Cotton Farming May 2022

Cotton Farming

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PROFITABLE PRODUCTION STRATEGIES

MAY 2022

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The Wilders: A Texas Heritage Providing For The World One Generation At A Time

consumers

CottonBoard.org The data referenced is from Cotton Incorporated’s Lifestyle Monitor™ survey and the 2016 Seal of Cotton survey. *Seal of Cotton™ introduced by Cotton Incorporated in 1973.

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Vol. 66 No. 5

Cotton Farming PROFITABLE PRODUCTION STRATEGIES

MAY 2022

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FE ATURES

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MSU INSECT CONTROL GUIDE Mississippi State University Extension Service offers the “Insect Control Guide” to help with decisions regarding economically sound pesticide applications.

SPORADIC COTTON PESTS Don't forget to keep an eye out for the “odd ball” dry and wet weather pests that sometimes show up to threaten seedling cotton and yield outcome.

GINNERS MARKETPLACE

the official publication of the ginning industry Kelci Morrow Murphree, Arizona's Pinal Gin manager, provides an insider's look at this critical aspect of the cotton supply chain.

A Texas Heritage

The Wilders have a diversified farming operation in Snook, Texas, that includes both dryland and irrigated cotton, soybeans, grain sorghum, wheat and sunflowers. They also run a cow-calf and a purebred Limousine operation. In addition, the Porter-Wilder Farm was granted the designation of Family Land Heritage Property in 2012 by the state of Texas for having 100 years of agriculture on land running in the same family.

WEB EXCLUSIVE The National Agricultural Aviation Association is asking all drone/ unmanned aircraft (UA) operators to be mindful of low-altitude manned agricultural aircraft. The association makes several recommendations for UA operators to follow during this growing season. They also discuss bird and drone collisions with manned aircraft. Go to www.cottonfarming. com for this Web Exclusive report.

DEPARTMENTS & COLUMNS

4 Editor’s Note 15 Industry News 5 Cotton’s Agenda 16 Specialists Speaking 6 Southern Plains Report 22 My Turn ON THE COVER: Texas family farm provides for the world one generation at a time. Left to right are Jay Wilder, Jayce Wilder, Spencer Wilder and Joe Wilder. Cover photo by Cassidy Nemec.

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COTTON FARMING (ISSN 0746-8385) is published monthly January through December by One Grower Publishing LLC, 875 W. Poplar Ave., Suite 23, Box 305, Collierville, TN 38017. Periodicals postage paid at Memphis, Tennessee, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Omeda Communications, Customer Service Department, P.O. Box 1388, Northbrook, IL 60065-1388 (Phone: 847-559-7578) (Fax: 847-564-9453). Annual subscriptions are $40. International rates are $55 in Canada/Mexico, $90 in all other countries for air-speeded delivery. Surface delivery not available due to problems in reliability.

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Editor’s Note Carroll Smith

Cotton Farming EDITORIAL/PRODUCTION Editor-In-Chief Carroll Smith csmith@onegrower.com Southeast Editor Amanda Huber ahuber@onegrower.com

‘Scream Or Enjoy The Ride’

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ife is like a roller coaster. It has its ups and downs. But it’s your choice to scream or enjoy the ride.” I’ve seen this quote used many times although I can’t confirm where it originated.

When you climb aboard a literal roller coaster at an amusement park, you know it’s going to be a little scary. But you decided to take the risk to experience the thrill that goes along with it. The only thing over which you have control is making sure you’re strapped in tight before the ride takes off.

To me, farming can be a figurative roller coaster on which producers have enthusiastically decided to embark. But because they can’t foresee the future, they know it’s important to “strap in tight” before the ups and downs of the new season begin. Control what you can up front to help offset the unknowns down the road.

Although this is not a complete list, here are some examples that fall into that “things you can control” category.  Select varieties/obtain the seed’s warm/cool germination numbers to ascertain the vigor index.  Determine seeding rates, nitrogen rates and choose residual herbicides.  Budget for projected inputs.  Make sure your equipment is in order.  Stay on top of early season pest control.  Develop a plan for proper irrigation management.  Develop a marketing plan.

Regarding the last item about marketing, I want to pass along some interesting insight an Arkansas farmer shared with me this past March while we were discussing the price of soybeans at the time.

“The highest price is always the most unattainable price because when we get there, nobody thinks that’s it,” he said. “We’re looking for that extra dime, extra quarter, extra 50 cents. My marketing strategy is to consider the upside potential that is left and the downside potential if the market turns.

“For example, we’re looking at $16 soybeans. Let’s say beans may go to $18.

So that’s a $2 upside potential. But I have sold $7 beans, so that’s a $9 downside potential. Do I want to chase $2 and risk a $9 fall? Risk versus reward says sell the beans. I will sell what I think we can realistically produce for $16. I know I am going to make a good profit and have been blessed to get this price. I say sell them and don’t look back.”

