August Hay Prices Report Nevada Report          Hay prices in August were up for all hay products. The All Hay price came in at $128.00 per ton with Alfalfa and Alfalfa mixtures at $127.00 per ton and All Other Hay at $138.00 per ton. All Other Hay is comprised of grain and grain mixtures, timothy, clover, wild, prairie, range, and other types. July hay prices were $122.00 for All Hay, $122.00 for Alfalfa and alfalfa mixtures, and $129.00 for All Other Hay.   National Report          On the national level, August hay prices increased for all hay products. All Hay came in at $99.70 per ton, Alfalfa at $109.00 per ton, and All Other Hay at $74.80 per ton. July 2005 hay prices for the U. S. were $99.70 for All Hay, $109.00 for Alfalfa, and $75.90 for All Other Hay.

Pasture and Range

 

       Summertime weather was generally warm and dry with afternoon thunderstorms passing by. Reno temperatures averaged several degrees above normal as nighttime lows averaged 9 degrees above normal. Most areas recorded less than normal precipitation, but thundershowers were heavy in some localities. Ely recorded 1.03 inches of rain on the first. Haying was very active during the month as the second cutting of alfalfa was harvested and the third cutting got underway. Timothy, Sudan, grain, and native grasses were also cut for hay. New fields were being seeded to alfalfa. Some wheat and barley fields were combined for grain or seed. Garlic, onion, and mint harvests were also underway. Ranchers were beginning to gather cattle on summer ranges toward the end of the month. Irrigation and weed control was ongoing. Main farm and ranch activities: haying, row crop harvests, small grain harvest, silage cutting, seed crop harvests, cultivating, field spraying, irrigating, livestock marketing.

Hired Workers Up, Wage Rates Up Nationally

 

            There were 1.33 million hired workers on the Nation's farms and ranches during the week of July 10-16, 2005, up 2 percent from a year ago. There were 930,000 workers hired directly by farm operators. Agricultural Service employees on farms and ranches made up the remaining 402,000 workers. Farm operators paid their hired workers an average wage rate of $9.39 per hour during the July 2005 survey week, up 35 cents from a year earlier. Field workers received an average of $8.62 per hour, up 28 cents from last July. Livestock workers earned $9.25 per hour compared with $8.74 a year earlier. The Field and Livestock worker combined wage rate at $8.78 per hour, was up 35 cents from last year. Number of hours worked averaged 40.6 hours for hired workers during the survey week, up 4 percent from a year ago.

            The Mountain II Region, comprised of Nevada, Utah, and Colorado, saw a increase in number of hired farm workers, going to 26,000 from 23,000. Farm workers in the region worked an average of 42.0 hours during the survey week, up from 41.1 hours last year. All hired workers were paid an average of $9.20 per hour, compared to $9.47 per hour in 2004.

HIRED WORKERS: NUMBER AND HOURS WORKED, July 2004-2005

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HIRED WORKERS: WAGES RATES FOR TYPE OF WORKER, July 2003-2004