http://lubbock.tamu.edu/focus-newsletter/

Contents:

Cotton Entomology: Cotton planting considerations for thrips management

Cotton Agronomy: Soil and water salinity

Small Grain Agronomy: Wheat freeze assessment report

If you have any problems viewing the newsletter, please let us know (806-746-6101) or e-mail Viki Bartlett at vsbartlett@ag.tamu.edu.

The extent of damage to wheat is highly dependent on the growth stage and physical condition of a particular field. Wheat which was heading at the time of the freeze is damaged significantly; while wheat in the boot stage may not be damaged much at all. Overall the area’s wheat was not in good condition prior to the freeze due to drought stress, however I have been in a few fields where adequate irrigation has been applied. Drs. Calvin Trostle and Clark Neely prepared a factsheet to address the evaluation of freeze damage in wheat. This factsheet is posted in the Terry-Yoakum IPM Blog at: http://agrilife.org/yoakumterryipm/?p=693. Additional comments can be found here as well: https://wheatfreezeinjury.tamu.edu/.

As planting time approaches growers should have cleaned fields of problem weeds and have some type of residual herbicide applied. See the previous post in this blog titled “Preplant Weed Burndown…” for detailed information regarding burndown options and pre-plant herbicide options for cotton growers.

Tips and Tools for Assessing Freeze Injury in Wheat

Calvin Trostle, Ph.D., Professor & Extension Agronomist, Lubbock, (806) 746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu

Clark Neely, Ph.D., Assistant Professor & Statewide Small Grains Extension Agronomist, College Station, (979) 862-1412, cneely@ag.tamu.edu

Do Not Be Discouraged About Freeze Injury Assessment in Small Grains

If you are reading this document then you most likely are dealing with a potential or obvious freeze injury situation for wheat for grain or wheat and other small grains to be used for forage.  We want to assure you that even experienced professionals may never be completely comfortable with assessing small grains for injury.  There is some guesswork involved, and sometimes this process drives us nuts!

With many years of experience, after walking into dozens and dozens of fields, assessing hundreds of samples brought to us for evaluation, and splitting thousands of stems to assess the growing point, we still learn something new for just about every freeze we encounter in Texas wheat and other small grains.

Our companion Texas A&M AgriLife Extension publication “Wheat Freeze Injury in Texas” (Neely, Trostle, & Welch, 2014) summarizes many of the most common freeze injury symptoms and questions you will encounter in assessing small grain field for freeze injury.  This document (available at http://wheatfreezeinjury.tamu.edu) replaces the older ‘Freeze Injury on Wheat’ which was derived from Kansas State University’s seminal “Spring Freeze Injury in Kansas Wheat” (http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/c646.pdf).

As we describe different symptoms and their implications for the assessment of wheat freeze injury, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension’s years of assessment have generally concluded the following:  “Wheat freeze injury is usually never as bad as it looks.”  Yes, sometimes it is indeed pretty bad and rarely worse than we first thought.  But given time, we get a better assessment of the condition of the growing points, the growth and compensation of additional tillers (especially if the freeze is relatively early) and the overall recovery of the wheat.  Sometimes producers indeed act too soon in terminating a wheat crop that has suffered moderate or apparent freeze injury.

In assessing wheat freeze injury, with all its uncertainties, we have learned to value greatly the opportunity to re-assess the same location in a field about one week later.

Was our first assessment relatively accurate?

• Is there another symptom that is showing up?
• What evidence do we see that the injury indeed may not be as pronounced as feared?

These re-assessments are very helpful and will give anyone confidence when you return to the same spot in the field you did the first time.  And usually there is time for these follow-up assessments unless an immediate decision is at hand such as swathing for hay just before a bearded wheat crop may head out, or you were ready to apply more irrigation, or spray for disease control.

In addition to this document, we organized http://wheatfreezeinjury.tamu.edu in 2013 with additional resources to support you in your needed assessment of freeze injury on wheat and other small grains.

For additional pictures with a description of wheat freeze injury symptoms, see “Wheat Freeze Injury Picture Library” at http://wheatfreezeinjury.tamu.edu (to be posted late April, 2014).

Freeze Injury Assessment—Helpful Strategies

Here are some tips to help you improve your accuracy of assessment and better ensure representative sampling.

