Farm & Ranch Living March 2020

March 2020

It’s A Rough Ride Coming Horace McQueen See page 3

Butch and Chope Baxter Black See page 5

Game Warden Field Notes Texas Parks & Wildlife See page 8

Rare native prairie near Athens preserved Staff Reports

Athens Daily Review

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ifth-generation Texans, David and John Talbot of New Boston, in February 2020 sold one of the last examples of unplowed native prairie in northeast Texas to the Native Prairies Association of Texas for permanent preservation as the Talbot Brothers Prairie Preserve. The 366 acres in Bowie County also includes more than 200 acres of bottom land hardwood forest and wetlands.

The Talbot family owned the property for more than 55 years.

“The land stewardship and preservation of these unique prairie lands into the future is very important to our family’s legacy,” said John Talbot. “Our mother, Mary Talbot, initiated a similar transaction several years back.” Those 115 acres, also near New Boston, are called the Mary Talbot Prairie.

NPAT is a nonprofit organization and land trust dedicated to the restoration and conservation of prairies

throughout the state of Texas.

Their experts will manage the property to ensure that the preserve remains in good condition.

“We are thankful for landowners like the Talbots who recognize the value of these prairie lands as a precious natural resource, for not only today but forever,” said Kirsti Harms, NPAT Executive Director.

Tallgrass prairies once covered more than 10-million acres in north-central Texas, stretching from San Antonio to the Red

River. Because of the region’s productive soils, most prairie lands were converted to farmland more than a century ago.

Additional acreage fell to urban development with the expansion of Dallas-Fort Worth and other cities. Experts estimate only 1 to 2% percent of the original prairie is left today.

The Talbot Brothers Prairie Preserve is even more exceptional for the plentiful presence of a native grass known as Silveus dropseed. Prairies with this grass are found nowhere in the world

except northeast Texas and are one of the most rare landscapes in the Lone Star State.

The funding to purchase the property came from a damage settlement related to the former Kerr-McGee creosote woodtreating facility in Texarkana.

State and federal agencies, including the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas General Land Office, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, allocate these settlement funds to See Prairie on Page 3

Texas A&M AgriLife Hemp Team advises Human strain causes fear, but domestic livestock strains are routine curious growers

By Kay Ledbetter

Coronavirus:

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Texas A&M Agrilife

any people are hearing about coronavirus for the first time as the China strain, COVID-19, affecting humans causes concern all across the world. But coronaviruses are not new to livestock and poultry producers, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife veterinary epidemiologist.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, common human coronaviruses usually cause mild to moderate upper-respiratory tract illnesses, like the common cold. Most people get infected with one or more of these viruses at some point in their lives.

But the CDC is now responding to an outbreak of respiratory disease caused by a novel or new coronavirus that was first detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China.

“Coronavirus is a common virus in livestock herds and poultry flocks seen routinely worldwide,” said Heather Simmons, DVM, Institute for Infectious Animal Diseases, IIAD, associate director as well as Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s associate department head and extension program leader for

Veterinary Medical Extension. IIAD is a member of the Texas A&M University System and Texas A&M AgriLife Research.

Wildlife in China may be human strain carriers “In wildlife, bats are known to carry over 100 different strains of coronavirus, and wild civets are the source of the coronavirus that causes SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), first reported in China in 20022003,” Simmons said. “Although our understanding is still limited, wild pangolins (a scaly anteater) sold at live markets may be associated with the recently reported coronavirus outbreak in China.”

Bats, civets and pangolins are all commonly sold at live markets in China, she said. Coronaviruses from wildlife are dangerous since they have the potential to mutate, adapt and spill over to new species, including humans.

“That is the concern now, this new strain of coronavirus has emerged to cause disease in humans,” Simmons said. “It is important to create an See Coronavirus on Page 3

Staff Reports

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Corsicana Daily Sun

exas farmers soon will be able to legally plant fields of hemp for the first time since the 1930s.

Much has changed since then, but one thing hasn’t: Texas farmers can count on Texas A&M AgriLife for practical information and expert insight.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Hemp Team traveled across the state this winter holding meetings in halls packed full of farmers who paid up to $20 each to learn about the pitfalls and possibilities of industrial hemp production.

“There’s a lot of hype out there about growing hemp, but Texas farmers know where to go for the straight facts,” said John Sharp, chancellor of The Texas A&M University System. “AgriLife experts have advised growers for more than 100 years, cultivating a level of trust and credibility they appreciate.”

Topics covered in the meetings included the botany of cannabis, the cost of growing and processing industrial hemp and expected potential yields, THC and law enforcement and the development of markets for industrial hemp.

“We’re not selling anything,” said Dr. Reagan Noland, AgriLife Extension agronomist at San Angelo. “The goal of AgriLife Extension is to help Texas farmers make informed decisions.”

Farmers need all the information they can get before they decide to apply for a license from the Texas Department of Agriculture, which is in the process of finalizing the program’s administrative rules and expects to begin issuing licenses and permits by mid-March.

For more information on growing industrial hemp in Texas, including the AgriLife presentation to farmers this winter, visit: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/ browse/hemp/hot-topics/

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White-Nose Syndrome Confirmed in Bat in Texas

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Texas Parks and Wildlife

or the first time, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologists have confirmed the disease white-nose syndrome in a Texas bat. Up until this point, while the fungus that causes the disease was previously detected in Texas in 2017, there were no signs of the disease it can cause. WNS has killed millions of hibernating bats in the eastern parts of the United States, raising national concern.

WNS is a fungal disease only known to occur in bats and is not a risk to people.

However, bats are wild animals and should not be handled by untrained individuals. The public is encouraged to report dead or sick bats to TPWD at nathan.fuller@tpwd.texas. gov for possible testing.

The infected bat was a cave myotis (Myotis velifer) found dead in Central Texas (Gillespie County) on Feb. 23. The specimen was sent to the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center for testing and was confirmed positive for WNS through skin histopathology and also tested positive for the fungus.

While the fungus was detected for the first time in Texas in early 2017 in the Panhandle, the first detections from Central Texas were in 2018. In 2019, biologists reported finding high levels of the fungus on cave myotis at several Central Texas locations. It has now been found in 21 counties across the state.

“Finding WNS in Central Texas for the first time is definitely concerning,” said Nathan Fuller, Bat Specialist at TPWD. “Biologists had hoped that white-nose syndrome, a disease that thrives in cold conditions, might not occur in warmer parts of Texas. We’re following up on several other reports to determine whether this was an isolated incident or if the impacts are more widespread. We recently received a report from site in Bell County of five cave myotis that we suspect were infected as well. We should know more in the next few weeks.”

White-nose syndrome is caused by the cold-adapted fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans and has been rapidly spreading since its discovery in New York in 2007. It is thought to have been introduced from Europe where bats appear to be resistant to the fungus. In parts of the United States there have been declines in winter bat numbers of greater than 90 percent. Bats are very long lived and because many produce just one offspring per year, researchers are concerned it could take many decades for some populations to recover from a major decline.

Through support from the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, TPWD has funded research projects with Bat Conservation International (BCI), the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, and Texas State University to study bats, the fungus, and possible treatments.

A locator map of fungus detections in Texas in 2019 is available online at https://flic. kr/p/TFu1f9.

March 2020

Cavender’s supports local youth through donation and T-shirt sales Special to the Herald-Press

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avender’s stores will offer customers FFA and Youth Livestock Show Support T-shirts with proceeds benefiting the FFA (Future Farmers of America).

