A Brief History Of Barbed Wire

The Devil’s Rope;

Barbed Wire And The American Frontier

Most people have the opinion that barbed wire has never had more significance than its present day existence throughout the West. This mode of thinking neglects the history and the role that that barbed wire played in transforming American culture. Many technological breakthroughs have impacted the cultural history of our nation significantly. Barbed wire fencing was such a technology, and its invention and rise played a major role in the transformation of the frontier and West. Its effects were momentous, and they may still be felt and seen today.

The transition of open prairie to enclosures of barbed wire was actually a social revolution among the early-day settlers and ranchers. To some, it was a threat to job security, to others it was the only solution to continued living on the Great Plains. To most, it meant a complete change of traditions, daily work and the acceptance of a new way of life.

Since the beginning of time, man has constructed his barriers from natural materials adjacent to the barrier site. These materials were mostly wood from trees, stone, thorny brush, and mud. When settlers arrived on the Great Plains of America, they found these materials in short supply, thus creating a demand for a more economical type of fencing.

More than food & fuel

Getting More From The Kernel 

 

We often think of corn as a simple commodity, limited to either food or fuel. However, corn can be processed to utilize any or all of its four major components — starch, protein, oil and fiber — in thousands of applications, products and alternative uses.

Corn processing continues to find new uses, which benefit consumers around the world and create new markets for producers.

“As corn prices go up, there becomes increased interest in getting more out of it,” says Larry Johnson, director of the Center for Crop Utilization and Research at Iowa State University. Johnson says that while high corn prices have not had an effect on the amount of research being conducted, it has affected the focus.

“We believe you can produce both food and fuel from corn,” Johnson says. “Edible oil, high quality feed, stillage conversion, bran conversion, all of these things, we’re trying to get more out of corn than we used to get.”

 

Getting more out of corn is something that is the specialty of NatureWorks LLC. Using biopolymer technology, the company manufactures a plastic called polyactide (PLA) and Ingeo fibers, which are licensed to other companies that provide consumer goods. Because these products are corn-made, they use up to 68% less fossil fuel energy than traditional plastics and can break down into compost.

 

“Consumers are now brutally aware of how oil-based our economy is, not just in terms of what goes into our gas tank, but the products we buy,” says Steve Davies, global marketing director of NatureWorks LLC. “The consumers now get that we need better options. They are driving huge demands for these products today because they are so much more aware of the impact of what they buy and it’s influence on the environment.”

 

NatureWorks PLA and Ingeo can be found in a variety of products such as packing materials, carpet, hygiene products, fresh food packaging, cleaners, disposable tableware and apparel. Other products becoming more common included plastic gift cards, weed-blocking landscape covering, durable plastic electronic housings and baby diapers.

 

“Consumer reaction is typically surprised but positive,” Davies says. “Consumers have the idea that doing something good for the environment means giving up something. It’s viewed as something that wouldn’t work as well or look as good, and we’ve taken a lot of trouble to work with downstream manufacturers to make sure the product performs well, looks good and is good for the environment.”

 

While the acceptance and growth of these corn-based products has been impressive, Davies says the industry has more development to come. “NatureWorks LLC started in 2003 the world’s first and largest bio-plastic facility, and yet it’s still tiny in terms of the global plastic and fiber market,” Davies says. “What we see going forward is PLA, Ingeo and other bio-plastics becoming a fact of life and the norm.”

 

This growing market which offers new uses for corn will also benefit producers, says Nathan Fields, director of research and business development for the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA). “If we can diversify the use of corn it will create more marketing opportunities and ultimately help corn growers,” Fields says. “Technology and research in terms of processing is continuously developing, there are a lot of promising applications to be excited about.”

 

Interested in these new value-added corn products? Check out some of the merchandise on retail shelves that started in a corn field.

 

-“We milk the cows and grow the bottles” is the motto of Naturally Iowa, Inc. The company packages its certified organic dairy products in PLA containers through a partnership with NatureWorks LLC. For more information visit www.naturallyiowa.com or call 712-542-MILK.

 

-Mohawk Industries and DuPont’s SmartStrand carpeting is made of readily available agricultural materials, including corn. Stylish, durable and environmentally smart, you can enjoy your corn crop year round right in your living room. For more information visit www.mohawkcarpet.com/carpeting/smartstrandor call 800-2MOHAWK.

 

-Looking for a unique company promotional item? Corn-based biodegradable plastic mugs, pens, letter openers, rulers and golf tees are available at www.cornmug.com, or call 425-681-2460.

 

-Get a good night’s sleep with Ingeo fiber pillows and comforters. Available at home stores, these bedding goods offer superior performance and insulation, luxurious comfort, lasting, springy loft and exceptional durability. Visit www.target.com, www.cozywinters.com, or www.bedbathandbeyond.com for more information.

 

-Look good and feel good by wearing an Ingeo shirt from EcoWear USA of Eden Prairie, MN.  Available in various styles and colors these wrinkle-free, easy care durable shirts will surely make a fashion statement. Furthermore, at the end of its useful life, your Ingeo clothing is fully recyclable. For more information visit www.ecowearusa.com.

 

-Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart Super Centers now offer PLA packaging on fresh cut fruit, herbs, strawberries, Brussels sprouts and bakery products. Research indicated that with this change to packaging made from corn will save the equivalent of 800,000 gallons of gasoline and reduce more than 11 million lbs. of greenhouse gas emissions.

 

For additional listings of corn products made using NatureWorks LLC Ingeo fiber and PLA, visit www.ingeofibers.com and www.natureworksllc.com. There you can find more information about the variety of products and where to buy them.

