Volume4.10

October 2004

October 2004

Market Watch

We have been very busy with shipping the past three months and movement has been good - especially on ryegrass and tall fescue. Getting over-the-road rucks has been very difficult, so demand has increased for pigs and stacks. We’ve been told to expect rate increase on pigs/stack on the 8th of this month. As far as pricing is concerned, it has been a period of stable markets for both forages and turf. The only real exception has been the legumes and timothy, which have strengthened due to poor weather and damaged harvests. While there are factors that could arguably justify a greater interest in futures, the forward markets are simply quiet, lending to the assumption that most buyers don’t think there is much to gain by booking forward. As always, time will tell if that is a good strategy.

New State Noxious Weed List Available

The 2004 edition of the publication, “States Noxious-Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act” has been posted to the Seed Branch web site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/lsg/seed/seed_pub.htm.

Ed Annual Ryegrass Makes Its Mark Down South

A note to our customers in Georgia, Mississippi and surrounding states: Have you been tracking Ed diploid annual ryegrass? In case you might have missed the data, or been too busy selling seed, we’d like to encourage you to take note of the impressive scores this variety has been posting. Here’s a couple examples of Ed’s recent performance in university trials:

  • Ed had the highest overall tonnage statewide in Georgia (4 locations) in ‘03-04. It was 2nd highest for 2-yr average and 3rd highest for the 3-yr ave.
  • In Griffin, GA Ed was the highest scoring variety in ‘04 and a close 2nd for the 3-yr average. It was also the highest rated variety in Calhoun, GA in ‘04. If your customers’ climate and growing conditions are anything like the ones in Griffin or Calhoun, GA, you really ought to be promoting Ed.
  • And if you think that’s impressive but not applicable, well consider Ed’s performance in Mississippi, where it was the top scoring variety for 3-location average (Newton, Raymond, Starkville). Does the variety you’re selling have those kind of stats?
  • Ok, there’s more: Check out Alabama where down in Fairhope, Ed has the highest 2-year average yield. And in Tallassee, where at the Plant Breeding Unit, Ed also had the highest 2-year average.
  • One final important note - We are almost sold out for this year. If you want Ed for this fall, get it now!
Protocol3 Turf-Type Perennial Ryegrass logo

Protocol 3 Now Available

For those of you who used Protocol II, you may or may not have known how good of a disease package it had. Part of the breeding selection of Protocol II was specific screening for grey leaf spot resistance. The work was done in Florida, where they have been very successful at improving leaf spot resistance in annual ryegrasses. Well the bad news is that Protocol II is no longer available. But the good news is we’ve replaced it with an advanced selection, aptly called Protocol 3. And this variety has not only been bred to be darker and have better turf quality, but it is a third generation of selections, crossings, and screenings focused on improved rust resistance, leaf spot resistance, and grey leaf spot resistance. Attached is the latest Technical Report on Protocol 3. For more information, or to purchase your Advanced Disease Resistant Ryegrass, give us a call!

More Data Shows Tall Fescue Has Superior Shade Tolerance

“Fine fescues and tall fescues have shown better shade tolerance than the other species evaluated. In the shade study test at Adelphia, the best 16 performers were either fine fescues or tall fescues.” In fact out of those 16 varieties, half of them were tall fescues. - from 2003 Rutgers Turfgrass Proceedings, Performance of Fine Fescue Cultivars and Selections in New Jersey Turf Trials.