By David L. Bush, Ph.D. LUBBOCK, Texas First, let me explain the title of this essay. Chilling injury is cellular damage to meristematic plant root tissues that often occurs when soil temperatures fall below 50 degrees Fahrenheit during the imbibition phase...

After a prolonged drought, rain finally fell in Texas. The much-needed water boosted the spirits of farmers and ginners, which was evident at the 109th Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association Annual Meeting and Trade Show. Attendees were upbeat and ready to learn more about the products and services being offered by numerous companies gathered at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center. Tony Williams, TCGA executive vice president, says he received positive feedback during the show regarding the upcoming season. “Promising soil moisture appears to have generated a good attitude among the attendees who see enormous potential for the 2016 crop,” he says. “After going through a tough drought that began in 2011, conditions in 2016 are much improved. The South Texas crop is planted, and West Texas received timely rains to start the season. We have heard predictions that 5.5 million acres of cotton will be planted in the state this year. The general consensus is, ‘If we can’t get price, we can get yields.’” From the ginners’ perspective, Williams says farmers need to “bring bales to the gin.” Although the economic environment is tough, there is hope and good potential for that to happen in 2016.

Varieties Evaluated For Root-Knot Nematode Resistance The Deltapine New Product Evaluator Program is kicking off its ninth season this spring with nearly 200 growers evaluating seven new Bollgard II XtendFlex cotton variety candidates for the Class of 17. Three of those...

Six years after production was discontinued in the United States, aldicarb is making a comeback. Production of the farm chemical aldicarb, formerly sold under the trade name Temik, was discontinued in 2010 and has gradually disappeared from the market. A new product, AgLogic 15G Aldicarb Pesticide, is making an initial run in Georgia this season. It is expected to be released in other cotton-producing states in 2017 and 2018. Jeremy Greene, entomologist at the Clemson Edisto Research and Educational Center, says the U.S. cotton crop has suffered with declining availability of aldicarb. Temik was a valued part of many growers’ integrated pest management programs for control of early season insect pests and nematodes. There is little to no Temik 15G available for purchase today. “Control of thrips and nematodes has been challenging since the availability of aldicarb, or Temik 15G, has diminished,” Greene says. “Temik 15G was on the market for about 40 years and was used on a significant number of cotton acres for control of thrips and nematodes. Aldicarb was very effective.” Since Temik essentially was taken off the market when the registrant stopped production, cotton growers have been using neonicotinoid seed treatments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYrWC5pb9qA How are NPEs helping the cotton industry as a whole? Deltapine® NPE grower Zeb Winslow of Scotland Neck, NC, explains how the NPE program betters the cotton industry through improved varieties and improved ties in the cotton growing community.   Through the...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE6_FFdWrLQ Cotton farmers need varieties that can stand up to the stresses of their region. Deltapine NPE grower Kevin Gardner of Mocksville, SC, says that his Deltapine varieties passed the test because they underwent real on-farm testing before they ever...

Barry Street grew up on a cotton farm in Kress, Texas, 60 miles north of Lubbock. In 1979, he and his wife, SuDe, graduated from Texas Tech University and decided to return to the family operation. Little did they...

One cannot help but notice Ava Alcaida’s intense concentration as she is fed an almost unmanageable amount of information about the Cotton Research and Promotion Program as part of the orientation process for her new appointment as an adviser...

Download the Application (pdf) Jamey Duesterhaus Exceeds SDI ‘Rule Of Thumb’ In the world of subsurface drip irrigation, the “rule of thumb,” on average, is that a cotton farmer can make 4 bales of lint per acre with 4 GPM per acre...

ARIZONA Planting time is upon us and, as of this writing, spring is shaping up to be a very good planting season. With warm temperatures and dry conditions, emergence and stand establishment should be uniform and swift. However, as you...

The Southern Cotton Ginners Association’s Awards Banquet held during the Mid-South Farm & Gin Show is all about honoring the cotton industry. Three awards presented this year include the Cotton Ginner of the Year, the A.L. Vandergriff Pioneer Award and the SCGA Memorial Scholarship. The Cotton Ginner of the Year award, which began is 1990, is based on three criteria. First is service to his or her customers, including quality of ginning, ethical business standards and other constructive activity. Next is service to all branches of the cotton industry through support and leadership of activities and programs. The third consideration weighs community outreach, as well as civic and philanthropic factors. “George LaCour, Tri-Parish Gin, Lettsworth, La., represents of all of these criteria,” says SCGA Executive Vice President Tim Price. “He is committed to cotton, has an excellent relationship with his customers and knows the value of having a local gin.” The A.L. Vandergriff Pioneer Award is given to a person who has developed an idea, an invention, a technique or a program that pioneering in nature. Woods E. Eastland, Staplcotn, Greenwood, Miss., who was instrumental in developing the seasonal pool and pool call marketing concept, is the recipient of this year’s award.

When I look back on my childhood, it always seems that cotton was king of my memories. My family grew wheat, grain and cotton, but, for some reason, cotton holds the most memories for me. Grain harvest was always...

In sports, it is inevitable that a player (or a team) will go into a slump. In every case, the recipe for getting out of that slump and back into high performance is to break down the training routine...

The National Cotton Council works to ensure cotton producers can operate in a regulatory environment based on sound science and common sense — and one that includes the availability of safe and effective crop protection products. Are there chemicals facing scrutiny? The NCC recently submitted comments on the Environmental Protection Agency’s registration review of specific sulfonylurea chemicals in herbicides important to cotton production. Thifensulfuron-methyl, tribenuron-methyl and rimsulfuron are used in pre-plant burndown herbicides, and trifloxysulfuron-sodium is a post-emergent. The NCC urged EPA to consider in its review these chemicals’ weed resistance management benefits. We emphasized producers’ need for multiple herbicides with different modes of action so they can continue rotating or combining MOAs. Late last year, the NCC and producer interest organizations also provided comments to USDA in support of a deregulation decision regarding Dow AgroSciences’ genetically engineered cotton that is resistant to 2,4-D and glufosinate. There are several organophosphate pesticides under EPA review. NCC-submitted comments urged the agency to recognize the benefits of the insecticides dicrotophos (Bidrin) and dimethoate. These provide producers

By Clint Thompson To combat the threat of thrips infestations in cotton, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension cotton entomologist Phillip Roberts encourages Georgia farmers to be proactive with at-plant insecticide applications. Doing so will provide vital protection to cotton plants during...