The three styles of t-shirts include Stock Show Strong, Rafter C, and No Biz Like Show Biz designs.

Shirts will be sold for $15 and $18 and are available starting Monday, March 23.

100% of proceeds will be donated to FFA Foundations in the 12 states where Cavender’s has stores: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Colorado, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, Alabama and Florida.

Cavender’s also announced a donation to the Texas FFA Foundation.

Cavender’s and many of its vendor partners are proud to announce a contribution to the Texas FFA Foundation for 2020 scholarships.

With the cancellation of the Houston and

Austin Rodeo junior livestock shows, many Texas youth, especially graduating high school seniors are at a great disadvantage this year. These exhibitors work year-round to prepare their shows and unfortunately, have been short-changed the ability to see a return on their hard work. Many of these young people use the funds they make for college scholarships and financial aid, so to lend a helping hand, Cavender’s and vendor partners have decided to join forces with the Texas FFA Foundation in the form of scholarship support.

The $100,000 contribution was made by Cavender’s, Wrangler, Ariat, M&F Western, Durango, Cinch, Hooey and Panhandle Western Wear/Rock & Roll Denim. The 2020 scholarships will be awarded during the 92nd Texas FFA State Convention in Dallas in July.

“The scope of the Texas FFA is growing and we are honored you will be growing with us. Our students will be better leaders tomorrow because we did not allow them to be fragile today,” says Aaron Alejandro, Executive Director Texas FFA Foundation.

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It’s A Rough Ride Coming!

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ears of the unknown are evident among our population—at home and abroad. While some “experts” claim the coronavirus was conjured up by our U.S. military or by design in Chinese labs, it’s just speculation. And wishful thinking or placing the blame on others is not getting us through this crisis. Hunkering down and using common sense is mandatory. And for those morons who will not comply with quarantines or other sensible rules, lock them away from the good people.

The toilet paper frenzy is flat getting too much publicity and amateur reporters are conjuring

up features their watchers, listeners and readers really don’t want. A friend in a small east Texas community, where a top notch school is the major employer, has this story. “We have a fairly new “Dollar” store serving our rural area. Customers wanting to use the bathrooms now have to get a key from an employee to use the facilities.

Asking “why”, I was told toilet paper is being stolen, and even the dispensers are being ripped apart to get the second roll inside.”

Our livestock producers are being hammered when selling.

The normal buyers, who want the calves and yearlings for feedlots,

are not getting the orders they need to buy our cattle. And when they do start buying, the market is terrible—some calves off $10$20 a hundred from two weeks ago. Cows and bulls heading to the meat packers are the only class of cattle doing better than before. Shoppers are elbowing other customers aside in their efforts to buy hamburger meat to stock their home refrigerators and freezers.

And fear is evident at our local sale barns. Some operators have made temporary changes affecting both buyers and sellers. At the Navasota auction market—normally moving lots of cattle every week with a packed

Prairie, continued from page 1

sales arena and restaurant— keeping customers safe is first priority. Starting this week, sellers cannot get out of their pickups when arriving at the unloading area. Once workers tag the cattle, the seller will get a receipt and can be on their way. And voluntary rules apply to the sales arena. First, be a potential buyer. Second, no one should accompany the potential buyer to the sales arena. Thirdly, let the staff mail the auction check rather than coming inside the office. All this to limit exposure to the virus—but still get livestock sold. That’s –30— horace7338@live.com

Coronavirus, continued from page 1 understanding of the difference between coronaviruses occurring in domestic livestock and poultry compared to coronaviruses that spill over from wildlife to humans.”

Coronavirus in domestic livestock doesn’t jump to humans

Courtesy photo

Jason Singhurst of NPAT, Pat Merkord of NPAT, John Talbot, David Talbot.

projects that compensate for the damage done to creek and wetland habitats.

The Talbot Brothers Prairie Preserve has been in hay production for decades. This practice of not plowing the land maintained the prairie’s natural character, including colorful seasonal wildflowers and waving tall grasses that are knee-high by midsummer when the hay is cut.

While conventional improved pastures usually have only a few plant species, the preserve boasts more than 330 varieties of plants in the prairie, wetlands, and woodlands. Native prairies are also crucial for wildlife such as songbirds and bobwhite quail, including endangered grassland birds, and a variety of essential pollinators.

“The prairie land was a real blessing for us,” said David Talbot. “Native prairie grasses are very palatable and require the least care of any kind of hay operation. Others around us converted to improved pastures, but we never did.”

A conservation easement held by The Nature Conservancy, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends, will additionally protect the preserve.

“We feel very fortunate to be able to protect one of the best examples left of the natural heritage of northeast Texas,” said David Bezanson, protection and easement manager for TNC. “We are grateful to the Talbot family for managing the property so well and for helping sustain a Texas legacy by conserving it.”

For more information about the Native Prairies Association of Texas, visit its website at texasprairie.org. For more information about The Nature Conservancy, visit nature.org.

Simmons said, to date, the coronaviruses in livestock are not considered reportable diseases because their main effect is as an economic burden to livestock producers.

They are known to occur worldwide annually, with some of the most common coronaviruses found in production animals to include the scours and winter dysentery in beef and dairy cattle, porcine respiratory coronavirus in swine and avian infectious bronchitis in poultry.

The World Health Organization has reported that while another coronavirus, MERS-CoV, is known to be transmitted from dromedary camels to humans, other coronaviruses circulating in domestic animals have not yet infected humans.

“That’s what is very important to understand at this time,” Simmons said.

“We have been dealing with these diseases for a long time but as of yet, we have not seen cases worldwide transmitted from livestock to humans or vice versa.”

What does coronavirus look like in livestock?

While coronaviruses have a high morbidity, or rate of illness, in livestock and poultry they are generally considered to have low mortality, rate of death, Simmons said. Coronaviruses will affect either the respiratory system or the gastrointestinal system, depending on the species and the age of the animal.

Coronavirus in cattle In calves, diarrhea commonly occurs in animals under three weeks of age due to a lack of obtaining antibodies when

the calf does not get enough colostrum from the mother in order to build up immunity. Clinical signs include severe dehydration and diarrhea. The severity of the clinical signs depends on the age of the calf and their immune status. This is often seen by producers in the winter months as the virus is more stable in cold weather. The second clinical syndrome, winter dysentery is found in adult cattle.

Clinical signs include bloody diarrhea with decreased mild production, loss of appetite with some respiratory signs.

Bovine coronaviruses can also cause mild respiratory disease or pneumonia in calves up to six months. The virus is shed in the environment through nasal secretions and through feces.

Coronavirus in swine There are multiple coronaviruses that affect swine. Like cattle, they affect the respiratory or gastrointestinal tract. In sows and piglets, porcine respiratory coronavirus usually presents with no clinical signs. If clinical signs do occur, it may be a transient cough within the herd and spread of this disease occurs through aerosolized methods.

Coronavirus in poultry Infectious bronchitis virus, or IBV, is a rapidly spreading respiratory disease in young chicks. Clinical signs in laying hens include reduced production, eggshell abnormalities and decreased internal egg quality.

How to treat Livestock producers should consult with a veterinarian for treatment, Simmons said. Treatment in livestock herds and poultry flocks typically includes supportive therapy of fluids. Antibiotics are not indicated for viral infections but may be used if a secondary bacterial infection occurs.

More information can be found through the Texas &M AgriLife Extension Disaster Education Network.

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March 2020

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Relieving stress with gardening B

elieve it or not, stress and anxiety relief is right at your fingertips. How? Gardening. While it may not be your first thought when it comes to stress relief, gardening has so many proven benefits! Let’s explore a few of them, shall we?