The 2022 season has begun, and the ups and downs are coming. I hope you enjoy the ride!

Carroll If you have comments, please send them to: Cotton Farming Magazine, 7201 Eastern Ave., Germantown, TN 38138.

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

Assistant Editor Cassidy Nemec cnemec@onegrower.com Digital Content Editor Katie Guthrie Art Director Ashley Kumpe ADMINISTRATION Publisher/Vice President Lia Guthrie (901) 497-3689 lguthrie@onegrower.com Associate Publisher/Editor-In-Chief Carroll Smith (901) 326-4443 Associate Publisher/Sales Scott Emerson (386) 462-1532 semerson@onegrower.com Production Manager David Boyd dboyd@onegrower.com Audience Services Kate Thomas (847) 559-7514 For subscription changes or change of address, call (847) 559-7578 or email cottonfarming@omeda.com EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD David Burns – North Carolina David Lynch – South Carolina Bob McLendon – Georgia Larkin Martin – Alabama Mike Sturdivant Jr. – Mississippi Charles Parker – Missouri Jimmy Hargett – Tennessee Allen Helms – Arkansas Jay Hardwick – Louisiana Ronnie Hopper – Texas Ron Rayner – Arizona John Pucheu – California

ONE GROWER PUBLISHING, LLC Mike Lamensdorf President/Treasurer Lia Guthrie Publisher/Vice President ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COOPERATION: Cooperating with COTTON FARMING are various cotton producer organizations across the Cotton Belt. Many representatives of producer organizations serve on COTTON FARMING’s editorial advisory board. Opinions expressed and conclusions reached by contributors are not necessarily those of the cooperating organizations or the editors.

All statements, including product claims, are those of the person or organization making the statement or claim. The publisher does not adopt any such statement or claims as its own and any such statement or claim does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the publisher.

Copyright 2022 © ASSOCIATED PUBLICATIONS – One Grower Publishing, LLC also publishes RICE FARMING, THE PEANUT GROWER, SOYBEAN SOUTH and CORN SOUTH.

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Cotton’s Agenda Gary Adams

Preserving Products, Position With USDA projecting 9% more U.S. cotton acres this season, the National Cotton Council is working to ensure affordable and effective inputs/resources are available while solidifying U.S. cotton’s reputation.

What about crop input availability?

■ The NCC monitors rulemaking and other activ-

ities affecting a wide range of crop inputs from fertilizer to plant protection products and harvest aids. A recent example saw the NCC seek a label amendment that resulted in EPA lifting county-level bans on the use of Enlist/Enlist Duo in 134 counties across multiple states.

The NCC recently joined with other Agriculture Transportation Working Group (ATWG) members on a letter to President Biden emphasizing that a worker strike affecting the Canadian Pacific Railway — and the continued cross-border vaccine mandate for workers moving essential goods — would severely curtail fertilizer supply/shipments into the United States. Another ATWG letter to the President sought Administration action to s ecure favorable West C oast port contract labor negotiations and prevent a catastrophe to the agriculture economy. We also urged Cotton Belt Senators and Representatives to sign multiple letters to the International Trade Commission and to President The NCC is working to ensure cotton producers have Biden requesting timely access to affordable crop inputs for the 2022 fertilizer supply/ cost remedies. Since season.

January 2021, based on USDA data, anhydrous ammonia cost was up 203%, urea up 141%, liquid nitrogen up 162%, potash up 125%, phosphate up 74%, along with offroad diesel fuel up 95%.

Are there beneficial resources available?

■ The NCC has diligently encouraged producers to access resources that would improve their

efficiency. For example, in our Cotton’s Week newsletter, we advocated treated seed stewardship as noted in the NCC-supported “The Guide to Seed Treatment Stewardship” at https://seed-treat ment-guide.com. Another recent newsletter article urged those involved with applying approved dicamba formulations to access 2022 crop season instruction through Bayer’s free, self-paced online tool or a guided live webinar at www.

RoundupReadyXtend.com/Stewardship.

Through its newsletter, the NCC continues to persuade producers to enroll in the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol® where they can formally document these and other stewardship practices. To assist with enrollment of the 2022 crop in this voluntary sustainability initiative, producers now can authorize account access for their crop consultant who can enter information on their behalf at www.

TrustUSCotton.org. Also, if producers utilize the John Deere Operations Center, they can pre-populate up to 40% of the data needed to complete their Fieldprint analysis through the platform. Strong producer participation in this sustainability initiative will result in manufacturers, major brands and retailers accepting that U.S. cotton is responsibly produced.

