It takes a lot of soybeans to make enough oil to produce 18 million gallons of biodiesel. Delta BioFuels, a Mississippi company, is using soybean oil as the main ingredient for the process. And, it's going to take plenty more, as the Natchez company ramps up production to 80-100 million gallons of biodiesel by the end of 2007.
To read more, click here.
This week’s drought monitor map – released today by the Joint Agricultural Weather Facility – shows not appreciable effect from rains brought last weekend by tropical depression Barry.
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Parts of the Southeast that were in the extreme range last week remain largely unaffected. And the extreme zone has actually widened slightly in the Midsouth, mainly in central Mississippi.
An area in central Alabama has slipped into the exceptional range.
The map is based on data from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. The cutoff for the data was 8 a.m. Tuesday.
We have included this week’s map and maps for the 2 previous weeks in a stacked grouping. Click here to see a enlarged view.
Georgia: River levels in May some of the lowest on record 6/06
Alabama Economist: Some Drought Relief Soon? 6/06
Georgia Cotton Newsletter, 6-4, Good rains from Barry in east Ga.; how much it will change prevented planting unknown; glyph-resistant Palmer amaranth map update; irrigation management in drought.|
Points for Justification for Prevented Planting Decisions on Cotton, 5-1. S. Brown.|
Documentation Issues For Prevented Planting, June 1. D. Shurley, N. Smith.|
Clarification on 72 hour Notice for Prevented Planting, D. Shurley, N. Smith.|
Drought is playing havoc with row crop production in the Southeast, especially in dryland fields, but the weather is producing a bumper crop of fresh-market corn in places. Howard Small Jr., a crop consultant in Colquitt, Ga., said producers in his area are packing over 700 crates of sweet corn per acre in some locations.
“Years ago, 300 crates was a good yield in this area, then it edged up to 400 to 450,” said Small. “But this year, I don’t know of anyone at less than 500.”
Sweet corn yields tend to be better in drought years in that part of south Georgia and northern Florida, Small added, if growers start with good stands and have ample water for irrigation.
“There’s no disease, and you don’t get the kinds of rain that wash out fertilizer,” he said. “There’s some good tasting corn out there this season.”
Asian soybean rust (ASR) was confirmed today on kudzu in Louisiana’s St. Mary Parish. This is the second parish in south Louisiana where ASR has been found in 2007.
The following notation appeared on USDA’s soybean rust web site:
“This kudzu was being observed very carefully due to its proximity to a soybean field. The distance is only 30 feet. Continued scatterd showers have occurred lately. Although no other ASR has been found in Louisiana, conditions are favorable.”
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Jeremy Greene, South Carolina Extension Cotton Specialist, pointed out this morning that the approval for "natural" refuge for Bollgard II cotton has implications for anyone who's been delayed with cotton planting.
"The approval for natural refuge is effectively immediately, so growers who have not planted or may be replanting may choose to plant Bollgard II without a structured cotton refuge," Greene said in a memo. "The other potential ramification...would be that, where they currently have the 5% unsprayed or embedded option for their Bollgard II, they are no longer required to manage it as refuge. This not-Bt cotton may now be managed (treated) as the growers see fit.
"Please note that the natural refuge applies ONLY to Bollgard II and that planting Bollgard still requires a 20% sprayed, 5% embedded or 5% unsprayed non-Bt cotton refuge to be planted."
As Greene noted, there are additional regional restrictions, mainly relating to areas in Texas.
For the complete Monsanto announcement with regional restrictions, click here.
After posting the report from the Field Crop Newsletter about rust being found near Lorman, I received a call from Ernie Flint, Area Extension Agronomist, telling me that he had misunderstood an initial report and that rust, in fact, had not been found in Mississippi as the newsletter stated.
Samples were taken by a veteran plant pathologist who has identified soybean rust in the past. He thought it was rust but, in fact, the DNA tests were negative. They will be rechecking the site.
I apologize for any confusion.
Owen
Asian soybean rust (ASR) has been confirmed in kudzu under a bridge north of Dayton in Liberty County, Texas, which is between Houston and Beaumont. Rust was found in this location last fall, and the kudzu had died back over the winter, according to a posting on USDA’s soybean rust web site late Saturday night.
The incidence of rust was ranked as low.
The Dayton area was the first place where soybean rust was found in Texas - in November 2005.
The initial find in the Dayton area in 2006 was reported on August 20, 2006.
