to marketing, and includes several days in Washington D C meeting with Congressional representatives. For an individual to participate in the YCC, he or she must be nominated by one of NCBA’s affiliate members, be between the ages of 25 to 50 and be an NCBA member.

Over 1,200 cattlemen and women have graduated from the Young Cattlemen’s Conference & Tour program since its inception in 1980. Many YCC alumni participate in committees and councils and even more serve on boards of directors. Several presidents and officers of NCBA and pre-decessor organizations have also participated in YCC. This program will continue to be a foundation of leadership training efforts within the cattle industry. For more details and a complete Tour Itinerary please visit http://www.beefusa.org/youngcattlemensconference.aspx

Fifth generation rancher Amber Miller grew up on the family’s cow/calf and dairy operation in Clark, Colorado where they also produced hay and oats. Following her Grandfather’s death the ranch was sold and Amber’s family moved to Elko,

Nevada where she attended High School. Amber then attended the University of Utah graduating with a

degree in Health, Exercise and Sports Science. Degree in hand Amber returned to Elko and married Travis

Miller, an eighth generation rancher, and the couple settled down in Lee, Nevada on the Gund Ranch where Travis was raised. Gund Ranch oper-ates a cow/calf operation with 500 head of mother cows, 50 head of Plains Buffalo and also raises 1,000 acres of meadow hay annually for which Travis and Amber are responsible. The couple has two children, Tanner and Holland.

Travis and Amber are active members of the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association, serving as Co-Chairs of the NCA Membership Committee, while Travis also serves as Chair of the Young Cattlemen’s Committee.

We are sorry for omitting Stephanie’s name from her poem last month!

Amber Miller


500 Commercial St.Elko, NV 89801

GarciaBits & Spurs

The gift that won’t be re-gifted!

Bit #122 $475NV. Sales tax 6.85%S&H $12

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NEVADASTALLION STAKES

& Elko County NRCHA

Stallion Nomination Deadline: August 1st

For More Information contact:JJ Roemmich 775-397-2769 or [email protected]

Nomination fee: $200.00

“All classes have herd work”Judge: Darren Miller, AQHA • NRCHA AAA

NRCHA Rules

www.elkocountyfair.com

Nomination deadline for inclusion in advertising - May 1stLate Nominations will be accepted from Aug 2nd - 28th with an additional

$100 late fee.

Entries forms available at www.elkocountyfair.com E-mail entries to [email protected]

Mail entries and payments to:Elko County Fair Board, PO Box 2067, Elko, NV 89803

Nevada Stallion Stakes Show Entry deadline: August 15thwith late entries accepted to Aug 28th with additional penalties

ECNRCHA Show Entry Deadline Aug 28th.

Elko County NRCHASPECTACULAR

NEVADA STALLION STAKES

AGED EVENTSFuturity - Derby - Hackamore

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August 29th-30th, Elko, Nevada

For details call (530) 347-3793 or the representative nearest you:

or email us at [email protected] for the catalog and pictures on

our website www.wvmcattle.com

Market your cattle with the professionals!

Mark VenturacciFallon, NV

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Steve LucasParadise Valley, NV

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Gary NolanElko, NV

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Brad Peek— (916) 802-7335

WATCH & LISTEN TO THE SALE on the Web at:

UPCOMiNG SALES

THURSDAY, MAY 21ST

Cottonwood, CA

FRIDAY, JUNE 12THCottonwood, CA

MON-WED, JULY 13TH-15THSilver Legacy Reno, NV

CALL NOW TO CONSIGN FOR THESE SALES.


Nevada RanchersCaretakers of ourRangelands

Nevada Rangeland Resources Commission was created bythe State of Nevada to promote responsible public land grazing. Representatives come from Nevada state grazing boards, Nevada

Woolgrowers, Nevada Farm Bureau, and Nevada Cattlemen’s Association.

4780 East Idaho Steet, Elko, NV 89801 • 775-738-4082WWW.NEVADARANGELANDS.ORG

Sheep often graze on steep terrain and can control cheatgrass, a

major fuel for wildfi res.

Grazing cattle and sheep coexist peacefully with native wildlife and, in fact, make a friendlier

habitat for many species.

Cowboys and sheepherders produce food and fi ber for the nation. Growing food

on Open range is a natural biological process.

Grazing actually benefi ts the land with hoof action and natural fertilization. Plants are healthier and regenerate faster after the herds move to a new range.

Antelope and other game animals and birds take

advantage of the improvements

This ad is funded through the NRRC’s assessment of 10 cents an AUM paid by public land ranchers.

Nevada Rangeland Resources Commission Sets Budget to Help Promote Public Land Grazing

Each year the Nevada Rangeland Resource Commission (NRRC) meets and sets their budget priorities for the up-coming year. This year the NRRC will be partnering and funding the following organization’s activities, which are

consistent with the NRRC’s mission to reach out to the public and help them understand the value of public land grazing.

Golden Productions The focus is to develop a fifth documentary in “The Stewards of the

Rangeland” series, the most award-winning in KNPB history, earning a total of 5 Tellys and International Communicator awards. The docu-mentaries have aired annually on northern Nevada’s PBS affiliate sta-tion KNPB since 2011. All four previous 60 minute documentaries were produced by Golden Productions, aired by KNPB and funded by the NRRC. The primary mission is to visually portray a better understand-ing of the crucial role the industry of agriculture plays in the utilization of the natural resources on the nation’s public lands.

Range MagazineA powerful advocate in journalism will continue to disseminate

information about the use, care and maintenance of natural resources. Range will renew 500 gift subscriptions for doctors’ and attorneys’ of-fices back east, which will say “Compliments of Nevada ranchers.” All four issues of Range will have a full color and full-page ad. Addition-ally, Range’s new book “The M Bar” by Harry Webb will be mail ed to all 650 Nevada libraries for art, literature and history classes.

Great Basin Water NetworkFor the past 5 years, the Network has worked vigorously to oppose

SNWA’s massive water exportation project. Their goal being to educate as many rural and urban people about the economic, environmental, and social impacts of the proposed SNWA project

as well as legally respond to court rulings. They have many out-reach tools through their social media outlets, but they do disseminate a newsletter called the “Water Grab” as well. More information can be acquired at GreatBasinWaterNetwork.org.

The Progressive RancherFounded in 2001 to honor agricultural traditions, while embracing

modern education; the NRRC will continue to inform readers of its’ activi-

ties through this magazine. The audience is affected financially by the health of Nevada Rangelands therefore we will continue to educate the readers both in the magazine and on the internet as to how the livestock industry continues to improve and steward the land.

KNPB continues its award winning tradition by earning a bronze Telly Award for Stewards of the Rangeland 4, Range-land Under Fire! This brings the total number of awards

to 6 earned by this series, which is the most award-winning series in KNPB’s 32 year history. The award was given in the TV/film documen-tary category.

Thank you for the great work, Dennis Golden has done and the NRRC believes strongly these important stories should continue to be told.

Good News from Rachel Buzzeti


We have 4 cattle trains available for your cattle

hauling needs.We can haul approx. 80,000# of cattle

per load either to our sale or in the country. Give us a call for pricing.

TO ALL OF OURCONSiGNORS & BUYERS

NEXTFeederSALEin conjunction with our

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Feed Bunk CaféOpen on Sale Days from 8-2

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Full-Service Cattle Sales & Marketing serving the Fallon, Nevada and Outlying Areas.

OFFICE: 775-423-7760JACK PAYNE Cell: 775-217-9273

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Small Barn at 10:30 AMButcher Cows at 11:30 AMFeeder Cattle at 1:00 PM

SALEEvery Wednesday

Thursday, April 16th

Sales Results fromAPRiL 15th 2015

REGULAR BUTCHER COW AND BULL SALE

Sales Results from April 16th 2015Feeder Sales

Seller City # Desc Weight Price CWT

J & C Sestanovich Eur 1 BBF 1010 $140.00Deanna Porter Oro 1 SHRT

HRN870 $140.00

Michael and Norma White Win 1 BBF 1085 $138.50Roger and Nancy Johnson Win 1 BLK 1335 $115.00Salvador Galindo Imlay 1 BLK 1055 $113.00Juniper Mountain Fallon 1 BLK 1265 $120.00Juniper Mountain Fallon 1 BLK 1165 $116.00Juniper Mountain Fallon 1 BBF 1245 $115.00John Ascuaga Carson 1 BLK 1365 $114.00Wm & Susan & Clint Cham-bers

Fallon 1 BLK 1375 $111.50

Diamond Cattle Eur 1 RBF 1200 $109.00Lee Hutchens JR Fallon 4 WF 1653 $109.00Oasis Dairy Fallon 1 BLK 1335 $108.00Aaron and Donnell Williams Fallon 1 RED 1460 $107.50Raul Santos Fallon 18 BLK 1454 $106.75Wilson Ranch Win 1 BLK 1265 $106.00John and Vella Torvik Fallon 1 BLK 1050 $105.50Anthony Perchetti Tono 1 BRDL 950 $105.00Kenny and Flint Lee Fallon 1 GR 970 $101.50Luz Coronado Fallon 1 BLK 1210 $101.00Desert Hills Dairy Yering 2 HOL 2100 $112.00Hi Test Products Fallon 1 HOL 2140 $105.00Oasis Dairy Fallon 1 HOL 1820 $104.00

Jeff Whitaker Fallon 1 HOL 1470 $103.00Jessie Rose Dairy Fallon 1 HOL 1850 $100.00Sandhill Dairy Fallon 1 HOL 1610 $99.00Lacas Vacas Fallon 1 HOL 1675 $98.00Phil Regli Fallon 1 HOL 1565 $94.00Scott Regli Fallon 1 HOL 1355 $93.00Lori Johnson Fallon 1 HOL 1685 $93.00Hillside Dairy Fallon 1 HOL 1160 $70.00Roger and Nancy Johnson Win 1 BLK 1780 $124.00R & F Buckingham PV 7 BLK 1689 $119.00Triple D Ranches Dyer 1 BLK 1025 $118.00Walter and Sonja Winder Fallon 1 BLK 1770 $117.00John Young Mn 1 BRDL 1350 $116.50

Michael and Claudia Casey Fallon 1 BLK 1140 $113.00Phillip Amos Fallon 1 BLK 1295 $110.00

Seller City # Desc Weight Price CWT

Aaron and Donnell Williams Fallon 2 Pairs 1333 2750/HD

Aaron and Donnell Williams Fallon 7 Pairs 1406 2325/HD

Aaron and Donnell Williams Fallon 4 MIX 1334 1550/HD

Tommy Lee Livestock Fallon 2 BLK 1285 1500/HD

Kyle Hendrix Austin 2 BLK 238 $345.00

James Sr and James Jr Talbott SSprings 3 BLK 418 $290.00

Salvador Galindo Imlay 1 BLK 380 $273.00

Ira and Montira Renner SCreek 3 RED 408 $265.00

Archie and Vicki Osbourne Eagl 11 MIX 468 $264.00

Tracy Clark Reno 9 BLK 598 $264.00

JR Family Ranch Cedar 14 MIX 564 $262.00

Deanna Porter Orovada 7 RED 541 $261.00

Windy R Ranch WashV 2 RBF 318 $255.00

Roger and Nancy Johnson Win 5 BLK 572 $251.00

Ken and Patty Julian Fallon 3 BLK 537 $250.00

Elwood and Deland Ryan Hinkey McDer 2 MIX 458 $240.00

Jerry and Nancy Harper PValley 2 MIX 628 $236.00

Bert and Jill Paris Battle M 6 MIX 608 $231.00

Scott Humphrey Milford 7 MIX 374 $229.00

Aaron and Donnell Williams Fallon 1 RED 500 $225.00

Double Horsehoe LLC Win 1 BLRN 545 $225.00

Triple D Ranches Dyer 4 MIX 596 $223.00

Joe Tibbals Yeri 5 BLK 654 $220.50

Richard Rasasco Golconda 5 BLK 700 $210.00

C Punch Ranch Lovelock 4 BLK 764 $205.00

Hussman Land and Livestock Gardner 4 BBF 766 $205.00

Kenny and Flint Lee Fallon 5 MIX 759 $203.00

Robert and Fred Buckingham P Valley 5 MIX 783 $202.00

Bidwell Ranch Win 2 BLK 760 $152.00

Oasis Dairy Fallon 7 HOL 1586 $118.00

James Sr and James Jr Talbott SSprings 6 MIX 339 $272.50

Ken and Patty Julian Fallon 2 BLK 440 $258.00

Archie and Vicki Osbourne Eagleville 10 MIX 432 $254.00

JR Family Ranch Cedarville 17 MIX 584 $248.50

Stix Cattle Co Fernley 16 MIX 561 $240.00

Ira and Montira Renner SCreek 2 RED 443 $236.00

Windy R Ranch Washoe V 2 MIX 345 $236.00

Michael and Norma White Win 2 BLK 590 $225.00

Triple D Ranches Dyer 16 MIX 636 $224.50

Deanna Porter Orovada 2 MIX 540 $222.00

Walter and Sonja Winder Fallon 5 BLK 647 $220.00

Will Cockrell Cedarville 5 BLK 619 $218.00

Jersey Valley Cattle Co Win 33 BLK 670 $216.50

Jock and Tammy McErquiaga Fallon 2 LHNX 443 $215.00

Pete Lazetich Reno 3 BLK 735 $197.50

Peraldo Brothers Fallon 3 BLK 750 $196.00

Richard Rasasco Golconda 2 MIX 743 $188.00

Double Horseshoe LLC Win 1 BBF 740 $185.00

Carolyn and Stacy Drayton Ely 6 MIX 475 $184.00

Jerry And Nancy Harper PValley 3 MIX 672 $180.00

Diamond Cattle Co Eureka 6 BLK 980 $156.00


By Joseph Guild

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers”. Many of you recognize this quote as the first line in the speech given by King Henry V, from Shakespeare’s play of the same name where Henry urges his troops to battle against the French at Agincourt. The English were vastly outnum-

bered that day but they prevailed and defeated the French army against all odds. I thought of this speech recently as I was flying back from Washington D. C. where I attended the NCBA 2015 Spring Legislative Conference.

At that meeting we heard form Dan Ashe, the head of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tom Tidwell the Chief of the U.S. Forest Service and high ranking administrators from the Bureau of Land Management. We also met with Nevada’s Congressional delegation and their staff. I wondered after this trip about how many people there are in the US Government with an ability to impact agriculture in this country whether positively or negatively.

There are 535 members of Congress and about 25,000 staff members in Congress. The BLM has over 11,500 employees and the U.S. Forest Service about 35,000. There are 9,000 employees at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the EPA has about 17,000 people at work. Finally, at the United States Department of Agriculture minus the Forest service there are about 70,000 employees for a ratio of approximately 1 USDA employee for every 18 US farm-ers. I have left off the President and his direct White House staff so I am sure I’ve forgotten some others who could be included, but for the purposes of this discussion the grand total is about 170,000 government employees give or take a few thousand. These are the ones, in my opinion, who have the most direct impact on America’s agriculture.

The U.S. has about 2 million full time farmers and ranchers which equals less than 2% of our total population. And, as we all know, that 2% feeds a whole lot of people in America and around the world. That is not my point. There are approximately 85% more people in direct production agriculture than there are Members of Congress and employees helping to make policy or regulations af-fecting agriculture. Why is this important? They need us. The country needs us. The world needs us. And these folks do not just need us to feed them.

