Harvest Weed Seed Control Tactics Can Aid Herbicide Programs in Managing Italian Ryegrass in Texas wheat

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  Aniruddha Maity1, Blake Young1, David Drake2, and Muthukumar Bagavathiannan1 1Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843 2Integrated Pest Management Extension Agent, Commerce, TX   Italian ryegrass has been a persistent problem in wheat production in the Texas Blacklands. Great adaptability, profuse tillering, and high seed production make this a troublesome weed. Rapid development and spread of resistance to some of the important herbicides warrants the development of additional interventions for its control. As this species reproduces by seed, a seedbank in… Read More →

Later Winter Oats to Bridge Forage Shortfall

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In much of the Texas High Plains wheat pasture conditions are poor.  There is likely a substantial shortfall in the grazing and hay from wheat.  In previous years, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension has suggested farmers consider planting medium to long maturity oats, particularly for hay, to recapture needed forage for livestock.   At some point in the Texas High Plains, there is substantial potential that any late-planted winter wheat will not receive the needed hours/days of cold weather, the chilling requirement, to ensure the transition from vegetative to… Read More →

Fall Concerns about Prussic Acid & Nitrate in Sorghums

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Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu When our next Row Crops Newsletter is published in early November, a large portion of Texas will have seen heavy frost and a freeze on some sorghums.  So, this is good time to update Texas on prussic acid (a plant form of cyanide) and nitrates in sorghums.  These include sorghum/sudans (haygrazers), forage sorghums, and also grain sorghum where cattle will graze after harvest or on drought-failed grain sorghum (Fig. 1).  Sorghum after… Read More →

Cotton foliar symptoms in western Texas driven by weather, not disease

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Reagan Noland, Assistant Professor and Extension Agronomist Tom Isakeit, Professor and Extension Plant Pathologist   Cotton across much of western Texas has recently displayed varying levels of premature defoliation and foliar discoloration following a drastic shift from hot and dry to abnormally cold and wet conditions in early September. The stark visual symptoms raised many questions and concerns regarding potential impacts to yield and quality, whether the situation could have been prevented, and whether intervention would have yielded any benefit. Producers and industry professionals have suspected foliar disease… Read More →

Guar & Crop Insurance:  USDA-RMA Feasibility Study

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Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu September 9, 2020 Guar is arguably the most heat-tolerant, drought-tolerant summer annual row crop grown in Texas.  Current production regions are the South Plains and the northern Rolling Plains.  For information on guar production resources for these drier regions of Texas view https://lubbock.tamu.edu/programs/crops/other-field-crops/guar/   In Fall 2018 USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) initiated a review of ~100 minor fruit, vegetable, and other crops for possible study for federal program crop insurance.  AgriLife… Read More →

Crop Progress Report

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USDA Crop progress report for peanuts in the US showed an improvement of 3 points from last week between Excellent and Good.  Excellent and good conditions improved from 72% to 75% (Graph 1).  This condition is also 6 points better that last year at this time of the season.  On the other hand, Texas crop report is 6 points below the US average (69%), mostly due to the dry and hot weather during this summer.  Crop condition in Texas at this time of the year is below 2019… Read More →

TEXAS ROLLING PLAINS PICKS LIST FOR 2020-2021

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Emi Kimura, Assistant Professor and Extension Agronomist Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Vernon, TX Emi.kimura@ag.tamu.edu   2019-2020 Cropping Season in Review Texas Rolling Plains wheat season started with hot and dry conditions in the fall 2019.  Soil temperature was not optimum for planting wheat until the first week of October.  Dry months continued to the end of December, which reduced winter forage productivity throughout the Texas Rolling Plains.  Dryland wheat gradually improved with the spring precipitation during January to March.  Late-freezes in mid-April resulted in the freeze injury… Read More →

Grain Variety Picks for Texas High Plains, 2020-2021 & Texas High Plains Wheat Production Summary, 2019-2020

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Jourdan M. Bell, Assistant Professor and Agronomist, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and Research, Amarillo, (806) 677-5600, jourdan.bell@ag.tamu.edu 2019-2020 Cropping Season in Review Variable rainfall in August and September resulted in varying planting conditions across the Texas High Plains. Some fields were planted with replenished soil moisture while other fields were dry sowed. October 2019 rains delivered valuable moisture for the region’s wheat crop. There was minimal winter precipitation through the central and northern Panhandle resulting in another dry winter. A prolonged winter drought resulted in many producers pulling… Read More →

Remaining Crop Stubble after Harvest—Your Options and a Myth

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Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu August 13, 2020 Producers across Texas know that field crop stubble on fields offers potential benefits.  There is erosion control, the reduction of raindrop impact (protection of the soil surface), potential protection to a subsequent crop that is fragile in the seedling stage (e.g., cotton), etc.  USDA-NRCS often uses a rating scale for fields with stubble to estimate the erodibility.  Other programs through FSA may require at least 30% of the soil… Read More →

When it comes to cover crops in Texas:  Timing is key.

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Jake Mowrer, PhD Cover cropping has many benefits in dryland farming in eastern and central Texas.  Weed suppression, crop diversity, soil organic matter buildup, and more.  Many Texas farmers have an interest in getting into or improving their cover crop inclusive systems.  But cover cropping is not a simple thing.  It takes some time and patience to get it right here.  AgriLife Extension recommends that farmers start experimenting on a small portion of the farm, and expand to more acreage as specific practices show success. This article covers… Read More →