For our regular visitors who don't often stray onto our web site, the following is a list of Southern Extension bulletins and advisories that were posted on our site when we closed out the week. There may be items of interest:
ALABAMA:
Southeast Alabama Cotton Report, 5-31. W. Birdsong. Still potential for a normal crop if it rains soon._
ARKANSAS:
Arkansas Cotton, 5-31, Many different stresses appear to be affecting the crop depending on location; cotton looks "thrippy"; upcoming IPM meetings._
Soybean Notes, 5-30, Soil moisture decreasing; early beans being irrigated; statewide market average climbed 21 cents from Tuesday through Friday last week._
FLORIDA:
Peanut Herbicides: Quick Reference Guide, 2007. E. Jowers. Ratings on weeds, application tips and recommendations._
GEORGIA:
Georgia Cotton Newsletter, 5-30, How Late is Too Late to Pursue a Crop?_
Georgia Cotton Marketing News, 5-25. D. Shurley. Market attempts a comeback._
LOUISIANA:
Crawfish White Spot Syndrome Virus Update, 6-1, M. Shirley, SW Regional Aquaculture Specialist, Latest developments regarding WSSV. Management Practices and WSSV Fact Sheet._
Vermilion (Parish) Rice News, 5-27, Some younger rice at or near green ring; herbicide application; "mystery malady"; decisions about treating brown leaf spot; rice fungicide timing._
Louisiana Cotton Insect Report, 5-31, Pre-Bloom Treatment for Plant Bugs with Neonicotinoids._
Rice Field Notes, 5-29, J. Saichuk, Fungicide as insurance against 2nd crop Narrow Brown Leaf Spot disaster; identifying the rice leaf miner._
A.M.S. Ag Report (E. Central La.): , 5-27. Some aphid treatments starting; hard-to-control pigweed; reports of heavy thrips pressure on soybeans._
Louisiana Cotton Bulletin, 5-25. Thrips or symptoms of disease, slow growth?; mites building, picking the right material._
Mississippi Farm Bureau Region 1 Report, 6-4, MFBF farm bill committee convenes to discuss policy issues._
Rice Report, 6-1, N. Beuhring, Rice water weevil pressure building over past week; post-flood grass control treatments._
Mississippi Farm Bureau National News Update, 5-31, Ag disaster assistance spending measure passed the House and the Senate._
Mississippi Crop Situation, 5-30, Insect gallery update; mite treatments and thrips pressure continue; scout schools; soybean verification and rust monitoring updates; trap counts._
Field Notes (Central Miss.), 5-28. Mild temperatures helping corn._
NORTH CAROLINA:
North Carolina Pest News, 6-1, Thrip situation not likely to improve much until we get significant rainfall._
SOUTH CAROLINA:
Cotton Insect Newsletter, 5-31, J. Greene, DRY!!! I am amazed at how well some of our cotton is doing under the dry conditions. Reports on Thrips, False Cinch Bugs, Burrower Bugs with photos._
TENNESSEE:
Tennessee Market Highlights, 6-1, E. Rawls and D. Gerloff._
IPM Newsletter, 6-1, Thrips pressure beginning to ease up; giant ragweed once again showing up; southwestern corn borer will pose a threat to non-Bt corn in some areas; grain bags as storage for corn._
TEXAS:
Texas Crop & Weather Report, 5-31, Livestock and crop conditions are improving in many regions following a series of slow-moving weather systems bringing rain._
VIRGINIA:
Ag Pest Advisory, 5-31, Thrips hit double peak, with second larger than first._
RELATED MATERIAL:
USA Rice Federation Daily, 6-1, Weekly Net Sales Doubled, Exports Decrease; Thai Export and Domestic Prices Increase._
Arkansas Farm Bureau Bi-Weekly Market Briefings, 6-1, Improved export activity stimulating cotton gains; lack of fresh business keeping rice market quiet; soybeans rally near the brink; corn crop off to good start._
Arkansas Farm Bureau Market Report, 6-1, Covers Major Commodities._
Rice Advocate, 6-1, Farm bill debate; Agri-Business Conference in Cuba; very little price movement in the rough rice futures market._
Riceland Daily Market Review, 6-1, Every time the market attempts to go down, new money steps in to get the markets back to the plus side._
Peanut Prices, 6-1, from NASS._
The Japonica Report, 5-31, J. Zwinger. The question really comes down to corn, as this leads all the grain markets._
Jurgens Bauer's Morning Cotton Comments, 6-1, Technically the market shows itself preparing for a challenge to the 5500 level on the continuation charts._
Agricultural Prices, 5-31, from NASS._
Peanut Stocks and Processing, 5-31, from NASS._
Vegetables: Usual Planting and Harvesting Dates, May 2007, from NASS._
Keith Good: GMF Journalism Study Tour, 5-31, “Perspectives From Participants”._
Weather and Crop Bulletin, 5-30, from NASS._
Mississippi Farm Bureau Market Summary, 5-25. J. Quinn, Signs that there is still a pulse in the cotton market so the rally may not be far off._
Crop Progress, 5-29, from NASS._
Weekly Outlook, 5-29, D. Good, U of Ill., New marketing year highs have been established for soybean prices, but not for corn prices._
Keith Good's Farm Policy News, 5-28. Developments in EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). See also: Keith's blog entry: Small Farms, New EU Member State._
A group of Alabama Extension workers toured the San Joaquin Valley of California in May to learn about irrigation technology used in a region that often gets less than a foot of rainfall a year. With a full-fledged drought back home in the Southeast, the agents absorbed all they could about how Californians water their crops. A couple of Extension workers who went on the trip said that it was an eye-opening experience.
