Share on LinkedIn

LUFKIN, Texas (KTRE) - While East Texas is known for growing pine trees and the subsequent timber industry, it is also well known that we raise lots of cattle and hay. Make no mistake, raising cattle is big business in East Texas. Truly, the number one business of private, non-industrial landowners is cattle.

As such, a large part of the Extension offices educational effort is geared to our cattlemen. This Friday in Hudson, several county Extension agents are holding a joint county program aimed at helping cattlemen from across the region.

Dubbed the Pineywoods Cattle Congress, the day long program will be at the Sunnyhill Ranch on 8:00 am until 3:00 p.m. at 7611 State Highway 94, Lufkin, Tx, located west of Lufkin between Hudson High School and the Neches River on the south side of Hwy 94.

Topics for the day include breeding soundness of bulls, bull selection, economic outlook for the beef industry, the “Economics of a Cow”, and weed control of grassy weeds by using a ‘wick’ applicator.

The topic of the Economic Outlook for the Beef Industry will be tackled by Dr. David Anderson, Professor and Extension Economist with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. The beef industry has seen some very strong prices at the auction barn for cattle. While this is certainly welcome, Anderson will try and help give an understanding for the record high prices and shed light on what the future may look like for cattle producers.

Dr. Jason Cleere, Associate Professor & Extension Beef Cattle Specialist at Texas A&M will discuss ‘The Economics of a Cow’ to breakdown the inputs, expenses, and potential profit of a cow, our basic unit of production. Additionally, Cleere will also

Local veterinarian, Dr. Bradley Clary, will discuss the procedure used to ensure bulls are ready to go for a breeding season.

Lastly, attendees will tour the pasture and efforts by the host Pete Johson to control Vaseygrass and Smutgrass. Both grasses are of little to no value for beef production and can be quite invasive and have proven difficult to control.

Sponsors for the field day are Hertiage Land Bank, Jarvis Farm Equipment, and GrassWorks. Farm equipment will be on display and will provide demonstrations in the afternoon for those that are interested.

Individuals with Pesticide Applicator licenses with the Texas Department of Agriculture will receive one CEU towards their pesticide license.

The Pineywoods Cattle Congress will be held on Friday, May 17, 2024 from 8 am to 3 pm. Early registration is requested by Tuesday, May 14. Participants are requested to provide the courtesy call to the Angelina County extension office at 936-634-6414 x 0, to help plan for the program and the lunch meal.

The Pineywoods Cattle Congress is a non-profit, non-political, educational event organized by Extension offices in Angelina, Nacogdoches, Panola, Sabine, San Augustine and Shelby Counties.

For more information, contact me at 936-634-6414 x 2.