Here is what Dan Ashe, the head of the Fish and Wildlife Service, said re-cently in Washington D.C. “American Agriculture is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s ally. We all need to work with the Natural Resource Conservation Service to use the landscape more wisely.” The implication I took away from this speech was if we wisely use the “working landscapes” we can feed our-selves, provide habitat for wildlife and protect the environment. To me, it was an admission there are not enough people in Government to do all these jobs of protection and regulating. Without the rancher and farmer out on the land the government has an impossible job. I have heard similar statements over the years from others in Washington, but it wasn’t until now that I finally realized how profound this is.

Here are a few more numbers to provide more context for the point I am

making. The U.S. has about 2.3 billion acres of land which includes about 450 million acres of cropland, 590 million acres of grasslands, pasture and rangeland and 650 million acres of forest. So, almost 75% of the land area of the U.S. is rural in character and used primarily as a resource by humans for some future consumptive purpose as much as detractors and critics of this use must hate to admit.

Without farmers and ranchers, including those ranchers who use the pub-lic rangelands for grazing livestock, using this land to make a living, the land would not be cared for because there simply is not a big enough government with an incentive to take care of our precious resources. As much as an urban or suburban dweller “cares” about the environment they really do not have the time or a sufficient incentive to do the job of America’s farmers and ranchers. Dan Ashe admitted as much just a few weeks ago to a roomful of western ranchers.

There is obviously an environmental ethic in this country. I do not think this is a bad thing. For most of the population to realize man has an impact on the environment we live in is a positive and potentially productive thing. For a very long time in the history of the human race natural resources have been exploited to the detriment of those resources, without regard to the long-term impact which could affect the productivity and sustainability of these resources.

Things have changed and I firmly believe that farmers and ranchers have led the way in implementing positive changes in their practices which could be an example for others. There is no question the western ranges were overgrazed for about 60 years after the civil war. There is no question that some improper farming practices exacerbated the impacts of the drought during the dust bowl years of the 1930s.

The problem is the same as it has always been. The agricultural sector has a hard time publicizing the positive things it does. Ranchers no longer overgraze. Instead, they employ rest rotation techniques and monitor the animals using the resource. Farmers no longer plow fields in a way that helps to destroy the very soil they depend upon for a livelihood. The genetics of plants and animals have improved so both are now more efficient in their use of the natural resources they depend upon for survival.

The many citizens who stayed in their warm beds by their fires in England needed the few who went to battle and prevailed in the battle at Agincourt against the French. The citizens of the United States need the few in agricul-ture for food, fiber and a continued abundant, safe and relatively inexpensive food supply. Of this fact there can be no contravention whatsoever. However, they also need us as the front line protectors of the soil, water, rangelands and forests. They need us to take care of the open spaces so wildlife and clean air and uninterrupted natural vistas can give them a sense of peace and quiet all humans desire.

I hope they all wake up soon with full bellies and make this vital connection to who is really looking out for them and their needs. I’ll see you soon.


Greetings from the Elko County CattleWomen. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to our new Officers that were sworn in on October 9, 2014:

• Shelly Satterthwaite-President• Ruthe Agee- President Elect• Kimberly Satterthwaite-Secretary• Rachel Buzzetti- Treasurer• Kathi Wines-Historian• Janice Connelly-ParliamentarianThe Elko County CattleWomen is comprised of a dedicated, hard-

working group of women that care deeply about the ranching community and the beef industry. We have several fundraising events that we put on through the fall and winter, and would like to share what those events are and what the funds are used for.

Starting in November we had the Machi’s Fundraiser Dinner, chaired by Angie Heguy, in which tickets were sold and Machi’s restuarant owner, John Lemich, puts on an amazing dinner using recipes from the Elko Co. CattleWomen’s Cookbook. The proceeds then go to purchasing beef roasts for our Beef for Seniors charity, chaired by Lorey Eldridge. The beef is personally delivered by Lorey Eldridge to our Senior Centers throughout Elko County in December.

December is a busy time for our members. This is when we host the Holiday Tour of Homes Fundraiser, chaired by Rachel Buzzetti and Kathi Wines. It was featured on KENV Chanel 10. This is a very popular and well attended fundraiser. We have had the most generous and gra-cious homeowner’s kindly volunteer to decorate and share their charm-ing homes with the public every year. The tickets are sold at designated locations in mid-November. Ticket holders are then given a map and addresses to the 4 homes showcased in the tour. The event took place on December 6, 2014 in the evening. Ticket holders arrived at the homes and were greeted with beef appetizers, hot chocolate and more, provided and served by the ECCW and the homeowners, along with the tour of these festive and beautifully decorated homes. It always makes for an inspiring evening and creates an environment that gets everyone into the holiday spirit. The proceeds from this event go into our budget for purchasing future donation items, expenses and scholarships.

On to January where we celebrate the birth of Elko’s First Baby Born in the New Year, chaired by Sidney Wintermote. The family and new baby were presented with a gift basket full of goodies at the hospital. Our 2015 Baby New Year belongs to Eddie Lewis and Mariah Mouse of Elko. A daughter born at 10:09am New Year’s morning, weighing 8lbs, 6oz and measured 21 inches. A picture of the proud parents, baby girl, their NNRH nurse and Sidney Wintermote was featured in the Elko Daily Free Press.

We were also involved during the Cowboy Poetry Gathering that took place the last week of January this year. Elko Co. CattleWomen don our traditional red aprons to provide and serve our famous “Cowbell’s Meatballs” in three mouthwatering flavors, BBQ, homemade Marinara and homemade Sweet and Sour Sauces. This event is for the Western Folklife Center Member Appreciation Reception held in the GThreeBar Theater, chaired by Shelly Satterthwaite. It’s an evening full of good food, drink, laughter and entertainment. For many that we serve this is an event that they wholeheartedly look forward to, as we are told, there are no meatballs as good as ours! We sincerely appreciate the support from Amy Mills and the staff at the Western Folklife Center every year.

February is set as our “Beef Month” Promotion. This is a perfect time for us to advertise on the radio and through social media to bring awareness of the goodness of beef. Not to mention the hard work and sacrifice that is involved in raising cattle and what goes into getting it from the ranch to your dinner plate. As part of this promotion the Mayor of Elko, Chris Johnson, read a Proclamation during a meeting at City Hall, proclaiming February 2015 as Beef Month. ECCW member and past president, Sidney Wintermote and current ECCW president, Shelly Satterthwaite presented the Mayor with a Tri Tip Roast to commemorate Beef Month and in appreciation of his support.

On March 7, 2015 the Elko County CattleWomen provided salads and desserts for AG in the Classroom for Elko County teachers who chose to participate. Sharon Slagowski was in charge of this event. The luncheon was held at the Gallagher Ranch in Lamoille. Barbequed Tri Tip Beef was served by Mike and Tana Gallagher. We appreciated being part of this wonderful opportunity to share in the education of farm and ranch life with our area teachers.

We have Scholarships! We are currently accepting applications for 3- $500 scholarships to be awarded to eligible Elko County High School seniors. We ask that interested seniors contact their school guidance counselors for more information. We also have the requirements posted on our Facebook page under Elko Co. CattleWomen.

April brings us to our annual Mother of the Year/Businessman of the Year Banquet. The officers of the ECCW voted at our January meeting and decided on a CattleWoman who we felt best deserved the Mother of the Year award and also voted on who we felt best deserved our Business-man of the Year award. The Banquet will held on Wednesday April 22nd at 5:00pm at the Western Folklife Center in Elko. There will be a catered dinner thanks to Ramone Zugazaga, previous owner of the Basque res-taurant, Biltokis. Plaques will be presented to those nominated for the award. This Banquet is reserved for our award winners, their families and members of the Elko Co. Cattlewomen exclusively.

It must be mentioned that in our group of amazing and talented la-dies, we are fortunate enough to have several that are “Tech Savvy”. As a result of their dedication to CattleWomen’s we are now active on the social media sites Facebook and Instagram! Please take a few minutes to check us out and like our page/follow us and let us know what you think! We are posting great information on beef as well as our own news and upcoming events.

We have a limited number of our Elko County CattleWomen’s Cook-books available for sale. They make a memorable gift or favorite addition to your cookbook collection. All the recipes gathered within are from lo-cal ranch families. This unique cookbook is full of old photos, historical information, stories and poems. Please call Shelly Satterthwaite at 775-340-1050 for more information. They are also available for purchase at the Northern Nevada Museum, the Western Folklife Center, Evergreen Floral Shop or Cucina Fresca.

Lastly we would gladly welcome any women, involved in ranching or not, to join us in becoming a member of the Elko County CattleWomen. We are always looking for women who share our ideals and have an inter-est in supporting ranching, agriculture, farming and local/national poli-cies that affect our lands and our rights. Contact Shelly Satterthwaite at 775-340-1050 for more information.

We are thankful for the legacy that has been left to us to continue. It is a wonderful opportunity to learn and grow as members and to serve our families, friends and community.


Beef Ambassadors Named!

Bailey Kel ton Kerst in Christ iansen

&

Youth from around the state competed in the Ne-vada Beef Ambassador contest on April 7, 2015 in Mesquite, Nevada. The contest was sponsored by the Nevada CattleWomen and the Nevada Beef Council and hosted by the Virgin Valley

FFA Chapter. The event was held to right before the kickoff of the Clark County Fair. Students competed in three areas: consumer promotion, media interview, and a written issues response. The purpose of the contest is to help prepare the upcoming generation in telling the beef story to consumers and the interested public and ultimately becoming spokes-people for the beef community.

Bailey Kelton of Yerington, was selected as the senior contest winner (ages 17-20), and was awarded $200 and an expenses paid trip to com-pete at the national contest in Denver in September. Bailey Bailey is a junior at Smith Valley High School and holds a 4.15 cumulative GPA. She has grown up on her family’s registered Polled Hereford ranch. A mem-ber of Smith Valley FFA, she loves to show within American Hereford Association and strives to keep improving her herd at home. Her plans after high school are to continue showing professionally with her cattle while attending the University of Nevada for her bachelor’s degree. After that she plans to enter veterinary school and practice as a large animal veterinarian. Bailey will compete in September to try and become one of the top five winners at the National contest in Denver. The top five win-ners will become the 2015 National Beef Ambassador team, each earning $1000 in scholarships and paid trips to promote beef across the nation.

Kerstin Christiansen of Winnemucca Nevada was selected as the ju-nior contest winner (ages 12-16), and received $100 for her performance in the contest. Kerstin is a 15-year old freshman at Lowry High school. She is currently a 4-H state and county ambassador, shows sheep and pigs, and is a member of the crafts, record book, livestock judging, and skillathon clubs. Kerstin is the greenhand treasurer of the Winnemucca

FFA Chapter and competes in livestock judging, horse judging, and creed speaking. Kerstin is also a member of the Humboldt County High School rodeo club and competes in barrel racing, pole bending, and is in train-ing for reined cow horse. Her future plans are to attend University of Wyoming and study veterinary science.

The coordinator for the contest this year was Tracy Shane, Nevada Cattlewomen president. Barbara Byington, past president of NV Cattle-Women served as one of the judges. Other judges included Jill Scofield of the Nevada/California Beef Council, and Lacey Sproul from University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. JeriLynn Benell, agriculture teacher and advisor of Virgin Valley FFA graciously opened her classroom to the CattleWomen for this contest.

The contest was made possible through sponsorships from the Ne-vada CattleWomen, Inc. and the Nevada Beef Council. Contestants also received Beef- It’s What’s For Dinner swag bags from the Nevada Beef Council. Both girls are eligible to compete in the National Beef Ambas-sador contest and will receive coaching from Beef Council and Cattle-Women members as well as through completion of the Master’s of Beef Advocacy 2.0 online program, available from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association through funding from the Beef Checkoff. Both girls will be helping the Nevada CattleWomen in their mission to promote beef and educate youth and consumers about beef production. We are so proud to have these ladies as part of our team!

The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. The checkoff assessment became mandatory when the program was approved by 79 percent of producers in a 1988 na-tional referendum vote. Checkoff revenues may be used for promotion, education and research programs to improve the marketing climate for beef. The CBB’s 104 members are appointed by and held accountable to the Secretary of Agriculture. Board members represent all segments of the beef industry, including beef, veal and dairy producers, and import-ers. For more information, visit http://www.beefboard.org.

Harmony Ranch Ministry3767 Keyes Way (775) 867-3100Fallon, NV 89406 [email protected] Cell (775) 426-1107

Tom J. Gonzalez | Diana J. Gonzalez, Pastor

You are invited to

COWBOY CHURCH!1st Saturday of every month

Standish, CA @ 6:00 p.m.

Hwy. 395 /A3 — Standish 4-H Hall

You are invited to

COWBOY CHURCH!3rd Saturday of every month

Lovelock, NV @ 7:00 p.m.

1035 Cornell Ave. — Old Variety Store

Are you having a Rodeo or Livestock event? Give Us A CAll.We would love to come to your event or ranch and host Cowboy Church for you.


t

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Fallon Livestock Exchange, Inc.2055 Trento Lane • Fallon, Nevada 89406 • 775-867-2020

See you and your Friends at Ringside Soon!

www.fallonlivestock.com

TOP OFFERINGSWeight Steers Heifers

300-400 325.00-362.50 307.70-350.00400-500 324.00-350.00 267.86-307.00500-600 268.47-310.00 238.15-260.00600-700 241.85-256.00 209.17-224.00700-800 194.16-214.00 194.00-204.00800-900 185.59-196.00 183.90-189.00Lite Holstein (under 600#) 130.00-156.00Heavy Holstein (over 600#) 110.00-122.00

*Single, small framed or plainer cattle40.00 to 70.00 less than top offerings

BUTCHER COWS & BULLSBreakers (Fat Cows) 92.00-100.00Boners (Med Flesh) 100.00-110.00Cutters (Lean) 70.00-80.00Holstein Cows 60.00-80.00Butcher Bulls 95.00-128.50Shelly (Thin) Bulls 75.00-85.00Shelly Cutters (Thin) 20.00-40.00Young Feeder Cows 95.00-117.00Heiferettes 95.00-120.00Holstein Heiferettes 102.00-125.00Holstein Bulls NTFeeder Bulls 85.00-95.00Cutting Bulls 95.00-120.00Used Roping Steers 80.00-100.00Preg Tested Cows(3, 4, 5 yr. old solid mouth) 1700.00-2350.00

Bred Heifers (6 to 7 months bred) NTPairs (solid mouth) 4-5 yrs NTPairs (older) NT

CALVES-SHEEP-GOATS-PIGS-HORSESBeef Calves (HD) 150.00-585.00Dairy Calves 2.00-70.00Feeder Lambs 150.00-190.00Fat Lambs 140.00-170.00Ewes (CWT) Top End 40.00-70.00Bucks (CWT) Top End 40.00-60.00Small Goats (under 65 lbs.) (HD) 30.00-95.00Large Goats (over 70 lbs.) (HD) 95.00-150.00Weaner Pigs 45.00-110.00Feeder Pigs 60.00-130.00Top Hogs 75.00-91.50Butcher Sows 20.00-45.00Horses (under 1100 lbs.) 10.00-20.00Horses (over 1100 lbs.) 25.00-35.00

TODAY’S COWSAvg. Wt Avg. Cost

Top Cow 1560 117.50Top 10 Cows 1396 114.67Top 50 Cows 1220 106.23Top 100 Cows 1119 101.64Top Butcher Bull 1905 127.00Top Holstein Cows 1600 96.00

MARKET TREND:Feeder cattle sold on extreamely hot market, $10.00-$30.00 higher, 100% country, one owner cattle, quality ran deep where the buyers liked what they saw on the same kind de-pending on quality, fl esh and fi ll. Fallen livestock is a key mar-ket for the industry, where buyers and sellers meet each week with a professional staff with over 50 years of experience in marketing livestock.PLEASE call us ahead with your consignments. It helps us market your cattle. We talk to buyers all the time - they want to know what’s coming in. We are seeing good demand on weigh up cows & bulls. It sure makes a big difference on how they are sorted. Ranchers, don’t send your cows directly to kill right now, most cows will bring a premium over kill price. To feed or go back to the country call us for details! Let our crew sort and class your cows. This will help you receive full market value for your cows.

