Homesteading 2022
Sink or Swim
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is going to affect our homestead lives. Actually, the Russians are being blamed for everything, like higher energy costs, supply problems, inflation, and so forth. Our problems actually started a year ago. Groups like Agricultural Extension Service, Farm Bureau, and other agricultural groups have been sounding the alarm since last fall. Homesteaders need to develop a strategy NOW to survive during 2022 and 2023 growing seasons.
A multitude of events have set the domino effect in motion. We had the virus, the supply chain problems, agriculturally the 2021 oat crop was off by 50% and the energy crisis. Livestock feed prices have already increased $4-5/ 50 pounds of feed. Many feed companies have removed oats from their feeds. Now, with the doubling of fuel costs, agricultural production costs are going to sky rocket even if supplies are available.
In December, a farmer posted on Facebook that the same the amount of fertilizer he purchases every year increased from $10,000 in 2020 to $30,000 in December of 2021. The agricultural groups have been voicing concerns about the lack of fertilizer supply for the 2022 corn crop. Today, the news is reporting major fertilizer shortages because we import the fertilizer from Russia. Large farmers are diverting corn acreage to soybean production in 2022.
Animal feed prices will be out of sight with the low production of corn. Also, the government desires to produce more ethanol fuel with the corn. That means less available to the homesteader for animal feed. (There are specific types of corn planted for each of these specific uses.)
We need to develop and implement alternative plans for our homestead.
This is my list of various activities you might want to investigate for this year’s operation:
LIVESTOCK:
1. You may need to reduce your livestock numbers.
2. Locate and rent or lease additional pastures.
3. Develop an intensive grazing system. You can get help from Ag Extension, NRCS, Local Soil and Water Districts, and grazing councils.
4. Develop a pasture stockpile program, setting aside grazing in early August to provide grazing in late November and December.
5. Top seeding pastures in March.
6. Fertilizing pastures with manure/compost before plant growth.
7. Develop a plan to plant Sudan Grass for lush summer growth, to either graze or harvest. However, frost in early fall causes the Sudan grasses to become poisonous so you must harvest before the frost.
8. After mid-summer (early August in Ohio) harvest, disc up a field – whether an open field or a poor pasture – and allow ragweed, foxtail and lambs-quarter to germinate, growing to about 2.5 feet. These plants have over 20% protein levels. Graze or harvest (bale). Your livestock will love them and remember no seed or fertilizer is needed.
9. Develop a plan to plant turnips in late summer for winter grazing. You may also plant turnips in your garden as the garden starts to die back. Harvest the turnips as needed during the winter.
10. No-Tilling rye or triticale into your pastures in late July. You can graze these green forage in November and December and then again, in early April.
11. Purchase some good quality surplus hay from this past winter.
GARDENS & CROPLAND
1. Use compost on gardens
2. Top dress fields/pastures with manure and compost.
3. Select grains needing less fertilizer.
4. Use manure tea. You can apply it to the garden or the pasture. Apply to pastures with an electric spray units. Be sure to strain the liquid well to avoid clogging the sprayer.
a. To make manure tea, use 4 parts water to 1-part manure. Allow to soak for 3 – 5 days and then apply the nutrient rich liquid to your garden or field. Compost the left-over manure when all the liquid is removed.
5. Rent or lease neighbor fields for crops or hay.
6. If you are short on manure, check with neighbors who may want their barns and chicken coup cleaned out.
7. Composted manure – most homestead compost is a small pile near the garden or in a composting barrel. However, naturally composted manure is available in piles or barns after it’s been sitting a year. Two or three-year manure is excellent compost.
8. Composted manure can also help reseed pastures and poor hay fields.
9. Using compost/manure increases the soil organic matter (OM) content. For every 1% of an increase in the top soil, the soil can hold an additional 10,000 gallons of water during drought conditions, allowing plants to continue to grow.
10. If you have a neighbor who grows corn, ask to rent the harvested field for grazing or to harvest the corn stalks. One acre of corn stalks can provide 60 cow-days of grazing. If you have 3 cows, each acre of stocks will provide 20 days of grazing with no hay needed. Grazing is more efficient than baling and your cattle will be re-fertilizing the fields for the neighbors.
11. Plant pumpkins in odd areas and you can feed them to your animals this winter. Fodder pumpkins have been used for centuries to feed livestock. We found Connecticut Field Pumpkin at Holmes Seed Company in Canton, Ohio. www.holmesseed.com (The sales-woman said she had 3 people in the shop that day looking for fodder pumpkin seeds.)
FERTILIZER
1. Fertilizer is described as N-P-K.
a. Nitrogen %, Phosphorus%, and Potassium % per bag or weight.
2. Most pastures don’t need a lot of phosphorus. However, all our fields, pastures, hay or grain fields need additional sulfur, about 10# / acre. Sulfur is necessary for plants to convert nitrogen to protein and will affect plant growth.
3. The local fertilizer supplier recommends 200#/acre of 7 – 6 – 28 blend with sulfur for hay fields and pastures. At $942/ton or $94/acre, this is quite an investment.
a. You can do what your grandad used to do – Top dress each manure spreader load with fertilizer, lime or whatever additive you are using. Figure out how much land (% of an acre) each load covers and determine the amount of sulfur and other amendments to top dress.
4. You can apply sulfur in a liquid form with a sprayer and/or add it to your manure tea.
5. You are increasing the availability of the other nutrients (N, P, K) to the plants with sulfur. It’s the ‘key’ to open the plants’ chemistry.
6. I can make a lot of manure tea and spray it for less than $94/acre.
Now is the time to be creative as all costs sky rocket. Investigate. Implement. Evaluate.
You can swim through these rough times while continuing to build your homestead.
Good Luck. Let me know what adjustments you are making to your feed input this year.
Bob
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