Warm Springs, Oregon
October 19,2000 9
r onmrw fnn umwktt
Arlcne Boilcau
4-H& Youth
Bob Pawclck
Livestock
Clint Jacks
.EXTENSION
service
Staff Chair, Madras
Zack delNcro Minnie RedDog
Natural Resources 4-H Assistant
(540 553-3238 Bcrnadcttc Handlcy
Home Economics
The Oregon Slate University Extension Service staff is devoted to extending research-based information from OSU to the
people of Warm Springs In agriculture, home economics, 4-H youth, forestry, community development, energy and
extension sea grant program with OSU, United States Department of Agriculture, Jefferson County and the Confederated
Tribes of Warm Springs cooperating. The extension service offers its programs and materials equally to all people.
Internet address: http:www.orst.edudeptwsext
The Clover Speaks
Natural Resources Notables
SpilyayTymoo
Arlene Boileau,
Minnie Tulalakus,
Warm Springs 4-H Program
Be A 4-1 1 Volunteer, Share your Tal
ents with the Youth of Warm Springs, Dis
cover the World Together, what you have
to offer and what the youth of Warm
Springs will gain.
Flexibility to fit your interests, for you
and the youth of Warm Springs. Pride in
Learning when youth learns a new skill or
do a job well. The youth gains self-esteem
and the volunteer is satisfied at watching
the young person blossom. I lere's how you
can get involved. Contact the Warm
Springs OSU Extension Office and talk to
Arlene or Minnie about how you can share
your skills and talent with the youth of
Warm Springs Call 553-3238. being a 4-H
Volunteer has many rewards, taken in part
from the 2000 4- II pamphlet.
Wednesday October 4, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Peanut Butter & Jelly
Blindfold.
Wednesday October 11, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Food Safety & Hand
washing.
Wednesday October 18, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Great Pumpkin Party &
Cookie Contest to be judged on Tuesday
Halloween is fast approaching and ev
erywhere you look, you can spot orange
and black decorations. But where did the
celebration of Halloween originate? Some
folks say it has pagan roots and some say
it has Christian roots. Both would be cor
rect. Christian Celts celebrated the end of
autumn and the beginning of a new year
with a feast on Halloween, They believed
that all the laws of time and space were
suspended for that day. Spirits of folks that
had passed on to the next life could freely
roam the earth. To ward off these' 'spirits, '
the Celts put out their fires that night. The
next morn they relit their fires from the
main fire that was always burning.
Christians celebrate November 1 as All
Saints Day, a day to remember all those
souls that have passed on and gone to
heaven. In order to prepare for the feast,
the Christians tried to make holy or "hal
low" on the "eve" before. Hence, the "hal
low eve" or Halloween.
Trick-or-treating originated in Europe
from "souling". Beggars would walk from
town to town trading prayers for deceased
family members in exchange for cakes
made of bread filled with currants. The
jack-o-lantern custom came from Irish
folklore. Based on the story, Jack, a drunk
ard and trickster could not enter heaven
because of his evil ways. The devil gave
him one ember to light his way through the
darkness. The Irish originally used turnips
to carry the ember but switched to pump
Getting Heifers Bred
By Bob Pawelek
The following research confirms sus
picions I have had for years relative to get
ting first calf heifers bred.
According to research conducted by
Dr. Bob Bellows, respected nutritionist and
reproductive physiologist from the Miles
City, Montana Fort Keogh Research Cen
ter, non-puberal estrus occurs in approxi
mately 20 of heifers as they near puberty.
Non-puberal estrus animals exhibit all out
ward signs of estrus, the riding, the stand
ing, the nervousness, etc. Standing heat
may last for as few as two to three hours to
as many as 24 hours, instead of the aver
age 10 to 12 hours. The time interval be
tween non-puberal estrus heat cycles may
be as few as five days to as many as 45
days, instead of the average of 18 to 21
days. Non-puberal estrus cycles are not
fertile heats. The heifers are reaching re
productive maturity, however, they are not
there yet. All signs of heat and duration
of cycles are erratic and unpredictable.
It is for these reasons that Dr. Bellows
recommends heifers be fed to reach target
breeding weight and be showing outwards
signs of estrus at least 45 days prior to the
breeding period. Usually after the second
and third estus, all heifers are having fer
tile heats and a breeding program will be
successful.