MARKET REPORTMarch 10th, 2015

The market is strong right now. Buyers are looking for cattle, so call us today and consign your

good cattle.Call for further information or toarrange your trucking needs.

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a like!


TALKING ABOUT NCBAJoe Guild, 6th Region Vice President

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association recent-ly held its annual Spring Conference in our na-tion’s capital. Ron Cerri, JJ Goicoechea and I at-tended for the week of meetings, conferences and

discussions related to the burning issues of the day affecting ranching. I can tell you spending a week in Washington D.C. is like spending a month on the ranch. The frenetic pace and energy of the place can really wear a person down. But that is where many of the issues which impact the livestock industry are decided every day. Thus, it is vital the livestock industry is represented before Congress and the agencies. As I have written many times before, if you are not at the table you will likely be on the menu.

In fact, to support this opinion, Congressman Mark Amodei, Republican from Nevada, was recently quoted in the Reno Gazette Journal as saying; “ And I’ve got to tell you: the work is important to me, but the culture [Washington D. C.] sucks. “Always outspoken and pointed in his remarks, he pretty much sums it up.

The evidence is everywhere in the Capital. The partisanship overrides everything else. Regulators forget they work for all the people and not just whoever happens to occupy the White House at any given time. There are some signs that the new Congress under Republi-can leadership in both houses is moving more legislation and is trying to accomplish things which have been stuck in a Congressional log jam for a long time. Whether the efforts of this Congress will be supported by the President is another as yet unanswered question but at least the legislative branch is in an action frame of mind.

A good example of regulator overreach is the Clean Water Act revisions sought by the Environmental Protection Agency about which I have previously written in great detail. In the face of unprecedented concern and opposition from Congress, the farming and ranching industries and numerous other concerned groups, the EPA Adminis-trator, Gina McCarthy is moving forward with the new rule. She as-sures agriculture that the rule will not result in new encroachments of federal jurisdiction over ranch and farm land despite the evidence to the contrary on the face of the rule. She also tells anyone who will lis-ten the EPA consulted with agriculture to craft the new rule when the overwhelming evidence is the opposite. I have seen her speak in person and her arrogance is only overshadowed by her insincerity.

Nevertheless, in spite of the opposition to the point of view of western ranching by some in Washington, it is always impressive to see a few hundred cowboy hats walking the halls of Congress and express-ing our point of view. We were warmly welcomed by Nevada’s members of Congress and their staff as we made our rounds. Nevada agriculture has a good story to tell and I believe we told it. For instance, I bet you did not know that almost $1 billion is spent on beef in Nevada each year. On average every American spends over $350 per year on beef products. That is a huge dollar economic impact.

Other issues discussed during the week were the faulty dietary guidelines recently put out for review which leave beef off the plate,

efforts by the USDA to allow the import of live beef from Argentina and Brazil which we all know still have foot and mouth disease which we eradicated in this country decades ago, Endangered Species Act reform, elimination of the Death Tax; and, closer to home, sage grouse, wild horses the lingering drought, reform of the Equal Access to Jus-tice Act to prevent the use of this Act by radical environmental groups to fund their next lawsuit against legitimate agricultural interests and many others. Whew! As I have said many times before, NCBA’s pres-ence in Washington D.C. is vital and necessary and the staff there does a tremendous job representing the beef industry.

An example of an issue front and center while we were in D.C. was the renewal of Trade Protection Authority legislation being con-sidered in a bill before Congress. This legislation had bi-partisan and Presidential support. In short, it authorizes the President to negotiate trade agreements to open up overseas markets for American goods while consulting with Congress. Once negotiated, congress can only accept or reject the agreement. The authority streamlines the process. The ultimate goal is to make American beef available in more places around the world. After all, recent studies show that exports add about $350 of value to each head of cattle sold in the US. The Washington staff briefed all of us thoroughly on this and other issues and provided us with talking point papers to leave in the Congressional offices.

The Public Lands Council and the NCBA Executive Committee also held day long meetings during the week in Washington. During the NCBA meeting we discussed updates to the beef industry long range plan which is constantly improved by NCBA staff and officers to try and stay ahead of the curve on issues and developments affecting the beef industry. Components of this plan include expanding trade op-portunities, strengthening beef’s image with consumers and vigilance on the industry’s freedom to operate with as little governmental and outside interference as possible.

Another issue being discussed by myself and a group of partici-pants from all sectors of the beef industry is whether to increase NCBA dues to keep up with the myriad of issues facing the industry and the inflationary factors which have diminished the dues dollar buying power in the last few years since the last increase. It seems more staff is needed in Washington D.C. to keep up with all of the work there and the attacks on agriculture from misguided but well- fed people who do not understand where their food comes from.

Of course, most readers of this publication could guess what was on the PLC agenda. Everything you could think of related to public land issues occurring in Washington and the west was discussed at length. Reports were heard from land management agency heads which is always pretty illuminating. (I will discuss this in more detail in Eye on the Outside elsewhere in this publication.)

Needless to say, the reasons are sound for such trips to Wash-ington D.C. and for the beef industry to have a strong presence in our nation’s capital.

I hope I’ll see you soon at one of these off the ranch meetings.


Nevada Farm Bureau

NVFB Board Members Advocate for Agriculture in Washington D.C.

Nevada Farm Bureau

By Austin Wright and Jessica Fagundes,

In February 2015, Nevada Farm Bureau Vice President Bevan Lister, Executive Vice President Clay McCauley and Lyon County President Darrell Pursel visited Washington, D.C. for the Issues Advisory Committee (IAC), Advocacy Conference and visits with

Nevada’s Congressional delegation. During the Issues Advisory Committee, Lister and Pursel met with

members from other Farm Bureaus to discuss pressing issues for American agriculturists. Lister sat on the Federal Lands Committee and Pursel sat on the Irrigation Committee.

“The meeting provided interest-ing insights into what we deal with as agriculturists,” Lister said, adding that the members from the western states faced more struggles with federal land issues than the eastern state committee members.

“Everyone has water issues, but none of them are the same,” Pursel said. “It is going to be a big process for us.”

Each of the Issue Advisory committees will develop suggestions to solve their issues, and those suggestions will be passed on to the American Farm Bureau Federation Board of Directors.

The IAC brought together 14 committees to discuss important issues in agriculture. IAC topics included: agricultural labor, budget and economy, energy, farm policy, federal lands, market struc-tures, trade, animal care, environmental regulations, food safety, irrigation, pests and invasive species, public infrastructure and technology. These top-ics are evaluated yearly to ensure the most relevant and important issues are being discussed.

After the committee meetings, IAC members attended the AFBF Ad-vocacy Conference. Farm Bureau presidents, administrators, key staff and grassroots leaders were present and received updates on AFBF priority is-sues and participated in advocacy activities on Capitol Hill.

“The conference had many great speakers and it was a lot of fun to hear their insights on advocacy in the agriculture community,” Pursel said.

After attending the IAC and the Advocacy conference, Lister, Pursel and McCauley visited with Nevada’s Congressional delegates and staff at the capitol. They met personally with Senator Dean Heller, Representative Mark Amodei, Representative Joseph Heck and Representative Cresent Hardy. In addition, they visited with the staff of Senator Harry Reid and Representa-tive Dina Titus.h

“Most of the legislators were very receptive and well informed on what is happening and what is ahead for Nevada agriculture,” Lister said.

Farmers & Ranchers of Nevada: “It’s how we get there that matters most”

Woody Worthington served 15 years in the Marines, but the majority of his life he had been involved in ranching. Yet, it wasn’t until he met Don Bently, of Bently Ranch, that he would fill his largest ranching position.

During an intervietw with Worthington, Bently began with this, “I need a marine to run my logistics; what do you got?” Just a few hours later, Worthing-ton was hired as the new operations manager at Bently Ranch. Nine years after the fact, Worthington has become a key resource at Bently and the surrounding community.

“I control the chaos,” Worthington says. “Ensure logistics things are deliv-ered, ensure things are here and basically just keeping the ranch running for the most part.”

Bently Ranch is a large operation, and Worthington’s daily tasks could take up an article of their own. The ranch has 5,000 acres dedicated to alfalfa, a cow-calf operation, a grass-fed beef operation, a composting facility - Nevada’s largest and a recently started distilling business. With the new step into the alcohol industry, Bently Ranch started growing all the ingredients that will go into their alcohols including corn, wheat, barley, oats and rye. Worthington oversees and is involved in all of these operations.

Bently Ranch also has a large concentration of tractors and equipment, including the largest fleet of Polaris Ranger vehicles on the West Coast of

which Worthington oversees the maintenance. The business is also involved in the local community by col-lecting bio-mass waste from local homes, businesses and construction sites for their composting facility, a process Worthington manages.

A unique blend of progressive and traditional ranching makes up Bently Ranch’s daily operation. Progressively speaking, they send away plant-tissue and dirt samples to determine exactly what nutrients are missing in their plants and soil. They use a completely automated watering system that is de-signed to make the most out of every drop of water, and they utilize their own composting facility to create fertilizer that is used for crop rotation. However, some things just aren’t worth updating.

“If it works really well conventionally, and we can’t save a buck doing it a different way, then we are going to leave it to conventional farming,” says Worthington.

Recently elected as Douglas County Farm Bureau President, Worthington applies his ranching knowledge to the surrounding community in more ways than one might first think.

“Douglas County is interesting; you have ranching and farming, but you also have Premier Golf Course, and you have Starbucks, and you have Micro-del,” Worthington says. “With the diversity here in Douglas, I felt that maybe, being at Bently, I could incorporate and bring some farming and ranching perspective.“

By Austin Wright, Nevada Farm Bureau Intern


Nevada Farm BureauNevada Farm BureauWorthington reaches out to the surrounding businesses in the Douglas

community with ideas about water-conserving sprinkler systems, recycling and agriculture in the classroom. Being a part of both the Farm Bureau and Bently Ranch, Worthington values the communication opportunities that have opened up as a result.

“With farming and ranching, you’re going to run into someone you know,” Worthington says. “We’re state of the art farming, so a lot of people come to us for resources, and I can bring that to the Farm Bureau. It’s more of a com-munication thing that has helped me out.”

Worthington started out in Farm Bureau as a member of COUNTRY Financial Insurance, but was compelled to play a more active role in the orga-nization after watching his wife, Jennifer, teach at Pau-Wa-Lu Middle School. Worthington noticed a gap between young people and agriculture and began to get more actively involved.

“Just seeing the disconnect in the school to actual agriculture made me recognize the problem,” Worthington says. “And I said, ‘man someone has to be involved actively in that.’ I have a lot of outlets for that, so I definitely wanted to help out.”

Since then, Worthington has worked to bring more agriculture into the classroom to Douglas County. Worthington has a son, Brayden, and a daughter, Emerson. He hopes to provide them with the same experiences and knowledge that he gained growing up ranching.

His wife Jennifer has been making it an effort to bring more agriculture into her classroom and is currently working to implement a garden program to teach kids where food comes from in their communities. Jennifer is also the Parent Teacher Organization president for Minden Elementary School and frequently brings her classroom kids out to the ranch to learn about agriculture.

“She’s always out there. I always have the kids out here at the ranch. Whether we’re checking corn or doing something, they always love being out here at the ranch and being a part of that,” Worthington says.

Continuing forward as the newly elected Douglas County Farm Bureau president, Worthington hopes to get even more involved with schools and to continue educating kids about agriculture. He wants to find ways to provide them with guidance, whether it be offering financial insight or just bringing them out to the ranch to show them how things work.

Worthington also plans to further his involvement in the surrounding communities and provide even more of a resource for others.

“We do the job, we grow our plants, we raise our cattle, we do what we need to do, but it’s how we get there that matters most.”

By Jessica Fagundes, Nevada Farm Bureau Director of Communications

Students educating students: A bright future for Ag in the Classroom

“We got to teach kids how apples come from a tree, go to a factory and then they get shipped to a local grocery store,” says Carly

Eller, a student from Carson Valley FFA Chapter. Other activities included finding facts about apples around the play-

ground and using animal movements to promote exercise. The event was well received by the students and the children.

“I think the kids learned how important people are that work in the agriculture industry and how important FFA is,” Eller says. “I hope that when they get older and they get into high school, they want to take an agriculture class so that they will experience the nature of growing things and the importance of feeding other families.”

At the end of the activity, Washoe County Farm Bureau donated books and educator guides to each of the participating chapters and the Boys and Girls Club library.

Increasing the Agriculture WorkforceThe community outreach efforts are just a small part of the Nevada

FFA Convention, which is hosted yearly in Reno. A total of 554 students attended the convention from 23 schools around Nevada. Also in atten-dance were National FFA President Andy Paul, National FFA Advisor Dr. Steve Brown, California FFA Sentinel Luis Sanchez and Washington FFA Reporter Samantha Brown.

Throughout the week, members participated in career development events, competitive activities that teach students about careers in agricul-ture and related-industry fields, including floriculture, livestock manage-ment, communications and many others. In addition to competing, stu-dents also listened to five motivational sessions at the event, encouraging them to become better leaders and to make their mark on agriculture.

“FFA competitions are a continuation of the agriculture education stu-dents receive in the classroom where students apply the lessons learned to real-world situations based in science, math and literacy,” Dye says.

Educating Future ConsumersThis year’s Nevada FFA service project aligned perfectly with Nevada

Farm Bureau’s yearly Ag in the Classroom activities. County Farm Bureaus around the state will work with local elementary schools to educate stu-dents using The Apple Orchard Riddle and other materials.

“Reaching students at a young age is crucial to ensure that they one day become educated consumers,” Nevada Farm Bureau President Hank Combs says. “As a grassroots advocacy organization, one of our goals is to educate students and the general public about the agriculture industry in our state.”

Several counties plan to work with the local FFA chapters to educate more children in their schools. The partnerships will mirror a project done last year by Churchill County Farm Bureau and the Churchill County FFA.

During the spring of 2014, Churchill County FFA students visited all five elementary schools in Fallon and read to 14 second-grade classes, reaching a total 320 students. The Churchill County Farm Bureau organized the project and donated a book to each class as well as several books to each school’s library. The books were presented in a book barn donated by Churchill County FFA.h

According to the local FFA advisor, Kristina Moore, the chapter will work with the county to complete the project again this spring.

A sea of blue and gold took Reno this past March during the 86th Nevada FFA State Convention held at the University of Nevada, Reno. More than 500 members from around the state attended the four-day convention to compete in career development

events, volunteer and attend motivational sessions.“The Nevada FFA State Convention serves as a celebration of FFA and an

experience full of educational relevancy for students,” says Heather Dye, execu-tive director of the Nevada FFA.

During the event, students had the opportunity to give back to the local community at two service projects, one which included teaching Ag in the Classroom activities to local students and another which included harvesting plants and improving hoop houses at the High Desert Farming Institute.

“Our community service project is part of an ongoing effort to teach stu-dents the importance of service and community relations,” Dye says.

On March 17, nearly 50 FFA students visited the Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows to educate 120 children from kindergarten to fifth grade about agriculture. FFA members read The Apple Orchard Riddle by MargaretMcNamara and did several activities with the children, educating them about apple orchards and healthy living.


In my short life, I have seen many changes in the sale of farm animals. Chickens and turkeys are raised on contract with usually a predeter-mined price. Hogs are in very few hands with domination by huge organizations controlling the process. Cattle are sold on the Internet

exposing large numbers of buyers to ranchers’ animals, which certainly adds to efficiency and expands the base of competitive bidding. The old country trader has vanished and has been replaced by a video camera and a representative of the video auction company or the online photo presented to the masses.