We've posted a report on our web site. Click here to read more.
We received a Georgia drought update today from David Emory Stooksbury, Georgia state climatologist and a professor in the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Here's how it begins:
An extremely dry May is setting low rainfall records across Georgia. May is traditionally one of the drier months, with rainfall normally averaging 3 to 4 inches across the state. No rain was recorded in May in many places from near Macon to south of Albany.
For his complete report today, click here.
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FIRST BOX OF TOMATOES: Chase (L) and Logan(R) Ferrell, grandsons of Billy Joe and Yvonne Ferrell of the Johnsville community, show off Bradley County’s first box of vine-ripened tomatoes. Billy Joe and Yvonne, tomato farmers since 1961, have about 30 acres of mainly Amelia variety tomatoes. John Gavin, county extension staff chair, says the Ferrells reported the first box on May 26.He estimates the county’s tomato crop will be 40% short because of the mid-April freeze, but there will still be enough for Warren’s Pink Tomato Festival June 8-9. (Photo by John Gavin, University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service)
Thrips continue to be the main pest across much of the area we cover with our Midsouth and Southeast cotton reports. The latest word comes from Louisiana, which is having the highest populations seen in the 4 years Extension workers have been tracking aphid numbers. They've also seen a double peak, with the second peak higher than the first.
Here are 2 links, one to an Extension report by Ames Herbert and the other to a report by Johnny Parker, agronomist with Commonwealth Gin in Windsor, Virginia:
Monsanto, Delta and Pine Land and the U.S. Department of Justice announced today that agreements had been reached that will allow Monsanto to acquire the Scott, Mississippi, cotton seed company.
The announcement listed a number of points, including that Monsanto would have to sell Stoneville Pedigree Seed Co.
Almost immediately, Bayer CropScience announced that it had agreed to acquire U.S. cotton seed company Stoneville for $310 million.
At nearly the same time, Americot announced that it had agreed to acquire the NexGen Cotton Seed Brand from DPL.
Related items:
North Carolina Farm Bureau last week set up an employment hotline, (919) 571-5197, and initiated a state-wide media campaign in an effort to attract domestic workers to apply for available farm jobs.
North Carolina needs at least 100,000 farm workers to keep their diverse agricultural industry from taking a $260 million hit, according to a press release today. After the week-long blitz, a total of 2 callers had expressed an interest in seeking farm jobs, not nearly enough to tend the fields, it was reported.
The response is a dire signal about labor availability and the viability of the state's ag industry, said.Larry Wooten, President of the North Carolina Farm Bureau, who is advocating immigration reform that includes a guest worker program.
Click here to read more.
Drought continues to widen and deepen in the South.
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The current drought monitor map, based on NOAA data and presentations released by the Joint Agricultural Weather Facility, rates much of Alabama and Georgia as extreme and the severe range has also expanded in both central Mississippi and south-central Tennessee.
We saved last week’s Weather Bank drought monitor map for comparison to this week’s map, which was released this morning. Click here to compare the 2 maps.
The range included in the stage 1 drought classification has also expanded over a wider area of South Carolina and into crop production areas in south-central Kentucky and the southern half of North Carolina.Randy Woodard with Cache River Valley Seed in Cash, Arkansas, sent us the following note this morning:There have been some concerns about wheat quality and supply. Delta Farm Press had an article in regard to wheat seed. Early indications are there will be plenty of wheat seed and the quality is good. We have purchased some option acres that we always have. Supply should not be a problem. We will have a good supply of Agripro, Coker and Dixie brand wheat available for this fall planting.
Texas researchers are taking a second look at the hybrid grain, triticale. It, along with Canola, were highlighted at a recent field day. Triticale is seen as a logical dry-weather alternative to corn in dairy production. Canola, which also does well in drier climates, is a potential biodiesel crop.
Click here for a full report.
Cercospora - a.k.a. narrow brown leaf spot - has been found in 3 Acadia Parish (Louisiana) fields, according to Eddie Eskew, Extension agent in neighboring Jeff Davis Parish.
"Ronnie Levy (Extension agent in Acadia Parish) let us know today that cercospora had been confirmed with samples that were examined by Don Groth (plant pathologist at LSU's Rice Research Station in Crowley)," Eskew said. "He cultured them out and made a positive ID. So, this looks like it may be another problem year for cercospera in some areas."
Frequent showers in south Louisiana this month are stirring concerns about rice disease, he said.