1)     How quickly specific symptoms from freeze injury develop will depend on the part of the wheat plant and the severity of the potential freeze.  Immediate symptoms may include a dark water-soaked appearance on the foliage (damage) which might be accompanied by frozen ‘silage’ smell in the field (damaged foliage).  Small developing kernels of grain can shrivel quickly.  In contrast, determining if a growing point is dead or if the most recently emerged leaf from the whorl is dead may take a week for the brown color to develop (necrotic, or dead tissue).  Most qualitative freeze assessments require about a week after the initial freeze to assess the potential impact.

2)     The first time you try to evaluate a wheat crop for freeze injury is the hardest.  Have someone with you who has done this before.  Cutting a stem to check for freeze injury to the growing point looks easy, but don’t just watch others do it.  Do it yourself!  When conducting freeze assessment clinics or assessing an individual field or specific sample with a producer, we insist you make the cuts also.  Then it will be easier to do on your own.

3)     Sample low areas of the field first.  Normally, if there is not damage there, then mid-elevation and higher areas of the field are no worse.  This may not be true if it is very windy when exposed areas are just as cold or in fact may be more subject to freezing conditions, or prolonged windy conditions circulate cold air further into the canopy.

4)     Be patient.  This could keep you from doing something you shouldn’t (give up on wheat).  It may take up to an hour to assess an individual field accurately for a possible decision on haying, allowing the field to continue, etc.  And this is after waiting 7 days or so to make initial assessments.  Sometimes you may never know what the outcome was on a field, but consider returning to the same point in selected fields after 7 days to evaluate the progress of potential wheat recovery.

5)     When examining plants there will often be small tillers that trail the main crop by up to two weeks.  They will be small and many inches shorter, 50% or less than the size of the main tillers.  You may discount these small stems as they have little to no significant yield potential.  In the case of late freezes and especially repeated freezes these small tiller may become important (if the production season is prolonged), but they are otherwise not expected to contribute much to grain yield (if at all) thus are generally unharvestable.  When you are counting stems to calculate percentages of damaged stems/heads do not include these small stems even if they are not damaged by the freeze.

6)     When selecting stems or heads to evaluate for freeze injury a representative sample is important.  One means to select random stems for examination of growing points, latest emerged flag leaf, head (e.g., for your count of 20 stems noted above) is to place your hands into the wheat canopy and “let your fingers do the walking” down the row (easier) or across rows.  Take every fifth stem for assessment as you count through the canopy (but do not include very small tillers (#5)).  This is one way to potentially minimize visual bias in selecting stems for assessment, counting, or splitting.

7)     When you need to examine a wheat crop, especially in the stem or growing point for damage (a visual assessment without cutting the stem won’t do), you may pull a clump of many plants all grouped together.  They are bound together by soil and roots.  Gently sort out these plants until you find that you have perhaps 4 to 6 plants in that one clump.  For an individual plant select the largest stem (there is sometimes two or three that are about the same size, usually the main stem and 1 or 2 tillers that emerged about a month later).  Observe for any stems where the most recently emerged leaf is dead.  There is no need to assess those stems further.  If the leaf is light green or yellow the growing point may be dead, but it will take another week to generate a dead leaf in the whorl.  Pick a larger stem and assess the growing point by cutting.

8)     To find the growing point, find the node on the stem that is visible, then using your thumb and forefinger, run up the stem feeling other node(s) underneath the surface of the stem.  (it will feel like a bee-bee inside the stem) then initiate a cut from below the topmost stem toward the growing point (node) and on further up the plant until you are past the growing point (cut from the base of the plant upward.  If this older stem is OK, then younger stems probably are, too (but check a few).

9)     If you find a stem that has a dead emerged leaf that individual stem will not grow any more, limiting not only grain but also forage production from that stem.  If an emerged leaf is dead, there is no need to but the stem to find the growing point (unless you simply wish to confirm)—it is dead.  Other stems that remain undamaged on the plant will likely compensate for vegetative growth and grain.

10)  A quick count in a specific site in the field can include as little as 20 stems, randomly selected. If you have 90 or 95% good (each stem = 5%), or 30 or 35% bad, then you get a pretty good initial picture of the surrounding area.  But verify further as needed.  The harder calls are the fields that initially appear to have 20 to 60% damage as you have to assess more samples to ensure you have a more accurate general picture of the condition of the field area you are in.

