Calvin Trostle, Ph.D., Professor & Extension Agronomist, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu

Late-Season Texas Wheat:  Irrigation Timing & Termination

An updated document of the same title has been posted to http://lubbock.tamu.edu/wheat.  Late and end-of-season decisions for how much irrigation water to apply (if available) and stage of growth are discussed.  Crop yield potential and the cost of further irrigation is considered. Remaining available soil moisture is a significant factor.

In general, a simple summary for irrigation termination in wheat or another small grain in Texas is:

• Milk stage and adequate soil moisture—further irrigation has limited potential benefit.
• Milk stage and poor soil moisture—continue with limited irrigation.
• Soft dough stage, regardless of soil moisture status—further irrigation has minimal potential benefit.  The economic return for added irrigation is minimal and the water can be saved for the next crop.

Please refer to the master document for further discussion.