In his parish, rice fungicide applications started 7 to 10 days ago, Eskew added. Treatments were made when the panicle was 2 to 4 inches long inside the boot. "That was the timing indicated by research for cercospora control," he said. "Growers were hurt pretty badly in this area last year, and they wanted to make cercospera and sheath blight treatments a little early. Normally, fungicides don't start until heading, but this earlier approach is what it takes with cercospora."
Click here to download a white paper on cercospera that was prepared by Groth and fellow pathologist Clayton Hollier.
The University of Georgia Peanut Team has just released a special white paper focusing on this spring's drought and delayed planting season. Here's a link to the report in PDF format:
Peanut Pointers: Special Drought Edition
The report covers a full range of topics, including:
Howard Cormier, Extension Agent in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, reports that Peruvian watergrass is back. USDA has this species on its list of Invasive and Noxious Weeds.
It disappeared from canals after Hurricane Rita's 2005 storm surge, but it is now being found in the Forked Island area.
Click here for more information about the weed and a line drawing.
This year's hard winter may work against soybean aphid pressure, according to Wayne Bailey, a Missouri Extension entomologist. Writing in this week's Integrated Pest and Crop Management Newsletter. Here is Brown's report:
Surveys conducted this past fall by researchers at the University of Illinois and Purdue University found very high numbers of soybean aphid eggs on Buckthorn in several states. They predicted the possibility of high spring and summer populations of aphids if these eggs successfully survived the winter.
In a survey 2 weeks ago, they found egg mortality was very high due to winter weather conditions. Although some areas of the Midwest may still experience damaging soybean aphid populations, the threat of problems from this pest are reduced for the 2007 season.
Problems in Missouri could still occur during June and July if high numbers of aphids migrate into the state from more northern states with soybean aphid infestations. We have two aphid suction traps operating in Missouri (Columbia, Portageville) to assist in the detection of migrating aphids.
The following is an excerpt from a University of Georgia article we received yesterday. Click here to read the full report.
Extreme drought now covers most agricultural areas, delaying peanut and cotton planting and raising concerns for the crops this year.
Dust blows thick across dry Georgia fields, where 66 percent of the soil is reported as very short in moisture, the worst category. Only 7 percent is normally ranked very short at this time of year. In central and south Georgia, where most peanuts and cotton are planted, 70 percent to 90 percent is very short. "
The drought is the worst for this time of year that anyone can ever remember," said John Beasley, a peanut agronomist with the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension."We've had a dry April and May before, but never preceded by ... well below normal rainfall from November to March."
Georgia farmers usually start and finish planting peanuts in May. Earlier this spring, Georgia agricultural officials estimated farmers would plant 500,000 acres.
But so far, only 33 percent of that has been planted, according to a Georgia Agricultural Statistics Service survey of county extension agents. Planting is typically more than half over by this time.
In a letter to growers yesterday, Monsanto announced that it is extending its 2007 crop-loss program deadline for cotton acres lost due to drought to August 10. The letter was signed by Ernesto Fajardo, Monsanto's Vice President, U.S. Crop Production.
The change affects growers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
NOAA updated its drought monitor map today. It's not a pretty picture across a wide swath of the Southeast and Midsouth.
A team of researchers at North Carolina State University and the University of Georgia have concluded that on May 23 - yesterday - the majority of the world's people now reside in cities, not the countryside.
This is the first time in human history that more people lived in towns and cities than in the country. Here's an excerpt from an NCSU report today:
Working with United Nations estimates that predict the world will be 51.3 percent urban by 2010, the researchers projected the May 23, 2007, transition day based on the average daily rural and urban population increases from 2005 to 2010. On that day, a predicted global urban population of 3,303,992,253 will exceed that of 3,303,866,404 rural people.
Click here to read more.
High points from last night's AgFax: Southern Grain:
Gordon Cougar, a friend in Stillwater, Oklahoma, sent us the following report this morning. Thanks, Gordon!
My brother sent me this picture of our wheat today. You can see some of the damage from red leaf rust if you look closely. That is the best looking cotton-stalk wheat I have ever seen. I am not familiar with the variety, so I can't guess at the yield. But my pessimistic brother and the farmer think it is pretty good.
Bruce Shultz, an LSU AgCenter communications specialist, has created a web log that chronicles the growth and development of a seed production field on the LSU AgCenter’s Rice Research Station at
The web log can be accessed at:
http://lsuagcenterrice.blogspot.com
In addition, there is a webcam on this field that can be accessed at: www.lsuagcenter.com/ricecam
For additional information, contact Steve Linscombe at slinscombe@agcenter.lsu.edu or Bruce Schultz at bschultz@agcenter.lsu.edu
Source: Memo from Steve Linscombe
During the main part of the summer, the Tribbett community in Washington County, Mississippi, has been a bit like the Sahara Desert, according to Ronnie Bibb with Jimmy Sanders Seed Co., in nearby Hollandale.