11)  If you have many samples from different fields to assess and you need to cut the stems, take the plants somewhere (e.g., pickup tail gate, garage) where you have good light and can work quickly.  When you may need to cut a hundred stems practice and experience should allow you to cut at least two stems and assess them every minute.

12)  Remember that tillers that die will not grow anymore (#7 & 8).  The most confused I (Trostle) have ever been in assessing wheat samples was in April 17, 2013 when I was faced with numerous plants in Lynn Co., Texas where many growing points on smaller stems were dead, easily recognized because the last emerged leaf on numerous stems were dead.  This did not make sense as we know that older stems (usually they are the biggest) are more advanced in growth stage, more susceptible to freeze injury (higher on the plant, approaching heading, etc.).  After looking at many samples I concluded that these smaller tillers had died in an earlier freeze (most likely March 25, 2013).

13)  Conflicting symptoms—jointing and later:  Russian wheat aphid is very injurious to wheat, at much lower numbers than greenbugs, due to the toxicity of the injected toxin.  White striping on leaves, sometimes white and purplish leaf sheaths are not related to freeze.  If you look at fields, note aphid presence.  Have they been sprayed?  RWA tend to feed often above the collar on the leaf blade, and the leaf blade curls or rolls up around them for protection.

Freeze Injury Assessment—Helpful Tools

A few simple items can enhance your ability to accurately assess freeze injury:

•  Razor blade, exacto knife, or small pocket knife with a sharp blade (Fig. 1A).  When cutting stems to find the growing point, always cut away from your fingers, etc.  Also, slicing stems works best when you cut from the base of the stem through the node and growing point into to the leafy portion of the upper stem.
•  Hand lens, magnifying glass, etc. (Fig. 1b).  Use anything to help you magnify the floral structures more closely, and also the growing point when it is small or you are trying to determine the color (white vs. tan or brown).

• Digital camera.  This is especially helpful to record pictures of the field down to small growing points.  Newer smart phones can take surprisingly focused and up-close images of something as small as a growing point from ~6” away.  These can be shared quickly with others via messaging or e-mail to help verify assessment.  A series of four shots from field scale to the size of your living room to about 1 yard square to up-close pics of a small group of plants are often helpful for others you may send the pics to in having a feel for your field conditions.
• Wood block, thick cardboard, or soft plastic slab.  This is to lay the plants on when you slice stems, especially if you have dozens or more to cut and quickly.  You can firmly hold the stem in place and make a swift cut on a firm base.  You will make better cuts this way.
• Your reading glasses if you use them.
• A bright light if you are assessing large numbers of samples gathered from the field.
• Brightly colored wire flags.  Place these in the field in a particular spot where you collected samples for freeze injury assessment.  You can return to the exact same spot a week later for follow-up assessment.
• Magic marker.  If you may need to return to the same spot in a field, you can mark individual plants or heads to look at them again to see if they grew out of the initial symptoms, e.g. a head that you were suspect about is or is not setting grain.
• Notebook.  A place to write down field observations especially information like counts of percent damaged heads, which you may re-assess later.

For further wheat freeze information consult http://wheatfreezeinjury.tamu.edu or more general Texas wheat production information at http://varietytesting.tamu.edu/wheat/index.htm

Cotton Weed Management on the Texas Southern High Plains

 PREPLANT BURNDOWN OPTIONS

One of the initial “keys” to effective, season-long weed management is to start clean.  In conventional tillage, normal land preparation practices and herbicide incorporation, followed by a rodweeder prior to planting should provide a clean start for uniform crop emergence and allow the crop to “get a head start” on the weeds.  For growers in some type of reduced or no-tillage system, the use of tillage is replaced by burn down herbicides prior to or at planting.  In this semiarid region, there are plant back restrictions to be aware of to avoid crop damage after planting.  Below are a number of herbicide options labeled for preplant weed control.

Roundup (glyphosate) is a Group 9 herbicide based on the mode of action classification system of the Weed Science Society of America.  The following information was obtained from the Roundup PowerMax label (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld8CC010.pdf) .

USE INSTRUCTIONS. This product may be applied before, during or after planting cotton, but prior to crop emergence (unless it’s a Roundup Ready or Glytol cotton variety).

TANK MIXTURES.  This product may be tank-mixed with 2,4-D, Valor, and FirstShot prior to planting (see restrictions on the 2,4-D, Valor, and FirstShot label).  This product may also be tank-mixed with several herbicides and applied prior to emergence (see preemergence section) or postemergence (see postemergence section).  Normal use rates of this product are 22 to 32 ounces.

