Red River Crops Conference set Jan. 18-19 in Childress

⋅ BY KAY LEDBETTER ⋅
Texas A&M AgriLife

Educators from Oklahoma, Texas to provide cotton, summer crop updates

The 10th annual Red River Crops Conference, designed for producers in southwest Oklahoma and the Texas Rolling Plains, is set for Jan. 18-19 in the Childress Event Center, 1100 NW 7th St., Childress.

green tractor pulling a yellow drill in a field of crop stubble
Both grain and cotton crops will be discussed at the Red River Crops Conference Jan. 18-19 in Childress. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Sam Craft)

The theme of the conference is Planning for Success. Its goal is to provide agricultural producers on both sides of the Red River with relevant management information that will create and enhance the profitability of their farm and ranch enterprises, said Emi Kimura, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist, Vernon.

The two-day event will begin with registration from 7:30-8:15 a.m. and conclude at approximately 2:30 p.m. on both days.

The cost is $25 per person for one or both days. Lunch will be served each day, and preregistration is encouraged by Jan. 13 for meal counts.

The registration form can be found at https://tx.ag/RedRiverCropsConf2023. Checks should be payable to the Red River Crops Conference and mailed to the AgriLife Extension office in Childress County at 100 Ave. E. NW, Box 9, Childress, TX., 79201.

Three general continuing education units will be offered each day from the Texas Department of Agriculture. A total of 7.5 CEUs from the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry units have been approved. CEUs will be three and a half crop management, three professional development and one nutrient management.

Kimura said this region offers high agricultural potential when all conditions align. Pastures of both introduced grasses and native species have the potential to support traditional cattle operations. Crop mixes include but are not limited to cotton, wheat, and grain and forage sorghum. More recently, producers have discovered that alternative crops can also be successfully cultivated within this environment.

AgriLife Extension and Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service collaborate to offer the annual event, alternating hosting duties between the two states.

Cotton day agenda

Presentations on Jan. 18 will highlight cotton. Topics and speakers will include:

– National Cotton Council Update, Jody Campiche, Ph.D., National Cotton Council vice president of economics and policy analysis, Memphis, Tennessee.

– Cotton Market Update, John Robinson, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension cotton marketing economist, Bryan-College Station.

– Herbicide Program Updates, Pete Dotray, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Research weed specialist, Lubbock.

– New Development in Cotton Harvesting with Round Module-Building Machines, John Wanjura, Ph.D., agricultural engineer, U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Cotton Production and Processing Research Unit, Lubbock.

– Optimizing Cotton Fertility in a Yield-Limiting Environment, Katie Lewis, Ph.D., AgriLife Research soil chemistry and fertility scientist, Lubbock.

– Cotton Area Program Update, Seth Byrd, Ph.D., Oklahoma Cooperative Extension cotton specialist, Stillwater, and Kimura.

In-season and summer crops day agenda

Presentations on Jan. 19 will be dedicated to in-season and summer crops. Topics and speakers will be:

– Grain and Livestock Markets, Trent Milacek, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension agricultural economist, Enid, Oklahoma.

– Current Wheat Crop Status and In-Season Management, Josh Bushong, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension agronomy specialist, Stillwater, Oklahoma.

– What We Know (and Don’t Know) About Carbon Credits and Markets, Amy Hagerman, Ph.D., Oklahoma Cooperative Extension specialist for agriculture and food policy, Stillwater, Oklahoma.

– Does the Potential to Graze Cover Crops Make Them More Palatable? Paul DeLaune, Ph.D., AgriLife Research environmental soil scientist, Vernon.

– In-Season Nutrient Management – New Approaches, Brian Arnall, Ph.D., Oklahoma Cooperative Extension precision nutrient management specialist, Stillwater, Oklahoma.

– Rainfall Insurance, Jason Johnson, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension economist, Stephenville.

– Farm Bill Update and Outlook, Bart Fischer, Ph.D., co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M, Bryan-College Station.

For more information, call 580-477-7962 or contact the nearest AgriLife Extension or Oklahoma Cooperative Extension office.


Kay Ledbetter is communications coordinator for Texas A&M AgriLife. She may be reached at skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu.

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