Feed for newborn lambs
In Britain, it costs between $30 and $40 to produce a lamb, including costs of breeding, accommodation and feeding. Two major causes of disease in new-born lambs cost lives: the lamb is born with no defence against disease-causing organisms, or hypothermia results from lack of nutrients such as fat and lactose, which provide essential energy in cold conditions.
A healthy, well-fed lamb gets adequate supplies of high-quality colostrum. But younger ewes, multiple births and lambing problems all contribute to low levels of poor-quality colostrum being available.
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The lamb is most at risk between birth and six hours old when rapid loss of body heat from a wet lamb rapidly reduces already low energy reserves. An energy booster at birth which contains easily absorbed sources of energy with extra antibodies and vitamins could be a lifesaver, because the new-born lamb has no reserves of essential vitamins A, D3 and E.
A British company is marketing Thermovite, which contains all these vitamins, and B12, plus cobalt. A pump-action dispenser provides effective colostrum, with probiotic bacteria, to establish a healthy gut microflora and minimize harmful bacteria. Lambs treated at birth have been shown to weight eight percent more at five weeks old than lambs dosed with antibiotics.
- British Farming News
Meadow bromegrass
More than 50 new lines of meadow bromegrass were established this spring at the Saskatoon Research Centre. This was done as part of an effort to provide new and improved characteristics for meadow bromegrass variety development.
Meadow bromegrass is a long-lived perennial bunchgrass. The plant has numerous lightly green leaves that are predominantly basal and slightly hairy. It grows well wherever smooth bromegrass does well. It is a good pasture variety and is very palatable. By starting spring growth earlier than most other grasses, it is ready for grazing at an earlier date, and has strong regrowth characteristics right into fall. It has been well received by Western Canadian producers, and present demand for this species is high.
In order to improve on the current varieties, new lines of meadow bromegrass must be evaluated. These 50 new lines may offer potential as basic generic material for new improved cultivars. They will be assessed during 1995-1997 for seed and forage yield and other important agronomic characteristics.
- Agriculture Canada
Consider winter wheat
The area cropped to winter wheat in Western Canada has declined in recent years. However, economic comparisons with spring wheat indicate growers should take another look at winter wheat as a crop option.
Yields of winter wheat range from 15 to 40 percent higher than those of hard red spring wheat. In southern Alberta, average winter wheat yields typically exceed spring wheat by 20 to 25 percent.
Winter wheat matches or exceeds the yield of prairie spring wheats.
Recent registration of improved winter wheat cultivars, which yield nine to 15 percent more than the present standard, Norstar, tilts the balance even further in favor of winter wheat.
Winter wheat also shows an advantage in gross income. Over the last 10 years, average total payments for the top grade of winter wheat have been 92 percent of that paid for spring wheat, the same for extra strong (formerly utility wheat) and 104 percent of those for CPS wheat.
In the last two years, the price spread between spring wheat and winter wheat has narrowed substantially. On average, the gross return is higher for winter wheat when compared with other classes of wheat. Only producers who consistently receive a high-protein premium for CWRS can offset winter wheat’s yield advantage.
Another important advantage of winter wheat is an early harvest, which can usually begin three weeks earlier than spring wheat and a month earlier than prairie spring wheat. Not only can farmers make more efficient use of their harvest equipment, but the risk of damage from hail, rain or snow is reduced.
To ensure an early harvest and to minimize the risk of winterkill, winter wheat should be seeded shallowly into a firm seedbed during the first half of September. Outside of the traditional winter wheat area, the crop must be direct-seeded into standing stubble no later than Sept 7. If winter wheat is seeded deep or late, it loses much of its advantage over spring wheat.
- Agriculture Canada