Allow at least 1 to 2 weeks from application before any tillage operation is used to ensure adequate uptake and translocation.

2,4-D (a group 4 herbicide).  Specific time, rate, and irrigation restrictions are essentially impossible to find on 2,4-D labels.  In general, applications made prior to March 1 with any moisture accumulation (0.5 inches) should be enough to effectively dissipate the herbicide prior to planting.  According to the Weed Management in Texas Cotton guide (ESC-008, 3/14), wait a minimum of 30 days following the application and a minimum of 1 inch rainfall or irrigation within a 24 hr period.  A “normal use rate” of 2,4-D formulated at 4 pounds per gallon is 1 to 2 pints per acre.  2,4-D + glyphosate is an effective preplant burndown treatment to control winter weeds such as mustard, shepherdspurse, henbit, and horseweed, and early emerging summer annuals such as kochia and Russian thistle.

Clarity.  Do not use as a preplant burndown in this area.  According to the Clarity label (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld797012.pdf), do not make applications in regions with less than 25 inches of average annual precipitation.

Valor (flumioxazin, group 14 herbicide). According to the Valor label (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld3LL041.pdf), apply up to 2 ounces of product plus a tank mix partner (glyphosate) if weeds have emerged.  Thirty days and 1 inch of rainfall or overhead irrigation must occur between application and planting in conventional tillage (21 days in no-till or strip-till when 1.5 to 2 ounces of product is used, or 14 days if 1 ounce is used).  Include MSO or crop oil concentrate (COC).

Firstshot (thifensulfuron + tribenuron). According to the FirstShot label (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld87I008.pdf), apply 0.5 to 0.8 ounce/A as a burndown treatment to control emerged weeds prior to planting or 0.5 to 0.6 ounce/A when used in tank mixture with other herbicides like glyphosate or 2,4-D.  There is a 14 day interval between application and planting.  An additional 7 days must be added when used on light textured soils (sands, loamy sands and sandy loams).  An additional 7 days must be extended when used on high pH soils (>7.9).

Aim EC.  Aim may be used as a burndown treatment in cotton no later than one (1) day after planting.  Use rates are weed species (and weed size) specific and range from 0.5 to 2.0 fluid ounces per acre.   Make applications to actively growing weeds up to 4-inches in height or 3-inches in rosette diameter.  A nonionic surfactant (0.25% v/v), crop oil concentrate (1 to 2% v/v), or methylated seed oil is required.  Aim may be tank mixed with other preplant burndown herbicides such as glyphosate (Roundup), glufosinate (Liberty), paraquat (Gramoxone Inteon), and 2,4-D.

ET.  ET may be used as a burndown treatment in cotton for control of several broadleaf weeds.  For best results, use ET on weeds less than 4 inches in height, or rosettes less than 3 inches in diameter.  Use rates range from 0.5 to 2.0 fluid ounces per acre.   Use the higher rates and spray volumes for control of larger weeds.  Make applications to actively growing weeds up to 4-inches in height or 3-inches in rosette diameter.  The addition of a nonionic surfactant (0.25% v/v) or crop oil concentrate (1% v/v) is recommended for optimum control.  ET must be tank mixed with another foliar active broadleaf herbicide for complete control of most broadleaf weeds.

PREPLANT INCORPORATED OPTIONS

Trifluralin.  The following information was found in the Trifluralin 4 EC Herbicide label by Helena Chemical Company (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld4AR000.pdf).  Trifluralin may be applied using water liquid fertilizer as the carrier, or impregnated on dry bulk fertilizer.  Broadcast application rates range from 1 to 2 pints/A  and are based on soil texture (1 to 1.5 pints in coarse soils, 1.5 to 2 pints in medium soils, 2 pints in fine soils).  Use higher rates within the rate range where greater weed populations are anticipated.  To prevent loss of herbicidal activity, it must be incorporated within 24 hours after application.

The soil surface should be smooth to allow for uniform application and incorporation.  Apply when the soil moisture is sufficient to allow the breakup of large clods and uniform mixing during the incorporation process.  Soil compaction and/or non-uniform incorporation may occur if the soil is excessively moist.