"Growers at Tribbett are already in better shape in 2007 than they were last year," Bibb said, half-jokingly. "In 2006, the last day they got rain in Tribbett was on May 6. That was it until just about the time they started picking cotton. This year, it rained on May 13. I hope we get more rain there, but at least we know it rained a week later this season."
One grower received 2.6 inches of rain at Tribbett a month ago. That was more rain, said Bibb, than the farmer received during the previous 2 summers combined. In 2005 and 2006, he said, the total accumulation during the summer months was only 1.8 inches.
In terms of Asian soybean rust development, Florida and Louisiana might as well be on 2 different continents.
One state - Louisiana - continues to receive rain. More fell across a wide part of the state yesterday and last night.
The other state - Florida - continues to suffer under a drought that actually started in 2006. Forest fires that began in south Georgia have since spread into northern Florida, forcing the state to temporarily close at least 2 interstates due to poor visibility caused by smoke.
These opposite weather conditions are giving rust plenty of running room into the central part of the continent but, so far, denying it entry into the Southeast and up the Atlantic Coast.
Rust was discovered on May 8 in Iberia Parish in south Louisiana, 53 days ahead of the first sighting in the state in 2006. Several factors now favor additional movement from that point:
One of the biggest swings away from cotton to corn in the South this year is in
From USDA's Agriculture Research Service:
By Alfredo Flores
May 11, 2007
An unusually durable fungus that was first spotted on tiny insects feeding on eggplants in Texas may become a new biological control for the widespread and costly agricultural pests known as whiteflies.
The fungus was first isolated by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist Enrique Cabanillas, working with entomologist Walker Jones at the ARS Beneficial Insects Research Unit, Weslaco, Texas.
The silverleaf whitefly, Bemisia argentifolii (previously known as B. tabaci biotype B), may be small in stature, but it can be deadly as a pest—sucking and feeding on the juices of a myriad of host plants. Heavy feeding can give plants under attack a yellow, mottled look and eventually kill them. Whiteflies cause major crop losses, both directly by feeding and indirectly by transmitting plant viruses.
Pesticides have been ineffective for controlling whiteflies because of a built-in natural resistance, the need for repeated applications and the potential hazard some insecticides may pose to the environment, animal life or humans.
Isolated by Cabanillas in 2001, the new fungal species has been named Isaria propawskii. In the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, it has been shown to kill both larval and adult stages of silverleaf whitefly. In fact, since 2001, it has periodically wiped out whiteflies at the ARS insect-rearing facilities in Weslaco.
Notable aspects of I. propawskii include its natural establishment in a semiarid region where temperatures can reach 107 degrees Fahrenheit—and its continuing persistence, even in the absence of insect hosts. A high spore production in common culture media makes this fungus comparatively easy to grow in vitro, in the laboratory.
These features, plus its high pathogenic potential against a second major insect pest—the glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (previously known as H. coagulata)—make the I. propawskii fungus a promising candidate for practical biological control of two major U.S. farm pests.
Asian soybean rust was confirmed in south Louisiana this week. Clayton Hollier, LSU Extension plant pathologist, just sent an advisory.
This is 53 days earlier than the first confirmation in the state last year.
Our web master is posting the full advisory. She said this will be the link:
http://agfax.com/news/2007/05/lasoyrustfirst.htm
For additional information on Ascian soybean rust throughout the season, subscribe to our free Southern grain report.
For those of you who remember - and there should be plenty of us - John Bradley directed the Milan (Tennessee) Field Day after Tom McCutcheon started it in the 1970s. John, a young county agent in West Tennessee at the time, filled a big pair of shoes when he took over as Milan's superintendent in the late 1970s after McCutcheon's death.
Bradley jumped into the job and quickly built on McCutchen's legacy, expanding both the scope of the station's research and its outreach through the field day.
The field day - which came to be known as the "Milan No-till Field Day" - drew visitors from most states and several foreign countries. The field day helped introduce no-till cropping to tens of thousands of Southern farmers and demonstrated that, among other things, cotton could be grown without tillage.
It wasn't just a field day. John turned it into a bonafide tourism destination. The "Milan No-Till" name was attached to all sorts of events. We seem to remember beauty pageants, runs, car shows, concerts, golf tournaments.
The idea was to have as many events tied to the field day as possible so that a farmer would find more than one reason to drive to Milan for the day and maybe even spend the night. At its height in the late 1990s, upwards of 6,000 people showed up at the station for the field day every year, and a fleet of school busses shuttled them from point to point.
Thanks, in part, to those field days there is now a generation of Southern farmers who've never grown crops any other way.
John never quite got out of the field day business. But after leaving UT, he organized small company events while working as an agronomist for Monsanto and, later, Beltwide Cotton Genetics.
Now, though, John is back in the public field day business after several years in ag industry. Last year, he was named director of research at Agricenter International in Memphis. One of his first goals was to build up Agricenter's AgTechnology Field Day.
This year, the event will be held on July 19 at the center. The schedule isn't completed yet, but you can click here for initial details.