In another move to bolster U.S. cotton’s reputation, the NCC is strongly recommending use of a new voluntary round module wrap standard developed by industry in conjunction with USDA and the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. The plan is to include wrap products that demonstrate compliance with the standard in a NCC-maintained list of “Approved Wrap Products.”

Research has proven that if round modules are delivered to gins in good condition (no tears, punctures, loose material or adhesive failures), then the likelihood of plastic entering the gin, and ultimately the bale, is greatly reduced. This and other resources aimed at helping industry members prevent contamination from module wrap and other plastics are on the NCC website at www.cotton.org/tech/ quality/contamfree.cfm.

Gary Adams is president/CEO of the National Cotton Council of America.

TWITTER: @COTTONFARMING

MAY 2022 | COTTON FARMING

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SOUTHERN PLAINS REPORT

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Holding On To Soil Moisture In The Southern Plains

ainfall is critical to cotton across the Cotton Belt. However, effective ways to capture and maximize precipitation in the Southern Plains are always top of mind for the region’s producers. Cotton Incorporated and many cooperators invest in research to explore strategies for making the most of the limited rainfall in the area.

Conservation Tillage/Cover Crops

One West Texas study in Martin County analyzes water-efficiency data generated from using conservation tillage techniques and cover crops. This multi-institutional collaboration between the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cropping Systems Research Laboratory and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, funded by Cotton Incorporated, was established in 2019 with five area growers.

The project focuses on how cover crops could be a viable tool for this area and how they could impact production, water use, fertility, wind erosion and economics. The study includes five fields, each with two large-scaled testing sites of cover crop, no-till and conventional tillage techniques.

Each field was equipped with soil moisture sensors to track water infiltration and usage by the crop. Infra-red plant canopy temperature sensors were used to track plant stress and crop responses to rainfall events. These sensors provided continuous information to researchers about each field’s soil and crop conditions.

With two years of the study complete, the data reflects an increase in water-use efficiency in the fields using conservation tillage techniques and cover crops. The roots of the cotton plants in conservation tillage plots extracted water two times deeper than those of conventional tillage plots.

Dr. Paxton Payton, a plant physiologist at the USDA Cropping Systems Research Laboratory in Lubbock, Texas, said, “During times of little rainfall, it is important to capture whatever moisture you receive and to reduce the amount of water runoff. This research shows that moisture falling on conservation tillage fields with a cover crop could penetrate

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BY SHELLEY HEINRICH SLATON, TEXAS

the soil profile by an additional 20 mm and 25% more effectively than a conventionally tilled field.”

Rainfall Timing Study

A different study, led by Dr. Natasja Van Gestel, assistant professor of biological sciences at Texas Tech University, looks at soil moisture content and strategies with respect to the timing of rain events.

Twenty West Texas fields were tested for organic matter, soil moisture and nutrient levels in this study. Results showed that soil moisture and nutrients (N, P, and K) were more stable in fields with organic matter and conservation tillage. The study also discovered that areas with a high content of clay matter were able to retain more organic matter and soil moisture.

With respect to timing, the study identified cover crops and conservation tillage as ways for producers to take advantage of rainfall events when there is the uncertainty of future rainfall. Van Gestel reported, “Summer storms are often intense. Our research with cotton growers across West Texas showed improved August rainfall capture — a crucial time in the cotton-growing season — in fields with reduced tillage and residue.”

Dr. Kater Hake, vice president of agricultural research for Cotton Incorporated, said, “The results regarding soil moisture absorption and retention in August, during the critical time of boll maturation, is encouraging. This research and information are vital to have in a region where every drop matters to producing a profitable cotton crop.”

These two research projects, funded by Cotton Incorporated, show reduced tillage practices and cover crops can make a difference in effectively capturing rainfall.

For more information on these and other cotton research projects in your area, visit Cotton Incorporated’s Cotton Cultivated research website at https://cottoncultivated. cottoninc.com.

Shelley Heinrich is the Cotton Board Southern Plains regional communications manager. Email her at sheinrich@cottonboard.org.

Response to rainfall in conservation tillage cotton crop (red line) compared to conventionally tilled (no winter cover) cotton crop (blue line) in Martin County, Texas. The cover crop soil profile showed an approximately 25% greater water infiltration response to rain events compared to conventional tillage.

COTTONFARMING.COM

Cotton Consultant’s Corner

Keep Insects In Check To Maintain Yield James “Wish” Patterson James A. Patterson Consulting Pickens, Arkansas

I grew up in an agricultural community in southeast Arkansas where my uncle had a farm with cotton in the mix. Later, while I was working as an assistant coach, I got a job scouting cotton in the summertime in between my coaching duties in the fall and winter months. This piqued my interest in the crop, and I learned a lot from two area consultants — Charles Denver and Jesse Rice — before starting my own consulting company in 1990. In 2014, I hired Barry Boney, who is now my partner in the business.