In a soil bedding culture, trifluralin should be incorporated 2 to 3 inches in the final seedbed.  If the application is made prior to bedding, apply and incorporate one time with recommended equipment.  The bedding operation serves as the second incorporation.  Do not expose untreated soil during post-bedding operations such as planting since removal of treated soil during planting may allow weed seed germination and establishment in the drill row.  When applications are made after bedding, knock off the beds to planting height before application, and incorporate with recommended equipment that will conform to the shape of the bed.  Again, do not expose untreated soil.

Use incorporation equipment capable of uniformly mixing the herbicide into the top 2 to 3 inches of the final seedbed.  Improper incorporation may result in erratic weed control and/or crop injury.  Incorporation equipment will mix Trifluralin 4 EC approximately half as deep as the equipment is set of operate.  For example, a disc set to cut four inches deep will mix the herbicide within the top two inches of soil.

A tandem disc should be set to cut 4 to 6 inches and run at 4 to 6 MPH.  A field cultivator should be set to cut 3 to 4 inches and operated at a minimum of 5 MPH.  A rolling cultivator should be set to cut 2 to 4 inches and run at 6 to 8 MPH.  Rolling cultivators are adequate for use on coarse and medium soils.  With most equipment and methods of application, a second incorporation is required and may occur any time before planting.  The second incorporation should be in a different direction, and to avoid bringing untreated soil to the surface, should not be deeper than the first.  No information is listed for stalk cutters, which suggests that these are questionable implements for herbicide incorporation.

Apply and incorporate after January 1 when soil can be worked and is in a condition which allows thorough mixing to insure uniform incorporation.  Ground cover, such as crop residues and existing weeds, can interfere with uniform soil incorporation.  A manageable level of ground cover will allow uniform incorporation into the top 2 to 3 inches of soil.  Excessive ground cover and crop residues should be reduced by appropriate soil tillage prior to application. Break up clods using tillage equipment prior to application.

Spread the fertilizer/chemical mixture with properly calibrated application equipment.  Be certain the material is applied uniformly to the soil surface.  Trifluralin 4 EC should be incorporated 2 times with impregnated on dry bulk fertilizer.  The first incorporated should occur within 24 hours after application.  The second application should be delayed 3 to 5 days after the first and be completed prior to planting

Trifluralin 4 EC may be applied by chemigation.  Apply in sprinkler irrigation equal to 0.5 to 1 inch of water.  Our experience suggests that a minimum of 1 inch of water should be used.

Prowl (pendimethalin).  The following information was obtained from the Prowl 3.3 EC label (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld867008.pdf).  Prowl 3.3 EC may be applied by ground or air and subsequent must take place within 7 days after application by rainfall, sprinkler irrigation, or mechanical tillage prior to weed seedling emergence.  Use rates range from 1.2 to 4.8 pints/A depending on soil texture and tillage (conventional or minimum tillage: 1.2 to 2.4 pints/A in coarse soils, 1.8 to 2.4 pints/A in medium soils, 2.4 to 3.6 pints/A in fine soils; No-tillage: 1.8 to 2.4 pints/A in coarse soils, 2.4 to 3.6 pints/A in medium soils, 3.6 to 4.8 pints/A in fine soils).  Incorporate into the upper 1 to 2 inches of soil up to 60 days before planting. Water or sprayable fluid fertilizer (such as 32-0-0 or 28-0-0) may be used as the carrier.  Apply using 10 or more GPA water or 20 or more GPA liquid fertilizer (or 5 or more GPA by air).  Prowl 3.3 EC may also be impregnated on dry bulk fertilizer.  Use an implement capable of giving uniform incorporation.  For surface incorporation, uniformly apply as a broadcast or banded treatment and incorporate within 7 days using 1 to 2 inches using sprinkler irrigation or shallow mechanical incorporation.  A two-pass incorporation usually results in a more consistent result.

For use in minimum tillage or no-tillage systems, apply Prowl 3.3 EC alone or in tank mixes up to 45 days before planting.  Prowl H2O (http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld6CT007.pdf) may be preplant surface applied up to 15 days prior to planting, up to 60 days prior to planting and incorporation, and applied via chemigation.  Rates range between 1 to 4 pints/A depending on soil texture and tillage.