John Bradley is once again in his element, with a well-situated venue where he can put more than 2 decades of experience into building another world-class field day. He's come at a good time to craft a field day that stands out and draws a crowd.
Field days still exist, but not to the extent they did 15 years ago. Fewer farmers mean lower attendance. For several years, the newer herbicide technologies reduced the interest in viewing weed control plots. And, let's face it, anyone who hasn't latched onto conservation tillage by now will probably never show up for a field day just to learn about it.
But, there's still plenty to learn about agriculture.
Herbicide resistance, if nothing else, will renew everyone's curiosity about how one herbicide or tankmix compares to standard treatments and the ever-popular untreated check. Precision ag technology opens up whole new areas of learning and demonstration. And Southern growers are making a mammoth commitment to corn, and field days will be a good place to learn more about the crop.
And now, John Bradley is ready. He has a well-earned reputation for thinking outside the box and a native instinct for understanding what farmers want to see, hear and know.
John says he's excited about the field day and assures all of us that "it will be worth your time."
If experience is any guide, it will be.
Johnny Parker, Agronomist for Commonwealth Gin in Windsor, Virginia, posted the following report Wednesday on the gin's web site:
This last cool spell was relatively mild, although it lasted a long time. The wind was unusual for this time of year and actually made it feel colder that it was. Now that warm weather has returned, cotton farmers will be able to finish planting over the next week or so.
Typically, we like to finish planting the cotton by the middle of May, which will be next week. But there are a number of varieties available now that do quite well planted even after May 15th. The predominant variety that fits the bill for later planting dates is Delta Pine 444, although Stoneville 4575 is another very early maturing variety.
Be sure and finish up the full season varieties now. These would be varieties such as 5599, 989, and 515. Also, try to get the medium varieties finished this week, such as 449, 958, 455, and 445. We have a good week left to finish the medium early varieties. Phytogen 370 is new to a lot of folks this year and it should do well planted right on until May 15th along with 310, 434, and 432.
Commonwealth Gin provides advice on production and marketing of cotton. Information contained herein is from sources believed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed as to accuracy or completeness. No responsibility is assumed with respect to any statement, nor with respect to any expression of opinion herein contained. All views are the opinions of the author and no statement should be construed as an offer to buy or sell a commodity. This publication is for information purposes only.
Peanut planting is underway in parts of south Georgia and north
Howard Small Jr., a Colquitt,
“We started 3 weeks ago, and close to half of my peanuts are planted now," Small said. "Our peanuts that are up look good, and there aren’t a lot of weeds or grass. It’s been dry and hot. We’re irrigating before we plant and after we plant. Those planted 3 weeks ago came up in 5 to 7 days."
Some soil temperatures have been at 90 during the afternoon, Small said. On Monday morning at 8 a.m., the soil temperature was 68 at 4 inches, he said.
"We’ve had no measurable rain right here for at least 3 weeks," Small added. "The area is 9 to 10 inches down for the year to date, and
Posted on our Sunbelt Agriculture News page today:
USDA: Planting Wheat Blends Means Higher Yields 5/09
Kentucky: armyworms continue to cause concerns 5/08
Georgia: Glyphosate-Resistant Palmer amaranth more widespread than initially thought 5/08
Kentucky: Crisis Exemption for Using Wheat as a Forage Crop 5/08
Johanns Announces Specialty Crops Farm Bill Proposals 5/08
Soy Outlook: Down 5-7c On Crop Progress, Corn Spillover 09:01 5/08
Corn Outlook: Down 10-12c On Strong Planting Progress 09:18 5/08
Wheat Outlook: 8-10c Down On Overnight, Corn Pressure 09:06 5/08
Cash Grain Outlook: Mixed Basis, As Futures Fall 10:07 5/08
Livestock Outlook: Cattle Mostly Firm, Hogs Called Mixed 09:15 5/08
Keith Edmisten, North Carolina Extension Cotton Specialist, said the immediate cotton planting forecast for his state is somewhat marginal for today (Monday, May 7), but begins to look a bit better after that.
"Yes, if I have a lot of cotton to plant, I would keep going and make sure the seed I am using has good cool germination (hopefully above 65-70%)," Edmisten said in his cotton planting forecast report this morning. "If I could finish planting within a relatively short period I would consider resuming planting on Tuesday or Wednesday."
To see his complete forecast (PDF), including the DD60 accumulation table, click here.
Free Southern soybean and grain reports. CLICK HERE.
