The sun. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1937-1972, April 22, 1971, Image 5

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The Newberry Sun, Newberry, S. C., Thursday, April 22, 1971—PAGE 5 4-H CLEANS UP—Members of Carver and Whitmire High School’s 4-H Clubs picked up litter from the Whit mire City Park as their contribution to Clean-Up Week. The workers shown above: Left to Right: Front Row, James Chick, Wendell Willis, Jeff Bostic, John Roche, Scott Wilkerson and Jonathan Boyce, Carver Club Presi dent. Left to Right: Back Row, Larry Knight, Tony Ram sey, Ricky Silvers, Alvin Lominick, Kelly Calloway, and Scott Coleman. The boys worked under the supervision of Assistant County Agent Jack Queener and Whitmire Po liceman Frank Shirey. VO-AG EFFORT—Vo-Ag students from Newberry High School cleaned up a vacant lot on College Street Exten sion as their contribution to cleanup week. Shown above with the litter removed from the area are Left to Right: Donald Bundrick, Billy Coats, and Ronnie Chapman. Vo- Ag Teacher George Bedenbaugh supervised the cleanup project. COUNTY AGENT First Annual South Carolina Bull Gain Test and Sale These bulls from 28 herds thru out the state had been were weighed on test on Septem ber 1, of last year and after a two week adjustment period were weighed on test on Septem ber 14 and 15. Approximately one hundred bulls had been no minated by interested breeders and of these seventy had met all the preweaning performance requirements for the test. It was gratifying to find that our bulls compared very favora ble with those on similar tests in other states. Daily gain rang ed from 2.02 pounds per day up to 4.05 pounds. So all bulls exceeded the minimum require ment of 2 pounds per day gain necessary to be eligible for the sale. The range of weight per day of age was from 2.0 pounds up to 3.49 pounds. Ten of the bulls on test failed to make the mini mum (2.25 pounds) and were therefore ineligible for the sale. As was to be expected, there was quite a variation in the performance of bulls within the various breeds on test. While it is expected that cattle of the breeds which are larger at ma turity, would on the average be heavier at any given age, they found that there were bulls of each breed which out per formed some of the bulls of the other breeds. The large crowd at the sale from South Carolina and seve ral other states showed the in terest of cattlemen in gain test ed bulls. Fifty-six and one-half bulls sold for an average of $696 with a range in prices from $395 to $2250 for the one- half interest. It is interesting to look at the average prices when the bulls are grouped ac cording to 365 days weights. Those bulls which exceeded 1000 pounds at a year of age averag ed $1134; those uetween 900 and 1000 pounds averaged $706; and those between 800 and 900 pound averaged $472. ' This trait (the 365 day weight, which is highly heritable (about 60 percent) is probably the one most important performance trait since it includes both the preweaning and postweaning gain. While breed, grade, pedi gree, color marking, etc. still influences prices, we believe that weight at a year of age is a major consideration and from the above prices cattlemen are more than willing to pay for bulls which excell in this trait. With the first test and sale off to a successful beginning, we believe that this program sponsored by Clemson Univer sity and the South Carolina Cattlemen’s Association will prove to be very beneficial to the entire cattle industry of the state. It will afford the breeder an opportunity to compare the performance of his herd with others and provide him a means of evaluating his breeding pro gram. This should redirect some of the competition between breeders which has existed at fairs and shows and put it on a much sounder and practical basis of performance. It should provide the prospec tive buyer more assurance of getting a bull which should im prove the performance in his herd. When we consider that these various performance traits have heritability estimates rang ing from 30 to 60 percent, we believe real progress can be made by , using bulls which are above average in performance. The whole industry from the cow-calf operator through the feedlot operator is interested in improving the rate of gain of cattle. If you are interested in con signing bulls to the 1971-72 test and sale, you may obtain the requirements and regulations from your county agent. Housefly The appearance of the house fly is too well known to require an extensive description. . Life history and Habits: There are four stages in the develop ment of the housefly - eggs, larva, pupa and adult. Eggs are laid on various kinds of organic matter, particularly rqoist manures. Eggs are hatch ed in less than a day and mag gots complete their growth and pupate in less than a week. Un der favorable conditions a ge neration may develop in less than 2 weeks. A female may lay as many as 600 eggs and at least 10 generations are easi ly produced in South Carolina annually. This means that a sin gle female might begin a cycle in mid-April and by September its progeny would number one and one-half trillion under fa vorable conditions. Fortunately for mankind these favorable conditions never exist. . Nature of Damage: House flies are disease carriers. Such diseases as typhoid fever and dysentery are spread by these pests. . Control: Screening is the most important single control mea sure to be directed against houseflies. Complete Screening of all openings, including doors, windows, and cracks, is essen tial. Elimination of breeding pla ces is important. But from a practical farm viewpoint, ac complishment is somewhat dif ficult. Stables should be cleaned as often as practicable and ma nures from all animals should be spread thinly on fields. Some improvement would result in hauling manures to fields in the summer during “layby” time as well as during the win ter. Stables in cities should be cleaned about twice a week. Open outhouses create a me nace, as flies breed in human feces. They may crawl over human food and scatter germs of serious diseases of the ali mentary tract. Waste water should not be allowed to accu mulate at one spot on account of breeding flies. Formulas for Fly Control: Sanitation plus screening plus use of Chemical equal fly con trol. Sanitation means that f 1 y breeding will be reduced to a minimum by good management practices. Chemicals used around farm buildings can be most impor tant in fly control. Clemson Ex tension Information Card Num ber 94 - Control of Houseflies in Farm Buildings gives details on use of chemicals. This card maybe obtained from the County Agents Office. 