Gardening, whether in a small container or a larger garden, always takes a bit of sweat and energy. Many studies have shown that physical exertion reduces the levels of the ‘stress’ hormones, like cortisol and adrenaline, in your body.

Weeding, hoeing, mowing, moving bags of soil, bending and stooping to plant or move a container, as well as all the other physical motions of the body as we garden have a positive effect, both physically and emotionally.

Getting our hands dirty and making contact with the soil can trigger the release of serotonin in our brains. Serotonin is a ‘happy’ chemical that our bodies produce and is a natural anti-depressant.

Plus, the literal connection with the soil is a sort of doorway to a larger feeling of connectivity with

Weeding at Snake Woman’s Garden

Courtesy photo

all of creation. For many of us, that feeling of connectivity is lost in our busy day to day lives, but gardening can bring that feeling back into focus for us.

Spending time outside improves your mood and increases your levels of vitamin D. Even as little as five minutes in the sun has been proven to have a positive effect, so whether you are ready to garden or not, take a chair outside and just sit and listen. Spend a few minutes absorbing the world around you.

Listen for the birds and insects.

Watch for butterflies. My father used to spend many hours this way, under the shade of the Hackberry in the backyard or the Catalpa tree in the front. We would have long talks about how few crickets there might be in a season or things he observed about bluebird behavior. He was a wise man, and in my mind, we still talk when I sit under the Texas Ash in my back yard.

Gardening is also a way of working with purpose, a way for your actions to have an immediate and positive effect.

Your purpose may be growing food to eat, or it may be having a smooth lawn, or perhaps having colorful flowers, but whatever that purpose is, all of your movements in the gardening

process work toward that. Every weed you pull, every stroke of the rake, every punch into the soil with your hands or a trowel, every lap of the mower. Plus, there is the bonus of instant gratification that weeding, mowing, and planting all bring to us. Strong, obvious changes that makes us feel good.

Finally, there is such a positive feeling from growing something that you can eat. A way to provide for yourself, and a sense of control that brings. Food always tastes better to me when I grow it myself. The celery I ate from the flower bed here at the Annex earlier this week was the best celery I have tasted in a long time and was perhaps the easiest thing I have ever grown.

I can hear some of you now saying that you don’t have a green thumb, but I disagree. The right plants, in the right place, with the right water will grow for you.

And there are some amazingly easy plants to grow. For vegetables, greens are so easy to grow from seed! Salad greens and spinach work well in containers, as does a cherry tomato. Flowers like zinnias, marigolds, pink homestead verbena, and daylilies grow so well for us, and are such easy care. There are options for sun and for shade. For containers

Kim Benton

Cherokee County Horticulturist and for beds. Truly something for everyone.

Research has proven that “participating in gardening activities has a significant positive impact on health. Indeed, the positive association with gardening was observed for a wide range of health outcomes, such as reductions in depression and anxiety symptoms, stress, mood disturbance, and BMI, as well as increases in quality of life, sense of community, physical activity levels, and cognitive function.” (Soga et al., 2017) So let’s get gardening. There is truly no better time than now.

As Ruth Stout said “There is peace in the garden. Peace and results.”

Corn crop expected to set record in 2020 Staff Reports

Texas corn producers face a 2020 that could provide price opportunity ahead of what is shaping up to be a record national corn crop, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert.

The preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture feed grain outlook for 2020 suggests an increase in corn acres and a record yield. That would produce a record corn crop, and combined with carryover from 2019, result in an all-time record high total corn supply.

“That’s a significant increase,” Welch said. “They are just beginning the farmer survey and are basing their preliminary numbers on math models. The prospective plantings will become clearer in March when they survey producers.”

The report also estimates per-acreage production to increase to 178.5 bushels compared to the production peak in 2017/2018, when acre-production averaged 176.6 bushels.

“It will take a good season to do it, but that is an amazing number that would push total production beyond 15 billion bushels, which is a huge number,” he said. “You’re looking at 1.8 billion more bushels than the current estimate of the 2019 crop if conditions play out favorably.”

Corn crop expectations up

What’s that mean for Texans?

Athens Daily Review

Mark Welch, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension grain economist, College Station, said the outlook coupled with other market factors could mean lower prices in the long term if the U.S. crop comes in as expected.

“It looks like they’re expecting a bounce back on corn acres this year and are estimating a record crop,” Welch said. “They’re talking about incredible production numbers.”

Welch said corn dominates the feed grain market, especially in Texas, and drives the feed grain picture.

Last year, nasty spring conditions in the Corn Belt prevented farmers from planting 10 million to 14 million acres. But corn acres held about steady with the last several years, with about 90 million acres still planted nationally in 2019.

The USDA report estimates 94 million acres of corn will be planted nationally in 2020.

Texas has an advantage when it comes to production and grain marketing – an early crop, Welch said. Producers in South, Southeast, the Coastal Bend and Central Texas will have much of their harvest ready to market before the production picture for the Corn Belt is clearer in August.

The estimates for 94 million acres, 178.5 bushels per acre and the expected carryover does not bode well for strong corn prices in 2020, Welch said. But getting to market before speculators have a clearer picture of a potential corn crop could help.

“There will still be a lot of things unknown about the Corn Belt crop, and that’s a market advantage for some Texas growers,” he said. “What happens there over the next few months weather-wise and with updated prospective planting reports will weigh on where prices go.”

There are still many aspects of the 2019 crop that is unknown, Welch said. Some acres went unharvested and 2019 quality and quantity reports have not fully determined the carryover crop’s value in various markets.

Global trade of many products and commodities to China were anticipated to improve with the signing of the Phase 1 trade agreement, but that could change due to animal and human diseases there disrupting the market, Welch said.

With futures prices for corn trading at about $3.80 per bushel and cotton around 68 cents per pound, neither paints a clear path for Texas growers weighing their options, he said.

“It’s too close to call,” he said. “So, I think you’ll see producers deciding based on what they grow best or based on an agronomic-rotation schedule for their operation. It will be a challenge for many producers to budget for black ink at these prices, so they will probably base their decision on other factors.”

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Butch and Chope B

utch has a theory about hardcore born-to-rope ropers; as soon as they build a loop and take one swing, it kicks their brain out of gear.

To demonstrate how this theory works he told me about a friend of his. We’ll call him ‘Chope’, for short.

Butch was runnin’ a ranch in the wilds of New Mexico east of Las Vegas. He’d bought a set of braymer bulls to put on his braymer cross cows and one of the bulls had turned out to be a bad actor. He’d shornuf do some damage if you cornered him.

It came time to pull the bulls. They gathered ‘em in a corral along with whatever cows came along. As they were workin’ the cows out the gate one of the bulls kept tryin’ to escape. It was that

shornuf bad bull.

Chope was horseback watchin’ the gate. The third time the bull tried to slip out, Chope, who was tied hard and fast, slapped a loop on him.

The bull turned and thundered back across the corral. Chope pitched the slack and was tryin’ to square his horse around when the bull hit the end of the line. All fourteen hundred pounds of him.

Chope’s horse had only got halfway around and was sideways to the bull when the slack ran out. He was slammed to the ground! Butch said he could see that nylon rope stretch an extra five feet as the bull was lifted off his front quarters till he looked like Trigger. At that same moment he heard a sound like Mickey Mantle drivin’ one over the centerfield fence. The

Angelina & Neches River Authority to host ‘Soil Saturday’ compost sale Staff Reports

Palestine Herald-Press

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ith spring in the air, it’s time to dig in and get a little “soil for the soul,” by stocking up on all your compost and mulch needs to get your lawn in tip-top shape and your garden in full-bloom this spring at the Angelina & Neches River Authority’s “Soil Saturday” compost sale.