Items posted on our Sunbelt Ag News section today:
Louisiana: Cautionary Notes On Thrips Treatment on Seedling Cotton 5/07
Virginia: Cotton planting conditions improving 5/07
California: Farmers finish planting cotton on schedule 5/07
Plant Pathologists Fighting Global Threat to Wheat Supply 5/07
Researchers Showcase Biotech at International Event 5/07
North Carolina: armyworms turning up in wheat 5/06
Mississippi 2006 forestry decline may repeat
Asian rice: slower export demand adds downward pressure to Thai rice prices STAT 5/06
Several of our contacts this week shared observations about Easter freeze damage to wheat, soybean and corn crops. Due to space limitations with our fax edition, we could not pack the into this week's AgFax: Southern Grain. Here are some of their comments:
Wayne Dulaney, Dulaney Seed Co., Clarksdale, Miss.: "Heavier ground took the freeze much better than the lighter ground because it held more heat. One farmer – who cultivates after nitrogen to build a good bed – covered a lot of acres the day before the freeze, and he opened the soil and let the heat escape. It was pretty dramatic. You could tell to the row where they stopped cultivating. Corn on the cultivated ground was killed cold-stone graveyard dead."
Wendell Minson, Bootheel Crop Consultants, Dexter, Mo.: "There were strange cases where wheat on the north side of the field – where you would have expected it to be wiped out – seems to have been only slightly injured. But on the south side down the hill, the wheat was destroyed. It was like the cold air went over the hill and settled on that south end."
Bill Rushing, Research and Production Manager, Delta King Seed, McCrory, Ark.: "
David Hydrick: "On Easter weekend, the temperature dropped to 23 both Saturday and Sunday nights. Some people said corn would be fine, but the beds froze all the way through. Where corn was on flat ground, the freeze didn’t kill the growing point. In some fields, the only corn that wasn't killed was at the end of the field on the turnrow."
Free Southern soybean and grain reports. CLICK HERE.
Alabama started the process followed by Mississippi, and now Arkansas will follow with testing of Chinese catfish for FDA-banned antiobiotics, according to a story in the May 4 issue of The Clarion-Ledger newspaper Jackson, Mississippi.
Johnny Parker, agronomist with Commonwealth Gin in Windsor, Virginia, posted the following on the gin's web site this morning:
Weekend conditions will remain cool with periods of clouds and sun with some rainfall possible. After a tremendous start on cotton planting, it looks like we are getting a little bit of a break this weekend before very warm and sunny weather return next week. By Tuesday, temperatures are expected to return to the 80’s with warm nights also expected. This will favor continued good performance for the early development of cotton.
This cooler weather we are getting right now should not harm any of the cotton that was planted in warm weather and has already sprouted or emerged; however I would expect that the planting conditions over the weekend with the cold night temperatures would only be marginal at best and in my opinion I would call the next several days poor for planting cotton. It would be better to wait until the first of the week to resume cotton planting. The top medium and early maturing varieties will perform well planted right on through the middle of May and there are 2 or 3 varieties that can be planted successfully after mid-May. If you had planted deep prior to the rain, be prepared to run the pecking rotary hoes early next week.
Commonwealth Gin provides advice on production and marketing of cotton. Information contained herein is from sources believed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed as to accuracy or completeness. No responsibility is assumed with respect to any statement, nor with respect to any expression of opinion herein contained. All views are the opinions of the author and no statement should be construed as an offer to buy or sell a commodity. This publication is for information purposes only.
Ames Herbert, Virginia Extension Entomologist, included the following note in last nights Virginia AG Pest Advisory:
"We caught an average of just over 50 adult thrips per sticky card this week, which is considerably higher than this time last year, or the year before. Adult thrips are crawling all over volunteer peanut plants. These early high numbers are most likely the result of the unusually warm May temperatures. How will the flight develop...we will keep you posted."
Texas A&M scientists are delving into wild cotton seed collections from the U.S., Russia and France, looking for new traits that might widen the crop's gene pool.
Click here for a report.
Bill Bryson, one of my favorite authors, is ready to clean up the English countryside, which seems odd on the face of it, since Bryson was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa.
"I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to."
So begins his loving, funny travelogue of America, The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America, which recounts a trip he made through the country after years living and working in England as a journalist.
Bryson, 55, has lived in England off and on since 1973, and I read a report today that he had just been named head of "the quintessentially English Campaign to Protect Rural England."
According to the account by Jeremy Lovell of Reuters, Bryson said that being a foreigner would be an asset, not an impediment.
"I grew up in an industrial farming state. If you suggested to people they should go out for a walk they would think you were mad," he said in the report. "Here, the countryside is so beautiful but you are in danger of taking it for granted."
Lovell explained that the CPRE -- formerly the Council for the Protection of Rural England -- "describes itself as a charity promoting the beauty, tranquility and diversity of the countryside with 60,000 supporters and a branch in every county."
Bryson said the first focus of his presidency would be to fight "the relentless spread of litter across the English countryside."
He's a good man for the job, I suspect. Bryson's gift as a writer has always been to see the beauty in common, small and out-of-the-way places and recognize the magic in what seem to be the most mundane of things.