There is always an exception to the rule. I don’t believe the local country horse trader can be replaced. Not only does this individual match a horse with buyer, he provides more colloquial phrases than Webster’s’ Unabridged Dic-tionary. Where else would we get material for male bovine fecal matter sessions in taverns, sale barns and feed stores? Phrases like,” this horse is as honest as the ten commandments, well maybe seven”, “no this horse isn’t old and stove up, he’s just careful where he puts his feet.” This horse has a handle on him like a sports car, well maybe a model A”. “I wouldn’t sell this horse to anyone BUT; I like you and as a special favor to you, I am letting him go”. “This horse has a kind eye, at least the one that still works.” This horse won’t kick,,,,,,,bad”. Yes, he is broke to ride, just keep your mind in the middle and don’t look down”. “Buck, Buck, Do you think that I would sell you, my friend, this horse if he bucked?” “What do you mean you heard this horse would stampede? This horse is just very athletic and likes to get out in front”. This horse has barely finished getting his adult teeth, he is a, [buyers nine]”. “Sure you can look in his mouth or under his tail or in his ears, if you can handle the horse, I’ll just get out of your way for a moment”. We all have our personal favorites and the list would be longer than a polygamist clothesline.

My two most favorite traders were, Bob, “Beatle” Bailey and Mel Kelly. Both gentlemen are long gone so in their memory, I would like to share this story. Beatle was a life long resident of Harney County and had a good eye for a horse or a cow either one. He was a great roper and when he was younger might have won the world in a bronc saddle had he have been able to make the commute and had a little more luck. He worked off and on, on the Island and rented pas-ture for horses from the company and always had a smile and a prank or two to share if you weren’t looking. I was fresh out of college and wanted a string of horses of my own. Beatle said he would keep an eye out for a “good one”. A few days later, Beatle showed up with a roan appaloosa gelding. Beatle said he was a little skittish but he just needed a little work and he would be the kind of horse that nobody would bother cause he was a little snorty and hard to catch, sort of a perfect horse for me, a one-man horse. Nobody would ever pick him out of the caviata as he always was pretty wide eyed too. I finally got him cor-nered up and you could get him to turn around and he had brakes and such so I took him. Couldn’t stand to bruise the old ego and admit that he might be more horse than I could handle. Once you got him caught you were a horse back all day long as he was as tough as any horse, pound for pound that I ever owned. As long as you kept your buttocks centered all was well. If you leaned a little off center, any excuse to catch you a little off kilter signaled to my new mount to fire on all cylinders. It was my good fortune that as I sloshed around, some how he would always buck back under me and if I got gathered up before anyone saw the wreck, I felt like I was Casey Tibbs. He bucked with me forty days straight. Beatle said that I was really getting a handle on him and way to go. An ego can

be a dangerous thing. One day Cheer Osborn came by and saw my new mount

and said, “Where’d

you get Apple Jack? Jim Roberts chicken fed him, as he wouldn’t quit bucking. I proudly replied that I had him ready for the Cow Palace. We mounted up and Apple Jack drove my head so far in the dirt that it took a farmhand loader to pull my head out of the ground.

Eventually, Apple Jack took pity on me and we got along famously ever after, except for one little thing, HE COULD’NT SWIMM A LICK. Now ordi-narily this would be no problem on the “Greater Oregon Desert”, unless you were working on the Island Ranch. You didn’t need to swim a horse all the time but more often than not it was needed. Beatle and Bob McDonald and I were gathering Beatle’s mares to brand the colts when the lead mare decided to swim the West Fork of the Silvies River in the Big Page Field. I baled right in behind them and Apple Jack just kept going down. He maybe just didn’t swim very high? Pretty soon he rolled over on his side and started floating down stream with only is nose sticking up. I swam for the far shore and Apple Jack drifted in the current like a Muskrat until he grounded on the same shore as me. He got up and shook. It was the spring of the year and I was cold and soaked. Wished I could have shook also. I gathered him up and off we went after the mares. I looked back and Beatle and Bob were still on the other side. I turned the mares and headed back. In my, still developing brain, surmised that Apple Jack had just been hot and when he hit the water just chilled. WRONG! When the mares hit the water Apple Jack was right on top of them so in my minds eye, he would surely swim right across. Same scenario, deeper deeper, and even deeper, he went down until he went plum out of sight. I swam to shore; once again I looked like I had spent the day in the dunk tank at the carnival. Beatle gathered up Apple Jack and hand him back to me and boldly said, “Maybe you should change his name to submarine, or periscope, or torpedo”. HAR HAR!!!!! Well a couple of weeks later as not to be beaten, when I wrangled the horses I jumped them into the river. Maybe Apple Jack couldn’t swim with a saddle? It was later in the year and not much current when he came up and there he sat in the middle of the river blowing air out of the one nostril that was up, he looked like an Orca Whale. I had planned on riding around to the crossing and not getting wet but I was going to have to put a line on him to get him to the other shore. Big Boy, the wrangle horse and I went for a morning swim and yarded Mr. Apple Jack to shore. When I arrived back at the barn Beatle and Bob McDonald had laughed themselves silly and asked me how torpedo liked his bath.

A couple of years later, I took the bait again and bought the horse that Beatle was riding. My thought process was that Beatle had a handle on this horse, “Blue John”, and if he could handle him, I could. After all, Bob McDonald and I had rolled a saddle on a colt he called, “Blitz, after Blitz beer”, which I pro-ceeded to mount as he got up off the ground and Bob had promised me that he would let me get a few jumps in the round corral first. Well When Blitz came up Bob threw the gate open and threw his slicker at the colt and hollered, “ridem Cowboy”. Now what could possibly be different about Blue John and Blitz? To me, Bob was old so, I could surely ride a horse that he could. I had managed to ride out Blitz and only suffered from a swollen ego as Bob repeated the story time and time again and the horse kept jumping higher and I fanned Blitz like a world champion. Well, come to find out, there was quite a bit of difference in Blitz and Blue John. Now see how this works. I just get started and as usual the yarn is still spinning. We are shearing this afternoon and I must quit for now. If you like it so far tell Leanne to print the other half later on in the next issue. Hang and Rattle! Hank

By Hank VoglerFUMES FROM THE FARM


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2213 n. 5th st. , eLko, nv 89801775-738-8811, 800-343-0077www.edwardjones.com

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Congrats to

Graduates!

In the battle to transfer the public lands to all willing western states, there are many battles to be fought and sometimes it can feel like an uphill battle in the pouring rain. But this week, there is good news to be had and a list of elected officials who deserve

our thanks!The United States Senate recently voted on and passed an amend-

ment to a non-binding budget resolution which supported the transfer of public lands. The vote was 51 to 49, with only the Republicans in the Sen-ate voting in favor, and we would like to thank the senators who voted with us on this important issue! (To see for yourself how your Senators click HERE. )

Those who voted “Yea” and helped pass this important amendment:Senators: Session (AL), Shelby (AL), Murkowski (AK), Sullivan

(AK), Flake (AZ), McCain (AZ), Boozman (AR), Cotton (AR), Rubio (FL), Isakson (GA), Perdue (GA), Crapo (ID), Risch (ID), Kirk (IL), Coats (IN), Ernst (IA), Grassley (IA), Moran (KS), Roberts (KS), McConnell (KY), Paul (KY), Cassidy (LA), Vitter (LA), Collins (ME), Cochran (MS), Wicker (MS), Blunt (MO), Daines (MT), Fischer (NE), Sasse (NE), Heller (NV), Burr (NC), Tillis (NC), Hoeven (ND), Portman (OH), Inhofe (OK), Lankford (OK), Toomey (PA), Gra-ham (SC), Scott (SC), Rounds (SD), Thune (SD), Corker (TN), Cornyn (TX), Cruz (TX), Hatch (UT), Lee (UT), Capito (WV), Johnson (WI), Barrasso (WY), Enzi (WY).

Along with this exciting vote in the Senate, the House also passed an amendment supporting the transfer of public lands. The House voted 228-199, approving a non-binding measure which stated, “the federal estate is too large,” and advocated “giving states and locali-ties more control over the resourc-

es within their boundaries.” By so doing, the resolution continued, the transfer of public lands “will lead to increased resource production and allow states and localities to take advantage of the benefits of increased economic activity.” (Click HERE to see how your Representative voted.)

It is time to show our gratitude for these courageous elected officials who understand that the transfer of public lands to all willing western states is not just about the ownership and management of public lands, but also a battle for state sovereignty and economic independence. Your representatives in Congress need to hear from you. Please contact those elected officials who stood up for your freedom and sovereignty today. Let them know that you will continue to support them in the winds that will inevitably continue to blow as we press forward in this critical cause.


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CHECKOFF NEWS:

For more about the Nevada Beef Council, visit www.nevadabeef.org.

Beef and Baseball Two American Favorites

We are eagerly gearing up for Nevada Beef Council (NBC) day at the Reno Aces, taking place Saturday, May 30, and we hope some of Nevada’s finest cattle-men and women will join us!

As we shared a couple of months ago, the NBC is teaming up with Scolari’s Food & Drug for the beef-focused day at the ball park. While the promotion will culminate with the game on May 30, several other promotional elements leading up to game day will encourage Nevada consumers to think about and purchase beef at their local Scolari’s markets. From May 6 to 19, shoppers can get two free Reno Aces tickets for the NBC game on May 30 with a purchase of $20 or more on beef at participating stores, which include all Reno and Sparks Scolari’s loca-tions, plus the stores in Yerington, Fernley and Sun Valley.

An additional social media promotion is already underway, giving Aces fans the chance to show their love for beef, burgers and baseball. Through May 31, we’re asking fans to take a photo of their Aces ball-park beef burger and their ticket stub. When they upload that photo through the contest entry portal on the Nevada Beef Council’s Face-book page, they’re entered to win. The NBC is selecting four qualifying prize winners throughout this contest to win a Scolari’s gift card. Plus, the grand prize winner gets to throw out the first pitch and enjoy a suite at an upcoming home game!

But the fun doesn’t end there. At the game on May 30, attendees will get to see representation of Nevada ranching at its finest. Prior to the game, they will have an opportunity to interact with Nevada ranch-ers and members of the NBC board and staff. The NBC will have a dis-play on the plaza outside the ball park, sharing information about beef and ranching. Attendees will even get an up-close-and-personal visit with a local cow and calf, which will be showcased at the NBC booth.

When the game starts, a Nevada rancher will ride into the ball park and onto the warning track on horseback, dismount, walk to the mound and throw out the first pitch to start what is sure to be an excit-ing night at the ball park.

The NBC’s partnership with Scolari’s and the Reno Aces will help educate Northern Nevada consumers about beef, in addition to show-ing them some of the faces of Nevada ranching and beef production. If you are interested in being a part of this fun and educational evening, contact the Nevada Beef Council at (877) 554-2333. Or, if you’d just like to attend the game and be in the crowd to enjoy America’s favorite pastime with some of your fellow beef producers, call the Reno Aces ticket office at (775) 334-7000.

The NBC just wrapped up another opportunity to talk with con-sumers about beef, this time at the Clark County Fair, which

took place April 8 through 12 in Logandale. The NBC’s Director of Producer Relations, Jill Scofield, and former Nevada Beef Ambassador and NBC Education Coordinator Ashley Buckingham were on hand to provide beef recipes, nutrition information and other helpful resources for consumers, as well as share educational and interactive material with children.

The popular fair is attended by close to 70,000 people every year, many of whom are from the local area, including Las Vegas. The event provides an opportunity for the NBC to engage in informative dialogue with Southern Nevada consumers not only about the benefits of beef, but also how beef gets from Nevada ranches to their plates.

“Being a part of the Clark County Fair is a great way to tell our story and share messages about beef with consumers from one of our state’s more urban centers. We had conversations with a lot of millennial fair goers, and provided a myriad of resources to help them feel more con-fident when preparing beef, as well as more informed when it comes to understanding beef’s nutritional profile and the options available when it comes to purchasing our product,” says Scofield.

You may have heard reference of the Protein Challenge over the last few weeks. The challenge, launched by the Beef Checkoff on

April 1, is a step-by-step 30-day plan to help consumers get a balanced and optimal amount of protein—including beef—at each meal.

According to the Beef Checkoff, Americans currently consume two-thirds of their total daily protein intake at dinner, which means protein consumption at other meals or snacks is lagging. In addition, research has shown that consuming protein in balanced amounts at each meal is beneficial to improving overall health. Some of the benefits of distribut-ing protein throughout the day include feeling satisfied after a meal or snack that features protein, which helps reduce the urge to eat unneces-sarily. What’s more, meals with high-quality protein like beef help to build muscle and reduce body fat.

While the challenge launched April 1, those who are interested in participating can start any time. A number of tools have been developed to help, including a protein cheat sheet, daily journals, a 30-day calen-dar outlining each step of the challenge, and more. All can be found at BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com/ProteinChallenge.

Be sure to share this with others who are looking for ways to im-prove their eating habits, or join in on the fun yourself so you can share your success story. Participating in the challenge will help provide yet another example of why high-quality protein like beef is so important in a healthy diet.

Talking Nevada Beef at the Clark County Fair

Take the Protein Challenge!


Italian Beef and Roasted Vegetable SandwichAmericans currently consume 65% of their protein at dinner and

only a small portion at breakfast and lunch. Research shows that by consuming 30 grams of protein at each meal, you feel full longer and can reduce unintentional snacking. Spread your protein intake throughout the day with this deliciously refreshing spring/summer-time sandwich. Take last night’s tri-tip and turn it into today’s lunch. This sandwich is jam packed with vitamin C, iron, protein and flavor!

James Winstead, RDN, Director, Food and Nutrition Outreach Ingredients (makes six sandwiches)

For the Tri-Tip:1 beef Tri-Tip Roast (1-1/2 to 2 pounds)1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, divided2 cloves garlic, minced2 medium red and/or yellow bell peppers, cut into strips2 cups red and/or yellow grape tomatoes, cut in half2 teaspoons olive oil¼ teaspoon, saltFor the Sandwich:1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise2 tablespoons refrigerated basil paste or chopped fresh basil leaves6 crusty rolls, split, toasted1/3 cup shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

News From the Nevada Beef Council

2 cups baby arugula or spinachSalt and pepper to tasteInstructionsTri-Tip:Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine 2 teaspoons thyme and gar-

lic. Press evenly onto all surfaces of beef Roast. Place roast on rack in shallow roasting pan. Do not add water or cover. Toss bell pep-per strips and tomatoes with oil, remaining 1 teaspoon thyme and salt on rimmed baking sheet.

Roast beef in 425°F oven 30 to 40 minutes for medium rare; 40 to 50 minutes for medium doneness. Roast pepper mixture in oven with roast 30 to 40 minutes or until vegetables are tender and begin to brown, stirring once.

Remove roast when instant-read thermometer registers 135°F for medium rare; 150°F for medium. Transfer roast to carving board; tent loosely with aluminum foil. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes. (Temperature will continue to rise about 10°F to reach 145°F for medium rare; 160°F for medium).

Sandwiches:Combine mayonnaise and basil paste; spread evenly onto cut

surfaces of rolls. Carve roast into thin slices; season with salt and pepper, as desired. Top each roll evenly with beef, pepper mixture, cheese and arugula. Close sandwiches.

For more delicious beef recipes, visit www.BeefItsWhats-ForDinner.com.


