Laserfiche WebLink
Production sampling methods for the irrigated hayland vegetation type at the New Horizon 2 <br />study area were developed specifically for the conditions expected (i.e., variable management <br />applications including stand reconditioning, aftermath grazing, the number of cuttings, and <br />fertilizer applications), minimal operational impacts to land owners during sampling, and the <br />lack of appropriate county average yield data. Concurrence with the methodology was <br />obtained from the OMLR by letter correspondence from Mr. Peter O'Connor to J. Lunan <br />(Peabody) dated August 7, 1987. The production sampling method for irrigated haylands is <br />described below <br />Upon completion of any hay cutting and baling operation in any irrigated hayland field, a count <br />of the total number of bales per field was made. Next, an adequate sample of the bales in <br />each field was weighed in the field using a Fairbanks Model 41 -3132 portable scale. This <br />scale has a maximum capacity of 1,000 pounds and is accurate to the nearest pound. A <br />minimum of 15 bales were weighed in each field. Care was taken to select bales from <br />throughout a field, or in cases where the bales had already been stacked, from many locations <br />in the stack. At the time of weighing, sub - samples of hay were collected from a portion of the <br />bales, weighed using Pesola field scales, bagged and labeled, and returned to the laboratory <br />for analysis. In the laboratory, sub - samples were dried at 30 °C for 72 hours, or until a <br />constant weight was obtained, and reweighed using an Ohaus top - loading electronic balance <br />which is accurate to 0.01 gm. This provided an adjustment factor needed to determine dry <br />weight production for the fields. The hay production in the fields, expressed on a dry weight <br />basis as pounds /acre, was calculated by multiplying the total number of bales counted in a <br />field by the average adjusted bale weight and dividing by the size of the field in acres. <br />Peabody intended to measure production in the irrigated cropland type by weighing loaded <br />trucks (which had been tared) during the harvest season. However, yield data could not be <br />collected during the 1987 sampling season because the majority of fields were left fallow until <br />spring replanting. A single field in the western portion of the study area was planted to wheat, <br />but the landowner decided not to attempt a harvest because the yield was too poor to make <br />harvesting worthwhile. Prior to maturing of the remaining grain, he grazed the crop with <br />sheep. <br />August 2013 (PR 08) 2.04.10 -20 <br />