PREEMERGENCE OPTIONS

The need for a preemergence herbicide at planting involves several factors. Larger-seeded annual broadleaf weeds (e.g. morningglory, common cocklebur, sunflower) are not effectively controlled by preplant incorporated herbicides such as trifluralin or pendimethalin. The need for additional soil-applied herbicides is an effective strategy for resistance management because these work differently to control glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth when compared to glyphosate and dinitroaniline herbicides and the concept of “over-laying” residual herbicides will help extend weed control longer into the growing season.  These herbicides are also critical in non-transgenic cotton where postemergence herbicide options are limited.  Areas with intense weed pressure will benefit from soil applied preemergence herbicides regardless of the use of transgenic varieties.  It is well-documented that early-season weed control is critical for uniform crop stands and to eliminate early season weed competition for limited resources such as water and nutrients. The use of a preemergence herbicide will provide a good start to weed management, especially in the event that a timely postemergence application cannot be made.

Herbicides applied preemergence are generally applied prior to emergence of both the weed and the crop, although crop tolerance may allow some preemergence herbicides to be applied after crop emergence. The length of soil activity varies by herbicide, herbicide rate, rainfall/irrigation, soil texture, soil organic matter, and pH.  Since these factors vary for each herbicide, it is very important to carefully follow label instructions and make sure that your soil type allows for the use of the preemergence herbicide in question. All preemergence herbicides applied to the soil need rainfall or irrigation for activation.  There is potential, however, for crop injury when soil-applied herbicides are used on sandy textured soils.  Many of the preemergence herbicides are not labeled in coarse-textured soils.  In general, the effectiveness of preemergence herbicides is largely based on moisture to move (activate) the herbicide in the soil into the zone where the weed seeds germinate.

Options for herbicides that may be applied preemergence in cotton are given below along with some general comments for each herbicide option.  For complete information, please see the complete herbicide label (http://www.cdms.net/).

Caparol (prometryn) is a Group 5 herbicide.  It may be applied at planting and provides good control of several broadleaf weeds including lambsquarter, annual morningglory, malva, and purslane.  This herbicide will provide additional control of Palmer amaranth compared with the use of a dinitroaniline herbicide used alone because of the overlaying effect from two residual herbicides with different modes of action.  The use rate is based on soil texture:  (1.6 pints – sandy loam; 2.4 pints – loam, sandy clay loam; 3.2 pints – other clay soils).  Do not use on sand or loamy sand soils. In burndown situations where weeds are present but the cotton has not yet emerged, this herbicide may be tank mixed with a burndown herbicide (Roundup, Liberty, Gramoxone Inteon) in both Roundup Ready and conventional cotton for improved control of existing weeds.

Cotoran (fluometuron) provides good broad-spectrum control of several annual broadleaf and some grass weeds including annual nightshade, Venice mallow, and spurred anoda and has activity on common cocklebur and morningglory. In west Texas, DO NOT USE COTORAN ON SAND, LOAMY SAND, OR FINE SANDY LOAM SOILS, and do not use on cotton planted in furrows.  Broadcast rates of Cotoran vary by soil texture (use 3.2 pints in loam, silty clay loam, silt loam, silt, sandy clay loam, and clay loam soils; use 4 pints in clay, clay loam, silty clay loam, silty clay, sandy clay, and sandy clay loam soils).

Diuron (Direx, Karmex) applied at planting controls many annual broadleaf weeds and some grass weeds. DO NOT USE ON SAND OR ON SOILS WITH LESS THAN 1% ORGANIC MATTER AS CROP INJURY MAY RESULT.  IN TEXAS WEST OF I-35, DO NOT APPLY TO LOAMS SANDS OR SANDY LOAM SOILS (PARTICULARILY WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN DEEP PLOWED TO CHANGE TEXTURE).  Use rates are based on soil texture (use 1.5 pints on loam, silt loam, and silt soils; use 2 pints on sandy clay loam, clay loam, silty clay loam, and sandy clay soils; use 3 pints on silty clay and clay soils).  Use rates following trifluralin used preplant should be reduced to 1 pint on loams sand soils, 1.5 pints on sandy loam, loam, silt loam, and silt soils,and 2 to 3 pints on sandy clay loam, clay loam, silty clay loam, sandy clay, silty clay, and clay soils.  Injury may occur if Diuron 4L is used in conjunction with soil-applied organic phosphate pesticides.

