A UVM blog Outcroppings: Important crop news from the field!

Written by Shannon MacDonald

“I come because I want to be with other people who want to learn about agriculture. We want to make Vermont and Vermont agriculture the best that’s possible for a long time,” said one local farmer, explaining why he attends the UVM Extension Annual Crops & Soils Field Day.

On July 24, 2025, Borderview Research Farm in Alburgh, Vermont, buzzed with energy and excitement as more than 200 farmers, conservationists, researchers, scientists, educators, agronomists, service providers, and community members gathered to learn and connect. Among them was Dr. Linda Prokopy, the new dean of UVM’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, who enjoyed her first Crops and Soils Field Day, calling it “an event to learn all things farming!”  

This year marked the 18th Annual Crops & Soils Field Day. The first one took place a few years after UVM Extension Professor Heather Darby, an agronomist and soil scientist, joined the Northwest Crops and Soils (NWCS) Program. The field day has grown into the program’s largest outreach event of the year, consistently drawing more than 200 attendees. Roger and Claire Rainville own Borderview Research Farm and have generously hosted Dr. Darby’s research there for the past 20 years. The annual field day and all NWCS research wouldn’t be possible without their dedication to agriculture, farming, and innovation. Thank you, Roger and Claire! 

Upon arrival, guests warmly greeted one another. Because the growing season is the busiest time of year for farmers, field days are an important opportunity to reconnect! The fact that so many farmers took time away from their fields to learn from Dr. Darby and the whole research team shows the value this event holds for them.  

The day began with a welcome message from Dr. Darby, and then everyone headed out into the fields for the farm tour. The first stop was at the newly constructed hoop house, where lettuce, tomatoes, and broccoli are grown for the Organic Seed Production Research on Economics and Yield project. Folks gathered around Dr. Darby and her team of researchers as they shared updates about ongoing projects and introduced new projects, such as the software that is currently in development for Vermont’s On-Farm Research Network.  

The tour covered a wide range of topics, from aerial drones to neonicotinoid research. At each stop, NWCS staff not only explained their research but also invited questions, hands-on demonstrations, and lively discussions, making complex agricultural science accessible to all who attended. 

“I’ve come here for events before, but having an event that’s focused on exploring exactly what each project is about and breaking down why the research is being done and its applications in the real world has been really awesome,” said Morgan Pratt, Natural Resource Conservation District Agricultural Programs Specialist. 

After a catered lunch, guests could choose from six breakout sessions, presented by UVM staff and special guests.  One such guest was Quebec soil and water conservation expert Odette Menard, who returned by popular demand after her presentation at the 2025 No-Till and Cover Crop Conference. Her session on soil profiles and compaction was informative, engaging, and surprising! She shared practical insights, such as how adjusting tractor tire pressure can help minimize soil compaction, and introduced C.R.O.P.—cover, porosity, oxygen, and roots—an acronym she uses to remember the key factors for maintaining healthy soils. Odette’s presentations always strike the perfect balance between knowledge and humor, and attendees left her session with fresh ideas and practical strategies to implement on their farms. 

Under the tent, Roy Desrocher of the NWCS team led the honey Sensory Taste Session. During this session, guests tasted honey samples, and Roy helped them identify different and off-flavors. Once the group identified the flavors, Roy used his knowledge to explain where in the honey-making process these flavors may have developed. Honey can have different floral tastes depending on the source of the pollen. Off-flavors can develop if there are issues with packaging, storage, or transportation.  

Inside the barn, Laura Sullivan of the NWCS team demonstrated how she has been using the hemp fiber hackler to process winter- and field-retted hemp. This hackler, a long-fiber processing machine, is the only one in the United States. Laura also showed six wool-hemp yarn prototypes developed in collaboration with Battenkill Fibers in Greenwich, New York. Some of these yarns will be used for clothing, and she is working with Muriel’s of Vermont to create wearable items. Laura and the NWCS team are working to expand our understanding of how to use alternative and natural fibers to make more sustainable products.  