The drive-thru event, run

by Angelina & Neches River Authority staff volunteers, will be held April 4, 2020, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Neches Compost Facility, located 9 miles west of Jacksonville, Texas on US Hwy 79.

Bring your truck and trailer and volunteers will help you load your choice from a variety of specially-blended Soil Therapy CompostTM (STC) products. Available bulk-load products, sold by the cubic yard, include customer favorites such as Natural Wood Mulch, Bio-Mulch, Lawn and Landscape Blend Compost (also available in 40 lb. bags), Sod-Builder Blend Compost, and a new, feature product—Western Cedar Mulch.

For Soil Saturday only, customers can take advantage of some great deals, including 40 lb. bags of Lawn and Landscape Blend, regularly $4.25 each, on sale for just $2.95 (while supplies last) and Natural Wood Mulch, regularly $10 per cubic yard, on sale for $7.50 per cubic yard. Credit and debit cards are accepted at the facility.

STC products are made from a mixture of treated bio-solids and wood

materials such as wood chips, limbs, and yard trimmings. STC products revive and rebuild existing soil, which produces a healthy environment to grow beautiful flowers, shrubs, vegetables, and lawns, by adding organic microorganisms and nutrients to existing soil, improving moistureretention in low-density soils, and aerating highdensity soils.

The Neches Compost Facility, located at 1805 Highway 79 W., outside of Jacksonville, is a regional compost production facility of the Angelina & Neches River Authority, built to help reduce landfill capacity, preserve water quality, and reuse wastewater treatment plant sludge. “This event is important because it fulfills the overall mission of the facility. This sale day represents the completion of the recycling cycle,” Kelley Holcomb, ANRA’s general manager, said.

The Angelina & Neches River Authority’s central office is located in Lufkin, Texas. ANRA’s territorial jurisdiction consists of 8,500 square miles that lie wholly or in part of the following counties: Van Zandt, Smith, Henderson, Newton, Cherokee, Anderson, Rusk, Houston, Nacogdoches, San Augustine, Shelby, Angelina, Trinity, Sabine, Polk, Jasper, and Orange. ANRA focuses on water quality management, water resource development, and water conservation resources.

For more information, visit soiltherapy.org, anra. org, or find us on Facebook @Angelina & Neches River Authority, Instagram @ anratexas, and Twitter @ anratx.

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at a rock and roll concert. You could almost hear his ears ringin’. It was like Chope was lashing him to a harpoon.

Butch placed his hand over Chope’s and said, “Let’s think about this a minute... nobody’s dead yet. www.baxterblack.com

Brownsboro girl wins calf scramble scholarship Staff Report

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Athens Daily Review

$4,000 scholarship was recently awarded to Sunni Haire of Brownsboro FFA by the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo’s Calf Scramble Scholarship Committee. She is the daughter of Tim and Cindy Haire.

Haire participated in the 2019 Fort Worth Stock Show Calf Scramble program making her eligible for the scholarship program. Seventy-two youth shared in $390,000 in Calf Scramble scholarship dollars.

Haire’s scholarship was the result of the hard work and dedication necessary for participants to complete the rigorous Calf Scramble program. The moment they caught a calf during a 2019 Stock Show rodeo performance their Calf Scramble journey began.

These youth utilized Stock Show funds toward the

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saddle horn had broken off!

The rope with saddle horn attached cracked like a whip and lashed straight for a horse tied to the fence. It just missed a dismounted cowboy and coiled around the horse’s pommel and saddle horn. The tail with Chope’s horn still attached whopped the horse’s butt. The horse bucked loose, breakin’ his reins and the bull galloped off draggin’ the line.

Butch looked back to see Chope madly tyin’ another rope to his saddle through the gullet.

“Whattya doin’?” asked Butch.

“I’m gonna rope him and get my rope back,” answered Chope.

Butch stared at him. His broken saddle sat cockeyed, his hat was gone. His poor horse was shakin’ like a front row spectator

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purchase of a calf that they cared for in 2019 and exhibited at this year’s livestock show. Her Limousin heifer project was sponsored by Allied Drilling Company of Fort Worth, Texas. Besides showing their heifer, monthly reports and a final essay were required to remain eligible for scholarship consideration.

Meeting shortly after the 2020 Show, the Scholarship Committee awarded Haire her scholarship.

Sponsors for Haire’s scholarship include: Brazos Midstream LLC; El Coyote Ranch - Encino, Texas; In Memory of Rick Steed; Mike and Rosie Moncrief; Pegasus Resources, LLC; San Jose Cattle Company - Island Division; Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show; and Tokai Carbon CB LTD. The 2021 Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo is scheduled for January 15 through February 6. Rodeo tickets will be available beginning May 1. For more information go to www.fwssr.com. or call 817-8772400.

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March 2020

Rodeo events canceled or postponed

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he disappointing news came last week that RodeoHouston had been canceled because of concerns with the spread of the coronavirus disease, also known as COVID-19.

The famous, high-paying rodeo began March 3 and was scheduled to conclude Sunday, March 22.

That stunning announcement came on March 11. Two days later, the hard news came that RodeoAustin had been canceled. The higherpaying winter indoor stock show rodeo was scheduled for March 14-28.

The American Quarter Horse Association, which has its corporate offices in Amarillo, canceled its worldwide convention that was scheduled for March 13-16 at the South Point Hotel due to coronavirus concerns.

But although the AQHA gathering was canceled and two iconic Texas rodeos were told by local authorities that they had to shut down, rodeo activity did not totally come to a halt last weekend. For example, the Cinch Timed Event Championship at Guthrie, Oklahoma, near Oklahoma City, galloped on. Taylor Santos, a former Sam Houston State star who qualified for the 2019 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, lassoed the coveted $100,000 champion’s check during a live broadcast on

Sunday, March 15, on Ride TV. Santos, 25, who is from Creston, California, he was grateful that the staff at the Lazy E Arena opted to conduct the 2020 Timed Event Championships.

“I can’t thank the Lazy E enough for sticking with it and having the event,” Santos said in a phone interview last weekend.

“It’s unreal how many fans showed up still with everything going on. Those were true rodeo fans.”

“Everybody who won money over here at the Timed Event are so glad that it went on,” Santos added. “We don’t know when our next job is going to be. To not know when you’re next rodeo is wild.

We don’t know if our next rodeo is in April, May or June. The next place we could go could be Reno (the famous higher-paying Nevada rodeo in late-June).

We don’t know for sure yet.”

The Oklahoman newspaper reported that an estimated crowd of 1,200 attended the Timed Event Championship’s performance on Friday, March 13, to watch 20 cowboys compete in five timed events: team roping heading, team roping heeling, tie-down roping and steer wrestling.

After making 25 runs throughout five rounds, Santos, clinched the 36th annual Timed Event

Championship title with an aggregate time of 340.4 seconds. Jess Tierney, the Western Texas State Junior College rodeo coach who is from Altus, Oklahoma, finished second with a 247.7 Santos also pocketed a $3,000 for winning the fourth round, which pushed his total earnings to $103,000. Tierney pocketed $25,000 for the runnerup finish and a $3,000 for winning the second round, which pushed his total earnings to $28,000.