In 2021, insect pressure was light, but it was a wet year. Early on, we got 22 inches of rain in four hours. Ten days later, we got another nine inches, but in the end, the cotton crop turned out good.

We typically start out looking for cutworms and thrips. Occasionally, aphids or spider mites may build up. The next insect we battle is tarnished plant bug, which usually comes in around pinhead square. When we start seeing missing or blasted squares, we apply Vydate® C-LV insecticide/nematicide to take out the adult plant bugs that are coming in and out of the field when the cotton is small. It also provides some suppression on nematodes.

When corn starts drying down, plant bugs will move from that crop into cotton. We then monitor the small square set for plant bug damage and begin making treatments when the square set drops below 80%. This typically happens the third week of squaring or the second week if the plant bugs come in early. At that time, we’ll make the first application of Transform® WG insecticide tankmixed with Diamond insecticide. Transform controls the adult plant bugs, and Diamond controls the nymphs. If you don’t keep this pest in check, it can devastate your cotton crop.

After cotton gets too big for the sweep net, we use the drop cloth to scout the crop. Since we don’t have to worry about treating for bollworm much in our Bollgard 3 cotton, we’ll make another tankmix application of Transform and Diamond. When cotton aphids start showing up, Transform is very effective in controlling them, too. We also like to include boron in our insecticide tankmixes, which helps retain the fruit on the plant. We use plant growth regulators each year to keep cotton in the fruiting mode instead of letting it get tall and rank. This potentially allows us to save on treatments for cotton diseases, such as target spot.

With the high cost of fuel and fertilizer this year, farmers need to harvest as many pounds of cotton as they can to help counteract this expense. Once the crop is made, we hope Mother Nature and the Good Lord will give us favorable weather to keep the cotton on the plant and get it picked in a timely manner.

James “Wish” Patterson (right) and his business partner, Barry Boney, serve farmers in southeast Arkansas.

• Patterson: Bachelor’s in manufacturing technology. Bachelor’s in physical education, health, recreation and social science, University of Arkansas-Monticello. Boney: Bachelor’s in business and accounting. Bachelor’s in plant and soil science, UA-Monticello. Master’s in plant pathology, UA-Fayetteville.

• Full service consulting on cotton, corn, soybeans and rice.

• Patterson: Member, Arkansas Crop Protection Association and Arkansas Agricultural Consultant’s Association. Boney: Member, American Society of Agronomy.

• Patterson: Wife Sandy. Two daughters: Rae Ashley King (Kevin) and Jala Patterson. Two granddaughters. Boney: Wife Kaley and daughter Kennedy Jane.

• Patterson enjoys hunting, fishing and playing golf. Boney enjoys hunting and wildlife management.

Recap: Keep Insects In Check To Maintain Yield

▼

1. Tarnished plant bug usually comes in around pinhead square. When we start seeing missing or blasted squares, we apply Vydate® C-LV insecticide/nematicide to take out the adult plant bugs that are coming in and out of the field when the cotton is small. It also provides some suppression on nematodes.

2. When small square set drops below 80%, we’ll make the first application of Transform® WG insecticide tankmixed with Diamond insecticide. Transform controls the adult plant bugs, and Diamond controls the nymphs.

3. When cotton aphids start showing up, Transform is very effective in controlling them, too.

Sponsored by

TM ® Trademarks of Corteva Agriscience and its affiliated companies. Transform® WG and Vydate® C-LV are not registered for sale or use in all states. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your state. Isoclast ® is a registered active ingredient. Always read and follow label directions. © Corteva 2022.

COVER STORY

PHOTOS BY CASSIDY NEMEC

Joe Wilder (left), Jayce Wilder, Spencer Wilder and Jay Wilder in front of one of their planters.

The Wilders: A Texas Heritage Providing For The World One Generation At A Time

BY CASSIDY NEMEC ASSISTANT EDITOR

J

oe Wilder, a long-time farmer in Snook, Texas, likely never imagined the family farm he married into and joined back in 1964 would be what it is today.

In 1912, the Porter Farm began with Julius Porter and grew to include his son — Joe’s father-in-law, Holland Porter — and Joe Wilder. That is when the Wilder family name came in.

After years of working on the farm, Jay Wilder — Joe’s son — and Jayce and Spencer Wilder — Jay’s two twin boys — came to be a part of the family farm.

“When I graduated from A&M in ’93, Dad and I soon formed our partnership in ’95,” Jay said. “Grandfather retired in ’98, and Dad and I started renting the land at that point.”