Near the strawberry crop, Ann Hazelrigg, Giovanna Sassi, and Olivia Rist from the UVM Plant Diagnostic Clinic, and Kellie Damann of NWCS hosted the session on Integrated Pest Management Strategies for Field Crops. They chronicled the strawberry pest and disease research trials at Borderview and on many farms across the state. They explained what to look for when scouting for disease and insects in the field. They also presented seed testing disease data from 2024-2025 steam or ozone treatment trials on hemp and grains. Results and conclusions from these trials will be released soon. Make sure to keep checking our website, social media, and monthly newsletter for updates! 

John Bruce of the NWCS team and Crystal Stewart-Courtens of Cornell University led a session on organic seed production and seed cleaning. John is leading a trial investigating organic vegetable seed production, and he demonstrated the seed collection process. Crystal showed how to use the mobile seed cleaner, which contains a Winnow Wizard, a small-scale thresher, hand screens, and other tools for small-scale seed cleaning. 

Amber Machia of NWCS and Kurt Cotanch, an independent dairy consultant, threw the Preservation Party.  This session was all about fermentation fun! Guests learned about best practices for ensuring high feed quality, including tips on production, storage, and the characteristics of good feed. This session is part of a larger project to educate Vermonters about silage and feed quality. 

 Dr. Linda Prokopy, dean of CALS at UVM, feels that on-farm field days are “…so important! For farmers to be able to come out and see different practices being trialed, hear from scientists, and talk to other farmers- it’s really a great event.” Gatherings such as the Annual Crops & Soils Field Day exemplify why the NWCS team conducts research. We love helping Vermont agriculture! We are so thankful that we get to continue to conduct and share our work with you all. Thank you again for your continued support. We can’t wait to see you next year! 

Written by Hillary Emick and John Bruce

Preliminary Results 

It is already time to get ready for planting winter wheat. Each year, UVM Extension evaluates winter wheat varieties to determine those that will perform best here in Vermont. This year, the project evaluated 44 varieties of winter wheat, including six varieties of soft white winter wheat, two varieties of hard white winter wheat, nine varieties of soft red winter wheat, and twenty-seven varieties of hard red winter wheat. This year brought some cold and wet weather during the spring; however, hot and dry weather helped to bring a high-quality crop to harvest. Preliminary yield and quality results are shown in Table 1.

Height

The tallest variety was Sirvinta at 138 cm. Height can be advantageous to wheat in weed competition, but sometimes very tall varieties are prone to lodging. This year Sirvinta had no lodging, similar to eighteen other varieties with no lodging. The variety with the most lodging was Genessee Giant, with 76.7% lodging. 

Test Weight

Test weight is the measure of grain density, which is determined by weighing a known volume of grain. Industry standard for wheat is 56-60 lbs bu^-1. Over 60% of the varieties met the industry standard for test weight. The variety with the highest test weight was Viking 211 at 60.5 lbs bu^-1. 

Yield

More than half of the varieties had yields over two tons per acre (adjusted to 13.5% moisture content). The highest yielding variety was Blue River 844 with a yield of 6236 lbs ac^-1. The varieties IL16-8048 and IL17-23874 also yielded over 3 tons per acre (6100 and 6108 lbs ac^-1 respectively). 

Crude Protein

The ideal range for bread wheat is 12-15% crude protein, though some artisan bread bakers have found success working with wheat in the 10-12% range, depending on the end-product. There were 13 varieties were within the ideal range for protein: Erisman, IL16-8048, Genessee Giant, ARS18W0682, VA16HRW-22, Arapahoe, Gold Coin, Brome, AC Morley, Turkey Red, Rouge d’Ecosse, Champlain and Redeemer. Redeemer had the highest protein concentration at 13.6%. Only five varieties were below the minimum of 10% protein (Blue River 844, NY12512-1542, IL17-23874, Towpath, and NY12325).

Please visit our website to view past year trial results.