Churchill County FFA has been very busy. The Nevada State Convention was week of work and fun for all of the Nevada FFA chapters. It was a time for students to put their practicing and studying to the test. The Milk Qual-

ity Evaluation team which consisted of Madison Perazzo, Jes Tews, Heather Hancock, Tori Klein, and Amanda Pursley finished 1st high team with Madison Perazzo winning 3rd high individual in the con-test. The Churchill Dairy Evaluation team won for the second year running. This year’s all girl team was made up of Allysen Olsen, Me-linda Fagundes, Kayce Mulder, and Helen Albaugh. Allysen Olsen was 1st high individual followed closely in second by her teammate Melinda Fagundes. Our Greenhand The Greenhand Officer team, Myles Getto-President, Helen Albaugh-Vice President, Skyler Word-Reporter, Luis Orozco-Sentinel, Conner McGowan-Treasurer, Darcy Countryman-Secretary, and Becca McKnight-Advisor finished first in the rituals contest and 3rd in the Best Informed Greenhand Contest. Helen Albaugh was our creed speaker and the 3rd high speaker at the state convention. The Floriculture team, Josey Moore, Melissa Jones, Blane Merkleyand Andi Hatch was the 3rd high team while Josey Moore finished as 3rd high individual. Sydney Felton had an amazing fin-ish winning high individual in the Horse Evaluation Contest followed by Cassidy LeGaux in 3rd place. As a team, Morgan Morris, Jessica Sage, Ally Fulk, and Cassidy LeGaux finished 3rd high. The Livestock Evaluation team competed in Logandale at the Clark County Fair as well and was able to bring home a tie for 2nd and 3rd place as a team. Melinda Fagundes was 4th high individual while Heather Hancock, Andi Hatch, Kayce Mulder, and Darcy Countryman all finished in the top 20 for the contest. Last but certainly not least, Churchill County FFA’s Blane Merkley will be serving as the 2015-2016 Nevada State FFA Vice President. Congratulations to everyone who competed at State Convention and a big Thank You to the Nevada FFA for a wonderful experience.

Churchill County FFA will be continuing the Ag Literacy project that was initiated last Spring by reading this year’s American Farm Bureau Book of the Year, The Apple Orchard Riddle to all of the second grade classrooms in Churchill County. We are looking forward to work-ing with the Nevada Farm Bureau, Churchill County Farm Bureau, and the Nevada Agriculture Foundation in continuing this project.

The Churchill County Junior Livestock Show on April 23-25th will be a culminating activity for all of the members raising livestock for their FFA projects and they are looking forward to displaying their ani-mals and competing with their fellow members. Finally, it will be time for the annual End of the Year Awards Banquet on May 1st. We will rec-ognize everyone’s accomplishments from the year, wish a farewell to our seniors, and install new officers for the coming year. Thank you to all that support our local FFA Chapters where ever you are. FFA makes positive difference in the lives students and develops their potential for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success.

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Truckee-Carson Irrigation District

Drought and the Un-Holy War with Nature

We have a dog at our house named Tilly. She is really just a mutt; but, my wife treats her like a grand-child. And, truth be known, Tilly might just have a better life than what people enjoy in other parts of the world. But, I don’t treat her that way. No, Tilly

and I share some uneasy understanding. I tolerate this mutt out of love for my wife –including bouts of forward conduct such as an occasional, yet menacing, teeth baring snarl! When this happens, I warn: “Careful Tilly! Don’t bite the hand that feeds you!”

With drought raging in the Western United States, it seems we are all poised on the brink some kind of un-holy war –mostly against nature. Usu-ally, when we speak of warfare, we are inclined to ascribe superior moral meaning to some point of view, to determine a winner and a loser, or right versus wrong; but, the “un-holiness” now attending is that the scarcity of water affords no winner in this conflict: Not agriculture. Not city dwellers. And, certainly not the environ-ment! Yet with the water supply at an all time low, everyone is asking where is the water going? Who is using it the most? City dwellers? Environmental causes? Unfortunately, many point and say that it is the farmers that use too much. As we labor to deal with conditions of drought all over the West, I offer some words of caution: We must refrain from biting the hand that feeds us!

Hydrologic conditions in both the Carson and Truckee River watersheds have never been so bad. The supply for the Newlands Federal Reclamation Project is 20% of normal. This is a record setting year. It’s just not the kind of record we wanted! The surface elevation in Lake Tahoe remains below the natural rim; and, “floriston rate” water, that amount of flow necessary to meet downstream demands, will end this week. In other words, except for any natural flows into the Truckee River, no “rate” water will be available for diversion from the River into the Truckee Canal at Derby Dam. The irrigation season for the Truckee Division of the Newlands Project, which began at the last of March, will effectively con-clude mid-April. By contrast, a normal irrigation season typically runs from March through the November.

The Carson Division (Lahontan Valley) of the Newlands Project will com-mence its water delivery on or about April 18. Delay has been occasioned by construction of low-head hydro electric generation facilities at two sites within the Fallon area. If any “silver lining” exists in a drought this may be it: The abil-ity to perform needed maintenance in a de-watered state. One of the facilities, known a “Lewis Spill” breached in 2008 as was removed the same year. The District is replacing the structure and its replacement will restore the function of public protection. In the event that a problem should arise with water flow in the Project’s largest canal, known as the V-Line, water may diverted through Lewis Spill away from the Fallon area back to the Carson River channel.

Presently in storage at Lahontan Reservoir are approximately 60,000 acre feet of water in storage. Owing to the dry conditions that attend the entire Lahontan Valley, the remaining unknown variable attending water delivery this year will be the rate of transport loss. Such loss is expected to be high, as much 50% in places –yet another casualty of extraordinarily dry conditions.

What provisions exist in Nevada law to assist farmers under dry hydro-logic conditions? One such is what may be called a “farm unit” -as described in Section 533.040 of the Nevada Revised Statutes. The law allows a farmer, within a federal reclamation project, through application for a permit made to the State Engineer, to make a surface water right appurtenant to an entire farm, instead of just a specifically identifiable land within the farm. Accord-ingly, when a farm unit is created through this process, the place of use of the water is the entire farm. The designation creates a “water budget” that may be used flexibly by a farmer upon the entire place of use. The limitation, however,

is that the quantity of water available for the farm, or the total water budget, must not exceed the total amount determined by the applicable decrees as des-ignated in the permit granted by the State Engineer.

The benefit of a farm unit is the flexibility with which a farmer may control his own usage of water upon the farm. This is an important consideration in drought conditions. If only so much water is avail-able for use, such as a 20% supply, a farmer may place it to use within a farm where it will do the most good, such as upon a new seeding, or in directing its use to more productive fields, while fallowing other fields.

Pivotal to the creation of a farm unit is determin-ing what a farm is. In existing law a farm is defined as “tract of land under the same ownership that is primarily used for agricultural purposes.” The term farm has been construed administratively to mean parcels of land that are contiguous to one another.

The reality of farm ownership is that a farm is not often a single large parcel of land or parcels that touch one another.

A bill has been introduced by Assemblywoman Robin Titus, this legislative session that will serve to clarify the law. Under the bill, a farm will mean “a tract of land that is owned or leased by the same person and is primarily used for agricultural purposes.” Importantly, the proposal includes key language specifying that “[t]he term includes two or more such tracts of land, regard-less of whether the tracts are contiguous.” The heart of Nevada water law is the doctrine of beneficial use. A companion to beneficial use is the doctrine that all water rights are limited to the quantity of water reasonably required for the beneficial use to be served. This “quantity” is commonly known as a “water duty”.With a farm unit both the law and the farmer are served and served well.

In 2010 we had too much water. We were prepared for flooding conditions. We actually released water from Lahontan to smaller regulatory reservoirs in the Project as a safeguard. Forgive me! I am hoping to again deal with the problem in the near future!

By Rusty Jardine

A future dream will come true and fill the damn again - July 1987 - Leana Stitzel


Oh, So Knotty Designs specializes in handcraft-ed gourds designed for the western or rustic home. Each distinctive gourd is a, one of a kind, unique piece of art. The gourd vessels are coiled, rimmed or accented with lariats, riatas,

piggin’ strings, rawhide, horse hair, braided leather reins, antlers, pine needles, beads and so much more. Mary Lou Carey, owner of Oh, So Knotty Designs, adds depth and dimension through wood burning and carving. Custom or-ders incorporate multi-generational livestock brands and display heirloom keepsake tack creating an exceptional gift for relatives or special friends. Eight years ago, Ms Carey introduced her grandchildren to a box of gourds and a wood burner during their summer vacation visits. When the children returned to home and school, she found to the time to try many different styles of gourd art. Today, Mary Lou focuses her designs on western and rustic themes. Oh So Knotty Designs is the perfect outlet of Ms Carey’s western Nevada hertitage and experi-ences that led many special people into her life. As a child, Ms Carey’s family visited the California missions during one summer vacation, and happened to see a cutting event at the Mission at San Juan Bautista. She knew cutting was something she had to do and relentlessly begged her parents for horseback riding lessons. At the age of 12, Gus Bartley, owner of the Bartley Stables in Reno, introduced her to, Dee Dee Garcia, niece of Les Garcia, the famed silver-smith. Through Dee Dee, she became involved in Quar-ter Horse showing. Working cow horse and cutting events were her favorites. Ms Carey and her sisters later trained with Pat Heaverne,

the 2006 inductee to the Buckaroo Hall of Fame. Today, Ms Carey now focuses on western and rustic themed gourd bowls, baskets and vases. Ms Carey’s handcrafted gourds incorporate detailed wood burned leather tooled and carved basket weaved patterns or silhouettes. Fred Buckmaster, of Fallon, has been an inspirational and patient teacher in the art of leather tooling through the use of a Dremel hand rotary tool and a wood burner. The gourd rims are often coiled with lariats, piggin strings, bosals hacka-mores, rawhide and leather braided reins or horse hair macates, pine needles, and embellished with antlers, conchos and beads. Ms Carey enjoys co-creating commissioned art for families wanting to display heirloom tack and livestock brands. Many of her customers request special and meaningful gourd art, specialized to reflect their family member’s activities that they want incorporated in their personalized piece. Ty and Cheryl Rogers of The Cowboy Supply Store of Reno, Nevada featured Oh So Knotty Designs gourds in their “ Reno Ne-vada NCA Western National Cutting” trade booth from April 26 through May 5, 2015 at the Reno Event Center . The gourds will also be available at the The Cowboy Supply Store booths at the following future events: Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show, Snaffle Bit Futurity, Winnemucca Ranch Hand Rodeo, Red Bluff Bull Sale. (www.cowboy-supplystore.com) JM Capriolo, of Elko, Nevada also has select Oh So Knotty Design gourd art on display for sale. (www.capriola.com) Oh, So Knotty Designs galleries can be seen on its website, www.ohsoknottydesigns.com, its Facebook Page or through its Etsy Online Shop.

So Knotty Designs


Website: www.ohsoknottydesigns.comFacebook: www.facebook.com/OhSoKnottyDesignsEtsy: www.etsy.com/shop/OhSoKnottyDesignsEmail: [email protected]


News ReleasesUSDA Reminds Farmers to

Certify Conservation Compliance by June 1 Deadline

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 16, 2015 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds farmers that the 2014 Farm Bill requires producers to file a Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Certifica-

tion form (AD-1026) with their local USDA service center by June 1, 2015, in order to become or remain eligible for crop insurance premium support.

Most farmers already have a certification form on file since it’s required for participation in most USDA programs such as marketing assistance loans, farm storage facility loans and disaster assistance. However farmers, such as specialty crop growers who receive federal crop insurance premium support, but may not participate in other USDA programs, also must now file a certification form to maintain their crop insurance premium support.

“USDA employees are working very hard to get the word out about this new Farm Bill provision,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “While many producers will not need to take action, we want to help make sure that those who are required to act do so by the June 1 deadline. We want all eligible producers to be able to maintain their ability to protect their opera-tions with affordable insurance.”

Producers should visit their local USDA service center and talk with their crop insurance agent before the June 1, 2015, deadline to ask questions, get additional information or learn more about conservation compliance procedures. Producers that file their form by the deadline will be eligible for federal crop insurance premium support during the 2016 reinsurance year, which begins July, 1, 2015. USDA will publish a rule outlining the linkage of conservation compliance with federal crop insurance premium support. Go to http://go.usa.gov/3Wy5J to view a copy of the rule.

The Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Cer-tification form is available at local USDA service center or online at www.fsa.usda.gov/AD1026form. When a farmer completes this form, USDA Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service staff will out-line any additional actions that may be required for compliance with highly erodible land and wetland provisions. USDA’s Risk Management Agency, through the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, manages the federal crop insurance program that provides the modern farm safety net for America’s farmers and ranchers.

Western Leaders Reintroduce Bill to Strike Back Against Federal Water Grabs

the agency is for the time being holding off on the controversial directive, but intends to issue a new rule once gathering further input on the issue.

“Federal land agencies have absolutely no business strong-arming in-dividuals or businesses into turning over their privately held water rights as a condition of obtaining or renewing a permit. Despite the Obama Ad-ministration’s recent attempt to downplay these outrageous water grabs, there is no guarantee that they won’t pursue policies like this again in the future,” said Barrasso. “Congress must provide clear legislative direction to federal land management agencies or they will continue to impose restric-tions that deny agricultural, recreational and economic activity throughout our communities. Representative Tipton and I have teamed up with legisla-tion to provide certainty to water users across the West and block any future attempts by Washington to take over private water rights.”

“The steady flow of federal agency actions to assert federal control over private water rights directly interferes with the ability of the American people to access their private property. These federal water grabs undermine the long-held state water law that protects the many uses vital to the West-ern US, create uncertainty, and jeopardize the livelihoods of communities, individuals, and businesses responsible for thousands of jobs,” said Tipton. “Senator Barrasso and I share a deep commitment with our colleagues to the defense of private water rights, and are dedicated to this cause of stopping nefarious federal overreach and restoring needed certainty to all water users by ensuring that all non-federal water rights are upheld.”

“The Water Rights Protection Act would stop the federal government from taking water rights, both surface and groundwater, from private par-ties in violation of state water law and 5th Amendment property rights protections. The intent of the bill is narrow –to protect valuable property interests of ski areas and other permittees that use federal land from seizure without compensation by the federal government,” wrote the National Ski Areas Association. “Essentially everyone agrees on the need for this protec-tion, given past and current Forest Service policy that demands transfer of valuable water rights to the U.S. without compensation.”

“The U.S. Forest Service and other federal agencies have begun to re-quire privately owned businesses to surrender long-held water rights –which they have paid for and developed –as a condition of receiving renewals in their special use permits that allow them to operate on public land,” wrote the American Farm Bureau Federation in support of WRPA. “This kind of power grab by the federal government violates federal and state law and would ultimately upset water allocation systems and private property rights on which western economies have been built.”

The Water Rights Protection Act (H.R. 1830):·Prohibits agencies from implementing a permit condition that requires

the transfer of privately-held water rights to the federal government in order to receive or renew a permit for the use of land;

·Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture from imposing other conditions that require the transfer of water rights without just compensation;

·Upholds longstanding federal deference to state water law;·Maintains environmental safeguards, and will not impact Bureau of

Reclamation water contracts in any way. Likewise, the legislation will have no impact any authority existing within a jurisdiction. These are outside the scope of the legislation.

·Has no cost to taxpayers.Original cosponsors include: Senate: Sens. Mike Crapo, Mike Enzi, Deb

Fischer, Jeff Flake, Cory Gardner, Orrin Hatch, Dean Heller and James Risch. House: Reps. Mark Amodei, Ken Buck, Jason Chaffetz, Mike Coff-man, Trent Franks, Paul Gosar, Mike Kelly, Raul Labrador, Doug LaMalfa, Doug Lamborn, Mia Love, Cynthia Lummis, Tom McClintock, GT Thomp-son, Steve Pearce, Tom Reed, Reid Ribble, Mike Simpson, Lamar Smith, Chris Stewart, Bruce Westerman and Ryan Zinke.