A Heritage Farm

The Wilders have a diversified farming operation that includes both dryland and irrigated cotton, soybeans, grain sorghum, wheat and sunflowers. They also run a cow-calf and a purebred Limousine operation. In addition, the Porter-Wilder Farm was granted the designation of Family Land Heritage Property in

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Family Land Heritage designation plaque provided

by Commissioner Todd Staples of the Texas Department of Agriculture 2012 by the state of Texas for having 100 years of agriculture on that land running in the same family. This designation can continue to be granted by the Texas Department of Agriculture every 50 years the agricultural operation stays within the family.

“The boys are in charge of making sure it gets to 2062,” Jay said, laughing. “The land has just become so valuable along the way that generations who aren’t involved with the actual farming are selling the land, and that makes it [the Heritage Farm designation] harder and harder to hold together.”

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Cotton, Cotton, Cotton

As for their irrigated cotton, the Wilders mainly use center pivots to get the crop the moisture it needs to make it through the season. In 1996, they bought their first center pivot and now have seven.

“That’s becoming more and more of a labor issue,” Jay said.

“It’s a high cost per acre to put in initially, but when you eliminate labor issues and all the different kinds of costs that goes along with that, we save. For the most part, those have been really good, and with today’s technology, I can start one right now sitting right here with a phone.”

“Boy, we thought that was something else when they came up with those center pivots,” Joe added.

Variety selection plays a significant role in the Wilders’ cotton crop each year. “Last year, we had Phytogen 400, Deltapine 2020 and NexGen 4936. This year we will have pretty much those same varieties … and we’ll try a new one with NexGen’s 4109 and a little bit of Deltapine 2012,” Jay said. He commented they turn to a crop advisor and data when it comes to selecting their varieties and chose these specific varieties based on previous experience with Deltapine and NexGen and wanting to utilize the technology in Phytogen.

Control What Can Be Controlled

2021 brought a tough season for weed control to the Wilder Farm. “More so early, we couldn’t get things sprayed in a timely manner to help with weed control, and we couldn’t get things fertilized in a timely manner that we normally would try to do,” Jay said. “But once it did dry up to where we could do that, the crops really responded well, especially to the fertilizer.

“I think the dicamba and the Phytogen Enlist products have really helped in situations where you get late or you get behind, even more so the Enlist side of it.”

Jay then discussed the rocky start to the 2022 growing season.

“Every year seems to be so different,” he said. “Last year was so wet; this year I think we’ve had ample amounts of moisture, but the wind has been relentless … and it’s hampering us on our weed control.” He attributed insect control on the farm to his consultant and suggested disease pressure is not normally an issue for them, emphasizing weed pressure is their biggest issue.

“It seems like those things run in cycles; you get something under control, then in three or four years, it’s a whole different kind of animal,” Jay said.

The History Of The Gin

The Wilders have ginned with Scarmardo Gin since the early 1990s when they shut down their own family gin still present on their property.

The old family gin on the Wilder property. The gin was in use until the 1990s.

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Joe Wilder, long-time farmer, in his Snook, Texas, office.

“Mr. Porter built it in the 1920s,” Joe said. “We primarily ginned just the family cotton then some for the tenants who lived on the farm … in the late 50s or early 60s, our gin caught fire and burned down.” The disassembled gin was hauled to Sherman, Texas, to be rebuilt before it was brought back.

“I think it had ginned about 300 bales when it caught fire, and they came back and ginned about 200 at the end of the season,” he said. “We couldn’t gin it fast enough.”

Joe said lots of work was done on the family gin in the 60s after the fire, and that gin carried them to the early 1990s. When insurance for the gin went up, it was no longer feasible to keep it running. “It had been a family gin, but with the state, a family gin is everybody that’s in the family — not kids who married into the family,” he said. “So, because of me, they kicked it out … our insurance was going to double or triple, and that’s about the time labor issues started to kick in, so we shut it down.”

Understanding Strengths And Weaknesses

When asked how they split up their responsibilities every day, laughter filled the room. “I don’t want to do it, and he doesn’t want to do it, so it just keeps going down the line,” Jay said.

“Spencer’s the youngest, so he’s probably going to end up with it.” Joking then aside, Jay said it depends on what the task is.

“We all get in and go … Dad will be on choppers, Spencer and Jayce will be planting, and then I’ll be trying to spray it if the wind will let me … everybody kind of has their niche, and we go from there. We divide and conquer.”

“It’s amazing because with the old rig we had, nobody wanted to drive it, but then we got a new one with air conditioning, and all of a sudden everyone wants to drive it,” Joe joked.

Understanding one another’s strengths and weaknesses plays a role in how the Wilders run their operation. Jay said they rely on his dad for all the experience he’s acquired over the years and discussed how Jayce and Spencer, growing up in a world of new technology, contribute with their ability to understand those new techniques.

“Take the boys, for example,” Jay said. “They learned how to weld really well through FFA, and they aren’t scared to try something.” He said he attributes a lot of that to the resources available on phones now through YouTube and other ag forums.