Cover cropping offers many benefits, such as weed suppression, building soil organic matter and biodiversity, reducing erosion, and decreasing nutrient loss. But selecting the best species and variety for a farm’s location and goals can be tricky, especially given increasingly erratic weather conditions. 

Despite this challenge, the number of U.S. farmers using cover crops has been rising steadily since the mid 2000s, prompting seed company leaders to wonder whether there are adequate options and sufficient seed supply for the diversity of U.S. growing regions. 

In 2023, the University of Missouri’s Center for Regenerative Agriculture launched the National Cover Crop Variety Project, funded by the USDA. Over a five-year period, UVM Extension researchers and others across the country are partnering to evaluate cover crop species and varieties designed for specific regions and uses. 

“We encourage farmers to use cover crops, but there’s a lot to learn about what varieties will perform well in our region,” says UVM’s Ivy Krezinski. 

She and Professor Heather Darby, both of UVM Extension’s Northwest Crops and Soils Program, are partners in the National Cover Crop Variety Testing Program, part of the USDA-funded project. “We’re evaluating cover crop varieties over multiple years to see how they perform in different conditions,” Krezinski says. Increased precipitation can make timely fall planting difficult, for example, and changing weather conditions can affect winter survival rates. 

Other project researchers are based in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana, Texas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and California. All are evaluating cover crop varieties on key characteristics (or metrics): fall establishment, spring stand, aboveground biomass, flowering at termination, stand height, weed suppression, and disease incidence.  

National Results

In the 2024-2025 cover crop growing season, the first year of data collection, researchers at most sites planted five varieties each of cereal rye, clover (crimson and balansa), hairy vetch, winter peas, and brassicas (canola and radish) for a total of 25 varieties. (The exceptions: Researchers in North Dakota did not plant clover varieties, and those in Tennessee did not plant brassicas.)

Overall, national data show significant differences between varieties due to climate and breeding. Authors of the 2024-2025 National Cover Crop Variety Trial Report write “there can be significant benefits to using regionally adapted varieties, especially in terms of biomass production and winter survival.” They also note that selecting varieties to meet specific goals or to fit in different cropping systems and rotations may be very effective.

They found no significant differences in biomass in the cereal rye varieties, though the one undisclosed (unnamed) variety was significantly shorter.

“The only metric that differed across crimson clover varieties was spring biomass, for which 19MDCC, an experimental variety from Maryland, lagged behind,” the researchers write.

The hairy vetch varieties performed well. Winter peas underperformed in most metrics compared to the other cover crop species.

Legumes and brassicas had higher winter survival and spring biomass than is typical in Vermont, probably due to thick snow cover last winter. The brassicas offered excellent spring weed control, including the two radish varieties (Aerifi and Driller, a daikon) that winterkilled but left behind substantial residue.

This chart shows the varieties and data from the Vermont research trials.

Note that these results and those from other participating sites do not constitute endorsement of any specific cover crop variety.

Future Years

In coming years, the project will expand to include more research sites and cover crop species and varieties. In the 2025-2026 season, researchers will plant the same five species groups: clover, cereal rye, hairy vetch, winter peas, and brassicas. In each species group, they’ll plant the same five varieties and add two more, for a total of 35 varieties. This nationally coordinated effort will catalyze more rapid and effective progress in meeting demand for regionally adapted, high-quality cover crop seed.

For more information about the cover crop varieties, research design, evaluation metrics, results, and statistical analyses, see the 2024-2025 National Cover Crop Variety Trial Report (https://cra.missouri.edu/variety_testing_report_24_25/).

This national collaborative project is funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Sustainable Agricultural Systems (SAS) Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP), Grant No. 2023-68012-38993, https://www.nifa.usda.gov/. The project title is “Cover Crop Variety Development Coordinated Agricultural Project” (or National Cover Crop Variety Project). For more information, visit https://cra.missouri.edu/cover-crop-variety-development-project/.

Questions about Vermont results? Contact ivy.krezinski@uvm.edu.

Questions about results in other states? Contact etiennesutton@missouri.edu.

