Numbered Publications: AGR
AGR-211: Calibrating Fertilizer Spreaders for the Home Lawn
Gregg Munshaw | Mar. 25, 2014 (New)
How much fertilizer should you use on your lawn? Too much can result in turf burn, wasted product and money, and potential environmental concerns. Too little will result in a low-density lawn that will not be attractive or competitive against weed invasions. To insure that you apply the proper amount of fertilizer to your lawn, you must calibrate your fertilizer spreader. You should calibrate your spreader each time you use a new (different) fertilizer because not all fertilizers have the same particle size or density. The information on the fertilizer bag is a good starting point for the calibration process but remember that spreaders can differ significantly. Calibrating your spreader will take a little bit of work, but the series of fairly simple steps below will help you complete the task.
AGR-210: Fertilizer Management in Alfalfa
David Ditsch, Lloyd Murdock, Edwin Ritchey, Greg Schwab | Jan. 8, 2014 (New)
Alfalfa is a high quality, valuable forage crop that can be successfully produced on most well-drained soils in Kentucky for hay, silage, and grazing. Fertilizing alfalfa can be uniquely challenging because it is a high-yielding crop that removes a tremendous amount of soil nutrients when compared to other crops grown in Kentucky. A thorough understanding of alfalfa's growth habits, nutrient requirements, and soil nutrient supply mechanisms is necessary to effectively manage fertilizer inputs and maximize profitability while minimizing environmental impact.
AGR-209: Mowing Your Kentucky Lawn
Gregg Munshaw | Apr. 15, 2013 (New)
Mowing is a recurring cutting of a portion of a grass shoot. Lawns are mowed to maintain topgrowth within a specific range, to control weed plants that are intolerant to mowing, or to sustain an ornamental turf. Mowing is usually thought of as the most simple of lawn maintenance practices; however, even though we perform it more than any other, it can result in mistakes.
AGR-208: Weed Control for Kentucky Home Lawns
Mike Barrett, J.D. Green, Gregg Munshaw | Feb. 25, 2013 (New)
The best defense against weed problems in home lawns is a healthy and dense lawn. In thick lawns, weed seeds may not germinate because light may never reach the soil surface. A thick lawn is competitive with weeds, keeping them from growing and reproducing. Developing a healthy and dense lawn comes from using cultural practices such as proper grass species and cultivar selection, proper mowing heights and fertilization, and other good management practices. The need for herbicides to control weeds in home lawns can be greatly reduced if the lawn is well maintained.
AGR-202: Corn Growth Stages and Growing Degree Days: A Quick Reference Guide
Chad Lee | Sep. 13, 2011 (New)
Corn growth stages are based on the leaf collar method, where fully emerged leaves (leaf collar visible) are used to stage vegetative development. Growing degree days (GDDs) are used to relate temperature to corn growth and development.
AGR-203: Improving the Productivity of Landscapes with Little or No Topsoil
Edwin Ritchey | Aug. 16, 2011 (New)
Landscapes with little or no topsoil can make it difficult to produce a garden, lawn, or other plants. Topsoil, dark in color compared to the underlying soil, is the part of a soil that is most biologically active, nutrient rich, and easily managed. It also is usually more easily worked than underlying soil, supplies most of the plant's water and nutrients, and is generally best for plant growth.
AGR-201: Switchgrass for Biomass Production in Kentucky
Laura Schwer, Kenton Sena, Ray Smith | Mar. 14, 2011 (New)
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is a warm-season, perennial bunch-type grass native to the North American Tallgrass Prairie that has been investigated as a bioenergy crop due to its adaptation to a wide range of environmental conditions and soil types as well as its high stable yields. Switchgrass is recommended for soil conservation and wildlife habitat in both monoculture and in mixed stands of native warm-season grasses and forbs as well as for summer grazing in pasture systems and as a hay crop for cattle.
AGR-191: Using a Grazing Stick for Pasture Management
Adam Probst, Ray Smith | May. 18, 2010 (Minor Revision)
Good management of livestock feeding enterprises requires an understanding of feed inventories and their use. This publication is intended to help producers meet animal forage needs in a rotational grazing system by mastering the use of a grazing stick to estimate pasture yield and pasture allocation.
AGR-185: Nitrogen Transformation Inhibitors and Controlled-Release Urea
Lloyd Murdock, Greg Schwab | Apr. 21, 2010 (Major Revision)
The soaring cost of fossil fuels is an indicator that nitrogen fertilizer prices are going to remain high for the foreseeable future. With higher N prices, many producers are trying to evaluate the usefulness of several N additive products in their production systems. High N prices make these products more attractive because it takes fewer pounds of saved N to offset the price of the additive. Producers should have a good understanding of how these products work in order to make informed decisions regarding their use.
AGR-26: Renovating Hay and Pasture Fields
Garry Lacefield, Ray Smith | Apr. 8, 2009 (Minor Revision)