4H HORSE CLUB We have planned a special meeting for those 4H Club members interested in the 4H Horse project. The meeting will be held in the County Agricul ture Building in Newberry on April 30, 1971, at 7:30 P.M. All 4H Club members in terested in Horses are invited to attend and bring your pa rents. CATTLE PEST CONTROL Every cattleman knows that blood-sucking flies, mosquitoes, and lice are a big factor in reducing rate of weight gain and eventual profits. Horn flies alone may cause loss of one- half pound of gain per day, according to the 1952 USDA Yearbook of Agriculture. In addition to reduced weight gain, these external pest cause the animals to appear in bad condition, which can also be a factor in sale price and profits. Another pest of impor tance in the Piedmont area is the face fly. This fly (similar to the house fly) is associated with pink-eye and other eye conditions of cattle. Entomologists and Animal Science workers at Clemson recognize the labor problem and expense involved in rounding up cattle periodically to s p r a y,' dip, etc., for external parasites For this reason much pest con trol research in recent years has been directed toward the use of self-treatment devices for cattle. Backrubbers, intro duced some years ago, have been partially satisfactory as self-treatment control on a free- choice basis. Research with dust bag stations has been even more successful than backrub bers as a self-treatment sys tem for blood-sucking external parasites of cattle. Regardless of the method »e lected, effective pest control de pends on cattlemen servicing the devices on a regular ba sis. Neither dust stations nor backrubbers are a substitute for management and are only as effective as management dic tates. DUST STATIONS — The use of dust stations to control horn flies has been highly suc cessful. Face Fly control has been only fair at best. How ever, a more porous bag will increase dustability and should increase control of the face fly. Some users have reported that their cattle have not been troubled with lice or grubs since using the dust stations, but these claims have not been verified experimentally. To be successful, a self treat ing dusting device must—1. Be rather inexpensive and easily constructed, 2. Require mini mum maintenance, 3. Be situa ted so that cattle will use it regularly, 4. Be supported by “foolproof” devices that will hold the bags in the correct position and last as the bag will contain dust, 5. Be easily detached for moving and fill ing. LOCATION — Consistent fly control will be obtained when the station is placed in an area where the cattle are forced to pass through it at least once each day or not less than once every 2 days. Consistent con trol can be obtained also when units serve as doorways to salt and mineral enclosures, as gate ways between pastures, or in areas where animals pass through them to obtain water. Nonincentive units placed in cattle-loafing areas will not give consistent control. Enclosures do not have to be elaborate. Barbed wire enclosures are ef fective. The sheds should be installed in different pastures, and the bags should be moved during rotation of the cattle Since certain insecticide dusts can be used on lactating dairy animals, it is important to note the different installation of the dairy herd station. The most efficient use is to suspend the bags on a movable arm in the milk parlor exit Hang so that the bottom of the sacks is t-6 inches below the top line oi the cattle. By using the huigeu sup- por* for the bags, the dairyman can control the use oi he uu:>t and insure greater economy. AMOUNT OF DOST TO USe - Each bag shouiu cohUuu u pounds or e^ o; the Uoixa- cidal dust, u some ns lance.* 5 pounds oi dust will 'x; 'uAi- cient, but bag^ wdi auve n be filled not e o».lcu. * IK !te»t longct when ney coukulii smaller amounts oi lu^v. Ow s dusting ->lauoa With two Vgo., should 'be rc*vd Hn aj u ewpv head 04 a tile • DUSTS TO USE - Beef Cat tle-10 percent methoxchlor-Ex- cellent for control of horn flies but less effective on face flies. Major advantage is low cost and availability. 1-5 percent Co Ral-Usually sold as 1 percent dust in a 25- pound “Butt bag.” Control is comparable to methoxychlor but cost is usually higher. 3 percent Ciodrin-Gives excel lent control of horn flies and face flies. Major disadvantage is higher cost. Dairy Cattle - 1-5 percent Co ral-Same as for beef cattle. 3 percent Ciodrin-Same as for beef cattle. 0.075 percent Pyrethrins plus Synergists. CAUTION: Be sure that bags are placed in milk room exists only to avoid contamination of milking equipment. BACKRUBBERS — Construc tion of a cable backrubber is a convenient way to control horn flies and reduce lice infestations on cattle. Backrubbers usually are employed on a free-choice basis in loafing areas, around mineral boxes, or near watering places. Backrubbers are more effective if the cattle are forc ed to rub them when seeking water, minerals, or feed. The greatest disadvantage of the backrubber has been the tendency of cattlemen to ne glect servicing them. Since the backrubber is usually installed without a shelter, frequent ser vicing is necessary to keep the burlap oiled and therefore ef fective. Commercial backrubb ers featuring automatic oilers must also be serviced frequentlv to keep them operating. The number of backrubbers needed will depend on the size of pasture and number of cat tle. Normally one bacKruober per 50 head is adequate for ei- fective control. We have available at ne County Agents Office Extension Circular J92, Let aule Con trol Pests With Seii-lTeatment Devices wmch contains plans for botn ousting 'tauons iu backrubbers. Jail or stop oy tor a copy. KKMibMULK musk v OU JJ \ Mb Villi- v vthiVtOtviAl, • v nr ^ ’■O* u novo r*’ 1 v v v .. i wi \j .. *• *' t .. ..,s . *V -n^*4**v ,