Comparative Financial Characteristics of U.S. Farms by Type, 2005

This study presents and analyzes the mean financial characteristics of different types of crop and livestock farms in the U.S. in 2005. The eighteen farm types are: poultry, beef cattle, hogs, dairy, general livestock, general cash grain, wheat, corn, soybean, grain sorghum, rice, tobacco, cotton, peanut, general crop, fruits and tree nuts, vegetables, and nursery and greenhouse. Significant, two-way statistical differences in mean farm income statement and farm balance sheet variables are highlighted. Results provide a general indication of the comparative profitability, liquidity, solvency, and financial efficiency of different types of U. S. crop and livestock farms.Farm type, ARMS data, financial characteristics, financial ratios, 2005, Agricultural Finance, Production Economics, Q12, Q14, D21,

Suitability of Selected Broad-Leaved Weeds for Survival and Growth of Two Stalk-Boring \u3ci\u3eHydraecia\u3c/i\u3e Species (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Third instar hop vine borer (Hydraecia immanis) and potato stem borer (H. micacea) are new pest species on corn in the Midwest. Early instar larvae feed on small-stemmed grasses, and later instar larvae switch to broad- stemmed hosts to complete development. In order to assess potential suitability of various weeds of corn fields, larvae were reared on seven selected broad- leaved plants for 16-18 days under greenhouse conditions to determine their feeding behavior and performance. Domestic plants included hop (Humulus lupulus) and potato (Solanum tuberosum); weed species included curly dock (Rumex crisp us), redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus), lambsquarters (Chenopodium album), common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) and giant ragweed (A. trifida). Larvae of both species survived best on corn, hop, and curly dock. While potato was an excellent host for the potato stem borer H. micacea, survival was poor for the hop vine borer, H. immanis. Red root pigweed, common ragweed, giant ragweed and lambsquarters were poor hosts for both moth species. While the potato stem borer, H. micacea, larvae were able to grow well and gain weight rapidly on several hosts, the hop stem borer, H. immanis, grew well only on hops. Larval feeding behavior and size, as well as plant phenology, stem thickness, and growth form, are all critical determinants as to whether or not a particular plant species can serve as a final host on which H. immanis and H. micacea can complete development

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS CONSIDERING ESTIMATION RISK AND IMPERFECT MARKETS

Mean-variance efficient portfolio analysis is applied to situations where not all assets are perfectly price elastic in demand nor are asset moments known with certainty. Estimation and solution of such a model are based on an agricultural banking example. The distinction and advantages of a Bayesian formulation over a classical statistical approach are considered. For maximizing expected utility subject to a linear demand curve, a negative exponential utility function gives a mathematical programming problem with a quartic term. Thus, standard quadratic programming solutions are not optimal. Empirical results show important differences between classical and Bayesian approaches for portfolio composition, expected return and measures of risk.Agricultural Finance, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Survival and Growth of Two \u3ci\u3eHydraecia\u3c/i\u3e Species (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera) on Eight Midwest Grass Species

Grasses play a critical role in the life cycles of both the hop vine borer (Hydraecia immanis) and potato stem borer (H. micacea), two potentially se­rious agriculture pests. Neonate larvae of both species (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera) were reared on eight selected grasses and corn for 14-18 days under greenhouse conditions to determine their survival and growth. These were quackgrass (Agropyron repens), smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis), orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata), large crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis), barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crusgalli), giant foxtail (Seteria faberii), wild prosso millet (Panicum millaceum), Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense), and corn (Zea mays). In a separate, concurrent experiment, H. immanis and H. micacea larvae were reared on quackgrass, smooth bromegrass and orchardgrass (narrow-stemmed grasses) and sampled after 7, 10 and 14 days. H. immanis larvae generally grew more slowly and dispersed less quickly than H. micacea larvae. The fewest H. immanis and H. micacea larvae were recovered from giant foxtail. H. immanis larvae reared on quackgrass, smooth bromegrass and orchardgrass (thin-stemmed grasses) outgrew their hosts by the third instar and rapidly dispersed, particularly from quackgrass. Due to the unique internal stem-feeding behavior of these larvae the stem thickness becomes a constraining factor regarding duration of suitability to serve as a larval host. Grass feeding has tremendous significance regarding the geographic spread, local population densities, phenological damage periods, and cultural control methods such as crop rotation for these two noctuid species

DISTRIBUTIONAL IMPACTS OF CAPPING ELIGIBILITY FOR COMMODITY PROGRAM PAYMENTS

Adjusted Gross Income, Commodity Payments, Eligibility, Means Test, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q12, Q18,

Analyzing FSA Direct Loan Borrower Payback Histories: Predictors of Financial Improvement and Loan Servicing Actions

