Watch For Two-Spotted Spider Mites Damaging Soybeans

Spider mites are a common pest during dry conditions. This pest prefers dry dusty conditions.  Under a severe drought, mite populations can double every 5 to 7 days.  Rains can cause the mite populations to decline but fields should continue to be scouted.

Spider mites are first found along field borders or waterways.  Mite damage first appears as speckling or spots on the soybean foliage. Later injured leaves turn yellow then brown and die.  Damage moves across the field as mites infest additional soybean plants. 

You may need a hand lens to see mites.  Also, a white sheet of paper to shake the mites on will help you see them.  The mites once shaken on the paper will crawl about.

Generally, spider mites occur later in season.  However with the dry conditions, damage can be found on small soybeans.  A general recommendation is to control this pest when the foliage yellowing reaches 20% before pod set and when foliage turns 10% after pod set.

Heavy infestations of this pest can cause severe damage.  In my experience in the 80’s, spider mites would begin as a small circle in the field.  Then the wind would catch them and move them across the field.  There would be small circles of damage from the pest, and then the circles would enlarge causing damage.  It is important to note that the yellowed areas are already damaged and the pests are moved onto undamaged plants to feed.

Scouting is critical.  Since wind picks up this pest, one should watch the entire field.  Plants may show damage symptoms for up to 7 to 10 days following control of spider mites.

Dr. Bailey reports spider mites found along the Iowa and Missouri borders.  At the time of printing of this news article, I have not had any local reports into the Extension office.  With dry weather, however, it is a matter of time before we have this problem.

For more information, contact Wayne Flanary at 660-446-3724 or Heather Benedict at 660-425-6434, Regional Agronomists, University of Missouri Extension.

Russell & Nancy Burns Celebrate 35th Anniversary

Russell and Nancy Burns celebrated their 35th anniversary Monday, June 18th. They were married in 1977 and live near Worth. They have two children, Matt and Dru. They have one grandson.

Jack Remembers -- Triple Success

I received an interesting letter from Walter Peterson from Gurnee, Illinois, which is located between Chicago and Milwaukee.
Letter in part. To: Jack Hackley
My sister who resides in the city of Madison, MO periodically sends me clippings of your column from one of the local papers. (Frequently to prove she was right and I was wrong.) I thought you might have some interest in the following country events. Three country boys Eldon Brown, Jim Snell, and myself, Walt Peterson grew up in the general area Gravel “D” four miles west of Mexico, MO. All three attended the same country church, Bethel Methodist, survived their elementary years in a one room school, and graduated from Mexico High School in 1952. All three earned some of their college tuition expense by hauling hay bales (bucking bales) during the summer break.
Eldon completed his PhD in Entomology at the University of Minnesota. Jim’s area was Agriculture Economics at a University in Tennessee, and my area was Counseling Psychology at the University of Missouri.
There were 108 graduates from Mexico High School in 1952 and as far as I know, we were the only three with PhD’s. So can we conclude that those early years in the country school created the basis for eventual PhD’s? I doubt it. Many of these teachers were committed to teaching the students, many were preparing for marriage. It was less than an ideal setting, eight grades in the same room. The teachers’ good relationship with the parents was a necessity because getting in trouble at school would always mean you were in trouble at home. The student’s behavior at school reflected on the parents and the worst thing you could do was make your parents look bad.
Back then as I recall, most union jobs paid better than a job as a college graduate. There was not the same emphasis on college as there is today. (That situation could return.) Thanks, Walter Peterson, Gurnee, IL. If your school has unusual set of accomplishments by the students like this story from Walt, let me know.
Jack can be reached at PO Box 40, Oak Grove, MO 64075 or jackremembers@aol.com. Visit www.jackremembers.com

Early Deadline for Sheridan Express

Dear friends and correspondents,
Next week, the 4th of July falls on Wednesday; therefore, we will be printing on Tuesday, July 3rd. The printer has requested all pages be sent on Monday. Please submit all copy and advertising by Sunday evening so we can get it in. Copy received on or after Monday will be printed in the July 11th issue. Our schedule will return to normal for the July 11th issue.

Letter to the Editor -- Five Trillion Dollars!