Dual Magnum (Dual II Magnum, Cinch, Metolachlor) controls annual grasses and small-seeded broadleaf weeds including Palmer amaranth, and has good activity on yellow nutsedge. DO NOT USE ON SANDS AND LOAMY SAND SOILS.  DO NOT USE IN GAINES COUNTY, TEXAS.  Rates of Dual Magnum vary by soil type.  In area 2 (Texas), use 1 pint on sandy loams, 1.0 to 1.33 pints on medium soils, and 1.33 pints on fine soils.  Do not use on sand and loamy sand soils.  

Warrant (acetachlor) will control grasses and small-seeded broadleaf weeds including Palmer amaranth.  Use 1.25 to 2 quarts, and the optimum rate is 1.5 quarts.  Broadcast rates per acre in soils with less than 1.5% organic matter are based on soil texture.  Apply 1.25 to 1.6 quarts in coarse soils, 1.25 to 1.7 quarts in medium soils, and 1.25 to 1.9 quarts in fine soils.  Although there is a label for coarse soils, potential cotton injury may occur under these conditions.

Prowl (pendimethalin products) in addition to preplant incorporated applications, this herbicide may be applied at planting or up to 2 days after planting. The addition of Prowl at planting will improve annual grass and small-seeded broadleaf weed control. Rates vary by soil texture.  In conventional or minimum tillage, rates range from 1 to 3 pints, whereas use rates in no-till range from 2 to 4 pints where irrigation is needed shortly after application to ensure herbicide activation.

Staple LX applied preemergence has good activity on many small-seeded broadleaf weeds such as Palmer amaranth and annual morningglories.  Do not use on cotton planted in furrows and on soils with less than 0.5% organic matter.  Do not use on coarse soils such as sands or loams sands.  Staple LX use rates range from 1.3 to 2.1 fluid ounces per acre.  Use the higher rate for harder to control weeds and/or in fields where dense populations of weeds occur.  Staple LX may be used alone or in combination with Caparol, Cotoran, or Direx broaden the spectrum of residual activity compared to any of these herbicides applied alone.  These are especially effective combinations for use in non-transgenic cotton where postemergence options are limited.  Consult the label for plant back restrictions to several crops including corn and sorghum.

Since product labels change from year to year, always carefully read and follow label recommendations for a variety of information, including herbicide rate, adjuvant use, interval restrictions between application and planting, or other application restrictions.

Sign-Up Begins April 15 for Livestock, Honeybee, Fruit Grower Programs

WASHINGTON, April 7, 2014 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today that farmers and ranchers can sign-up for disaster assistance programs, reestablished and strengthened by the 2014 Farm Bill, beginning Tuesday, April 15, 2014. Quick implementation of the programs has been a top priority for USDA.

“These programs will provide long-awaited disaster relief for many livestock producers who have endured significant financial hardship from weather-related disasters while the programs were expired and awaiting Congressional action,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “President Obama and I prioritized the implementation of these disaster assistance programs now that the Farm Bill has restored and strengthened them.”

The Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) and the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) will provide payments to eligible producers for livestock deaths and grazing losses that have occurred since the expiration of the livestock disaster assistance programs in 2011, and including calendar years 2012, 2013, and 2014.

Enrollment also begins on April 15 for producers with losses covered by the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) and the Tree Assistance Program (TAP).

LIP provides compensation to eligible livestock producers that have suffered livestock death losses in excess of normal mortality due to adverse weather. Eligible livestock includes beef cattle, dairy cattle, bison, poultry, sheep, swine, horses, and other livestock as determined by the Secretary.
LFP provides compensation to eligible livestock producers that have suffered grazing losses due to drought or fire on publicly managed land. An eligible livestock producer must own, cash lease, or be a contract grower of eligible livestock during the 60 calendar days before the beginning date of the qualifying drought or fire in a county that is rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as D2, D3, or D4.
ELAP provides emergency assistance to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees and farm-raised fish that have losses due to disease, adverse weather, or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture.
TAP provides financial assistance to qualifying orchardists and nursery tree growers to replant or rehabilitate eligible trees, bushes and vines damaged by natural disasters.
USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) employees have worked exceptionally hard over the past two months to ensure eligible farmers and ranchers would be able to enroll to receive disaster relief on April 15.

To expedite applications, all producers who experienced losses are encouraged to collect records documenting these losses in preparation for the enrollment in these disaster assistance programs. Information on the types of records necessary can be provided by local FSA county offices. Producers also are encouraged to contact their county office ahead of time to schedule an appointment.

