BASF Opens Application Submissions For Cotton Clubs
FiberMax and Stoneville cotton growers can now apply to join BASF’s FiberMax One Ton Club and Stoneville Legacy Club.
The application deadline for the FiberMax One Ton Club is Feb. 28, 2022. Printed qualification forms will be mailed to FiberMax growers, and applications can also be submitted online.
Qualifying growers who attend the banquet in Lubbock, Texas, April 7, 2022, can also enter for a chance to win a two-year lease on a Ford Super Duty F-350 King Ranch truck.
To qualify for the club, FiberMax One Ton Club growers must produce a minimum of 2,000 pounds of ginned cotton per acre on a minimum of 20 acres planted with 100% FiberMax cotton from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2021.
Cotton acreage can be either irrigated or dryland. Growers must provide gin recap sheets and qualification forms to verify 2,000-pound-per-acre yields.
The application deadline for the Stoneville Legacy Club is Jan. 31, 2022. Printed qualification forms will be mailed to Stoneville grower, and applications can also be submitted online.
Applicants who rank in the top 10% of yields submitted for their state will qualify to receive a prize package, including a 60-inch Samsung Smart TV and soundbar.
To apply for the Stoneville Legacy Club, growers must plant Stoneville cotton on a minimum of 20 acres from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2021. The club is open to growers in all cotton-producing states.
There are two divisions: one for Stoneville cotton grown on irrigated land, and one for Stoneville cotton grown on non-irrigated land. Growers must provide complete gin recap sheets and qualification forms to verify yield.
“There’s a passion and pride that runs deep when it comes to growing cotton, especially when you achieve high-quality yields — and that’s a success worth celebrating,” says Rachel Walters, regional grower and channel marketing manager seeds, BASF.
Learn more about the clubs by visiting FiberMax.com/OTC, Stoneville.com/LC or by contacting your BASF agronomic solutions adviser or agronomic services team member.
Phil ‘Tug’ Tugwell, Developer Of COTMAN, Remembered
Noel Philip Tugwell died Oct. 20 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. He was 88. He served the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas as an entomology researcher and teacher for 36 years.
Mark Cochran, who recently retired after 39 years with the Division of Agriculture and a decade leading the division as U of A System vice president-agriculture, remembers Tugwell as the motivating force behind the COTMAN project.
COTMAN is a cotton management system that times everything from irrigation and fertilizer to pest control and harvest preparation to the physiological development of the plant. It is widely used in cotton production in Arkansas and other states.
Cochran was part of the COTMAN research team that also included Tugwell, cotton researchers Fred Bourland and Derrick Oosterhuis, and research associate Diana Danforth.
“Phil was a very unusual combination of a great Southern gentleman and a highly observant scientist,” Cochran says.
Tugwell had observed that cotton plants give off physiological signals that indicate when they are experiencing stress from pests, disease or lack of water.
“His observations were key in initiating the COTMAN program,” Cochran says. “He was very, very innovative and, in many ways, the genius behind COTMAN.”
Bourland, a Division of Agriculture cotton breeder, says Tugwell was the driving force behind that project, although he was loathe to take the credit.
“He was the one who wanted to take a back seat when it came to taking credit,” Bourland says, “But he deserves the credit for getting that project going. Tug was really the instigator of that project.”
Americot Inc. Announces New Growth Across The Cotton Belt
Americot Inc. is expanding its cotton seed sales team and adding new staff members and sales regions.
“As Americot continues to expand our presence and add new regions, the addition of new customer support team members allows us to keep our commitment to growers throughout the Cotton Belt,” says Chiree Fields, Americot’s general manager.
Will Brown, a Clemson University graduate, joins Americot’s Southeast region team as a sales representative. He previously was with Crop Production Services (Nutrien Ag Solutions) and Meherrin Ag & Chemical Co. Based in Kingstree, South Carolina, Brown will support Americot growers in southern North Carolina and above the lakes in South Carolina.
Ryan Long started in agriculture working in crop consulting where he scouted cotton and peanuts in Alabama. A graduate of Auburn University, he was previously in sales for Local Seed Co.
Based in Headland, Alabama, Long joins Americot as a sales representative in the Alabama and Florida Panhandle region, supporting cotton growers throughout that area.
Charlcey Plummer has been promoted to regional manager, leading Americot’s realigned Northern Plains region.
She joined Americot as a sales representative in the Northern Plains region and was previously a territory manager for Corteva Agriscience. In her new role, Plummer will support growers in Kansas, Northern Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle.
Jerrid Small has rejoined Americot as the eastern regional sales manager. He supports all regions and states east of Texas.
Small started at Americot as a sales representative. Now based in Wynne, Arkansas, he will support sales operations and growers in the eastern and southeastern areas of the country.
Jason Walton has been promoted to regional manager, leading Americot’s South Delta region. He has been a sales representative in the Mid-South. Based in Pontotoc, Mississippi, Walton will support growers in Mississippi and Louisiana in his new role.