A common mistake I see producers
make is visually observing a cluster of heif
ers bulling 45 to 60 days prior to the breed
ing period. Producers assume that the
whole cluster is in heat. Dr. Bellows re
search shows that usually only one heifer
is actually in heat and the rest are curious
and bored riders. This leaves producers
w ith the false impression that the group of
heifers are fed to target w eight and are now
on track to breed. Often times producers
back off on the feed. Take time to actually
observe the group of heifers and see which
ones are actually in standing heat. You
should be seeing on a daily basis 5 of the
heifers truly in standing heat if all are cy
clic. If you have 100 heifers you should
average 5 head of standing heat heifers per
17.
Wednesday October 25, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Deer with Cooking.
Wednesday November 1, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Potato's, Potato's, &
more potato's.
Wednesday November 8, 2000, 3:30-
6:00 p.m. Topic: Apples of the Great
Northwest.
Wednesday November 15, 2000,3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Salmon.
Wednesday November 27, 2000, 3:30
6:30 p.m. Topic: Baking Pies
Home Sweet Home
By Bernadette Handley,
Family & Community Development Agent
kins when they came to the New World
since pumpkins were plentiful.
Whatever its origin, Halloween is just
around the corner. Soon, little ghosts and
goblins will be at your door. "Trick or
Treat, smell my feet, give me something
good to eat!"
For a change, how about choosing
treats that "aren't so sweet" and ARE truly
"good to eat"? Buying low fat, low sugar
treats for the children may be a "treat" for
you, too, since you won't be tempted to eat
the leftover treats when the night is
"through."1-' .(
Instead of picking up sticks of regular
gum, try sugar free choices. Or instead of
a candy bar, how about a granola or cereal
bar? Some other choices might be indi
vidual packs of pretzels, baked corn chips,
or boxes of unsweetened cereal, cheese and
crackers, sticks of jerky or cheese. Fruit is
always a good choice, too. Individual juice
boxes, dried fruit, raisins or fruit roll ups
make safe and healthy snacks.
If edible treats don't sound fun or scary
enough, how about some non-food treats?
Stickers, balloons, crayons, erasers, col
ored chalk, plastic spiders, worms or ani
mals are another choice. Discount or dol
lar stores offer many bulk items that are
inexpensive. Pencils and pens are always
a hit!
Now that the 'treats' are in order, it is
time to put on your costume and head out.
Following these safety tips can make this
Halloween a safe one for children and
day. Not riding heifers but standing heat
heifers.
What does this tells us? It says that a
development program should reach a tar
get breeding weight for first calf heifers of
65 to 70 of mature weight at least 45 days
prior to the breeding period. This should
be a shrunk weight and not a full weight.
This will allow the 20 of heifers that nor
mally exhibit non-puberal estrus to go
through these non fertile heats prior to ac
tual breeding. All heifers should be on
their second and third cycles at actual
breeding time.
To accomplish the above, those of us
running cattle on range lands will have to
start our development program earlier and
push heifers harder. This means more dol
lars put into our already expensive devel
opment program. Open and late pregnan
cies is the alternative.
The non-puberal estrus situation may
also explain why not all of the
0Aprecocious (early development) fe
males discussed during our Beef Basics
class earlier do not all turn into pregnancy.
At 6 and 7 months of age heifers are not
having fertile heats but are showing signs
of non-puberal estrus.
FDQA
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Know Your State Government
The next Know Your State Govern
ment Conference is schedule for April 18
21,2001 If you are interested in finding out
more about KYSG read the Spilyay we will
keep you updated.
Well Little Cooks it is almost Hallow
een and we will be baking cookies. You
will need to get out the following items to
start. But first wash your hands and make
sure you have a big person with you when
you are in the kitchen. Measuring cups,
measuring spoons, a large bowl to mix the
ingredients in, and a large spoon the mix
the ingredients with.
Pumpkins Cookies
13 cup vegetable oil, 1 cup sugar, 1
cup canned pumpkin, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon va
nilla extract, 2 cups whole wheat flour, 1
12 teaspoon baking power, 12 teaspoon
soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 14 tea
spoon ground nutmeg, Vi cup chopped pe
cans (optional)
Cream together in the bowl oil, sugar,
pumpkin, egg, and vanilla. Add the flour,
baking power, baking soda, cinnamon, and
the nutmeg. Stir to blend well. Add pecans.
