Category Archives: February
Hessian Fly Article
Tyler Mays, Extension Agent-IPM, Hill and McLennan Counties David R. Drake, Extension Agent-IPM, District 4 – Commerce, TX Email: drdrake@ag.tamu.edu Matt Matocha, Extension Program Specialist- IPM, Southern Blacklands, Thrall, TX, matthew.matocha@ag.tamu.edu Hessian fly are being found in wheat fields across the Texas Blacklands and are a potential production issue this year. The Hessian fly is a small fly that during the larval stage can be a significant pest of wheat and some other small grain crops like barley, triticale, and rye. There are several wild host… Read More →
Canola Forage in the Texas High Plains
Jourdan M. Bell, Carla Naylor, and Juan Piñeiro Canola is largely produced as an oilseed crop, but it is also a high-quality forage (grazing and ensilage), although as with other forages, nutritive value is closely tied to the agronomic management, crop maturity and growing conditions. In the Texas High Plains, corn has traditionally been the silage of choice, but as irrigation capacities decline, livestock producers are evaluating alternative forage options including canola. While there is limited canola planted for oilseed production, in recent years canola silage (canolage) has… Read More →
Freeze Damage and the Texas Wheat Crop
Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu Dr. Fernando Guillen-Portal, State Extension Small Grains Specialist, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, College Station, (979) 845-4826, fernando.guillen@tamu.edu February 26, 2021 The cold temperatures in Texas in February’s cold snap range from as low as -12° F in the Panhandle to mid-single digits as far south as the Austin region. A few locations in Texas set all-time low records (Tyler, TX for one). Lubbock recorded -6°… Read More →
Freeze Injury, Low Temperature Stress and Chill Injury in Corn and Sorghum
Dr. Ronnie Schnell Cropping Systems Specialist – College Station Introduction Recent cold weather has affected newly planted, emerging or emerged corn or sorghum throughout south and central Texas. Corn and sorghum will experience similar types of injury although tolerance to low temperatures does differ between the crops to some degree. Sorghum generally requires warmer soil temperatures. Three types of injury may be observed, depending on stage of growth and temperatures experience above and below ground. This includes imbibition injury, cold stress, and frost/freeze damage…. Read More →
Best Management Practices for Auxin-Tolerant Cotton Technologies (Current 2/22/17)
by Josh McGinty – Extension Agronomist – Corpus Christi, TX: Phone: 361-265-9203, Email: joshua.mcginty@ag.tamu.edu Gaylon Morgan – State Cotton Specialist – College Station, TX Peter Dotray – Extension Weed Specialist – Lubbock, TX In recent news, new auxin herbicides have received Section 3 approval for use in XtendFlex (dicamba-tolerant) and Enlist (2,4-D tolerant) cotton. Currently, three dicamba herbicides (XtendiMax™ with VaporGrip™ Technology, FeXapan™, and Engenia™) and one 2,4-D containing herbicide (Enlist Duo™ with Colex-D™ Technology) have received federal approval. At the time of this writing, XtendiMax with VaporGrip… Read More →
Herbicide Update in Wheat
by Dr. Clark Neely, Small Grains Extension Specialist, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Despite the fact that we are still in mid-winter, late January in southern Texas through early March in the Panhandle is the ideal time for not only topdressing wheat, but also taking care of any persistent weed problems in your wheat fields before the spring green-up. This article will cover some of the new herbicides hitting the market that are labelled for wheat and where they might be most useful. While we did not see… Read More →
Transgenic Insect Traits and Variety Selection in Cotton
by Suhas Vyavhare, Extension Cotton Entomologist, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Variety selection is the most important decision made during the year. Selecting Bt vs non-Bt or the kind of insect trait package is an important consideration in selecting cotton varieties. Bt cotton is genetically altered to produce certain proteins which are toxic to specific groups of insects. For example, currently available Bt traits in cotton specifically target worm pests such as cotton bollworm, tobacco budworm, and beet armyworm. On the other hand, conventional, or non-Bt cotton does… Read More →
Rust Update in Texas Wheat
by Dr. Clark Neely, Statewide Small Grains and Oilseed Extension Specialist Weather conditions have been drier this fall and winter than the previous two years, which is having a positive impact on wheat rust presence across the state. This time last year, producers were dealing with widespread reports of stripe rust in their wheat fields due to wet conditions (Fig. 1). This year, stripe rust has been reported in a few locations throughout Central and South Texas, however, pressure appears lighter overall and observed mainly in highly susceptible… Read More →
What to do with Soil Profile N—Should I Fully Credit it to Crop Requirement?
by Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, Lubbock, (806) 723-8432, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu Jake Mowrer, Extension Soil Fertility & Water Specialist, College Station, (979) 845-5366, jake.mowrer@tamu.edu Sub-soil Nitrate in Texas Soils In the past 20 years Texas A&M AgriLife staff across Texas have become increasingly aware of the presence and amount of sub-soil nitrate nitrogen (N) in Texas soils. Below the standard recommended soil sampling depth of 0-6”, deeper soil sampling, usually 24” and sometimes 36” with subsequent analysis for nitrate-N only—which is the mobile form—has indicated in many cases substantial nitrate-N…. Read More →