Joe reflected on his prior experience on the farm before technology became a major player. “We didn’t have that 20 or 30 years ago. We weren’t scared to try something, but we did mess up a bunch.” He said with the current technology, “It’s just unbelievable what you can do.”

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“I’ll ask if they know what they’re doing, and they’ll say, ‘Yeah, we watched a video on it,’ so that is good … if something breaks down, they’re not afraid to look something up and tackle it,” Jay said.

From The Ground Up

Thinking back to how they got to where they are today, the Wilders discussed their involvement in organizations growing up that assisted them in getting to where they are today and helping for a better future.

Joe was involved in 4H growing up, both Jayce and Spencer were active in FFA and Jay engaged with the Young Farmers & Ranchers group through Texas Farm Bureau. Jayce and Spencer both went to Poland through a program through Texas A&M where they stayed with host families and learned about the agrarian landscape over in Eastern Europe.

Jay currently participates in a myriad of local, state and national agricultural organizations. On the local level this includes the county Farm Bureau board and the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District Board. At the state and national levels, he is on the Texas and National Grain Sorghum Board, as well as the Texas Limousine Association and North American Limousine Board. In addition, Jay was a member of the eighth TALL (Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership) class 18 years ago and was given the opportunity over the span of the two-year program to travel across the country and globe to see, learn about and speak on agricultural topics and issues.

“There’s all kinds of things you can be involved in when you have the time,” he said.

In regard to getting involved on the local level, Jay said it’s important to what they’re doing. “It starts at the county level and works its way to the top.” Even with boards not exclusively in ag like the groundwater conservation board, he said there should be someone in agriculture actively involved to help people better understand the details that correlate back to ag and the impact it all has.

Challenge To Triumph

Without hesitation, Jay had a two-word response for their biggest challenge of the 2022 growing season: “input costs.”

“I’ve never even seen fertilizer costs anywhere close to where they are now,” Joe said. “That’s going to be a challenge. My father-in-law would have the soil sample guy come back and say we only needed to put out 30 units of P, but he would say, no we’ve always put out 60 units, so we’re putting out 60 units.”

He commented that learning how to cut those input costs at the beginning by understanding what they already have under the

The Porter/Wilder Farm office based in Snook, Texas.

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

Image showing (left to right): Joe Wilder, Mr. Holland Porter and Jay Wilder in the back, and Jayce and Spencer Wilder in front. ground is going to be crucial this year.

“I think I went to work here in ’64, and I’ve seen a lot of changes since then,” Joe said. “Before I started fooling with it, agriculture seemed kind of set, but since then, it’s been like a rollercoaster.”

Jay said their goal with the record commodity prices the way they are is to make “an average to above-average yield to try and capture some of those record prices to combat record input prices.”

Motivation Is Key

What inspires the Wilders to get up and keep farming every day? “It’s a challenge, but somebody’s got to feed and clothe the world … it doesn’t just show up magically at the stores,” Jay said.

He said there are very few government individuals who are involved in agriculture — especially with row crops — at the state level and even less on the national level. “We’ve got those people making decisions that will affect us in the long term … we need the representation to represent ag.”

Jay said his favorite part of his job is “being able to work with the family … most days. The boys are fifth generation, so we’re hoping to keep it going and even pass it on to another one.”

Joe recounted his journey to ag from being raised in town. One summer in the late ‘50s, he went and picked cotton for the first time. “My mother told me when I started, ‘If you start, you’re going to finish.’ … after the first week, when I’d made about $16 or $17, I told her I wasn’t going to go back, and she said ‘No, you’re going to go back; you’re going to finish.’” He said he grew to love ag and knew he wanted to stay involved in it.

“It was a good lesson to start with that got me into agriculture, and I never regretted it.”

The Wilders reflect their Family Land Heritage Property designation by proving their family itself to be its own kind of Texas heritage… one of continued dedication to their craft and the overall future of agriculture.

COTTONFARMING.COM

MSU Guidebook Directs Insect Control For Profit

T

ucker Miller has a list of row crop producers who depend on him to manage insects in their fields, and every year brings a different pest challenge that threatens crop profitability.

Miller, an independent crop consultant with Miller Entomological Service Inc. in Drew, Mississippi, said there is always uncertainty in insect matters.

“We try to be on top of the situation by scouting and looking for the insects that usually appear at certain times of the crop growth stage,” Miller said.

“We work closely with the Extension Service because they have test plots across the state and on a lot of my clients’ farms,” he said. “They use these plots to develop thresholds for insect control and to test the effectiveness of different chemicals labeled for insect control.”

For insect pest management, the Mississippi State University Extension Service offers the “Insect Control Guide,” available in printed form and online. It includes a wealth of information on different pests, chemical control and when to trigger a pest treatment. The research-backed data is a primary tool for Mississippi farmers navigating their way to a successful harvest.