Drop by teaspoon on to a lightly oiled bak
ing sheet. Bake in 350-degree oven for 10
to 12 minutes
'4kf
adults.
Make sure the costumes are visible
and easy to spot.
Provide a flashlight for your child to
carry.
Use face paints or a mask that allows
clear vision for the child.
Always have an adult accompany
small children.
Have older children walk in pairs or a
group.
Visit homes that have the porch light
on or are well lit.. ; i .......
Instruct your.child to not enter any
houses of people they or you do not know.
Encourage your child to not talk or
accept a ride from a stranger. Be careful of
strangers or animals
Wear shoes with rubber soles to avoid
slipping.
Set a time for your child to return
home. Make sure your child has a watch.
Enforce the rule that NO treats should
be eaten until an adult can inspect the food.
Discard any treat that is NOT factory
sealed - homemade popcorn balls, cake and
cookies, etc.
Use a designated driver if you attend
a party with alcohol. DON'T DRINK AND
DRIVE!!
Stockman's
lj!
.fe
By Bob Pawelek
OSU Livestock Agent
Cow slaughter continues to run below
a year earlier. For the year through Sep
tember 26, total cow slaughter was down
4.5 from 12 months earlier. Dairy cow
f
tvm Ana i
Oregon State University Extension Service
Beef Basics
Beef Cattle Management Shortcourse
Free of Charge
Monday afternoon, 5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
1st Floor Conference Room
Education Center
October 23, 2000
November 6, and 20, 2000
Please call OSU Extension to register at 553-3238
WteaJr 7 Land
There's No Place for Weeds In
Habitat Restoration
The Oregon Department of Agriculture
(ODA) says "watch for weeds when you
plant the seeds." The planting of desirable
grasses and other vegetation is a key
strategy in restoring habitat for salmon and
other threatened or endangered species in
Oregon. But it won't do any good if the
mix is infested with weed seeds.
From the two-acre landowner that
plants from a 20-pound bag of seed to an
agency land manager responsible for
thousands of acres and may use seed by
the ton, using clean seed is critical to
repairing the land. "We have some weeds
out there right now and don't need any
more from the planting of seeds," says Tim
Butler, manager of ODA's Weed Control
Program.
Yellow starthistle, knapweed, and
white top are examples of the kinds of
weeds that can turn a restoration project
sour over time. "Habitat restoration
projects are designed to get a desirable
species t establish in a sensitive area," says
Butler. "Grasses you are trying to establish
have a fibrous root system that holds the
soil together and prevents erosion. But if
something undesirable like knapweed gets
a hold, it can dominate the site with a tap
root system that doesn't hold the soil and
increases salutation in nearby streams."
Oregon's history - both past and
present - offers examples of the unintended
consequences of seed plantings that
accidentally included weeds. In' the late
1980's, to prevent erosion, the US Forest
Service used aircraft to drop grass seed on
thousands of acres after fires in Northeast
Oregon. Unfortunately, the seed was
contaminated with Yellow starthistle. The
weed spread like a biological wildfire itself
and became and expensive problem to deal
with. In the past couple of years,
contaminated wheatgrass seed originating
from California but sold by a Central
Oregon seed dealer introduced Yellow
starthistle to several counties. As part of
the construction of a new spillway at
Ochoco reservoir, a five-acre site was
Roundup: This
slaughter was up 1.4, but other cow
beef cow mostly slaughter was down
9.5 for this period of about 9 months
compared to the same period of 1999.
Two thousand will be the fourth year
that we have reduced cow slaughter. Cow
slaughter in 1999 was about 22 below
1996. Current levels of slaughter would
project a cow slaughter in 2000 down about
29 from 1996.
Calf slaughter for January-August un
der Federal Inspection was down 10 from
12 months earlier. Calf slaughter is in the
fourth consecutive year of reduction. Calf
slaughter in 1999 was down about 27
from 1996 and 2000 slaughter of claves
will number only about 65 of 1 996 based
on slaughter levels through August.
