Portal:United States Department of Agriculture

“ Turkey should not be grown in humid sections of the East or South or along the Pacific coast, as it is easily lodged and injured by excessive rainfall. The grain also becomes very starchy under these conditions.
From Turkey wheat is manufactured a flour of high bread-making quality. Turkey and Kharkof, the two standard but identical hard red winter wheats for flour making, are equal or superior to all other hard winter varieties in milling and baking quality. ”

“ APPENDIX 2 - Recommended Plants for Beneficial Insect Habitat
The following list includes species which are commercially available, not known to be invasive, likely adapted to cropland settings, and that have geographic occurrences within the state. The species selected should be based on the actual site conditions, the purpose, and the plant species known establishment and growth requirements. ”

“ Blackhull has given yields about equal to those of Kanred in central and eastern Kansas and somewhat less than those of Kanred in western Kansas. Outside of Kansas this variety has not been especially promising, although in limited experiments it has given good comparative yields in northeastern Colorado and eastern Oregon. Owing to its lack of hardiness it should not be grown in sections having severe winters. Even in Kansas the severe winter weather which occurs not infrequently in the northwestern counties might result in heavy losses of Blackhull. ”

“ The adult emerges in about 5 days. Winter is spent in the cocoon or adult stage, depending on species. Adults disperse widely after emerging. Some species have several generations per year while others have one.
Behavior. Predator. Wingless larvae have sickle-shaped jaws that contain tubes with which they can inject prey with paralyzing venom and then suck out the bodily fluids. The larvae are carnivorous and predaceous on many soft-bodied plant feeding insects and mites, including eggs. They can consume over 425 aphids or other prey per week. ”

“ If you select other species, use caution to ensure that they are not invasive. Many references for creating beneficial insect habitat include garden variety species that are not appropriate for farm settings. ”

“ Tiny wasps that include some of the smallest of all insects, with most species having adults less than 1mm in length.
Life Cycle. Complete metamorphosis. The female lays an egg into a recently laid host egg. As the wasp develops, the host egg is killed. The wasp's short life cycle of 8-10 days allows for their population to increase rapidly. ”

“ Adults are often seen hovering at flowers and quickly darting away; Scales Description. Adults are generally 5-20mm in size, often with a yellow stripe and black body resembling small honey bees or wasps, and have large compound eyes that nearly cover the head. Adults fly, larvae do not.
Life cycle. Females lay eggs near aphid colonies. The slug-like, pale green to yellow maggots feed on aphids, scales, and other insects, growing to 10-15mm in length. ”

“ Adult flies feed on flowers and nectar from aphids and scale insects; As many species typically feed on pollen, they can be important pollinators of some plants, especially at higher elevations in mountains where bees are relatively few. Predatory Bugs Flea beetles, spider mites, pink bollworm, cabbage loopers, whiteflies, aphids, insect eggs and small caterpillars Big-eyed Bugs (Lygaeidae Family, Geocoris spp.) ”

“ It has given higher yields and is probably slightly hardier than Turkey in central Iowa.
NEBRASKA NO. 60.
Nebraska No. 60 is identical with Turkey in appearance. It is a high-yielding selection of Turkey developed at the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station. It was distributed by that station in 1918, after experiments had shown it to be a higher yielding strain than Turkey. Further experiments have shown it to be about equal to Kanred in yield except in rust years. Nebraska No. 60 is equal to Turkey in milling and baking value. ”

“ In order to breed, they need an abundance of aphids; These insects have a diverse diet so they can survive when aphids are scarce, including honeydew, nectar, pollen, or even petals and other soft parts of plants; Once aphids leave a crop, beetles will also. To retain active beetles, maintain cover crops. ”

“ When the larvae encounter prey, they generally bite a hole in the body and suck out the contents. The non-flying larvae consume about 50 aphids or similar prey per day. Some species of adults also prefer to east aphids, however most eat other soft bodied insects. ”

“ Will also feed on various seeds and suck plant juices but are not considered to be injurious to plants; Build up cool season cover crops; Can survive on nectar and honeydew when prey are scarce. Anything smaller than itself: Aphid, thrips, leafhopper, treehopper, small caterpillars. Damsel bug (Nabidae family)
Description. They are soft-bodied, elongate, winged terrestrial predators. Adults are tan or grey, with piercing-sucking mouthparts and enlarged front legs. They have slender bodies, and about 10 to 12 mm long. Nymphs resemble adults. ”

“ Solidago nemoralis
N
perennial
yellow
Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae)
NRCS Policy Reminder: Fagopyrum esculentum is not approved for use in any conservation planting (NB 190-16-8)
Buckwheat, sulfur Top Pick! ”