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Written by Amber Machia

The Vermont growing season offers a short window to produce, harvest, and store nutrients in the form of forages for dairy cattle, including hay crop silage and corn silage. This process can be challenging, but the result is rewarding for you, your livestock, and your operation. The goal is to harvest crops at the correct stage of maturity and store them so that oxygen is rapidly excluded and they begin to ferment. During the fermentation process, there is a quick drop in pH levels, which preserves the nutrients and dry matter of the feed by creating an undesirable environment for the growth of harmful yeast and molds. Good management during the bunk filling and packing process is key to fermentation and preservation success. 

Bunk Density 

Bunk density is expressed in pounds of dry matter per cubic foot (lbs DM/ft³).  To measure bunk density, we use the Dairy One Forage Probe to drill into the bunk face and collect a core sample.  The core is then measured, and the sample is processed to determine dry matter.  Using the Dairy One Density Calculator, we collect values that determine the density of the feed stored at the sample location.  Density is not necessarily consistent across the bunk face or pile; therefore, we often take multiple core samples when evaluating bunk density. 

The minimum goal for the density of feed stored in bunks or piles is 15lbs DM/ft³. Optimal density is 18lbs DM/ft³ or greater.  This level of bunk density indicates that oxygen has been effectively excluded, promoting good fermentation and preservation of nutrients. Feed stored at less than 15lbs DM/ft³ likely has greater exposure to oxygen, which promotes nutrient degradation and the growth of potentially harmful yeasts and molds. 

The UVM Extension NWCS Team has been measuring bunk density on farms across Franklin County over the past two years.  Figure 1 shows the range of densities observed from 96 core samples of hay crop silage stored in cement bunks, piles on cement pads, and in ag bags.  Samples were taken from multiple locations on the open bunk face.  Approximately 60% of the samples fell below the minimum density of 15lbs DM/ft³, indicating less than ideal potential oxygen exposure, which resulted in deterioration of feed quality. 

Educating the Community 

To address this problem and help farmers improve overall feed quality,  
Amber Machia, UVM Extension NWCS Research Specialist, and Kurt Cotanch, an independent dairy nutrition consultant, threw a Preservation Party at the 2025 UVM Extension Annual Crops & Soils Field Day. They presented their research findings to a group of farmers and technical assistance providers. This included a sensory experience where guests smelled and touched various forage samples and guessed which one was the highest quality feed. They also taught their audience about management factors that affect density, so they can increase the overall quality of feed.  

Management factors that affect density include: 

• Packing weight – recommended minimum of 800lbs packing weight per ton of forage delivered per hour 

• Delivery rate – fill rate should be based on total available packing weight (the pushing tractor is only packing ~60% of the time) 

• Dry matter & chop length of harvested feed – dry forage that is cut long is harder to pack tightly 

• Layer thickness – should not exceed 6” 

• Slope of ramp – if too steep, tractor tires may spin and disrupt packed forage below 

• Feed storage infrastructure – adequate space is needed to safely access the pile or bunk.  Layered feeds make it difficult to consistently attain optimal packing density. 

Interested in assistance with weighing your bunk packing equipment and determining the optimal fill rate and management for your scenario?  Interested in having core samples taken of your existing stored feed to determine the density that you are achieving?  Contact Amber Machia (802)656-7615 or amber.machia@uvm.edu. 

An armyworm outbreak has been reported in Fairfax and Waterbury areas. The armyworms have been primarily feeding on grass fields. Armyworm moths generally blow up from the south in storms. Please don’t panic, but do go out and scout your corn and grass fields for armyworms. When full grown, the caterpillars can be almost 1.5 inches long. The caterpillars are usually greenish or brownish, but can be almost black. The sides and back of the caterpillar have light colored stripes running along the body. The caterpillars normally feed at night and much damage can occur before they mature. The preferred foods are grasses including corn, grains, and forage grasses. They will feed on other plants if grasses are unavailable. Feeding will start on the lower leaves and move upwards. A large population can strip an entire field in just a few days. When the field is eaten they “march’ to adjacent fields. Corn fields that are minimum or no-tilled into grass sod or fields infested with grass weeds are most susceptible.  For more information on scouting and control options please contact Dr. Heather Darby at the University of Vermont Extension at (802) 782-6054 or heather.darby@uvm.edu.