These two classes of cattle slaughter
are usually the first two indicators that pro
ducers are changing directions from herd
reduction to herd growth. However, the
growth of the cattle herd will be slow until
we reduce female slaughter relative to male
slaughter. Female slaughter relative to
male did drop below the 1990-99 average
seeded in 1997 with the tainted supply.
When the site was monitored last summer,
starthistle was thriving. Workers had to
hand pull hundreds of unwanted weeds.
Officials say the damage caused by
contaminated seed may be worse than if
the site had not been seeded at all. The site
will need to be monitored for many more
years to control any starthistle plants that
might pop up.
An ounce of prevention is worth a
Eound of weed-free seeds - or more. "It's
etter to spend the dollars up front before
planting," says Jim Cramer of the ODA's
Commodity Inspection Division. ODA can
and does provide regulatory oversight of
seed dealers through sampling and testing
of product as well as auditing of records.
Some companies may end up facing a civil
penalty for selling seed containing a
prohibited noxious weed. But even the
most reputable companies can find
themselves in trouble with weed seeds if
they don't intensively sample and test what
they have. That's where the education role
comes in for the ODA.
Purchasers of seed especially those
involved in habitat restoration projects -need
to make sure sampling and testing has
been done. That goes for the farmer or
rancher as well as the big agencies
responsible for large tracts of land.
"Individual landowners probably can't
afford additional sampling and testing of
the seed," says Cramer. "But at a minimum,
they can ask their supplier for the test
reports and blending sheets. They should
know the origin of their seed. Large
agencies and municipalities have the
potential of spreading noxious weeds in
Oregon."
Another indicator of seed purity is the
label. Like any product sold commercially,
the label will tell the buyer what the
package contains or at least it is supposed
to. Some weed seeds are not prohibited as
part of a seed lot, and therefore may not
even be listed on the label. Cramer advises
seed buyers to never accept seed without a
label as "the label must state the variety
and kind of each component in the bag
including the weed seed amount by weight
as well as any noxious weed that might be
in there. The origin, purity, and
germination for each component must be
on the label."
All this effort should be done before
the planting of the seed. Once it is in the
ground, any weed problems are much more
costly in time, effort, and money. Also,
Cramer advises the big seed buyers to
"bank the good stuff." Once they find a
seed lot that is clean and effective, make
sure and stockpile enough of it to last -because
every time they go out to buy seed,
they will have to go through this whole
process again.
weeks cattle outlook
in July but climbed back to a level below
the 1990-99 average in August.
When and if producers start building
the breeding herd, we expect female
slaughter to decrease relative to male
slaughter.
We are in the fourth year of reduced
numbers in the cattle inventory. In the last
downturn of the cattle cycle, we reduced
numbers for eight years. This eight-year
decline was double the number of years of
decline of the decline in the numbers of
the late 70's. However, the herd was re
duced more in number of head in the four
years of the late 70's than in the eight years
of the 80's.
If we can even hold beef demand
steady during the next few years, we look
for the cattle herd to start growing in the
next couple of years. A relative short feed
grain crop would delay much growth for a
year or so.
Feeder cattle prices this week at Okla
homa City were steady with a week ear
lier. Steer calves were steady to $3.00 per
cwt lower and heifer claves were steady in
price with seven days earlier.
The price for medium and large frame
No. 1 steers by weight groups were: 400
500 $95.00-109.00 per cwt, 500-600
$86.00-99.00, 600-700 $86.75-93.00,
700-800 83.50-89.00 and 800-1000
$75.50-84.00.
Fed cattle prices this week were steady
to $ 1 .00 higher than a week earlier.
Select and choice steers sold from
$66.00 to $67.00 in Midwest direct trade
and from $67.00 to $67.50 in the High
Plains.
Feeder cattle movement from the five
major areas this week was 3 12.4 thousand
head. This compares with 321.7 thousand
head last week and 367.35 thousand head
this week in 1999.
Slaughter this week of cattle under
Federal Inspection was 706 thousand head.
We are hopeful that we have had the
low in prices for fed cattle for the summer
fall period. The difference between yield
2-3 Select beef from yield 3 Choice re
mained at about $10 per cwt this week.
This suggests we are substantially more
current w ith marketings than just a few '
w eeks ago.