Endorsement highlights in the 114th Congress include: National Ski Areas Association,American Farm Bureau Federation, Family Farm Al-liance, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, American Sheep Industry Association, CLUB 20, Colorado Wool Growers Association, State Farm Bureaus, and numerous additional state and local government and water conservation district endorsements.

Producers May Need to Take Action to Remain Eligible for Crop Insurance Premium Support

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) and Congressman Scott Tipton (R-CO) reintroduced legis-lation to protect water users from uncompensated federal takings of privately-held water rights. The Water Rights

Protection Act (WRPA), which passed the House in the 113th Congress with bipartisan support, would uphold state water law and priority-based sys-tems. WRPA would provide water users with a line of defense from increas-ing federal attempts, such as the Forest Service Groundwater Management Directive and ski area permit clause, to take private water rights without compensation or restrict user access to them.

This week, Forest Service Deputy Chief Leslie Weldon affirmed com-ments made by U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell in a February Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing distancing the Forest Service from its Groundwater Directive. Weldon’s testimony indicated that


Government Priorities

The 2014 Congressional H.R. 83 freeze on expenses for sage hen listing was a hopeful step toward scientific and political propriety. Meanwhile, negative economic and ecological impacts of the Bureau of Land Management,

Forest Service and other agencies continue range-wide. Persistent grazing allotment reductions enhance cheatgrass invasion of the range, requiring expensive chemi-cal and mechanical treatment. Basically, herbi-cides, drill-seeding and contractors expand agency budgets, unlike grazing cheatgrass with cattle and sheep. Agencies reduce public land grazing while ignoring results on private land where ranchers can rotate herds after grazing down cheatgrass before natives emerge.

Fundamentally, cheatgrass becomes fuel for fires which are the principal unquestioned off- budget spending approved for these land management agen-cies. Apparently with little effective oversight of their bureau-scientific complex, agencies evidently have established poli-cies tending toward large firestorms. They receive emergency funding with no substantial inquiry into methods of avoiding fires in the first place. Their studies seem to focus on justifying costs and blaming cli-mate change, not eliminating firestorms. This especially is troubling since historical records and common sense show that grazing down fuel eliminates the problem before it erupts in flames. Range-wide, fires apparently take nearly 200,000 sage hen each year.

In addition to grazing down fuel, livestock provide food for the sage hen, who have no gizzards and must consume soft matter. Livestock excrete grouse-edible soft matter in abundance – readily apparent on stock-producing land across the eleven states of the birds’ range.

A significant factor persistently evaded by all land and wildlife management agencies is predation. Bureaucratically avoiding the sci-entific method by allowing no discussion, regulators declare predator effects unimportant to the matters facing sage hen. Yet population mortality calculations indicate more than 1.4 million sage hen em-bryos and nestlings are killed each year by predators. Evidently 1.1-1.3 million due to ravens, the rest predominately by coyotes.

Though based on government numbers and research, regulators

never acknowledge either the base numbers or the mortality analysis... population mortality which is understood by every ranch and farm child. But if bureaucrats acknowledge existence of an immediate and effective solution to saving millions of sage hen, they would not be able to increase their employee headcount and control of the private sector.

For that matter, they might lose new agency SUVs and travel expenses, which of course would include professional development hours. They like those – remember the GSA conferences a few years back?

Through taxes, private sector employees pay for the deceitful agencies which restrict productive and recreational use of public lands. Evidently, they also contribute to feel-good NGOs and eco- charities which are essentially little more than public relations fronts for the intrusion of oppressive government.

Predator reduction immediately and dramati-cally will increase sage hen populations. Controlling predation only by habitat improvement puts the

victim population at multi-generational risk while bureaucrats dither over improving land which agency management damaged in the first place. The most effective way to heal mismanaged land and protect wildlife is to return ranchers and farmers to stewardship rather than remain subject to political science constraints.

Respectfully Ralph R. Sacrison

By Ralph R. Sacrison

Constrain the Sage

There is a Biological Principle taught in Wildlife Courses in Colleges around the country that goes like this = “ When a prey species – Sage Grouse numbers -- fall below the Preda-

tor Species numbers –Ravens- there is no way the prey species can ever recover unless the predator numbers are decreased.”

The wildlife agencies can tell you all kinds of sto-ries about cheat grass – habitat restoration etc. but until they come to grips with the predator issue they

will never bring back the Sage Grouse numbers!!


Press ReleasesPress Releases

BLM Nevada Welcomes Back Former Ely District Manager John F. Ruhs as Acting State Director

Reno, Nevada— On Monday, the Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office welcomed back John F. Ruhs for a four-month assignment as Acting State Director.

Ruhs will be acting in place of Nevada State Director Amy Lueders, who is serving as Acting Assistant Director, Renewable Resources and Planning Directorate in the BLM’s Washington, D.C. office.

Ruhs, currently the BLM State Director in Eastern States, has an extensive background in Nevada, having served as Ely District Man-ager and Winnemucca District Fire

Management Officer. In addition to his work in Nevada, Ruhs has also served as BLM’s Senior Special Assistant in Washington, D.C., and District Manager of the High Desert District in Wyoming. He has also worked for the BLM in Colorado, Idaho, and Oregon.

“It’s great to be back in Nevada,” said Ruhs. “Working with folks who use and value the land – and strive to keep the range productive and healthy – is the reason I got into land management.”

Nevada Associate Director Marci Todd will fill behind Ruhs as State Director in Eastern States. During Todd’s four-month assign-ment, two Acting Associate State Directors will serve in sequence. For the first sixty days, the Acting Associate State Director will be Mary DeAguero, Regional Engineer for the Rocky Mountain Region of the U.S. Forest Service. In her 25 years of land management experience, DeAguero has served in various leadership roles, including District Manager for the BLM in Twin Falls, Idaho. Her background includes recreation, range, timber, wilderness, and wildland fire.

For the second sixty days, the Act-ing Associate State Director will be Ann DeBlasi. Currently the Deputy Assistant Director of the Business, Fiscal and In-formation Resources Directorate in the BLM’s Washington, D.C. office, DeBlasi has worked in budget, finance and acqui-sition at the Department of Interior, The President’s Office of Management and Budget, and other Federal and State Agen-cies. She holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Maryland.

House Committee Calls for Repeal of WOTUS

WASHINGTON (April 15, 2015) – The Nation-al Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Public Lands Council applaud the House Transportation and Infrastructure Com-

mittee for sending a clear message to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers that the proposed Waters of the U.S. rule is an expansion of federal jurisdiction that strips rights from private property owners.

Passing the full Committee today by a vote of 36 to 22, H.R. 1732 Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015 requires the EPA and Army Corps to withdraw the WOTUS proposal within 30 days. NCBA Presi-dent Philip Ellis said cattlemen and women appreciate the Committee’s efforts for moving legislation forward that addresses the problematic proposed rule.

“The subjective and ambiguous language of the proposed rule would significantly broaden the federal government’s power to regulate waters and adjacent lands that convey water,” said Ellis. “We also ap-preciate the legislation requiring the federal government to work with state and local governments, further protecting states’ rights.”

The bill also charges the agencies with developing a new proposed rule that must take into consideration all of the comments received and reach consensus with the state and local governments on defining “Waters of the United States.”

“The Administration’s proposed rule is nothing more than regula-tory land grab vastly expanding federal authority,” said Brenda Rich-ards, PLC president and rancher from Idaho. “Instead of proactively reaching out to stakeholders before proposing the rule, the Adminis-tration pushed forward a rule that didn’t take into account the concerns of agriculture.”

NCBA and PLC urge Congress to act on this important piece of legislation without delay.

USDA invests $73 million in critical infrastructure projects and assessments to provide public safety through watershed rehabilitation

By BLM NEVADA NEWS

Continue on Next Page

John F. RuhsThe Progressive Rancher www.progressiverancher.com 32 April 2015

Affiliate Update: US Forest Service Withdraws Groundwater Directive

Yesterday afternoon during a hearing of the House Committee on Natural Resources Sub-committee on Water, Power, and Oceans, US Forest Service Deputy Chief Leslie Weldon tes-

tified, stating “we are not moving forward with the proposal [groundwater directive] at this time”.

Weldon did however imply that a future proposed directive or rule could be released after they collaborate with the states and interested parties – something we will follow closely and further oppose any proposals we see as reaching beyond legal limits on federal authority.

The livestock industry applauds this announcement and follows a years-long effort opposing any expansion of federal control over water beyond existing limited control via federal statute and federal reserve rights. We will continue to strongly defend private and state water rights. In September of last year we submitted detailed written comments (attached) to the US Forest Service on why the proposed directive was outside the agencies legal authority and requested it be withdrawn. The Western Resources Legal Center (WRLC) through their legal externship program and with input from PLC and NCBA drafted the comments opposing the directive – these comments were also provided to Capitol Hill in our efforts to shut down the directive.

We are continuing to work with Congressman Tipton (CO) and Senator Barrasso (WY) on legislation that would explicitly protect wa-ter rights and specifically block the US Forest Service from any future attempts to usurp state control over groundwater. Rep Tipton is pre-paring to reintroduce the Water Rights Protection Act, similar to the version from last session, very soon.

Background:In mid-2014 the US Forest Service released a proposed directive

on groundwater which was followed by a comment period. The live-stock industry, from the beginning, weighed in with strong opposition to the federal government expanding their regulatory reach through this directive. The directive would have allowed the Forest Service to change any decisions/activities on or near National Forest System lands based on their interpretation on how those activities could affect groundwater.t

Earlier this year, Chief of the Forest Service, Tom Tidwell, during a Senate Hearing had announced that the Forest Service was delaying work on the directive and reiterated that point during the PLC legisla-tive conference earlier this month.

By Dustin Van Liew, Executive Director PLC/NCBA Feder-al Lands & Marci Schlup, Manager of Legislative Affairs

Reno, Nev. – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA is investing $73 million to rehabilitate dams across the nation in an effort to protect public health and safety and

evaluate the expansion of water supply in drought stricken areas. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is investing in approximately 150 projects and as-sessments in 23 states.

“Millions of people depend on watersheds and dams for protection from floods and providing clean drinking water,” Vilsack said. “By in-vesting in this critical infrastructure, we are helping to ensure a safe, resilient environment for rural America.”

NRCS Assistant Chief Kirk Hanlin unveiled this round of water-shed rehabilitation funding on Thursday near Alpine, Utah, where work is planned on Tibble Fork Dam to increase water supply and flood damage protection for the surrounding communities.

This investment follows the Obama Administration’s announce-ment last year, which called on federal agencies to increase invest-ments in infrastructure to accelerate economic growth, create jobs and improve the competitiveness of the American economy.

There are nearly 12,000 dams across the United States. Investing in this critical infrastructure protects lives and property, builds com-munity resilience to extreme weather, provides quality drinking water, creates jobs and reduces the need for federal disaster assistance.

In addition to nearly 50 rehabilitation projects, NRCS is conducting 100 dam assessments in 13 states through the Watershed Rehabilita-tion Program. Last year, NRCS made changes to the watershed reha-bilitation program to allow for projects that also help increase water supply. Half of this year’s dam assessments, including 15 in drought-stricken California, will assess the feasibility of using watershed reha-bilitation funds to mitigate drought.

“USDA continues to look for new ways to mitigate the impacts of drought across the West, and this change to the Watershed Rehabilita-tion Program allows us to use existing infrastructure to address water quantity issues,” Vilsack said.

Peavine Mountain Sponsor: City of Reno - Design/Construction

West Wash Dam in the Peavine Mountain Watershed of Washoe County, Nevada, will be included in a USDA-funded rehabilitation partnership project. Currently awaiting rehabilitation design, the dam provides protection against flooding to about 30,000 Neva-dans who live and work downstream. Additionally, the dam protects downstream city roads, one state highway, and an interstate highway. Among other critical infrastructure, the dam also protects power lines and railroad tracks.

Watershed projects across the nation provide an estimated $2.2 billion in annual benefits in reduced flooding and erosion damages, and improved recreation, water supplies and wildlife habitat for an estimated 47 million Americans.


Progressive Rancher - Coloring Page


by Pastor Diana GonzalezIdeal Stewards of the Land?Ranchers:

That’s a good question to pon-der. Let’s look in our owner’s manual and see what the Bible says about the stewardship of

the land, and who’s in charge of its care and use. Let’s start at the beginning.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1 (New King James)

And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:12

Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the liv-ing creature according to its kind: cattle (domestic animals) and creeping things (reptiles, insects) and beasts (wild animals) of the earth, each according to its kind,” and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let us make man in Our im-age according to Our likeness; let them (man) have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Genesis 1:24-26

God chose to reproduce His characteristics in mankind, He chose to give him dominion over the earth and the animals, He created man to be His agent, to rule and subdue God’s creation.

Man is different from the rest of creation. God made man in His image. Man consists of spirit, soul (mind, will and emotions), and body. He is a moral being whose perception and intelligence exceed that of the rest of creation (although man sometimes acts like that’s a secret to be kept!).

God gave man prominence and worth over the rest of creation, but with this added ability and ca-pacity comes added responsibility and accountabil-ity concerning His (God’s) creation. So man needs to take his office of dominion over earth and over animals, but he must also be a faithful steward over God’s creation, over his life and the blessings that God gives him.

In Exodus 20 God gives us His ten command-ments (not suggestions). In verse 3 God says, “You shall have no other gods before me.” Pretty plain, right? We are to worship the one true God. We are to put nothing above Him. Not trees, not grass, not horses, not cattle, not our truck, or even our family (Genesis 22). God should always come first.

God is a god of order and balance. If we seek to obey His commandments, and seek His righteous-ness (His right way of doing things, Matthew 6:33), things will go well with us, the land and the animals.

Most ranchers I know are prime examples of good stewards of God’s creation. Of course, there are always exceptions, those who used and abused the land and the animals then moved on to destroy some more, but those are few and far between. Of course, those are the ones the public hears about.

Man is to steward the land and animals, and the land and animals are to serve man. So how is man to steward the land and cattle?

Man goes out to his work, and to his labor until the evening. Psalm 104:23

Sounds like most ranchers I know. Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, at-

tend to your herds. The hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself. Proverbs 27:23&25

Why? Why do we work so hard to care for our land and stock? So that they in turn can serve us.

The lambs will provide your clothing and the goats the price of a field (or what ever your needs). You shall have enough goat’s milk (or cow’s milk) for your food, for the food of your household, and the nourishment of your maidservant (or your hired help). Proverbs 27:26-27

He (God) causes the grass to grow for the cattle and vegetation for the service of man, that he may bring forth food from the earth. Psalm 104:14

Then He (God) will give the rain for your seed with which you sow the ground and bread of the increase of the earth; it will be fat and plentiful. In that day your cattle will feed in large pastures. Isa-iah 30:23

A nice, fat, grain-fed beef sounds good to me!With people and with animals, we have the pro-

ductive and the non-productive, the caretakers, and the takers. If you stop and think about it, I believe you will agree that most ranchers and farmers fall into the productive, caretaker category. They work and tend the land, their flocks and herds, to feed the world – productive and non-productive alike – those who would bless them, and those who would curse them. Sounds like Someone else I know.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Trails from everyone at Harmony Ranch Ministry. May God richly bless you. We love you and would love to hear from you. If you would like someone to pray with, or just have a question, please give us a call at (775) 867-3100.