Written by Lindsey Ruhl

UVM Extension NWCS Research Specialist Lindsey Ruhl and 4-H educator Wendy Sorrell, attended the 110^th National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA) Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference in Billings, Montana, June 29 – July 2, 2025.

There were over 1,200 attendees from 45 states. Presentations ranged from 4-H programming to research updates, new outreach opportunities, and integrating AI into Extension work.

UVM Extension Professor Inducted into NACAA Hall of Fame

Extension Professor Emeritus Glenn Rogers was inducted into the NACAA Hall of Fame during the association’s annual conference in Billings, Montana. Glenn’s long Extension career started in N.H., moving back to Vermont in 1982, and retiring in 2010. He had many responsibilities including water quality agent, county ag agent, regional dairy specialist, regional farm business management specialist, and a special assignment in 1990 working on the Farm Bill with U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy. He served on various community boards and committees, and served our country as a member of the Vermont Air National Guard from 1971 to 1992. Please join us in congratulating Glenn! 

AgConnect Featured in Teaching and Educational Technologies Session

On Monday, June 30, Lindsey hosted a session on AgConnect, a free online tool that walks students through the scientific method, which she helped develop.

AgConnect can be used in the classroom to guide students through lab and field-based experimental design and the scientific method. This program also introduces young students to new ways of interacting with and studying agriculture. Students can exercise freedom in choosing the topic of their experiments, fostering creativity and love for learning. AgConnect is made to be flexible so that teachers can use it to enhance any agriculturally focused curriculum.

If you are an educator and want to know more about this educational resource and other agricultural learning activities, visit https://www.uvm.edu/extension/nwcrops/resources-educators.

AgConnect Tech to House Vermont’s On-Farm Research Network

Exciting news! The UVM NWCS team is utilizing the technology behind AgConnect to create a new platform for Vermont’s On-Farm Research Network to simplify on-farm research for farmers and facilitators. On this new platform, farmers will be able to join actively recruiting research projects, share their ideas, suggest new experiments, and see local results.

We are taking a farmer-focused approach to developing this platform and are currently testing materials with farmer groups.

Want to learn more about this new initiative? Contact Shannon MacDonald at Shannon.macdonald@uvm.edu.

When we harvest hay crop silages, naturally occurring bacteria present on the forage are responsible for completing the fermentation process we rely on to preserve the silage. During fermentation, bacteria take sugars in the forage and convert it into organic acids that acidify the material and preserve nutrients.

Depending on how many and which bacteria are present, this process could yield very different results. Using an inoculant can ensure sufficient population and type of bacteria are present to adequately reduce silage pH or stabilize the silage during feed out.

There are two main types of bacteria used in silage inoculants: homofermenters and heterofermenters. Homofermenters are those that convert the sugars in the forage to lactic acid. Common homofermenters used in silage inoculant produces include Lactobacillus plantarum, Pediococcus spp., and Enterococcus faecium. Because lactic acid is a strong acid that can reduce the pH significantly and quickly but does not inhibit yeast and mold growth very well, products containing homofermenters are typically used where preserving the forage as quickly as possible and reducing dry matter losses are the goals.

In contrast, heterofermenters can make several different products during fermentation; they may make lactic acid, acetic acid, or other products. Because acetic acid is a weak acid but a better inhibitor of spoilage organism growth, heterofermenters are used when silage aerobic stability is the priority. Lactobacillus buchnerii is a common heterofermenter added into inoculant products to support silage stability during feed out.

Products can contain one or both of these types of bacteria. They come in dry granular or water-soluble formulations with specific applicators that mount to the bailer or chopper. There are also several products approved for use in organic systems. More information on silage inoculants can be found at the resources below.

