Drought and Grasshoppers Continue to Effect The County

Last week, the PCN shared an article by Bernt Nelson on the U.S. Cattle inventory being the lowest that it has been in 73 Years.

Though there are several issues around the country that affect cattle numbers, the PCN caught up with Phillips County Extension Agent Christina Murphy.

When asked why Phillips County herds have been on the decline, her answer was not at all surprising.

"Two main things. Drought and grasshoppers," Murphy said. "The grasshoppers have come through and demolished forage that would have been for cattle, but because there wasn't enough feed or the max amount that we have always had on our herds, everybody destocked."

The lack of forage meant that producers have had to rely on feed and due to that, hay prices have gone up.

"It is incredibly hard to find hay that is at a decent price," Murphy said. "You have to look at your bottom line and if you are not going to be able to make that bottom line, you are in the red and you are not making any money."

Ranching is not a hobby, livelihoods are at stake.

"A lot of people, their main job is ranching," Murphy said. "And then their wives or whomever has another job to kind of help out with that."

Sadly, a lack of moisture in the winter will not help this year's crop.

"We definitely did not get as much snow as we needed," Murphy said. "The moisture levels are very much down. It takes a lot of snow to make one inch of moisture."

Depending on the situation, 10 inches of snow can equate to one-inch of rain according to the National Weather Service's website.

When asked about the amount of snowfall for Malta, The National Weather Service office in Glasgow gave incomplete totals from three places. KMMR Mustang Radio measured 15.2 inches, Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuge measured 16.0 inches through February, Veseth Ranch, about 30 miles south of Malta measured 18 through January.

"Sometimes snow is a great thing but the moisture is not as acceptable as rain," Murphy said.

The lack of snowfall turned out to be a blessing for ranchers this year as they were able to allow their cattle to graze longer this year, rather than rely on supplemental feed.

"It's kind of a check and balance. We were blessed in some ways and unfortunately kicked back a little in others," Murphy said. "So hopefully, fingers crossed, we have a wet spring where everyone can get their crops in, everything can start growing well, and we can build up our ground moisture."