Santos is the son of longtime accomplished pro rodeo journalist Kendra Santos who has covered some of the world’s biggest rodeos over the past 35 years. He gives credit to his mother for faithfully hauling him to numerous junior rodeos while growing up, which helped him learn to be very competitive.

Santos clinched the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association tiedown roping title at the 2014 College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyoming, as a freshman at Cal Poly State-San Luis Obispo. He also transferred to Sam Houston State and competed for SHSU at the 2016 College National Finals in Casper.

Santos earned his first trip to the PRCA’s National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas last year. He earned $81,076 throughout the

10-day WNFR and finished 10th in the PRCA’s 2019 tie-down roping world title race with $182,484.

The Professional Bull Riders conducted a show last weekend, on March 14-15, in Duluth, Georgia, in the Atlanta area. It was a closed-for-TV-only event that was part of the Unleash The Beast, the PPR’s top tier tour. Dener Barbosa, a Brazilian who lives in Decatur, clinched the title and earned $35,000 during a live CBS Sports Network broadcast.

During that event, accomplished PBR competitor Derek Kolbaba told Yahoo Sports he was grateful that the event was still on.

“If we aren’t going out and riding bulls, we aren’t getting paid,” Kolbaba said. “It’s not like we’re on contracts. People still have bills and mortgages that they have to cover. We’re just happy and blessed to still be able to compete, even though it’s odd with an empty building.”

Meanwhile, the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, which sanctions the renowned Houston and Austin rodeos, did not totally shut down its circuit. For example, there were three rodeos last weekend in Florida in the communities of Arcadia, Okeechobee and Lake City.

The 92nd Annual Arcadia All-Florida

Championship Rodeo, which was March 12-15, was the largest PRCA show last weekend. It offered competitors a $106,139 purse and the Frontier Rodeo Co. (Jerry Nelson) that has earned the PRCA’s Stock Contractor Of The Year Award the past five years, supplied the broncs and bulls and timed event cattle.

Six-time National Finals qualifier Tilden Hooper, who is from Carthage and lives in the Fort Worth area, clinched the bareback riding title with an attention grabbing score of 87.5 aboard a bronc named Times Up and he earned $4,301 for the win.

The PRCA has posted an event status page on its website, prorodeo.com.

The website lists upcoming rodeos in four categories: canceled, postponed, planned and rescheduled.

For example, the Nacogdoches Pro Rodeo & Steer Show, which was scheduled for March 19-21, was listed as a canceled PRCA event. The Walker County Fair & Rodeo, which was scheduled for April 10-11 in Huntsville, has been postponed. The Henderson County First Responders PRCA Rodeo, which is scheduled for April 24-25 in Athens, is listed as a planned event.

The 78th annual ABC Pro Rodeo in Levelland, which originally was scheduled for April 2-4, has been

Brett Hoffman, a Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame member, has reported on rodeos for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for more than three decades. Email him at bchoffman777@earthlink.net.

rescheduled for May 28-31.

Meanwhile, the Calgary Stampede and the PRCA have announced a new partnership. In recent years, the Calgary rodeo was not sanctioned by the PRCA. It was an independent rodeo that invited top PRCA contestants, but the abundance of prize money that was earned at the Stampede did not count in the PRCA world standings. But under the new agreement, earnings at the 2020 Stampede will count toward the world standings. The 2020 Calgary Stampede, which is scheduled for July 3-12, is expected to be broadcasted live in the Cowboy Channel. The 2020 Calgary Stampede in July has not been canceled.

Home gardening healthy, delicious hobby

By Sheryl Davis

H

Palestine Herald-Press

ome gardening is a rewarding hobby, and a delicious way to support healthy eating habits.

Have you tasted a sun-ripe tomato fresh off the vine? Summer is ripe for tomatoes, peppers, squash, zucchini, okra, melons, and most anything that fruits.

It’s time to start planning a summer vegetable garden.

During seasonal transitions, I like to practice succession gardening.

Succession gardening is planting two crops – this season’s and next season’s – in the same garden patch.

It maximizes space in home garden beds, extends the growing season, and retains moisture in the soil. The density of the leaves creates a moist microclimate, a condition that helps plants thrive, especially through the long, dry days of summer.

Consider the canopy of a rainforest: Moisture rises from the ground, collects and condenses on the bottoms of the leaves, and falls or trickles back down to the soil.

This microclimate activity retains precious water for maximum benefit. The same is true for any backyard

vegetable patch.

Another practical tip: Staggering planting times. Few people need 100 radishes at once. If you plant what you need every few weeks, you’ll have a fresh, steady supply without excessive preservation.

Keep sprouts watered well, especially in the beginning.

I like to jumpstart the growing season by starting seeds in trays of composted soil in a greenhouse. This protects them from any lingering early spring cold snaps.

No greenhouse? No problem! You can easily build a cold frame – a wooden garden box with a glass lid that performs the same function in less space and for fewer dollars. You can even repurpose old wood and glass for this project. Just be sure not to use treated lumber to avoid toxic chemicals leaching into your vegetables. I recommend cedar for its resistance to pests and rot.

For fertilizer, I use ‘MicroLife 8-4-6’ (that’s a blend of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, or NPK), and organic Greensand, a mixture of trace minerals that plants need to grow, bloom, and fruit.

Food self reliance is a worthwhile skill. Your food is in your own backyard, and you know exactly what went into it.

Photo by Sheryl Davis

Planting tomatoes (a summer crop) between brussels sprouts (a winter crop) can maximize garden space, extend growing seasons, and help retain soil moisture.

March 2020

7

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Tournaments and meetings

Fishing tournaments, TPW Commission meetings cancelled, postponed amid COVID-19 worries

By Matt Williams Outdoors Writer

A

dd bass fishing tournament organizers and the lakeside businesses that reel in the cash anglers leave behind to the long list of those impacted by the coronavirus scare.

Several national and Texas-based bass fishing organizations have announced the cancellation or postponement of upcoming fishing derbies due to public health concerns associated with the spread of COVID-19.

On the national level, BASS and FLW recently announced the delay of numerous derbies, including the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Tennessee’s Lake Chickamauga (March 19-22) and the Bassmaster Central Open on Lake Lewisville near Dallas on April 9-11.

On March 17, MLFFLW announced it will reschedule nearly 20 events through April 4. The decision will impact the organization’s five leagues, including the Pro Circuit, FLW Series, Bass Fishing League, College Fishing and High School Fishing.

Major League Fishing concluded its six-day, Stage 3 Bass Pro Tour event on lakes Fork and Athens on March 18 with Ott DeFoe coming away the winner on the heels of a stellar performance in the final round. All fan activities associated with that tournament were suspended, including angler meet-and-greets, a student angler clinic at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center and a crawfish boil.

Meanwhile, the FLW Pro Circuit tournament originally scheduled for March 19-22 on Alabama’s Lake Martin got underway a day early to allow anglers to complete the event as quickly as possible. The tourney was held without marshals, and daily weigh-ins were restricted to anglers and essential staff. FLW also announced the postponement of its upcoming April 2-5 Pro Circuit event on Cherokee Lake in Tennessee until June 11-14.

Locally, a number of popular Texas-based fishing circuits have cancelled or postponed team, individual and amateur derbies on lakes all around the state.

Among the biggest are the Sealy Outdoors Big Bass Splash events on Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend.

Held annually since 1984, the Sealy ‘Rayburn event set for April 17-19 has been rescheduled for Oct. 9-11. The May 15-17 Toledo Bend derby has been moved to July 10-12.