University of Vermont Extension Silage Inoculants Factsheet

University of Wisconsin Extension Silage Inoculants Factsheet

Despite the availability of organically approved products, using silage inoculants on organic farms is not very common. To gain more information on the use of organic inoculants, we are initiating several research trials this season.

Trial 1- Evaluating the efficacy of organically approved silage inoculants

The first trial will compare the efficacy of five different organically approved silage inoculants and a no inoculant control in grass silage. The silage inoculants being used are listed in table 1.

We mowed an existing stand of orchardgrass and applied each inoculant product per their labels to different sections of the windrows using a small sprayer just before chopping. Material was then chopped into a forage wagon where material from each section was segregated and collected. Approximately 250-275 grams of material were then placed into vacuum seal bags and sealed to simulate bunk packing. Samples were kept in black plastic totes at ambient temperatures until removal to obtain the ensiling durations outlined in Table 2 at which point they were frozen to stop fermentation or other biological activity. Samples will be analyzed for pH and fermentation profiles as per Table 2.

Trial 2: Silage inoculant efficacy under varying dry matter conditions

Another trial will be conducted this year using the same existing stand of orchard grass that will be mowed and this time wilted to three different dry matter contents, representing forage that is too wet, ideal, and too dry. We will then apply one of the inoculant products at three different rates representing the rate according to the label, 2x the rate on the label, and 3x the rate on the label. Inoculant application, sample vacuum sealing, and sample storage and retention time will be the same as described for Trial 1. Stay tuned for results!

Course Content

UVM Research Specialists Amber Machia and Sara Ziegler have developed a new online course designed for technical assistance providers. The goal of this course is to provide education and resources for new technical service providers with foundational information around grazing planning and providing grazing-related technical assistance to production livestock farmers in Vermont.

This course provides knowledge and best practices to become a great technical assistance provider. This short course can be completed at any time and at your own pace. It consists of five modules that contain video presentations, supplementary modules, and additional resources. The supplementary modules are presented by Extension specialists, Amber Reed and Carly Bass, and industry professionals, Cheryl Cesario from American Farmland Trust and Phillip Wilson from the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets.

If you are a technical service provider, this course can teach you hard skills, like identifying pasture plant types and filling out the Vermont grazing plan, and soft skills, like how to communicate with a farmer about strategies to meet their goals.

Accessing the Course

This course is hosted on the Extension Foundation website. Making an account on the Extension Foundation site is easy and free. Simply, click this link and choose “Login” in the top right corner. Click “Create new account” and fill in your credentials. Once you have an account, search “Grazing for TA Providers”. Complete the course on your own time. All the resources and modules are free to use.

Have questions about this course or any of its materials? Contact Amber Machia at (802) 656-7615 or amber.machia@uvm.edu. This work is supported by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, award no. 2025-01-27-502515.

Summer annual grasses, such as sudangrass and millet, can be good emergency forage crops if your feed inventory is low or you want to supplement pastures during the hot summer months. These grasses love heat and only need a few months to yield 3 to 5 tons of highly digestible dry matter per acre. There is still time to get some of these heat-loving crops in the ground, but before you do, consider species and variety selection and make sure you’re seeding at an appropriate rate.

What species and variety do I use?

We have been evaluating an array of summer annual forage species and varieties over the last decade to identify those that perform best in our climate. The most common species for grazing or multi-cut forage include sorghum, sudangrass, sorghum x sudangrass hybrids, and pearl millets. Over the years, we’ve generally seen that the sudangrasses yield the most, followed by forage sorghums, sorghum x sudangrass hybrids, and pearl millets. In addition to yield, the species differ in forage quality, with the sorghum x sudangrasses and pearl millets often having higher fiber digestibility than the sorghums and sudangrasses. However, varieties of each of these species can have pretty different characteristics and perform differently from one another. Some of these grasses look like corn, producing thick juicy stalks and long, wide leaves, while others have thinner stems and leaves, making them easier to cut and dry for stored forage. Check out our 2024 variety trial results here to get the latest trial information.