For more information, producers may review the 2014 Farm Bill Fact Sheet, ELAP and TAP fact sheets online, or visit any local FSA office or USDA Service Center.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay).

The manual is available from the AgriLife Extension Bookstore, http://agrilifelearn.tamu.edu/, for $20 per copy.

A scouting report will be prepared for each field as it is scouted. The report will contain information on specific pest numbers, beneficial insect numbers, growth stage of the crop and economic thresholds. A copy will be provided to the producer and I will discuss pest management options with each producer as needed. I will assist producers with irrigation and harvest aid decisions. A newsletter is mailed out approximately bi-weekly during the growing season. The newsletter contains timely information on insect, disease, weed activity and current research being conducted on specific problems.

This season we will scout cotton, peanuts, grain sorghum, watermelons, sunflowers, wheat and grapes as needed. Each crop will be scouted for insects and diseases as well as crop development.

This program’s primary goal is an educational effort designed to help you make informed pest management and agronomic decisions. All recommendations are based on unbiased research conducted by Texas A&M University, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and Texas AgriLife Research.

In peanut we will scout for insects and diseases. We will scout once per week until insect or disease pressure dictate more often is required. With our shortened time between rotations insect and disease problems are becoming more abundant, therefore it is essential to monitor peanuts closely throughout the growing season to maximize profitability.

 If you already utilize a private consultant, this program may not be for you. If you need more information please do not hesitate to call the office 806.637.8792 or my cell phone 806.893.1041.

To enroll, please complete and return the enclosed form by May 15, 2014. This will greatly assist us in determining how many field scouts will be needed this summer.

Scouting fees were recently set by the Terry-Yoakum Integrated Pest Management Steering Committee as follows:

* Grapes minimum $250.00 per grape variety in the vineyard.

To enroll your field(s) follow this link to the form: ScoutingSignupForm

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contact: Dr. Joe Outlaw, 979-845-3062, joutlaw@tamu.edu

AMARILLO – Crop producers may feel like they are back in school when they begin to deal with the new farm bill, because they certainly need to do their homework before going to sign up, according to one Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist.

Speaking recently in Amarillo, Dr. Joe Outlaw, co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University and an AgriLife Extension economist in College Station, said the new farm bill repeals direct payments, counter-cyclical payments and Average Crop Revenue Election, or ACRE. Producers now must choose between Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage for their program crops.

Producers are also going to have the opportunity to reallocate their base acres to crops planted on the farm at any time during the 2009 to 2012 crop years. And, Outlaw said, all cotton base acres are now generic base acres.

“For the safety net to be the most effective, you really need to get your base as close as possible to what you are planting,” he said.

The generic base becomes whatever crop it is planted to each year, Outlaw  said. The generic base acres can be assigned to other covered commodities.

“You have to do your own homework,” he said. “Don’t get stuck with something that may or may not be good for you for the life of the bill.”

If producers choose the price loss coverage option, or PLC as it is referred to in the farm bill, they have the opportunity to update their payment yields to 90 percent of the 2008-2012 crop year averages.

In explaining the flow of producers choices, Outlaw said after determining base reallocation, they will have to decide if they are going to choose the ARC, which covers losses in income for a commodity relative to a benchmark guarantee, or go the PLC route. And then there are more choices within each of those options.

For the 2014-2018 crop years, all producers on a farm must make a one-time, irrevocable election to obtain either price loss coverage under section 1116 on a commodity-by-commodity basis or agricultural risk coverage under section 1117. Price loss coverage is a set reference price and the payment is made if the market price falls below that.

“You can do part ARC and part PLC, unless you choose ARC individual,” Outlaw said. “But the fine print is if the producer and the landowner can’t come to a decision, then the farm will not be in the program for 2014, but you are automatically in the price loss program for 2015.”

All decisions will need to be made on a crop-by-crop basis for each farm, he said.

Additionally, a new area-wide insurance program, a supplemental coverage option, will be available to all producers beginning in 2015 and is designed to protect them against losses that would normally fall within their insurance deductible range.

“We are working on educational materials and tools to assist producers with all these decisions,” Outlaw said.

The decision aide, once available, will help with the many decisions that must be made, he said. It will include a lot of information about the specific choices and about crop insurance.

For more information about the farm bill or to find the decision aide once it is available, go to The Agricultural and Food Policy Center website at www.afpc.tamu.edu .