got to be
Volume: 92 - No. 2
February 20 1 7
REVIEW
Raleigh, N.C.
Young soybean
farmers from
Nashville
recognized
Greg Manning, a soybean
producer from Nashville, and
his girlfriend, Jessica Smith,
have been named AS A/Du¬
Pont Young Leaders for 2016-
2017 by the N.C. Soybean
Producers Association. Man¬
ning and Smith will represent
the state in a leadership devel¬
opment program that includes
participants from across the
U.S. and Canada.
“The Young Leaders pro¬
gram provides training in key
areas, including communi¬
cation and leadership, while
growing the leaders’ peer net¬
work,” said ASA Chairman
Richard Wilkins. “The Young
Leaders program continues
to have an enormous impact
on not only the soybean in¬
dustry but all of agriculture.
The class of 2017 is excep¬
tional; they are engaged, tal¬
ented and passionate about
agriculture. We are grateful to
DuPont Pioneer and DuPont
Crop Protection for making
this program possible.”
Corn assessment renewal
up for vote Feb. 22
Boll weevil assessment
drops to 75 cents per acre
North Carolina corn growers
will vote Feb. 22 on a six-year
continuation of their commodity
assessment program.
The Board of Directors of
the Corn Growers Association
of North Carolina is asking that
farmers assess themselves at
a rate of 1.25 cents per bushel
on all corn marketed in North
Carolina.
The association is involved
in the following areas: interna¬
tional and domestic marketing;
research and education; grants
to Cooperative Extension of¬
fices; and legislation that will
be helpful to corn growers and
other farmers. A 24-member
Board of Directors, represent¬
ing all corn-producing areas of
North Carolina, governs the or¬
ganization’s activities. The board
also gives support to issues of a
local nature that members believe
will benefit farmers.
Growers may vote at local Co¬
operative Extension offices from
8 a.m. until 5 p.m. All farmers
currently engaged in the produc¬
tion of corn, including tenants,
sharecroppers or other persons
sharing in the production of com
or income from corn, are eligible
to vote. A two-thirds favorable
vote is required to approve the
referendum.
If approved, the assessment
would be collected by the first
handler or purchaser of the com¬
modity from the producer and
(See Corn assessment, pg. 2)
The board of the Boll Weevil
Eradication Foundation of North
Carolina has set the 2017 boll
weevil assessment at 75 cents per
acre of cotton, dropping the fee
from SI .
The fee supports the founda¬
tion’s efforts to monitor cotton
acreage in North Carolina for any
re-introduction of the boll wee¬
vil and to respond promptly with
eradication treatments if neces¬
sary.
“This trapping and monitoring
program is a great investment for
farmers who already have a lot
of variables to manage in raising
a crop,” said Agriculture Com¬
missioner Steve Troxler. “Elimi¬
nating the boll weevil from our
state years ago has allowed us to
have a viable cotton crop. We
certainly don’t want to see the
return of this devastating pest,
and this program helps us keep
an eye on cotton fields in case
of any spot re-introductions.”
Foundation contractors will
install and monitor traps from
late summer until after harvest
and frost. Because the focus
of North Carolina’s program
has shifted from eradication
to monitoring, the number of
traps in fields has decreased.
As such, each trap is critical,
and farmers are encouraged to
contact the foundation if traps
are damaged or knocked down.
More than 5,500 traps
were placed and maintained
(See Boll weevil, pg. 2)
N.C. Bioenergy Research Initiative announces grant recipients
The N.C. Bioenergy Research
Initiative recently awarded $1
million in grants for 13 research
projects to boost bioenergy op¬
portunities and production in the
state.
“These grants continue to push
our knowledge of bioenergy ap¬
plications in North Carolina for¬
ward, creating the potential for
future market opportunities for
farmers, agribusinesses and for¬
estry industries,” said Agriculture
Commissioner Steve Troxler.
Below is a list of grant
amounts, recipients and projects:
— $43,618 to N.C. State Uni¬
versity’s Department of Biologi¬
cal and Agricultural Engineering
for the third year of its study of
fertilization rates and yield re¬
sponse of the giant reed Arundo
donax. The project will focus on
collecting field data needed to
establish realistic yield expecta¬
tions and nitrogen fertilization
rates under various North Caro¬
lina growing conditions.
- $55,835 to the NCSU De¬
partment of Forestry and Envi¬
ronmental Resources for “Lob¬
lolly Pine Biomass Genetics/
Cropping Study - 2016-2017.”
The project will continue genetic
evaluation of loblolly pine variet¬
ies with high potential as an en¬
ergy source.
- $148,804 to the NCSU De¬
partment of Crop and Soil Sci¬
ences for a project titled “Nutri¬
ent Dynamics and Production of
Bioenergy Crops in Swine Efflu¬
ent Sprayfields, 2016-2017.”
Funding will continue research
on the nutrient requirements
and uptake of proposed biomass
crops grown in a sprayfield en¬
vironment.
— $ 148,650 to Carolina Land
& Lakes RC&D for the devel¬
opment of “Pellets for Pullets.”
This expands apreviously fund¬
ed project into areas of the state
with a higher concentration of
broiler production. Wood pellet
(See Bioenergy grants, pg. 3)
F rom the tractor
by Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler
Commissioner Troxler
This is a particularly newsy
edition of the Agricultural Re¬
view, and I want to use my col¬
umn to encourage you to care¬
fully read the articles this mont.
The beginning of a new year
often ushers in changes in roles
and laws across the board, and
this year is no exception for those
in agriculture.
On page 8 of the newspaper, I
hope you will pay special atten¬
tion to two articles that highlight
changes involving the Worker
Protection Standard and new la¬
beling requirements for products
containing 2,4-D or dicamba in¬
tended to be used in conjunction
with 2,4-D or dicamba-tolerant
cotton and soybean crops.
The new labeling require¬
ment for dicamba means there is
now mandatory training for ap¬
plicators before they can use this
product. A series of classes in Feb¬
ruary and March will be offered
across the state to ensure grow¬
ers wanting to use these products
have access to proper training.
We have listed the dates and loca¬
tions of upcoming classes in the
article, and I hope readers will be
able to attend. By attending class,
growers will be able to earn two
hours of pesticide recertification
credits in categories N, O, D and
X upon completion.
New changes to the Worker
Protection Standard roles rep¬
resent the first significant revi¬
sions made since 1992. I would
strongly encourage farmers to
read these changes carefully so
you will be up-to-date on require¬
ments involving workers.
Changes cover annual man¬
datory training, the minimum-
age requirement for pesticide
applicators, display requirements
following pesticide applications
and safety data sheets that must
be kept on file, new respirator
requirements, the need to add an
eye-flushing system when eye
protection is required and other
items.
The article spells out new
changes to the rules in more de¬
tail, and you can also contact
our Structural Pest and Pesticide
Division at 919-733-3556 if you
have additional questions. We are
here to assist with compliance.
If there is one thing I have
learned over the years, it is to
expect change. It is an inevi¬
table fact of life, but it doesn’t
mean we are ever ready for it.
Again, educate yourself so you
will be in compliance with any
rule changes.
It is also worthy to note the
Feb. 22 referendum on the con¬
tinuation of the corn assessment
to support the work of the Corn
Growers Association of North
Carolina involving internation¬
al and domestic marketing, re¬
search and education, grants to
Cooperative Extension offices
and legislative efforts.
It is a busy time of year as
growers are attending com¬
modity meetings, repairing
equipment and making plans
for the upcoming season, but it
is critical to stay up on changes
involving your operations.