Both tournaments lure thousands of anglers from several states and different countries to cast for amateur fishing’s most lucrative pay days. This 36th annual Sam Rayburn tourney will award a guaranteed $600,000 in cash and prizes.

Anglers who are preregistered for either tournament, but are unable to attend on the new dates, will be eligible for a refund by providing their name and order number by e-mail to tournament. info@sealyoutdoors. com, according to Nicole Bennett with Sealy Outdoors. Transferring entry fees to new tournament dates requires

Photo by Rob Matsuura/FLW

Bass anglers stand at attention for the national anthem at the start of the FLW Pro Circuit event that concluded on March 21 on Lake Martin in Alabama. Several national and Texas-based bass fishing organizations have announced the cancellation or postponement of upcoming fishing derbies due to public health concerns associated with the spread of COVID-19. no action.

Haslet-based Bass Champs has rescheduled two events, including its March 22 Mega Bass derby at Lake Fork and its March 28 South Region team tournament Lake Falcon.

The Mega Bass event has been rescheduled for July 19; the Falcon tournament, May 30. E-mail david@ basschamps.com for refunds.

Outlaw Outdoors also announced postponement of two Sam Rayburn tournaments — the Average Joe and Team Series — originally scheduled for March 21 and March 28, respectfully.

The Team Series event is rescheduled for April 25; Average Joe, May 31. Refunds are being processed.

Also postponed are the 37th Annual KCKL Big Bass Tournament set for March 28-29 on Cedar Creek Lake and the Texas Team Trail tournament that was set for March 21 on Toledo Bend Reservoir.

The new dates for both tournaments are TBA. For KCKL big bass refunds, visit kcklbass.com.

Additionally, the National Park Service has issued a mandate to cancel all fishing tournaments on Lake Amistad along the Texas/Mexico border.

The Amistad National Recreation Area Visitor Center and group campgrounds are closed until further notice.

As of March 19, Texas State Parks began limiting park programming and closing public access to park headquarters, visitor centers and park stores. According to a TPWD news release, parks have suspended all cash transactions where feasible, and visitors are encouraged to utilize the self-pay stations, the online reservation system and credit card transactions.

Other reduced services include the suspension of equipment rentals and interpretive programs. For updates, see tpwd.texas. gov/state-parks/parkinformation/keeping-youhealthy.

It also should be noted that the TPW Commission’s March 25-26 regulatory hearing has been postponed until May 21. The public comment period on proposed changes to hunting/fishing regulations has been extended to May 21. Direct comments to tpwd.texas. gov/business/feedback/ public_comment/.

Lake Nac Floater: Whopper found dead reportedly tops 15 pounds on uncertified scale

L

ake Nacogdoches in eastern Texas has been in the news a lot lately. Local angler Joe Castle put the popularity ball in motion on Feb. 29, his 28th birthday.

Castle was out for a celebratory morning of fishing when he made an ordinary cast that produced a truly remarkable fish. The 27.5 inch bass weighed 15.34 pounds.

It is the biggest bass reported statewide since March 2018, when John LaBove of Greenville landed a 15.48 pounder at Lake Fork. Castle’s fish smashes the 34-yearold lake record of 14.02 pounds from March 1986 and is the lake’s fourth Toyota ShareLunker to crack 13 pounds since the program’s inception.

Subsequent genetics testing performed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department fisheries scientists identified bass as the offspring of a 14.50 pound Toyota ShareLunker caught at Tyler State Park Lake in March 2008.

Castle’s 12-year-old fish was stocked in the lake as an “advanced growth” fingerling (6-plus inches) in 2008, according to TPWD fisheries biologist Todd Driscoll.

Not surprisingly, word of the Castle’s whopper spread quickly via various news outlets and on social media. The buzz resulted in tall waves of fishing pressure that still haven’t subsided, even with all the anxiety in the air right now.

Locals and out-oftowners have been putting a steady beat down on the lake hoping to get a big bite of their own. Cody Monlezun and Drew Middlebook were among the crowd on the morning of March 16.

The young anglers were successful in their search for a really big bass. It just didn’t happen the normal way.

Monlezun, 17, said they were probing a shallow water flat along the lake’s northeast shore when he spotted a fish floating on surface.

“At first I thought it was a gar,” Monlezun said. “Once I got closer I could tell it was a big bass, and that it

was dead. My first thought is it was a 10 pounder.”

Monlezun’s uncertified digital scale told a much different story. He said the scale bounced back and forth between 15.10 to 15.79 pounds.

“I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “It was huge. The first thing I did was check to see if it had choked on something, but there wasn’t anything in its mouth or throat.”

After taking a few photos, Monlezun said he placed the dead fish back in the water and drove

away. The big bass was subsequently recovered by another angler and reported to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Toyota ShareLunker program leader Kyle Brookshear said the bass has been frozen. TPWD plans to collect a scale or fin clip from the carcass so scientists can hopefully determine its genetic background. Scientists also can determine the age of the fish by examining its otoliths, which are small bones within the skull.

Either way, there is

no way to accurately determine the actual weight of the bass when it was alive. Nor is it possible to determine the cause of its death.

According to Owens, it is entirely possible the fish may have died of old age.

“That’s something we’ll never know for sure, but we do know these fish are senior citizens,” he said.

“How long they can live in the wild depends on a lot of different factors. Once they reach 12-15 years old they are probably getting pretty close to the end of their lifespan.”

Interestingly, “Ethel” lived considerably longer on easy street. Ethel was the nickname Lake Fork fishing guide Mark Stevenson gave to the 17.67 pound former state record largemouth he caught at Lake Fork in November 1986.

In early 1987, Stevenson leased the big bass to Bass Pro Shops for display in company’s flagship store in Springfield, Mo. Texas’ most famous bass spent the next eight years finning around in the store’s massive aquarium, where it had a full-time caretaker and was viewed by an estimated 20 million visitors before she died in 1994.

Ethel was 19.

Matt Williams is a freelance writer based in Nacogdoches.

He can be reached by e-mail, mattwillwrite4u@yahoo.com.

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Research looks to beneficial insects for pest control

By Adam Russell Texas A&M AgriLife Communications

A

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service entomologist is studying how a combination of beneficial insects can help control the pests in greenhouses.

Erfan Vafaie, AgriLife Extension program specialist in Integrated Pest Management, Overton, just wrapped up the second year of a three-year study looking at the use of predatory beneficial insects – mites and wasps – to control sweet potato whiteflies in commercial settings.

Vafaie’s study is for his doctorate dissertation under the supervision of Kevin Heinz, Ph.D., a senior professor in Texas A&M University’s Department of Entomology at College Station.

Whiteflies are sucking insect pests, similar to aphids, and can feed on hundreds of different ornamental, field and vegetable crops. Adults are winged while young whiteflies lie flat against leaves and can be difficult to see with the naked eye.

Photo by Erfan Vafaie

An adult sweet potato whitefly on the underside of a poinsettia leaf with her recently produced group of eggs.

Photo by Erfan Vafaie

A predatory mite feeding on a whitefly nymph on the underside of a poinsettia leaf.

They reduce plant growth by consuming plant nutrients, he said. Whiteflies also excrete honeydew, which can lead to sooty mold. Sooty mold will not directly hurt the plant but can reduce plant aesthetics; the most important characteristic for retailing ornamental plants. Left unchecked, whitefly populations can overwhelm and cause mortality to many plants, including poinsettias.

