By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

LEXINGTON, Ky. — There is little doubt that 2010 will be remembered as a year full of weather extremes, with massive spring floods followed by sweltering summer heat and drought that spread into the fall.

It is almost fitting that the arctic temperatures and early snows that are now hitting the Bluegrass state to close the year. Farmers again find the need to take action to protect themselves and their animals from the weather.
University of Kentucky (UK) College of Agriculture experts are advising them to exercise caution and take steps to shelter and feed livestock properly. Jeff Lehmkuhler, UK beef specialist, said producers either need to increase their animals’ feed intake or increase the energy density of the diet by feeding higher quality hay or adding more grain or fat to the grain mix.

He also recommended producers continue to monitor cows during the wintertime and make sure to maintain the animals’ body condition, according to information released by UK.

“Poor quality hay may not provide adequate energy to maintain gestating cows that are entering the third trimester,” he said. “Consider having the hay tested to determine if you need to supplement during times of possible cold stress, especially for enduring cold spells.”

Lehmkuhler suggested for younger and thinner cows that “may not have the same internal insulation as conditioned older cows” to separate and supplement them accordingly, or offer them higher quality forage if available.
“Producers should move cows to fields with natural windbreaks or provide man-made windbreaks, which are not the same as a barn,” he said. “Poorly managed barns combined with poor ventilation may actually hamper efforts of improving the environmental conditions.

“Lastly, remember, it is energy or calories that are really needed. If the protein level in the forage is adequate, do not make supplement decisions based on protein level; rather, purchase the most affordable calories. Stay warm and keep the water flowing.”

Unfortunately the less-than-perfect weather conditions last summer hurt hay production and could cause problems throughout the winter. As of the end of October, pasture conditions were reported as being mostly poor to very poor by the National Agricultural Statistics Service, Kentucky Field Office prompting many producers to feed hay early.

Tom Priddy, UK College of Agriculture meteorologist, said it is La Niña helping create the weather conditions seen here for some time now.

“La Niña has fueled our weather pattern for the last nine months,” he said. “The trend has been a huge La Niña footprint going all the way back to certainly the drought during the summer.

“The warmer temperatures earlier in the growing season were maybe more of a surprise and not necessarily La Niña-driven, but that, combined with a period of below normal precipitation, was kind of a double whammy for the growing season.”

But calling the current cold spell abnormal may not necessarily be correct, especially if one looks at the weather patterns over an extended period of time.
“If you look back in November and December, 30 or 40 years ago, it was not unusual to see early snows and cold temperatures,” Priddy said. “That was the normal weather pattern we had for many years, and then we started something of a warming trend, a period of decades where we had milder winters.
“I think we may have very well shifted back the other way. Last winter was extremely cold and already we have started into a colder pattern.”

Priddy added this cold beginning to winter may not be the result of La Niña and the long-term forecasts are still calling for above-normal temperatures and precipitation. But he added it is still winter and just because above-normal temperatures are expected, that doesn’t exclude the area receiving some significant snow events.

That precipitation will be welcomed, as were the rains of the past weeks which brought the state out of the drought. Priddy said the two rain systems that moved through the area last month put water in the very spots where it was most needed.

“Those two systems late in the month were enough to take what would have been one of the driest August-to-November spans to only the 33rd driest,” he said. “And, more than that, it was enough to give us a total removal of hydrological and agricultural drought conditions by the end of November.”
If the moisture conditions to hold and continue, that will be good news for farmers come planting time next spring.