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach to insect control,” Miller said. “We monitor the research MSU does, and it’s spot on giving us the information we need for decisions.”

Be Flexible In 2022

Insect control got a lot harder in 2021 when farm chemical costs increased almost fourfold by the end of the year.

Higher than usual input costs can compress profit margins. At MSU’s Row Crop Short Course held in December, specialists updated participants on the insect scene from 2021 and advised on decision-making criteria for 2022.

Whitney Crow, an entomologist with the MSU Extension Service, said pest control is always situationally dependent.

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CCOY Cotton Consultant of the Year established 1981

“The No. 1 goal in pest management is to follow best management practices and make economically sound applications of pesticide,” Crow said. “That means you may be altering when you decide to make an insecticide application based on current conditions.”

Scouting and monitoring pest populations are always the first steps in insect control. After the insects are identified and their populations confirmed, producers then must assess their crop’s tolerance level and injury, which is often dependent on the crop’s maturity status.

“Only then can we decide if we need to apply a control product,” Crow said.

Nominations Open For 2022

Consider Economic Threshold

The Cotton Consultant of the Year Award is sponsored by Syngenta and Cotton Farming magazine. This prestigious award honors a consultant for dedication, innovation and hard work. Their footprints in the field and eyes on the crop help cotton farmers succeed and maintain a healthy bottom line.

MSU agricultural economists gather information on all the crop input costs and then compile that with possible market prices for the crop. Entomologists used this data along with other information to establish economic thresholds for the different row crops, a reference to the level of pest infestation at which management action is financially justified.

The economic threshold is different from the economic injury level, which is the lowest population density of a pest that causes economic damage.

“If we make a treatment before reaching the economic injury level, then the cost of the treatment outweighs the benefit,” she said. “If we wait until we have reached the economic threshold and spray around the economic injury level, the benefit is greater than the cost.”

Each insecticide application decision should be weighted by a variety of factors such as crop value, effectiveness of the treatment available and management cost.

“Management guidelines are simply guidelines, and every situation is different, but the end goal never changes: We want you to make economically sound decisions for your crop situation,” Crow said.

The “MSU Insect Control Guide for Agronomic Crops” is updated annually. Look for Extension Publication 2471 online at http://extension.msstate.edu/ publications.

Bonnie A. Coblentz, MSU Extension Service, contributed this article.

CCOY

Go to cottonfarming.com/ ccoy to access the 2022 nomination form and a list of past recipients. Nominees are voted on by the former CCOY winners.

The 2022 CCOY will be honored Feb. 24, 2023, at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis and featured in a four-page salute in the February 2023 issue of Cotton Farming.

Nominate a consultant today who has enriched your cotton farming operation!

Cotton Consultant of the Year sponsored by

Cotton Farming MAY 2022 | COTTON FARMING

11

Sporadic Pests Of Seedling Cotton Keep An Eye Out For The “Odd Balls” That May Threaten Young Cotton

BY SCOTT GRAHAM AUBURN UNIVERSITY

O

ne of the challenges of cotton insect pest management is also one of the things that makes it exciting: no two seasons (or even weeks) are the same. For this reason, there is no substitute for “boots on the ground” weekly scouting for odd critters that may show up.

Depending on weather, we may see some “relatively” common pests, such as spider mites or three-cornered alfalfa hoppers, or we may observe some real odd balls, like white-margined burrower bugs. Walking fields weekly, beginning at planting helps identify potential problems before they arise and can help ensure we maximize our yield potential from the start.

D R Y W E AT H E R P E S T S Grasshoppers

Grasshoppers have been a sporadic pest of seedling cotton in Alabama for many years. Dry weather during the winter favors the survival of grasshopper eggs, which are laid in pods in the soil. Shifts to reduced and no-till systems have also led to increased grasshopper populations, as eggs are not mechanically killed during tillage.

In Alabama, immature grasshoppers begin emerging in late March and continue through June as soil temperatures rise and spring rains occur. Grasshoppers damage cotton by feeding on the mainstem of seedlings — often in the crook or cracking stage — resulting in stand loss.

Scouting for grasshoppers is difficult, as they are hard to capture in a sweep net. There are no current thresholds for grasshoppers and likely never will be due to their sporadic feeding nature and difficulty to sample. In fields with historic grasshopper problems, preventative approaches, such as adding

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

an insecticide to burndown herbicides, may be needed. Border sprays are not effective since immature grasshoppers emerge throughout the entire field.

For information on thresholds Since not all immature grassand insecticide recommendahoppers emerge at the same tions in cotton-growing areas time, a long-lasting residual outside Alabama, contact your insect growth regulator insectilocal Extension agent. cide could be used. Ultimately, preventative applications for grasshoppers are a judgment call and are based on the risk level an individual farmer is willing to accept. While most labeled insecticides provide control of immature grasshoppers at low labeled rates, adults, which develop later in the spring, are more difficult to control, even at higher rates.