An Integrated Approach to Salt Cedar Control and Rehabilitation

Charlie D. Clements, Dan N. Harmon, James A. Young and Jeff Knight

Salt cedar (Tamarix spp.), a small tree native to Central Asiha has invaded more than 4.7 million acres in the western United States. Planted in the early 1800s as an ornamental and later for windbreaks and soil stabi-lization, it escaped cultivation, infesting riparian and

adjacent communities. Three species primarily exist in northern Nevada, two are invasive (T. ramosissima and T. chenensis), and the other non-invasive (T.parviflora). They are visibly differentiated by flowering as the non-invasive T. parviflora flowers first before leaf bud break. There is considerable debate concerning why salt cedar is such a highly invasive species. It is not clear if salt cedar invasion is the cause of changes in riparian communities or a consequence of changes in stream hydrology. Regardless, the presence of salt cedar is associated with dramatic changes in geomorphology, ground water availability, soil chemistry, fire frequency, plant community compo-

sition, and wildlife diversity. Salt cedar plants readily regenerate from crown and

root sprouts following mechanical

removal or burning of the aerial portions of the plant. Stream bank erosion can result in the transportation of stem or root fragments that may root and establish new infestations. The overwhelming means of spread of salt cedar is by seedling establishment, which is often promoted by flooding events that leave bare muddy ground or newly exposed river banks (Figure 1). Seed production may exceed one half million seeds per plant during a single season. We have recorded salt cedar seed rain of 49,500 seeds per ft² in salt cedar infestations, 25,800 seeds per ft² 100 yards down-wind, and 550 seeds per ft² 4 miles down-wind from infestations. In an effort to control salt cedar, the USDA-Agricultural Research Service investigated a number of potential control insects in the 1970s. By the 1990s a foreign leaf eating beetle (Diorhabda carinulata formerly D. elongata), was re-leased by USDA. In 1999, the USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Great Basin Rangelands Research Unit constructed three bio-control quarantine cages in North-western Nevada; Lovelock (40º01.219’N 118º31.389’E), Stillwater (39º31.493’N 118º30.823’E) and Walker, (38º53.529’N 118º46.780’E).

In 2001, the leaf beetle was released. At two of the three release sites (Walker and Lovelock) the beetle initially established very well.

Annual vegetation monitoring was conducted at the Lovelock and Walker release sites for 10 years. Vegetation mon-

itoring began in May 2001 with salt

Figure 1. Salt cedar recruitment along Walker River, Nevada.


cedar measurements of plant morphology of 100 marked trees [e.g. height, diameter, densiometer (percent), foliage/stem status (green, defoliated (dead leaf /stem), re-growth, and flowering]. We measured nearest shrub and primary vegetation under the canopy along with presence or absence of beetles. These measurements were taken (last week in May) from 2001 through 2011. After measuring defoliation for a decade, complete defoliation reached a high of 54% in 2004 at the Lovelock site and a high of 18% at the Walker site in 2007. By 2011, complete defoliation was recorded at 41% and 14%, respect-fully. In 2001 vegetation measurements at the Lovelock site recorded the occurrence of saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) in 47% of the quadrats with an average cover of 9.26%. Tall whitetop (Lepidium latifolium) was also present in 47% of the quadrats beneath the canopy with an average cover of 12.68%. By 2011 tall whitetop was not present in the quadrats and saltgrass had increased to a presence of 50% beneath the canopy with an average cover of 48.46%. The Walker site re-corded much more vegetation diversity with numerous species pres-ent during favorable precipitation years and virtually nothing during drought periods. Initial vegetation monitoring in 2001 yielded cheat-grass (Bromus tectorum)and Tansy mustard (Descurainia pinnata) as the most frequently recorded species. Cheatgrass occurred in 42% of the quadrats with an average cover of 7.14%, while Tansy mustard was present in 19% of the quadrats with an average cover of 1.95%. By 2011 there had been a significant decrease in vegetation presence (2001 = 49% vs. 2011 = 2%) and average vegetation cover decreased as well (2001 = 5.38% vs. 2011 = 0.01%). Salt cedar was removed with heavy equipment at the Lovelock site in 2008 that resulted in the sprouting of salt cedar whips from roots that averaged a density 7.3/m² with 47% cover (Figure 2). Various herbicides were applied in 2011 to test effi-

cacy of salt cedar control and vegetation response. Polaris (Imazapyr) @ 1% rate recorded the best performance at 91% control while Garlon 3a @ 0.5% rate applied to whips recorded the lowest control at 22%. Initial understory response was very favorable in the Polaris plots as herbaceous vegetation increased from 17% cover to 44%. The combi-nation of extreme drought conditions and pro-long herbicide activity due to lack of precipitation resulted in significant loss of herbaceous vegetation from 44% in cover in 2012 down to 6.6% cover in 2014 (Figure 3). Seeding efforts with various species following herbicide applications also failed during extreme drought conditions, 2011-2014. Rehabilitation efforts will continue at the Lovelock site to test plant materials in hope of experiencing more favorable timing and periodicity of precipitation. Previous reports suggest rapid beetle defoliation is significant and death can occur within 3-5 years. We observed a high percent of re-growth of near completely defoliated trees after removing the defoliated-stem overstory. In 2011, the beetle was absent, which along with the nature of salt cedar, deep rooted, re-spouting (after fire or flood), drought tolerant, long-lived, makes control unlikely. However, there still seems to be debate over the effectiveness of the beetle to control salt cedar. The interpretation of a dead salt cedar tree further clouds this reality. We follow the guidelines that “dead trees do not grow” in our assessment of true senescence. A defoliated salt cedar tree that may look dead and gray actually has tremendous potential to re-grow. Removal of defoliated standing biomass (a necessity for revegetation and wildlife use), stimulates re-growth. Based on our observations we find it most probable that heavy equipment and her-bicides will continue to be the tools that will ultimately aid in the salt cedar control efforts.

Figure 2. Sprouting salt cedar whips following mechanical removal prior to the application of the herbicide, Imazapyr.

Figure 3. Herbicide Imazapyr provided excellent control of salt cedar, but in combination with drought conditions added mortality to the herbaceous understory also occurred.


Brad Schultz, Extension Educator, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Winnemucca, Nevada

Curlycup Gumweed

Curlycup gumweed (Grindelia squarrosa) is a native species that originally inhabited land-scapes from Manitoba south to

Texas and east to Idaho and Arizona. Follow-ing settlement, gumweed has expanded its range and become naturalized throughout eastern North America and the Pacific Coast states. Curlycup gumweed often occupies dis-turbed areas associated with roads and rail-ways, corridors for power lines and pipelines, vacant lots, abandoned cropland, overgrazed pastures, boarders of agronomic fields, fence lines, and areas on farms and ranches man-aged as bare-ground sites. A common theme across these sites is the absence of competi-tive deep-rooted grasses.

In Nevada, curlycup gumweed typically begins growth in early to mid-April and growth continues into September and some-times October. Gumweed inhabits a broad elevation range, and has been found from just over 3,000 feet in Montana and other arid states to almost 9,000 feet in Colorado and Wyoming. It can tolerate hot droughty condi-tions as well as relatively cool and moist sites that lack competing vegetation.

In general, gumweed does not compete well with the deep-rooted perennial grasses (native or introduced) typically found on well managed rangeland and pastures. Curlycup gumweed is adapted to a broad range of soils, growing best on sandy loam, loam, and clay loam soils. It will occupy soils that are pre-dominately gravel, clay, and dense clay but its abundance and growth decline. The plant is well adapted to saline soils. The optimal soil depth is 10 to 20 inches but it will occupy soils that are much deeper. Most plants grow as a biennial but in some situations gumweed’s lifecycle may assume that of an annual or short-lived perennial plant.

The Grindelia species were used by Na-tive Americans for many medicinal purposes. These include treatment of poison oak rashes and burns, and pulmonary related issues. The leaves of gumweed become covered by a res-inous sap as the plant matures and this resin has been used as a substitute for chewing gum. Green and yellow dyes can be obtained from the yellow flowering heads and pods.

Curlycup gumweed is unpalatable to cattle, sheep, and horses, though sheep (and presumably goats) will occasionally crop flower heads in the absence of other for-age. The plant’s stems and leaves contain tannins, volatile oils, resins, glucosides, and bitter alkaloids which give curlycup gumweed an unpleasant taste and dramatically reduce its palatability. Gumweed also is a facultative accumulator of selenium when the element is present in soils at high levels. Selenium con-tent of the leaves and stems can reach toxic levels for livestock.

In Nevada, agricultural producers rated Curlycup gumweed as the 17th most prob-lematic species. Statewide, 8.1 % of produc-ers consider gumweed to be a problematic species; however, it is not one of the top-ten problematic weeds in any individual county. At the county level, the the greatest concern was expressed by producers in Churchill (14.6 % of producers) and Washoe/Storey Counties (11.4 % of producers).

Plant biologyCurlycup gumweed typically has a bien-

nial lifecycle (but not always), which means it takes two growing seasons to complete its lifecycle. Plants typically germinate in the spring, form a basal rosette the first growing season, go dormant in the late summer or fall, and regrow the following spring. Regrowth initially forms another basal rosette of leaves, from which flowering stems bolt upward and develop flowers from June through the summer months. Some plants will have an annual lifecycle; thus, they will produce their seed and die in one growing season. The few plants that become short-lived perennials have the potential to produce seed two or more times during their lifespan. It is impos-sible to tell which plants will grow as annuals, biennials or short-lived perennials; therefore, control actions should occur the first year that gumweed plants appear, to prevent seed production and development of a long-lived seedbank.

The production of new plants is entirely from seeds. There are no buds on the root sys-tem from which new plants can develop. Seed dispersal is largely from the wind but seed can become attached to the fur of any animal

and be transported as far as that animal may move before the seed falls to the soil. Seed also can be transported long distances when contaminated soil is moved from one site to another, or mud that contains seeds becomes attached to vehicles and farm equipment that are moved off-site.

Curlycup gumweed develops a tap root that can reach over 7 feet deep. Lateral roots spread from the taproot and are concentrated at shallow depths. This root architecture allows for rapid extraction of soil nutrients from shallow soil depths when that soil layer is moist, and withdrawal of deep soil mois-ture throughout the dry summer months to support continued growth and/or photosyn-thesis. The result is a drought resistant plant capable of good seed production during dry years. Data on seed production are lacking but the large number of flowers on an indi-vidual plant, and the ability of this weed to form near monocultures on disturbed sites, strongly suggest that seed output per acre can be very high.

Seed can germinate quite rapidly. Re-search found that after a 10-week cold-damp stratification period, seed can germinate as quickly as 3 days after planting. The 10-week cold-damp stratification period is similar to winter conditions in much of the Great Basin during most years. Deeply buried seed can remain viable for at least five years. There is little to no information available on opti-mum burial depth for germination or seed longevity.Control Methods

Non-chemical methodsOnce seed from curlycup gumweed has

been dispersed onto a site there is the po-tential for new plants to occur annually for at least five years due to the seedbank that forms. Long-term control of gumweed re-quires preventing seed production from exist-ing plants, depleting the seedbank, reducing the risk of seed being dispersed onto the site from the wind or human processes (e.g., as the movement of contaminated equipment, animals or soil onto the site), and reducing the probability of seed germination and seedling establishment on the site should viable seed reach it.

Nevada’s Priority Agricultural Weeds:


The easiest time to control curlycup gum-weed is when the plants are rapidly growing basal rosettes their first growing season. Ma-ture plants are difficult to control mechanically because of their large taproot, the semi-woody stems that develop as the plants mature, and the very resinous stems and leaves. Mechani-cal treatments that sever tap root from the root crown can be very effective but the taproot and root crown must be completely separated from one another. When populations are small a shovel or hoe can easily be used to kill most plants, but large populations will require ma-chinery that can cover several acres or more relatively quickly and sever the taproot several inches below the soil surface.

Mowing treatments do not kill the axillary buds on the root crown or at the base of the mowed stems. The deep tap root can extract soil moisture from deeper soils and facilitate regrowth from the buds on the root crown and mowed stems. Mowing treatments often have to be applied several times a growing season to prevent seed production. When gumweed populations cover large areas, have high plant density, and the plants reach maturity e (2-3 feet tall) and develop many woody stems, they can become difficult to mow with hand held or even small tractor mounted equipment.

Regular tillage treatments also easily kill plants, especially seedlings, but they also may bury viable seed deep enough to increase the duration of its viability. Seed on the soil sur-face and at very shallow depths typically dies sooner than deeply buried seed, because it is exposed to many types of pathogens, insects and granivorous animals. Additional tillage treatments one to several years in the future may bring deeply buried viable seed back toward the soil surface where germination is more likely to occur.

There are no commercially available bio-control agents for curlycup gumweed. Live-stock are not a viable management tool due to the plants poor palatability and potential to accumulate selenium to toxic levels. Poorly managed grazing on pastures and rangeland can thin desired perennial grasses, which can facilitate the establishment of gumweed.

The best approach to reducing the risk of widespread establishment of curlycup gum-weed is to establish a dense vigorous stand of perennial grasses. Gumweed is not a strong competitor with deep rooted grasses when the roots of those grasses occupy most of the soil profile, both vertically and laterally.

Herbicide ControlThere are few herbicides labeled specifical-

ly for curlycup gumweed. In part this is because the weed is seldom a problem in cultivated

cropland, which is where the greatest variety of herbicides is applied. In wildland and non-crop settings no herbicides appear to give good consistent control. This is due, at least in part, to the resinous coating that develops on leaves and stems as the plants mature. The gummy resinous layer can limit chemical uptake by the leaves, which reduces the amount of the herbi-cide translocated to the growing points.

The following active ingredients, are known to control curlycup gumweed: 2,4-D (many products), dicamba (Banvel, Clarity), aminopyralid (Milestone), metsulfuron (Es-cort, Ally, Patriot) and picloram (Tordon). All herbicide applications should occur during early vegetative growth (young, small rosettes), to rapidly growing plants, but before the leaves and stems become resinous. The gummy resin dramatically reduces herbicide uptake by the plant. Metsulfuron, however, can also be ap-plied later in the vegetative growth phase than the other chemicals, but any treatment should occur before flowering. No herbicide has been found to be effective once flowering begins, including fall treatments. Glyphosate is gener-ally not effective on this plant at any growth stage. Generally, the control of gumweed ap-pears to be best when air temperatures exceed 65 degrees at application but soil moisture is adequate for rapid growth for several weeks after application.

In addition to the specific products men-tioned above, each active ingredient can be found in several or more products that are

bought as pre-packaged mixes, which may control a broader spectrum of weeds than just curlycup gumweed. One or more of these pre-packaged mixes may be more appropriate for your specific weed problem. All of the afore-mentioned active ingredients, except 2,4-D, have a soil residual that may last from several months to several years. This residual can help control seedlings that could emerge later in the growing season and for longer lasting chemi-cals the following growing season or two.

No single active ingredient is the best chemical for all infestations of curlycup gum-weed. Every situation is unique and herbicide selection should be based on site-specific con-ditions. Some factors to consider are: 1) do you need an herbicide that is selective and will not adversely affect any desired residual species that occupy the site; 2) are your short- and mid-term management objectives compatible with a chemical that leaves a residual amount of the active ingredient in the soil; 3) what will be the growth stage of curlycup gumweed when you have the time to fit an herbicide treatment into your overall farming or ranching operation; and 4) can you make the

commitment to any required follow-up treatments to achieve excellent control. Some chemicals will result in less long-term control (e.g., 2,4-D) than the other active ingredients, and treated gumweed populations will re-quire follow-up applications for newly emerged seedlings.

