PROGRAM INFORMATION

EQIP, WHIP, WRP, CREP, CONTINUOUS CRP and SAFE:  Applications for funding assistance or annual payments can be taken at your local USDA Service Center.

NSWCP: Applications for cost-share assistance can be taken any time at your local NRCS office.  August 26 is the application cutoff date in order to be reviewed for approval at the TBNRD's September 9 meeting.  Irrigation, non-irrigation and flow meter applications will be reviewed in September.  The next time irrigation applications will be reviewed for approval will be December 9.  Flow meters cost-shared through NSWCP are required to read in acre-inches and cannot have a resettable totalizer.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Aug. 19: Irrigation Strategies Field Tour southwest of Loomis (1/4 mile east of 733 and E roads), 10 AM
Aug. 25-28: No-till Bus Tour. Register by Aug. 15, $650. Link to http://cropwatch.unl.edu/archives/2008/crop19/event_notill.htm.
Aug. 26 and repeated on Aug. 27:  Solution Days 2008.  Link to http://ardc.unl.edu/solutiondays/
Sept. 2: CNPPID Board of Directors meeting, 9 AM
Sept. 3: Irrigation and Energy Conservation Field Day. Link to http://events.unl.edu/ianr/2008/9/3/
Sept. 9: TBNRD Board of Directors meeting, 7:30 PM

Start Planning for Last Irrigation!

It is recommended that soil moisture levels drop to 40% (60% soil depletion) to a 4-foot depth at crop maturity.  This saves water and fuel and allows off-season moisture to replenish the soil profile.  To do this, predicting the last irrigation is important.  An example is provided below.

The following is a chart for normal water requirements between various crop stages and maturity.

You can also get a copy of NebGuide G1871 online at http://www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/epublic/live/g1871/build/g1871.pdf or you can contact Curtis Scheele at (308) 995-6121, ext. 3 or your local county Extension office for assistance.

ACROSS THE TRI-BASIN NRD

Are You Done Irrigating Corn?  You Just Might Be!

Are you done irrigating your corn for the year?  The answer is:  you very well could be if you have a silt loam soil.  If your corn is at beginning dent, then you need 5.0 inches of moisture to finish the year (see chart above).  If you caught the last couple of rains, you could very well have a full soil moisture profile down to four feet.

With an Available Water Capacity (AWC) of 2.25 inches per foot, you would have a total of 9.0 inches of available water in four feet of soil profile.  Drying the soil down 60% (to a 40% soil moisture level) at crop maturity means you have 5.4 inches to use, leaving you with 0.4 inches to spare.

In order to do this, one needs to dry down the top two feet so that corn will be forced to use the available moisture from the third and fourth foot.  If the top two feet don't dry down enough, then the corn will not utilize the moisture in the third and fourth foot.  Why spend the money to irrigate when you already have the free moisture?  Also, one may catch another rain before crop maturity.

So don't get in such a rush to put on a last irrigation early.  You may not need it.  Let the crops use the moisture that's already there.  Continue to monitor the crop stage and moisture levels closely.  Apply additional water if necessary later on.

Stage of Growth:

Corn (milk to beginning dent stage):  Corn roots are in the 4-foot root zone.  The crop is still in high demand for water and it should start declining at full dent.  One should start allowing the plants to remove moisture from the third and fourth foot of the root zone if it hasn't already started to do so.

Soybeans (beginning pod (R3) to beginning seed (R5) stage): Beginning pod is taking moisture from the third foot of the root zone.  Demand for water and nutrients is large throughout the rapid seed filling period.

Irrigation:

Corn is nearing the end of its peak water use period.  Soybeans are at their peak water use stages.  The next week's forecast looks cooler with chances of moisture every day.  The moisture is good because it's free, but some heat is needed for the crops.  Just don't need any hail like some got this past week.

Using the atmometers over the last week, corn and soybeans have been averaging from 0.10 to 0.17 inches per day of water use.

CNPPID started the last two-week run on Aug. 12 and will end the irrigation season on Aug. 26.

Lake McConaughy is at 33.7% capacity versus 28.0% a year ago. Inflows to Lake McConaughy are 782 cfs compared with 222 cfs a year ago.  Flows in the South Platte River at North Platte are 119 cfs compared with 193 a year ago.  You can track these flows on Central's web site.

Rainfall:
The following rainfall amounts (inches) come from NeRAIN which can be found at NeRAIN.

Nebraska Water Management Demonstration Network (NAWMDN) Crop ET Information
Additional atmometer sites and Weather Station Data can be found on CNPPID's website

Inches of Crop Water Use (ET) = Evaporation x Kc

Crop Coefficients (Kc)

Additional ET Information Sites:

Nebraska Water Management Demonstration Network (NAWMDN) Sites
KRVN radio broadcasts
KRVN.com
Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District
Water Use Hotline: 1-800-993-2507

Check out these web sites:

"Why do people say they 'slept like a baby' when babies wake up every four hours?" - Unknown

If you would like to receive this newsletter via e-mail, or have any questions, comments or ideas, feel free to contact Curtis Scheele at the NRCS office in Holdrege or your local NRCS office at the addresses or phone numbers listed below.

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