Vafaie said ornamental crops, like poinsettias, are especially vulnerable to decreased marketability and ultimately loss in value from appearance of whiteflies and their feeding. Growers are often aggressively proactive with chemical spray treatments to ensure their poinsettias will meet market demands.

“They’re protective of their crop,” he said. “But the potential for using a combination of biological controls to address a suite of harmful insects instead of conventional chemical controls is something growers are interested in and want to learn more about. I think there are a number of potential benefits to using beneficial insects in commercial settings.”

focused on commercial trials to manage whitefly populations using beneficial insects in three locations where poinsettias are being grown – two local commercial growers’ greenhouses and Texas A&M AgriLife Research greenhouses holding poinsettia trials in Overton.

The mites, which are tiny spiders, and wasps, which are smaller than fruit flies and do not sting humans, are natural whitefly predators. The mites feed on small soft-bodied insect nymphs and eggs, including eggs and young nymphs of whiteflies and thrips. The wasps lay eggs under middle-aged nymphs, and the young wasps ultimately feed on the whitefly nymphs.

Wasps have a better ability to move around and often encounter dense populations of whiteflies, whereas mites’ dispersal is much more limited, Vafaie said.

Vafaie and his assistant scouted for whiteflies in both greenhouses managed under conventional insecticide rotations and greenhouses that relied mainly on the wasps and mites for whitefly control.

Fighting pests with predators

So far, so good

Vafaie said there are many questions about pesticide efficacy, pest resistance to certain chemicals, increased pesticide applicator regulations and the overall cost of using pesticides. Consumer trends also show they want ornamentals to have limited-to-no exposure to pesticides.

Using beneficial insects to control pests and minimize damage to crops could be an important aspect of sustainable production, he said. There are numerous studies showing the effectiveness of using beneficial insects in commercial settings in more temperate climates, especially in fruit and vegetable production, but very little information about how they manage pests of ornamentals in hot, humid areas like East Texas.

Previous studies have tended to focus on the use of a single beneficial insect, such as a parasitic wasp, he said.

“The goal is to determine whether the combination of two beneficial insect species to manage whiteflies can work better than just one for poinsettias in a greenhouse environment,” he said. “I want to know how the wasp and mite work together to suppress whiteflies.”

Vafaie is looking to determine how introducing beneficial predatory mites and parasitic wasps affect the need for pesticide spray treatments. His study started with determining initial whitefly populations on poinsettia cuttings at the grower facilities over two years, whitefly retailer thresholds for two years, and small-scale studies to determine if the combination of the two beneficial insects works better than either one alone.

In the most recent year, Vafaie has

At Location 1, Vafaie said spot sprays were required in addition to the beneficial insects in sections of the greenhouses after whitefly populations moved in. At Location 2, no pesticide applications for whiteflies were necessary in the beneficial insect-managed greenhouse, but fire ant bait was needed to manage the fire ants, which were consuming the beneficial insects.

In Overton, two broadcast applications were needed to bring whitefly populations back down to manageable levels for the beneficial insects.

In small-scale trials, Vafaie said the combination of wasps and mites worked as well as either predator alone. Scouting for whiteflies and spot-spraying alone helped decrease the use of pesticides during the study.

Pesticides that do not kill the wasps and mites are typically used, or a spray that will not leave residuals that will harm the beneficial insects following a treatment, he said.

“Throughout the small-scale study, the combination of mites and wasps were more reliable in handling simulated whitefly migrations into the greenhouses,” he said. “Mites are thought to wait and intercept incoming whiteflies, while wasps actively move around and encounter new populations of whiteflies.”

Wasps were released every week while mites were released every four weeks, Vafaie said.

Vafaie said applications of beneficial insects took less time and labor than spray applications. Although the cost of beneficial insects was roughly equivalent to the typical cost of pesticide inputs, a full

Photo by Adam Russell

Erfan Vafaie, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service entomologist, Overton, holds a vial filled with whiteflies captured during a trial focused on the use of beneficial insects to control whitefly populations.

cost comparison between conventional insecticide rotations and the beneficial insect strategy is still pending.

“The key to this strategy is to use the beneficial insects to maintain whiteflies below the retailer threshold,” he said.

“Unlike pesticide applications, biological control is a numbers game; each beneficial insect can only eat or lay eggs under so many whiteflies for a given period of time.

If whiteflies are reproducing at a faster rate than the beneficial insects can consume, then it’s time to knock down whitefly population with some selective pesticides to levels manageable by the beneficial insects again.”

Vafaie hopes to extend the study further and incorporate an economist to analyze the cost benefits of using beneficial insects compared to conventional preventative insecticide rotations for commercial poinsettia production.

Photo by Erfan Vafaie

Parasitic wasps are distributed by hanging cards containing more than 60 wasp pupae per card, and slowly emerge and disperse within the greenhouse. The predatory mites are dispersed using a custom-made blower that distributes the mites on carrier material (wood chip-like material seen on the leaves).

Game Warden Field Notes The following items are compiled from recent Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement reports.

because he was scared and was out on bond. He also had two bags of marijuana stuffed in his boots.

Gesundheit!

What Happens at the Lake House

On Feb. 15, a Real County game warden assisted the Real County Sheriff ’s Department on a call about a reckless driver that had been pulled over just south of Leakey. After the deputy made contact with the driver, he told the game warden the driver was acting very nervous. While the deputy was running the driver’s information the subject sped away and a pursuit ensued.

Real County sheriff ’s office, the game warden, the DPS trooper and the Real County Constable were involved in the pursuit.

After pursuing the subject for about 5 miles south of Leakey the subject stopped and fled on foot. The driver ran towards the Frio river and jumped in the river. The game warden drove to the other side of the river to try and apprehend the subject, but the subject made it back across the river. A bystander told the warden where the subject crossed the river again, and he and the other officers began a search for the subject. While waiting for the Edwards County sheriff ’s office K9 unit to arrive, the game warden was continuing the search when he heard someone sneeze in the tall grass. The warden began searching the area where he heard the sneeze and shortly after found the subject in a ditch covered up with grass.

The subject was apprehended transported to the Real County Jail. The subject said he fled

On Feb. 8, Llano County game wardens responded to a shots fired call with deputies. Multiple callers stated an individual in a subdivision was shooting an automatic rifle at a buoy in the lake near houses and towards boats in the water. A rental house was located with eight people where the shooter was identified.

The shooter admitted to hiding the rifle inside the residence.

Consent was given to search the house which yielded the rifle, bags of marijuana, unprescribed Adderall, and psilocybin mushrooms. A total of five people were arrested for charges ranging from possession of marijuana, deadly conduct- 3rd degree felony, and possession of controlled substance 1>4 grams — 2nd degree felony.

Stop Methin’ Around On Feb. 10, an Ellis County game warden received a call from the Cedar Hill police chief to discuss issues and complaints they were receiving on a rural part of the city where their officers couldn’t easily access.

After the game warden met with the chief and lieutenant, he patrolled the area and located a white truck trespassing with the driver still sitting in the vehicle.

A meth pipe was in his hunting jacket and the suspect admitted to waiting on his friend to go hog

hunting. The game warden located 1.6 grams of meth in the vehicle and a loaded 30-30 rifle. The suspect was a convicted felon and the rifle

came back as stolen out of Montgomery County.

The subject was arrested and placed in the Ellis County Jail.

Multiple charges pending.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Dumb On Feb. 22, while patrolling the San Jacinto River for fishing license violations in eastern Montgomery County, San Jacinto and Montgomery County game wardens heard a gunshot that sounded extremely close. After looking at a map, they noticed a pipeline about 50 yards away.