Classical and count data regression models are estimated to predict improvement in three key financial indicators—net worth, debt-to-asset ratio and current ratio—as well as the number of loan restructurings and delinquencies. Data consist of Farm Service Agency direct loans originated in fiscal years 1994-1996. Models to predict outcomes vary by loan type. Models explaining variation in the financial measures have modest explanatory power but initial levels of debt-to-asset ratio and current ratio are significant in explaining changes in debt-to-asset ratios and current ratios, respectively. Models explaining number of restructurings and delinquencies for operating loans have satisfactory explanatory power. Increasing crop revenues to total farm revenues and increasing farm size lead to increased loan servicing actionsFSA direct loans, financial improvement, loan servicing actions, Agricultural Finance, Farm Management, q14, q12,

FSA Direct Farm Loan Program Graduation Rates and Reasons for Exiting

Farm Service Agency (FSA) direct loans are intended to provide transitory credit to creditworthy borrowers unable to obtain conventional credit at reasonable terms. Farm loan program (FLP) effectiveness is measured in part by how readily direct loan borrowers graduate to conventional credit. A survey of FSA borrowers originating direct loans during fiscal years 1994-1996 is utilized to estimate graduation rates. A majority of 1994-1996 loan originators did exit the direct FLP by November 2004. A multinomial logit model indicates financial strength at origination resulted in greater likelihood of farming without direct loans approximately nine years after loan origination.Agricultural Finance,

Analysis of Farm Service Agency Direct Loan Loss Likelihoods and Loss Rates

The USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) serves as the nation's lender of last resort by providing direct loans to farmers unable to obtain credit at reasonable rates and terms. Annual loan losses have been substantial, averaging $576 million for fiscal 1994-2004. An econometric model using survey data from a sample of FSA loans originated in fiscal 1994-1996 is estimated to identify factors associated with loan losses. The results indicate previous debt settlement experience, loan type, farm type, farm size, and farm financial characteristics are important factors. This information may be used by FSA to adjust its underwriting standards in an effort to reduce loan losses and provide additional loans to farmers given its current funding.Agricultural Finance,

Ecology and conservation of Alseuosmia quercifolia (Alseuosmiaceae) in the Waikato region, New Zealand

The ecology of Alseuosmia quercifolia, a small endemic shrub, was investigated, focussing on its habitat requirements, population dynamics, phenology and reproductive biology, and conservation status. This species occurs most commonly in lowland native forests of the Waikato region of the North Island (north of latitude 38°05'S), but is also found in scattered populations to North Cape. In the Waikato region it typically occupies shady, well-drained, south or south-east facing lower slopes of hills and ranges at altitudes below 400 m. Population structures show considerable variation amongst seven study sites in the Waikato region, with disjunct size classes a reflection of the presence and abundance of introduced browsing mammals. It is a relatively short-lived (less than 50 years), slow-growing species with a fleshy fruit adapted to bird dispersal, but seed dispersal now appears to be primarily by gravity. Flowering occurs early in spring and is synchronous at both individual and population levels, occurring over a 5-week period, with peak flowering during the second and third weeks. While all populations set seed, reproductive output can be negatively affected by persistent browse and by rain during peak flowering. This species is vulnerable because it is highly palatable to introduced mammals and all plants in a population are within browse height. It has relatively narrow habitat specificity, localised distribution, and limited potential to extend its range. We suggest it fulfils the requirements of the category "declining", using the most recent classification of threatened and uncommon plants of New Zealand

A Study of H2 Emission in Three Bipolar Proto-Planetary Nebulae: IRAS 16594-4656, Hen 3-401, and Rob 22

We have carried out a spatial-kinematical study of three proto-planetary nebulae, IRAS 16594-4656, Hen 3-401, and Rob 22. High-resolution H2 images were obtained with NICMOS on the HST and high-resolution spectra were obtained with the Phoenix spectrograph on Gemini-South. IRAS 16594-4656 shows a "peanut-shaped" bipolar structure with H2 emission from the walls and from two pairs of more distant, point-symmetric faint blobs. The velocity structure shows the polar axis to be in the plane of the sky, contrary to the impression given by the more complex visual image and the visibility of the central star, with an ellipsoidal velocity structure. Hen 3-401 shows the H2 emission coming from the walls of the very elongated, open-ended lobes seen in visible light, along with a possible small disk around the star. The bipolar lobes appear to be tilted 10-15 deg with respect to the plane of the sky and their kinematics display a Hubble-like flow. In Rob 22, the H2 appears in the form of an "S" shape, approximately tracing out the similar pattern seen in the visible. H2 is especially seen at the ends of the lobes and at two opposite regions close to the unseen central star. The axis of the lobes is nearly in the plane of the sky. Expansion ages of the lobes are calculated to be approximately 1600 yr (IRAS 16594-4656), 1100 yr (Hen 3-401), and 640 yr (Rob 22), based upon approximate distances