What seeding rate do I use?

In the northeast, most farmers use a multi-cut or multi-graze system for harvesting summer annuals. If seeding in early to mid-June, you can typically get two to three harvests from these crops. Seeding rates aligned with a multi-harvest system should be implemented to achieve the best yield and quality.

In addition, seed size and, therefore, seeds per pound can be highly variable between species and varieties.  Hence, summer annual seeding rates should be based on plants per acre rather than just pounds of seed per acre. For a multi-cut system, King’s Agriseed recommends seeding for a target of 600,000-650,000 plants per acre for sorghum sudangrass and 650,000 to 700,000 plants per acre for sudangrass. Based on the seeds per pound, Table 1 shows the seeding rates in pounds per acre that would be needed to attain the target population.

You can see that this ranges from 20-60 pounds! Image 1 shows two varieties of sudangrass that demonstrate the large differences in size that can occur between varieties of the same species. In this case, the variety on the left had 17,650 seeds per pound while the variety on the right had 28,892 seeds per pound. This means that more seed would be needed of the variety on the left to attain the same population as the variety on the right. If they were both seeded at 40 pounds per acre instead, the variety on the left would be planted at 706,000 seeds per acre, while the variety on the right would be planted at 1,155,680 plants per acre!

Making these adjustments can save you money by making sure you aren’t overplanting costly seed, and that you aren’t shorting your stand, which could result in decreased yields or increased weed pressure. In a trial conducted in 2023, we found no difference in yield or quality when seeding rates of sudangrass and sorghum x sudangrass were increased beyond 450,000 plants ac^-1_, even up to 800,000 plants ac^-1.

This also held true regardless of whether the varieties were BMR or not. This means that seeding around 20-35 lbs. ac^-1, depending on the seed size of the variety, produced ample yield and quality. However, these results may have been different if the conditions were hotter and drier, or may vary with other summer annual species or varieties. Find the full report here for more details.

For more information on summer annuals please visit the UVM Extension Northwest Crops and Soils Program’s website for our Research Results webpage, Livestock Forages webpage, the Guide to Using Annual Forages in the Northeast, and more!

Reference: https://kingsagriseeds.com/selecting-the-correct-seeding-rate-for-sorghum-based-on-its-seeds-per-pound/

By Bryony Sands

Spring has finally arrived! Cows are being turned out to pasture, and farmers are busy out in the field. This season is full of new life, but a familiar parasitic arachnid is once again putting a damper on things. Tick populations are becoming more active, and they are on the rise in the Northeast. Farmers are becoming more wary of ticks and the diseases that they carry, including bacteria, parasites, and viruses, which can affect livestock as well as themselves.

Tick-borne diseases have become a significant health concern for humans and livestock alike, and pastured cattle are at a high risk of exposure to ticks, increasing the risk to farmers as they work with them. Ticks have four lifecycle stages: egg, larvae, nymph, and adult. Each stage is active at a different time of the year, depending on the species. Many tick species live long lives and can survive for more than a year without feeding. They can also survive freezing temperatures and long, cold winters, becoming active whenever temperatures exceed around 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

In Vermont, the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) and American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) are common in pastures. These ticks take two years to complete their lifecycle. Adults become active in early spring as they quest for larger hosts such as livestock or humans. After they have taken a blood meal, the females drop off and lay up to 4000 eggs each, which hatch into larvae. Larvae seek out small hosts over the summer, such as rodents, or even reptiles and birds, and develop into nymphs between fall and the following spring. Nymphs quest for larger mammal hosts like raccoons or pet dogs and cats in the spring as they develop into adults. In the fall and following spring, adult ticks become active and quest for even larger hosts such as livestock, deer, or humans, resulting in the two main peaks in tick activity seen in spring and fall. Ticks must feed on blood at every stage of life to survive.