As they made their way down the pipeline, the wardens noticed a pickup and ATV tucked away into the woods.

While approaching the pickup, they witnessed two individuals tucking things into the toolbox of the truck. It appeared they had interrupted what was about to be a hunt without consent case.

A bag of hog-wild attractant was

found in the toolbox as well as a shotgun with buckshot and a rifle with a thermal scope. The ATV had been reported stolen out of Liberty County in 2018, so it was seized for further

from the road with the aid of an artificial light. Both subjects were arrested for hunting whitetailed deer at night and hunting with the aid of artificial light.

Cases Pending.

Food Truck Bandits

investigation.

The registered owner of the ATV listed a guide on his hunting lease as his primary suspect. The guide just happened to be the same individual who was in possession of the ATV. Charges Pending.

Lights Out On Feb. 15, a Sabine County game warden observed a truck traveling on State Highway 87 near Milam, Texas with inoperable taillights and license plate lights. The warden initiated a traffic stop on the truck and upon contacting the driver and passenger, the warden located a white-tailed buck deer in the bed of the truck. After a brief interview, the warden was able to obtain a confession from the individuals. The deer was shot

While returning a recovered stolen game camera from a previous hunting case to the land manager of a local development company, a Montgomery County game warden learned that they had been having theft issues from the active construction areas on some of their development properties. The warden and a Grimes County game warden made a pass through the development while on routine patrol the evening of Feb. 15 and witnessed four individuals loading thousands of dollars of construction materials into the back of two pickup trucks. When the wardens contacted the group, they claimed that an unnamed friend who worked there told them they could have what they were taking. The land manager was able to quickly contact the construction superintendent of the project who verified that no one other than him had the authority to give away material and he did not give anyone permission to take anything. All four individuals were arrested for theft $750-$2,500, a class A misdemeanor. Upon further questioning, the group caught stealing were discovered as the drivers of food trucks for several local developments, including the one they were caught in.

March 2020

9

East Texas Farm & Ranch Living

Support Agriculture Businesses... They are the Heartbeat of Our Economy

East Texas Stock Prices HUNTS LIVESTOCK EXCHANGE

ATHENS COMMISSION COMPANY

Updated: 3/16/2020 Head Count: 277

STEERS

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400lb - 499lb

1.00 1.51

400lb - 500lb

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500lb - 599lb

1.00 1.29

500lb - UP

0.80 1.45

600lb - 699lb

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0.25 0.73

600lb - 699lb

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Heavy Bulls

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700lb - 899lb

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$300 $1,400

STOCKER COWS

0.55lb 0.85lb

GOATS

$75hd $270hd

STOCKER COWS

$200hd $1110hd

BABY CALVES

NA NA

TRI-COUNTY LIVESTOCK MARKET Updated: 3/21/2020 Head Count: 279

STEERS UNDER 300lb

1.40 1.85

300lb - 400lb

1.35 1.71

400lb - 500lb

1.25 1.58

500lb - 600lb

1.20 1.60

600lb - 700lb

1.10 1.40

700lb - 800lb

BABY CALVES HORSES

NA NA $50hd $400hd

STEERS 1.15 1.75

400lb - 500lb

0.71 1.80

500lb - 600lb

1.05 1.55

1.05 1.30

600lb - 700lb

0.80 1.20

700lb - 800lb

0.90 1.16

UNDER 300lb

1.30 1.50

HEIFERS

300lb - 400lb

1.20 1.45

400lb - 500lb

Under 300lb

0.85 1.35

1.15 1.36

300lb - 400lb

1.00 1.45

500lb - 600lb

1.10 1.35

400lb - 500lb

1.00 1.25

600lb - 700lb

1.00 1.15

500lb - 600lb

0.41 1.20

700lb - 800lb

0.90 1.05

600lb - 700lb

0.85 1.05

700lb - 800lb

0.87 0.90

Cows

0.55 0.79

PACKER

Heavy Bulls

0.90 1.05

Cows

0.43 0.95

PAIRS

NA NA

Bulls

0.75 1.06

PAIRS

$750 $800

$175/hd $250/hd

STOCKER COWS

$600/hd $1300/hd

LOW-MIDDLE

NA NA

EAST TEXAS LIVESTOCK INC.

Updated: 3/24/2020 Head Count: 246 Buyers: 14 Total Sellers: 61 Feeder Calf Order Buyers: 27 STEERS

BRED COWS GOATS

$650hd $750hd $40hd $265hd

Monthly Sellers Giveaway!

Receiving Pens

Each head sold will be entered for a drawing. At the end of the month a ticket will be pulled and that Seller will receive $ cash.

1,000

Located outside Trinity, TX Contact Steve Lane (936) 661-7950 259 Westside Rd. Trinity, TX 75862

Updated: 3/19/2020 Head Count: 337 Buyers: 50 Sellers: 65

STEERS 1.45 2.07

UNDER 300lb

1.38 1.78

305lb - 400lb

1.38 1.78

300lb - 400lb

1.30 1.66

405lb - 500lb

1.28 1.78

400lb - 500lb

1.20 1.60

505lb - 600lb

1.23 1.70

500lb - UP

1.20 1.48

605lb - 800lb

1.15 1.58

600lb - 700lb

N/A N/A

HEIFERS HEIFERS

UNDER 300lb

1.30 1.74

300-DOWN

1.33 1.62

300lb - 400lb

1.20 1.62

305lb - 400lb

1.22 1.53

400lb - 500lb

1.10 1.40

405lb - 500lb

1.16 1.51

500lb - UP

1.00 1.22

505lb - 600lb

1.10 1.37

600lb - 700lb

N/A N/A

605lb - 800lb

1.08 1.28

SLAUGHTER

SLAUGHTER

Cows

0.40 0.79

Bulls

0.60 1.01 $800 $1475

Cows

0.64 0.90

PAIRS

Bulls

0.88 1.09

STOCKER COWS

BRED COWS

SALE EVERY WEDNESDAY AT NOON

NACOGDOCHES LIVESTOCK EXCHANGE

300-DOWN

PAIRS

Includes all labor, tractor work and concrete slab with moisture barrier and electric stub. Standard doors (1) 10x10 roll up or 20x7 garage door and (1) steel walk-in door. (Pad dirt may be extra). We use all the best materials starting with 6x6 ground contact poles with a lifetime warranty and a 40 year warranty on our painted metal. We offer a 4 inch 3000 psi concrete slab reinforced with 3/8” rebar.

Updated: 3/25/2020 Head Count: 135 Buyers: 22 Sellers: 33

300lb - 400lb

BABY CALVES

WE BUILD ANY SIZE

ANDERSON COUNTY LIVESTOCK

1.10 1.65

SLAUGHTER

24x30x10 - 30x30x10 - 30x40x10 - 30x50x10

$750 $1,100

Under 300lb

HEIFERS

Shops • Garages • Barns • Equipment Sheds

$900 $1400 $600/hd $975/hd

GOATS

$450hd $1350hd $54hd $195hd

BABY CALVES

$110hd $235hd

OPEN COWS

$500hd $725hd

VETERINARIAN ONSITE DR. CORY TUCKER

ELKHART, TEXAS

903-907-7777 Hwy 287 | Hwy 19 (at the intersection of Hwy 294) Elkhart, TX 75839 PH: 903-764-1919

p u p S orte d u o r r s P Our Services Include:

S Corporations • Individuals • Partnerships • Farms/Ranches Rental Property Managers • Truck Drivers • Clergy

andersoncountylivestock.com

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