 

For a complete listing of all products made with corn, visit the NCGA product search page at http://www.ncga.com/research/comm_dev_center/index_PG.asp.

pH testing on the go

Technology makes variable-rate liming easier

By Shelby Haag

Maintaining suitable soil pH has long been a concern and headache for many crop producers. Conventional soil sampling is laborious and costly – especially true when farming in a site-specific manner. However, new technology makes variable-rate lime application affordable and practical with on-the-go soil pH testing.

“Variable rate liming is one of the most profitable and popular practices in site-specific crop management,” says Viacheslav Adamchuk, precision agriculture engineer at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. “In addition to knowing acidic field areas, having knowledge of areas with alkaline soil conditions (high pH) can be useful to avoid lime application in these areas and also aid in the selection of crop varieties tolerant to problems associated with high pH.”

Currently, most variable rate lime prescription maps are gener­ated based on soil samples collected manually and analyzed in laboratory conditions. These samples are usually obtained with a 2.5-acre sampling frequency. With on-the-go testing, samples are taken at a greater density and at a relatively same or lower cost. Adamchuk says that the economic benefits of variable liming through advanced pH maps can range between $5 and $15 per acre, with significant environmental benefits as well.

In 2004 Veris Technologies of Salina, Kan. began marketing the first on-the-go pH mapping device- the Mobile Sensor Platform (MSP) pH Manager.

“People see it work and say, ‘It’s so simple anybody could have thought of that’,” says Eric Lund of Veris. “The fact that the unit is one moving part makes it jaw dropping simple.” Lund explains the main concept of design is a cutting shoe that goes beneath the ground allowing soil to flow through horizontally creating a soil core. The shoe is then picked up hydraulically and the soil is held against two pH electrodes for 10 seconds while a reading is stabilized. During each cycle the shoe is cleaned off by a scraper and the pH electrodes are washed off with water nozzles. The sampling process is controlled with an external electric control module and the pH data is recorded.

Lund says the system is predominately used in places where people apply a lot of lime. “pH is really an issue in the eastern Midwest as well as other pocketed areas. Producers that spend the money to put on lime need to determine the pH better than what they have been.” Lund also says that the majority of pH Manager sales are to Co-op’s, agricultural retailers and large farmers. Approximately one third of Veris sales are over seas.

Steve Kramer, technology manager for Servi-Tech in Stromsburg, Neb. has been using the pH Manager since 2003 and sees the benefits the technology has to offer.

“It takes a lot of variability out of the picture when you’re trying to record pH,” Kramer says. “In fields that have pH issues you only want to address the areas that need it. With the price of lime you want be as efficient as possible – it’s too expensive of an input to go out there and put two tons on the whole field. It makes more sense to put it where you need it or to not put it where you don’t need it.”

The greatest advantage of on-the-go testing is variation in sampling density and reduced labor costs. Lund says that lime requirements simply vary too much within a field to allow the computer to fill in the gaps between a handful of samples.

“Using grid sampling the pH at each point is determined in laboratory testing, which is better than on-the-go readings,” Lund says. “With grid sampling the space between the points is then automatically filled in. However, there’s more area of the field between the points than there is at the points.”

When grid sample sites are overlaid on a pH Manager map, it’s evident that there is more variability than grid samples will be able to capture, Lund says. “Software may contour the grid spots into a pretty map, but it can’t accurately map what wasn’t measured.”

After a pH map is made using on-the-go testing Kramer and other consultants use the results as well as buffer pH and soil texture information to generate lime recommendations. Kramer says this helps the producer put the right amount of lime where it needs to go. “With the Veris map producers typically use about the same amount of lime. The difference is that they’ll know to put less where they don’t need it and more where they do.”

K-State agronomist, Scott Staggenborg, says that on-the-go pH testing can help producers make more informed management decisions. “When researchers began looking at variable rate inputs in the early 2000’s it became obvious that lime would be significant because of the cost of the material and the fact that it is spatially oriented,” Staggenborg says. “Grid sampling was just not dense enough to make the decisions that needed to be made. The real-time sensors make the most sense and the biggest advantage is that you get a very dense data set.”

Certain crops are more susceptible to suffering from lime deficiencies Staggenborg says Soybeans, alfalfa and wheat are crops that can experience harmful lime deficiencies. In legume crops, low pH inhibits the bacteria necessary to starting the nitrogen fixation process which reduces nodulation. Wheat under low pH can suffer from toxicities, most notable being aluminum toxicity. This means that having soil with suitable pH can be very important and fixing pH problem areas more accurately only makes sense.

Is it really possible to test soil with out the laboratory? As with any new technology, some may be skeptical of on-the-go pH testing and the accuracy it provides. “Not only is it being done in a field, its being done on a piece of equipment that is bouncing and moving along at about 4-8 mph.” Staggenborg says. “The trade off is while the samples may not be as accurate as those from a laboratory, we get them at a more dense rate and we get them right now.” Staggenborg also says that it doesn’t necessarily have to be completely accurate because producers are putting on tons of material. Lime applications are not as finely tuned as other elements and on-the-go testing is accurate enough to pick up substantial variations. Results from field, static and lab tests show that the on-the-go method produces pH measurements that are highly correlated with laboratory analyses of soil pH.

While the system may not be flawless, the technology is by far a step up from other forms of pH sampling. “Pinpoint lime application is the main benefit; you know what your pH is,” Lund says. “You know you need some lime here, a little here and a lot over there. Lime is expensive, with this type of mapping it easier to choose which areas to apply lime and help farmers make better management calls.”