Also this month:

* Animal Science Experts Explain Antibiotic Use

* Census of Agriculture Important, Says an NC A&T Specialist

* Organic Standards Impact Small-Scale Farmers

* NC A&T School of Ag Honored with Winn-Dixie Award

* McAlpin Receives Doctorate

Other News Links:

Press Release Archive

Cooperative Extension Press Releases

Agricultural Research Press Releases

General Links:

NC A&T School of Agriculture

Agricultural Communications

Mitch Arnold, news editor

That's not to say that farmers can't prepare themselves for the elements, and, all across the state, Cooperative Extension personnel are busy helping farmers do just that.

"We're trying to do everything we can without knowing for sure what the problems might be," Edwin Elkins says of Bladen County Cooperative Extension's efforts to help farmers prepare for the upcoming growing season.

Elkins, an agriculture technician with the North Carolina A&T State University Cooperative Extension Program, believes that if weather patterns continue as they are, farmers in southeastern North Carolina should prepare for a hot, dry summer.

"You can never know for sure what the weather might be, but for now anyway, we're helping farmers prepare for hot and dry growing conditions," said Elkins.

According to Elkins, choosing the right seed variety, properly preparing the ground and planting early are crucial factors to overcoming hot, dry growing conditions. Each practice enhances the performance of a crop under the duress of high temperatures and periods of low or infrequent moisture.

"It all starts with choosing the proper seed variety," said Elkins. "Using the results of last year's crop tests helps us determine which seed varieties perform best in which conditions. For hot, dry conditions, we look for a variety with a deep root structure, which will allow it to get moisture from the lower soil levels."

Toward the end of March, with seed varieties already selected, Elkins consults with farmers to determine when they should start planting. This year, in anticipation of a hot, dry summer, he plans to advise farmers to plant earlier, in an effort to limit the number of days a crop will be exposed to extreme temperatures and intense sunlight, with little moisture.

Hot, dry conditions are of particular concern to farmers without the financial resources to purchase irrigation systems. Such is the case in Robeson County where Martin Brewington, an agriculture technician with the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, is advising farmers to consider tilling up to two feet deep, to allow proper root growth.

"If you can't afford to irrigate, you have to be prepared to go for long periods without moisture," said Brewington. "Chiseling the soil to a depth 18 to 24 inches will help ensure survivability through periods of extremely dry and hot conditions."

In the opposite corner of the state, Claude Deyton is busy helping Yancey County farmers prepare for a dry growing season.

"In some ways, our conditions are similar to those in the southeastern part of the state," said Deyton, an agriculture technician with the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program. "However, our mountainous terrain creates unique demands of our farmers."

Due to the forested and sloped terrain defining most of Yancey County, farmers are limited to smaller plots of land which are sometimes difficult to access. Inaccessibility was the reason Deyton recently helped a farmer create an irrigation system using gravity and barrels donated from a local company.

"Now, when they're not in the field, is the time for farmers to prepare for whatever growing conditions they might encounter," said Deyton. "And, because we don't know, we always tell people to expect dry conditions."

Training is another major pre-planting activity currently keeping county Extension Centers hopping. From tobacco to peanuts, Extension's field staff is busy conducting workshops to inform their growers of the latest research and technology available to them.

In Yancey County, for example, the Cooperative Extension Center is hosting workshops to teach farmers how to use a new tobacco stripping machine. The machine, which was recently purchased by Yancey County, will be available for county farmers to use during harvest time.

In every county in the state, farmers are turning to the resources of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service to learn of the latest research-based information emanating from both of the state's land-grant universities, North Carolina A&T State University and North Carolina State University.

For information on educational opportunities in your county, contact your local Cooperative Extension Center.