Vectors of Disease

The blacklegged tick transmits Lyme disease, which is the most common tick-borne disease in humans, and is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorfei. Vermont has the highest reported rate of Lyme disease in the US. Cases have increased by 70% in the past 5 years. This increase in tick-borne illnesses can be attributed to multiple factors, but the main cause is climate change. Changing temperatures are delaying frost dates and expediting spring thaws, which is giving ticks more time to quest for hosts and hatch in ideal conditions. Tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease are not just a threat in the spring and summer anymore because tick bites can happen all year round. 

While Lyme disease can be devastating to human health, and prevention of bites from the blacklegged tick is a priority for farmers working in the field, it is not a disease that causes concern for livestock. For cattle, the black-legged tick is the most common vector of anaplasmosis, a bacteria in the genus Anaplasmosis that causes disease by entering red blood cells resulting in death and rupture of these infected cells. Calves typically do not show symptoms, but older cattle are more likely to succumb to the infection. Symptoms include anemia, jaundice, and weakness.

The American dog tick can transmit Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever to humans, which is an illness caused by infection with the bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii. Unlike Lyme disease, it can be spread from a female tick into her eggs, so the larval and nymphal stages are also capable of transmitting the disease. This tick is also a vector of Tularemia in humans (rabbit fever or deerfly fever), which is caused by infection with the bacterium Francisella tularensis, however this is rare. While the American dog tick is not a major cause of disease in our livestock, it can carry the pathogens that cause anaplasmosis and babesiosis. Bovine babesiosis, also known as tick fever or redwater in cattle, is a parasitic disease in cattle caused by protozoa in the genus Babesia.

A New Tick in Town

In our neighboring New York State, a new tick in town has been raising the stakes even further. The Asian Longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) is an invasive pest native to East Asia. It has been present in the US since 2017, when it was found in New Jersey. Since then, it has been found in 21 states including Massachusetts and New York, but has not yet been found in Vermont. Asian Longhorned ticks pose a serious threat to cattle in the United States. Unlike other tick species, it is parthenogenetic, which means that a female can lay eggs by cloning herself to create the next generation without needing to find and mate with a male. Through this strategy, large populations can develop very quickly, and large infestations can occur on one animal. Although it has a wide range of hosts throughout its lifecycle, including mammals, birds, and reptiles, it preferentially infests cattle and can spread diseases that impact both animals and humans alike. The Asian Longhorned tick transmits the protozoan parasite Theileria orientalis to cattle, which is a pathogen that causes theileriosis. Symptoms are similar to anaplasmosis, including anemia, jaundice, and weakness. UVM Research to Evaluate Tick Risk in Cattle Pastures

Researchers with the University of Vermont Extension are conducting a study this summer to evaluate tick risk to farmers and livestock on grazed dairy and beef pastures across Vermont and New York. Extension assistant professor Bryony Sands is leading the project. She will visit farms every 2 weeks throughout the tick season to survey ticks and speak with farmers about tick presence. Sampling involves a dragging technique where a white flannel sheet is dragged over the vegetation along a transect, and ticks attach to the sheet because it mimics a passing animal. The ticks are then collected and brought back to the lab for identification. Farmers are collecting ticks directly from cattle, themselves, and workers on the farm for the project. All ticks will be sent for molecular analysis to identify which diseases they are carrying. The project aims to provide valuable information to farmers about the risk to themselves and their livestock from ticks, and will collect data on how vegetation structure, pasture management, and grazing strategies might influence tick transmission. Ultimately the data will help to identify strategies to minimize the risk from ticks and tick-borne diseases on our farms. 

The research is in collaboration with NYS IPM at Cornell University, with Kenneth Wise (Associate Director of Agricultural IPM) and Joellen Lampman (IPM and tick specialist) working on the project in New York State. Twenty farms are participating in the study, and tick surveying is well under way. So far, the blacklegged tick and American dog tick have been found in abundance on Vermont farms. In addition to these two species, the Asian Longhorned tick has also been found at two farm sites in New York State. 

This work is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Crop Protection and Pest Management, Applied Research and Development Program support (award number 2024-03411)

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and should not be construed to represent any official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy.