“The growth of this bacteria is facilitated by high temperatures,” says Miranda Meehan, North Dakota State University Extension livestock environmental stewardship specialist. “The hot, dry conditions we experience in the summer months are perfect for the production of cyanobacteria.”

Dry weather, high temperatures and reduced inputs like fertilizer have inhibited warm-season grass production across much of Texas. Hay quantity and quality are down, while the cost to produce bales is up, and weather forecasts do not look favorable.

Grain sorghum in South Texas is at or nearing harvest and avoided yield damages by sugarcane aphids. But much of the state’s grain and forage acres remain in areas that have not yet experienced threshold numbers of the damaging pest.