Most, and perhaps all, weed control and management programs for curlycup gumweed should use an integrated approach that applies two or more methods of weed control across time. Very seldom does a single approach work, year after year. Furthermore, all approaches, except for the purposeful management of an area for bare-ground, must consider how to establish and/or increase the desired species on an infested site. A dense, vigorous stand of desired perennial grasses (or crop species) provides the best opportunity to prevent the rapid large scale establishment of curlycup gumweed, particularly when combined with periodic scouting to find the initial colonizers and eliminate them before they develop a large seedbank. Early detection of gumweed and a rapid response when the first few plants ap-pear provides the best opportunity to prevent large scale establishment and costly multi-year treatments, particularly when the first few plants can create seedbank that may persist at least 5 years.

The next weed addressed in this series will be yellow starthisle (Centaurea solstitialis), an annual herbaceous forb that develops semi-woody stems and sharp thorns each year.

Figure 1. Close up photo hof curlycup gumweed flower and leaves. The bright shine on the leaves is the result of the large amount of resin that cov-ers the leaves on mature plants. Herbicides have a difficult time penetrating this resin which results in poor control when chemicals are applied to ma-ture plants. Photo from http://igrow.org/livestock/beef/controlling-curlycup-gumweed-grindelia-squarrosa/


Howard W. Wolf passed away peacefully surrounded by family on March 20, 2015. He was 94 years old. Up until a few days before his passing he still lived at the Wolf Ranch in Fallon Nevada.

Howard was born February 11, 1921 to George and Ella Wolf. He had two brothers and two sisters; they were raised in Van Nuys Califor-nia. Howards formal education ended in the 9th grade after his father

passed away. He was able to purchase his first head of cattle by raising and selling meat rabbits, row crops and jobs with his team of mules. In 1938, as an F.F.A. member, he was awarded over all grand champion steer at the Los Ange-les county fair. Howard served a short period in the US Army. He was a heavy equipment operator and received a honorable medical discharge.

On August 14, 1947 he married Bar-bara Cooper. The two met by chance as bystanders after a auto accident. The couple lived in Sanger, California for several years where they had their first child. In 1949 Howard and Barbara moved to Fallon, Nevada to begin what would become the Wolf ranch. After

purchasing surrounding acreage in Fallon, Nevada, Howard acquired the LS (Lee Streshley) ranch, Austin, Nevada in 1968.

He had a love for his horses and cattle that he shared with his fam-ily. At one time he raised Brahman cattle, a commercial cattle herd, Suffolk lambs, and AQHA horses. Howard was also very involved in wildlife and wetland conservation in conjunction with the American Sportsman Association. He was a member of the Cattleman’s Asso-ciation, Nevada Farm Bureau, supported the local F.F.A., 4-H clubs, and the Nevada Cutting Horse Association. Howard and Barbara were active members of the Epworth United Methodist church. The couple loved to square dance, traveling to purchase cattle, and enjoyed several cruises to Alaska and the Caribbean.

Howard W. Wolf is preceded in death by his beloved wife Barbara Wolf, his elder brother George Wolf, and his younger sister Mary El-len. He is survived by younger brother Bob (Harriet) Wolf, sister Jane (Robert) Cosgrave; Daughters Kay Knudtsen, Mary Lou (Paul) Grum-strup, Joanne (Marshall) Brown, Gayle Hybarger, and son Dan (Julie) Wolf; Grandchildren Lori (Louis) Brown- Lazenby, Lisa (Chad) Ri-gney, Karsten (Ellen) Grumstrup, Brynn Grumstrup, Ethan (Brianne) Grumstrup, Ashley (James) Wolf Humphreys, and Lena Wolf; Great-grandchildren Carson, Charolotte, and Clayton Rigney.

“Forever in the saddle, makes the rest of the world not matter, the sense of humor, hard work and lessons taught with always be remem-bered and never forgot, today we ride away watch over us with love to meet another day.”

ObituariesHoward W. Wolf

1921-2015


HUMBOLDT WATERSHED COOPERATIVEWeed Management Area

Hello from the Humboldt Watershed CWMA! The HWCWMA was developed to address the invasive weed problem and subsequent decline in water quality within the entire 16,843 square mile watershed, which

covers most of Northern Nevada. The primary function of HWC-WMA has been to provide land managers, owners and weed control groups assistance in the areas of funding, agency and weed group coordination and cooperation.

This month we would like to introduce you to one of Nevada’s state listed noxious weeds, black henbane (Hyoscyamus niger). Black Henbane is a native of Europe and has been cultivated as an orna-mental. It has spread throughout the United States and is a common weed of pastures, fence rows, roadsides, and waste areas; known to occur in Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon and White Pine counties in Nevada. Black Henbane contains hyoscyamine and other alkaloids which can cause livestock poisoning. It is considered a poisonous plant to humans.

Black henbane is an annual or biennial of the nightshade family (Solanaceae) that reproduces solely through seed production. Seeds germinate and develop into a rosette in late May. Rosette leaves are soft, alternate and have leaf stalks nearly as long as the leaf blades. Black henbane has a large, whitish, branched, fleshy taproot. The plant grows 1 to 6 feet tall. Stems of a mature plant are erect, leafy, thick,

coarse, hairy and widely branched. Leaves are large – up to 6 inches wide and 8 or more inches long. Leaves are alternate with coarsely toothed to shal-lowly lobed margins, and are grayish-green in color. Foliage is covered with fine, sticky hairs. It flowers from June to Septem-ber, with peak flowering usually in July. The 5-lobed, funnel-shaped flowers are brownish-yellow in appearance with dark purple veins. Flowers are arranged in a long spike-like inflorescence in the upper leaves with the youngest flower at the tip. Two rows of 1 inch long, five-lobed, pineapple-shaped fruits appear after flowering. Each fruit capsule contains black, pitted seeds. Black henbane produces 10,000 to 500,000 seeds per plant. Black henbane has an unpleasant odor at all growth stages, especially when it is crushed.

Integrated ManagementManagement objectives for black henbane control should involve

preventing seed production and periodically monitoring populations. Field observations suggest the seeds of black henbane can remain vi-able in the soil for a period of five years; therefore, particular attention is required for several consecutive growing seasons to control newly emerging plants. Good vegetative cover of desired plants considerably reduces the chance of black henbane infestation.

Mechanical ControlHand-pulling or digging can be effective if the

taproot is entirely removed. In order to prevent seed dispersal, plants with mature fruits should be put in bags after removal. The area must be monitored for new seedlings for at least four years. Mechanical control methods are only ef-fective for small infestations. Wear gloves and protective clothing when handling the plants to prevent rashes.

Grazing Grazing to control black henbane is not

an option because it is poisonous to livestock, poultry and swine. Fortunately, because of the foul odor of the plant, livestock seldom graze black henbane, and few cases of livestock poi-sonings have been reported. However, dried plant matter in baled forage retains its toxic properties and will be readily consumed.

HWCWMA P.O. Box 570 Elko, NV 89803-0570 [email protected] [email protected] land managers, owners and local weed control groups assistance through funding, agency and weed group coordination, communication and cooperation


Black Henbane

ChemicalSeveral herbicides are listed as providing control of black hen-

bane. Herbicide recommendations vary by region and site. Read and follow the herbicide label to determine whether the herbicide applies to your situation, what rates are appropriate, and ensure all safety recommendations are followed. Herbicides should be applied with a non-ionic surfactant at the rosette stage and prior to flowering to prevent seed production. The area should be monitored after appli-cation and any escapes or regrowth should be retreated.

As always, please notify the HWCWMA if you see black henbane growing within the Humboldt River Watershed - it is only known to be established in a few locations in this region and we may have an opportunity to stop this highly invasive species from spreading if we act quickly. Our staff can provide the property owner or appropriate public agency with site-specific treatment options for these plants. The HWCWMA also maps and monitors heavily infested sites in the watershed which allows the HWCWMA the ability to provide educational and financial assistance to land owners and groups in their management efforts, ultimately improving all of the qualities of the land and water in our watershed.

Herbicide Active Ingredient(Trade Name)

Product per Acre Application Timing or Growth Stage

Dicamba (e.g. Vanquish, Clarity)

8 to 32 ounces Rosette to bolting

Picloram (Tordon) 1 to 2 pints Actively growing plants when there is adequate soil moisture

Metsulfuron (Escort) 0.5 to 1.0 ounces Bolting to early flowering

Metsulfuron + chlorsulfuron (Cimarron Plus)

0.625 to 1.25 ounces Actively growing plants

The HWCWMA has also devel-oped a website to serve as a clear-inghouse for information on invasive weeds in the Humboldt Watershed. Our website (http://www.humboldt-weedfree.org) contains fact sheets for state listed noxious weeds in Nevada, Board of Director’s information, funding partner’s links, and many more features including a detailed project proposal packet that you can print, fill out and mail back to us at your convenience. We are looking to expand our proj-ect area outside of the Humboldt River and always welcome new funding opportunities.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Andi Porreca, HWCWMA Coordinator at (775) 762-2636 or email her at [email protected]. You may also speak with Rhonda Heguy, HWCWMA Administrator at (775) 738-3085, email: [email protected].


Branding Season

OF A RANCH WiFE

The best indicator of a good day branding is how dirty the boys are at the end of it, and how long it takes them to fall asleep on the drive home. I used to judge my day on how many calves I

roped, how my horse handled, or how good the company was. Now I can miss every loop, have my horse’s nose straight up in the air, or fall off in the branding trap (that hasn’t happened yet!) and it won’t bother me too much, as long as the boys have a good time. It has been so much fun watching them grow in our ranching community. Funny how your perspective changes as you grow up!

During Spring Break we went to one of the best brand-ings that the Cow Boss and I have been to in a long time. We helped Kevin and Kristi Tomera brand a few calves. The thing that made this branding so much fun? The ground crew and half the ropers were all kids. They ranged in age from 5 to about 16 years old and they worked hard! The older kids took turns roping, and the rest of them raced each other to wrassle the calves. I thought a fight was going to break out a time or two over who got to the calf first and got to sit on it. It was chaos. It was loud. It was windy. It was wonderful!

TR worked his tail off. He held the feet on a few calves on QT’s trusty stead “Knothead.” He got in some good practice dallying and keeping the rope tight. These old ranch horses are worth their weight in gold. “Knothead” took pretty good care of TR, and kept him out of a couple of wrecks. TR car-ried the nut bucket for a while, and hustled between calves, calling out “heifer!” or “bull!” to keep the castrator on task. He even wrassled a couple of little calves by himself. He did good!

QT. QT kept track of the girls. He’s quite the ladies’ man these days. If you can’t find him, just look for some girls, and there is a pretty good chance he isn’t too far away. They keep a pretty good eye on him, which was good because mom stole his horse to rope on. When I told him I would be keeping “Knothead” for myself and he would need to find a different horse to ride he informed me “You can’t have Knot-head! I love that horse!” I think we all do.

I’m not really sure how the Cow Boss did, or how many calves I roped. I was too busy watching all of the kids work. It was a long, windy, dusty day, and we were exhausted when we got home. The boys were almost asleep when we got to the ranch, and yes, they were filthy!


Like many people, you may enjoy investing. After all, it can be invigorating to put away money for your future, follow the performance of your in-vestments and track the progress you’re making

toward your long-term goals, such as a comfortable re-tirement. However, you might be less excited about doing estate planning, dreading the perceived time, effort and cost. Yet, you can make the entire process more manage-able by breaking it up into specific tasks.

What are these tasks? Everyone’s needs are different, but here are a few suggestions that may be applicable to your situation:

• Purchase life insurance. If something were to happen to you, would your family be able to stay in the house? Would your children be able to go to college? You should have sufficient life insurance to take care of these and other essential needs. You might hear about various “formulas” for how much insurance you should purchase, but you may be better off by working with a financial professional — someone who can evaluate your assets, goals and family situation, and then recommend an appropriate level of coverage.

• Draw up your will. For most people, a will is probably the most essential estate-planning document. Regardless of the size of your estate, you need a will to ensure that your assets and personal belongings will be distributed according to your wishes. If you die intestate (without a will), your belongings will be distributed to your “heirs” as defined by state laws — and these distributions may not be at all what you had in mind.

• Consider a living trust. Depending on your situation, you may need to go beyond a will when drawing up your estate plans. For example, you might want to create a living trust, which can allow your assets to go directly to your heirs, avoiding the public, time-consuming and expensive process of probate. A living trust offers other benefits, too, so you may want to consult with a legal profes-sional to learn more about this estate-planning tool.

• Check beneficiary designations. The beneficiary designations on your insurance policies and retirement accounts, such as your IRA and 401(k), are powerful and can even supersede the instruc-tions left in your will. So it’s in your best interests to make sure you’ve got the right people listed as your beneficiaries. Over time, you may need to update these designations to reflect changes in your family situation.

• Make final arrangements. Whenever you pass away, it will be a stressful time for your loved ones. To ease their burden, consider establishing a “payable-on-death” account at your bank, and then funding this account to pay for your funeral and related expenses.

• Share your plans. The most comprehensive estate plan in the world may not be of much value if nobody knows of its existence. Share your plans with your loved ones and heirs. It’s important that everyone knows their roles in carrying out your wishes.

When dealing with any estate-planning issues, you’ll want to consult with your legal and tax professionals. And by taking a step-by-step approach, you can keep the process moving forward — with-out feeling that you’re being overwhelmed. This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor

Presented by Jason Land, Financial Advisor, Edward Jones in Elko, Nevada2213 North 5th Street, Sui te A | 775-738-8811

Fi n a n c i a l Fo c u s

Approach Can EaseEstate-planning Process“Step-by-Step”

1222 6th St., P.O. Box 368 Wells, NV 89835 • www.bottarirealty.com

Ruby Valley: New listing! 811 Acres: Approx. 300 acres with surface and underground water rights and permits. Modest home needs some work as hasn’t been lived in for awhile. Off paved highway. Price: $1,000,000. Will consider selling smaller parcels if you can’t afford the full acreage.

Heard Ranch/Farm: Diamond Valley 173 acres with Irrigation well only $195,000. Sale Ready to Close!

Rim Rock Ranch: Price reduced again to $359,000. This 640 acre ranch sits at the foot of the Pequop Mountains in Independence Valley approx. 17 miles East of Wells. Modern manufactured home with power from solar and back up generator. Fenced and cross-fenced . Great small ranch to be self suffi cient and off the grid!!

Morrison Ranch-Eureka County: 160 acres with well in Antelope Valley. $280,000.

Hwy 50 420 acres approx. 30 miles West of Eureka . Water rights were removed but the well could possibly used for other permitted uses such as stockwater and domestic. No warranty on well! Price: $300,000. Great access!

Elko Co. 10,706 deeded with BLM Sheep permit: These private sections are in the checkerboard area and are intermingled with public lands. The ranch has historically been a Spring Sheep range. The

BLM permit is only 29% public lands. Price includes 50% of the mineral rights on all but 320 acres. Oil & Gas Lease might pay a big portion of the purchase! Price$1,500,000. Considering adding the property below to it to make a year around unit.

Elko Co. Humboldt River Property: 650 acres located between the Ryndon and Osino Exits on I-80. This property has over 300 acres of surface water rights out of the Humboldt River. The BLM permit for the 10,706 acres above is a short distance from this property with a stock driveway on this property. Price:$1.2 million.

Current Mountain Ranch: Wanting to own a self sustaining property where you grow all you need? check this one out. Lots of fruit trees including; Pear, apricot, cherry, nectarine, apple, grapes, blackberry, and more including Almond’s. One center pivot with Alfalfa plus other meadow pastures. Ponds with Trout, bass and bluegills. Lots of Deer and wild tur-keys. A meat house with cooler and cutting room. 3 homes. Price. $1,900,000.

Work: 775-752-3040Home: 775-752-3809 • Fax: 775-752-3021

Paul D. Bottari, [email protected]

Ranch Properties now available

For additional information on these properties go to: BOTTARIREALTY.COM


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the progressive rancher may/june 2015

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