If you plan to travel to Australia, make it a point to read his In a Sunburned Country
His look at the history of modern science - A Short History of Nearly Everything - delves into the large and small of the universe and leaves you with a deep appreciation of both what we have learned and what we have yet to discover.
The only thing more fun than reading one of Bryson's books is listening to him read it. If you can find a copy of any of his books on tape or as an audio download, take him on a long cross-country trip. He travels well.
For the last couple of years, I've questioned the efficiency and maybe even the propriety of the way the USDA has handled programs that were intended to spread broadband internet access to more rural areas. Too much of the money seemed to be going to either far-flung Indian reservations or suburban areas.
The vast heartland - where farmers and ranchers actually need broadband service - were passed over. Or, USDA made programs so restrictive or complicated that small business people couldn't readily gain the kind of support needed to build viable systems, like wireless networks.
This week, members of a U.S. House committee charged that a 5-year, $1.2 billion program to expand broadband internet services to rural communities has missed many unserved areas while channeling hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidized loans to companies in places where service already exists.
"If you don't fix this, I guarantee you this committee will," House Ag Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson (D-Minn.) told James M. Andrew, administrator of the Rural Utilities Service at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "I don't know why it should be this hard."
Thank you, Congressman Peterson.
The quote from was an article in the Washington Post, which recently has delved into the workings of USDA rural development programs, including the mandate to expand rural internet service.
"In September 2005, USDA's inspector general reported that the broadband program "has not maintained its focus on rural communities" that are without service, according to the Post.
Anybody reading this on a dial-up connection would probably agree.
Click here to read the full story, posted on the Ag Observatory web site.
With record to near-record high temperatures and little to no rain, northwest and south Georgia enter May in extreme drought conditions. Little if any widespread, sustained relief from the drought is anticipated. The long-term outlook is for the drought to continue to intensify.
Click here for more information.
Mississippi State University is evaluating a biological control agent - a fungicide - for controlling reniform nematodes in cotton. This is the first time this particular fungus has been tested in the U.S. Early tests showed positive results.
Click here for a report sent to us by Mississippi State.
The Florida Cooperative Extension Service reported today that rust was found in kudzu last week north of Tampa. Here's the report from the USDA web site:
It is still very dry but we did find rust in a kudzu site in Pasco County, north of Tampa, for the first time in 2007. The site was found positive on April 27; this same site was also positive in 2006. We had some scattered rain last week but the soil is very dry and leaf moisture from dew is still limiting. Forecast is for continuing dry weather. The kudzu is growing rapidly.
The increase of acres going to permanent crops in California has meant a steady decline in cotton acreage. The California Farm Bureau News reports that almond acreage topped 700,000 for the first time. The popularity of almonds encourages California farmers to plant more. A USDA reported on May 1 that planting of new almond orchards slowed slightly last year, after sharp increases the previous two years. California produces about 80 percent of the world's almonds, and demand has been rising steadily. The first estimate of the 2007 almond crop is due to be issued next week.
For those of us who live on the other side of the country, using melted snow as a real source of water might sound strange. But in California, it's serious business when the snow pack is low. And, this year, according to a May 1 advisory from the California Department of Water Resources, the snow level is 71 percent below normal. Communities throughout the state have already begun voluntary rationing.
Mississippi's Department Agriculture and Commerce announced Monday that it had put a “Stop-Sale Order” on some imported Chinese catfish in Mississippi grocery stores. This action was taken in accordance with the Retail Food Sanitation Law due to adulteration from banned antibiotics. Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of ciprofloxacin and enrofloxacin, the department said in a press release..
The antibiotics were in the fluoroquinolones drug family, according to the release. The catfish were being sold in the following grocery stores: Save-ALot in Pontotoc and Houston, Sunflower Food Store in Quitman, and Aultman’s Super Value in Forest.
“Consumers have the right to know if the food they are eating contains illegal drugs. The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce has a 'no-tolerance' policy on banned antibiotics in food items,” Spell said. “Currently, all samples of the foreign catfish tested have shown the presence of a banned substance, and similar laboratory findings have recently been reported in Alabama.”
Spell added: “Our authority is limited to retail grocery stores. We will continue testing for illegal substances and initiate fines for violations that are found. There is the possibility that these same adulterated fish are being offered to customers at hospitals, public schools, nursing homes, and public restaurants.”
Penalties under the Retail Food Sanitation Law include placing the adulterated products off sale and the possible imposition of an administrative fine of up to $500.00 for the first violation and up to $1,000.00 for each subsequent violation.
COLLEGE STATION - Big Sorghum is moving up on Big Oil in Texas. Ten-foot tall stalks of bioenergy sorghum, planted on thousands of acres, could march across Texas just as oil derricks once did, replacing black gold with green gold.
Texas A&M Agriculture will host U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary Gale Buchanan and Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples on Tuesday, May 1, for a behind-the-scenes tour of some of the most promising biomass research efforts within The Texas A&M University System.
Click here to read the full story.
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