Dear Editor,
Five Trillion Dollars! That is the amount the national debt Obama has increased (so far) since he was immaculated in January 2009. This is in addition to the tax revenue we taxpayers paid. To be fair to Obama, he needed the Congress to vote for the national debt increase prior to his insane spending spree.
Many Republicans joined with Democrats in Congress to raise the debt limit. Unfortunately, our Sixth Congressional District Representative, Sam Graves, was one of those Republicans who crossed the aisle joining the Democrats to vote for a humongous two trillion dollar debt limit increase last summer. Two Missouri Congresspersons voted "NO" on this huge Obama debt limit increase. Praise to Congressman Todd Akin, now a candidate for the US Senate, and Congresswoman Vicki Hartzler for their conservative stance to stop our country’s runaway spending.
Fortunately, Republican Bob Gough is opposing Sam Graves in the August 7th Primary election. I urge Republicans to vote for Bob Gough for the Sixth District Congressman.
Bob Holliger
Independence, Mo

A Moment with Mike -- Making Higher Ed More Easy and Effective

     In the coming months I will discuss some of the legislation that was passed and signed into law this last session.  I will also be sending you an “End of Session” report that will highlight some of the bills passed with short descriptions and will also give a break-down on the budget showing how your tax money was spent.  In addition to the thirteen budget bills, there were just over one hundred other bills that were passed and they are now being scrutinized by the Governor as he weighs the decision to sign them or not.
     Among the first bills to be signed by the Governor this year was a bill that I sponsored and was drawn up through a collaborative effort of individuals that represented two-  and four- year institutions, the Department of Higher Education and the General Assembly.  The purpose of the bill (HB1042) is to make the path to a two-year or a four-year degree more efficient and effective.
     Higher education institutions across our country are caught in a dilemma in that funding support is diminishing and costs are rising.  This necessitates higher tuition and fees and students are carrying more burden with student debt going up every year.  The student debt in our country is now close to a trillion dollars.  Students often times graduate with a large debt and then have a difficult time finding a job that will allow them to pay back the debt in a timely manner.  This is happening at a time when the need for graduates of post-secondary institutions is increasing and statistics indicate that by the year 2025, over 60% of jobs available in our state will require some kind of certification or a degree.  At this time, less than 40% of those in our workforce under the age of 35 have a degree and in order for us to meet that need for the future we must increase our output of credentialed workers by over 4% per year.  It will be necessary to do everything we can to make it easier for our students to attain some type of higher education training without lowering the standards and keeping up with the ever-changing technology.
     It is this scenario that stimulated the need for HB 1042 which we believe will not only reduce some of the obstacles that students face but also  increase efficiency.  It seems that time is the enemy when we are in school.  The longer we take to get through school, the more it costs, the more debt we accumulate and more time is spent with little or no income.  The bill will require the Coordinating Board for Higher Education to develop a library of core courses that will be transferrable to all public institutions of higher learning in the state.  It also charges the board with developing a system to allow students to reverse transfer college credits from a four-year institution to a two-year institution.  It contains a provision that requires institutions to make remedial study courses more effective so they do not delay students from enrollment in college-level courses and, lastly, it changes the certification of proprietary schools so that they can be more responsive to the needs of those students who are training for specific jobs.
     Some of these things are already being done in our state.  Northwest MO State University works closely with North Central Community College to facilitate some of the things discussed and others may do the same.  However, there needs to be a collaborative effort across the state to become more efficient in our delivery of higher education.  Higher education is  instrumental in supplying the workforce that we need for our future economy.
         

Opinion: NRA Not to Blame for Columbine Shootings

by Darrell Scott
"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers." "The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field.
The villain was not the club he used. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart. "In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA.
I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent."
"I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy-it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room.
Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. "I wrote a poem that expresses my feelings best. This was written way before I knew I would be speaking here today:"

Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer. Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!

"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, soul, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and reek havoc. Spiritual influences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact.
What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties.
We do not need more restrictive laws." Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.
Political posturing and restrictive legislation are not the answers. The young people of our nation hold the key. There is a spiritual awakening taking place that will not be squelched! We do not need more religion. We do not need more gaudy television evangelists spewing out verbal religious garbage. We do not need more million dollar church buildings built while people with basic needs are being ignored.
We do need a change of heart and a humble acknowledgment that this nation was founded on the principle of simple trust in God!" "As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, He did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right!
I challenge every young person in America, and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA- I give to you a sincere challenge.
Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone! My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!"

Darrell Scott's daughter was killed in the Columbine shootings.