For more information, visit the ACES publication Insect Pests of Cotton: Grasshoppers (https://bit.ly/3MfULI6) and the Alabama Extension IPM Guide IPM-0415 (https://bit. ly/36CieUA).

Two-Spotted Spider Mites

Two-spotted spider mites are an increasingly common early season cotton pest in Alabama. As acres continue to shift to reduced tillage and cover cropping systems, this trend will likely continue, particularly in dry springs. Mite populations slowly build on existing winter vegetation and will move to cotton as it emerges in the spring. One way to mitigate spider mite outbreaks is to achieve good burndown.

Historically, spider mites were mostly observed to be border pests as populations moved from weedy hosts in field edges into cotton fields.

Recently, outbreaks can be found in the middle of fields, often in areas where good burndown was not achieved. In hot, dry spells, spider mites can develop from egg to adult in as little as five days. Outbreaks are more likely in these conditions and following applications of broad-spectrum insecticides.

The most efficient way to scout for spider mites is to look for symptoms of seedling injury. Mites cause damage by sucking juices from the bottom of leaf surfaces. Signs of feeding begin as white or yellowish stippling that develops into reddening or purpling of leaves along leaf veins. In seedling cotton, this can lead to defoliation and stand loss in severe outbreaks.

If early signs of spider mite damage are observed, look on the underside of the leaf for mites, which are small (0.3 mm) and yellowish with two black dots on their back. A 10x hand lens is helpful to see mites. Exposing the underside of the leaf may agiCOTTONFARMING.COM

tate mites, causing them to move and making them easier to see.

Determining when to treat for spider mites requires some professional judgement, as management decisions are not based on numbers of mites found. In addition to the number of plants showing symptoms, and the severity of symptoms, the immediate weather forecast should also be taken into consideration.

If no significant rain chances are expected in the next few days, treatment may be warranted. Up-to-date thresholds and insecticide recommendations can be found in the Alabama Extension Cotton IPM Guide IPM-0415 (https://bit.ly/36CieUA).

Three-Cornered Alfalfa Hoppers

Three-cornered alfalfa hoppers (TCAH) are a sporadic pest of seedling cotton. Infestations tend to be worse on field borders and in dry springs when migrating adults move from weedy hosts to cotton fields. TCAH damage seedlings by feeding around the mainstem (girdling), resulting in a “knot” below the cotyledons that reduces the plant’s ability to move nutrients and photosynthate. Damaged plants will appear stunted, the leaf veins will turn dark red, and the leaves will turn a red-orange color. Typically, girdling is not a concern once plants reach the 6- or 7-node stage.

Although sampling for TCAH is possible, most infestations are observed once plants begin to show symptoms. Often, damage observed is not as bad as it looks and is almost always confined to field borders. There are currently no established thresholds for TCAH in cotton.

Unlike soybean, girdled cotton plants usually die, and neighboring plants compensate for any stand loss. TCAH can easily be managed with pyrethroids or organophosphates. However, economic losses are rare, and treatment is not often justified. In some cases, TCAH may reinfest fields soon after application, giving the appearance that the treatments did not work. Followup applications are more likely to flare spider mites than to save cotton from economic TCAH damage.

White-Margined Burrower Bug

White-margined burrower bug is another sporadic insect that can be found in cotton fields during dry springs. This insect may be confused with the peanut burrower bug, which is a sporadic, but important, pest of peanut. Little is known about the life cycle of white-margined burrower bug or its pest status in cotton.

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Infestations, though rare, tend to occur in reduced till fields and in dry years. These insects feed on developing seeds and are particularly attracted to seeds in the mint family, such as henbit or purple deadnettle. Anecdotal observations suggest that these insects are highly susceptible to insecticide seed treatments and do not pose a threat to cotton seedlings. Thus, insecticide applications are not recommended as the potential to flare other pests is increased.

False Chinch Bug

False Chinch Bug (FCB) are a rare pest of seedling cotton.

This insect can be found on a wide variety of plants and weeds and builds up populations during cool, wet springs where weedy hosts thrive. Then, as conditions become hot and dry, and weedy hosts dry down, populations will move to cotton.

False chinch bugs damage cotton by sucking juices from the plants, and heavy infestations can kill cotton seedlings. Many times, infestations are confined to field borders where populations move from weedy hosts along ditch banks.

But they may also be found throughout the field if high populations of weeds were present prior to a herbicide application.

In the rare cases that FBC presents an issue, they usually occur during dry periods and after a herbicide application that kills weedy host plants so FCB have no other hosts to infest but cotton seedlings. Due to the rarity of infestations, there are no thresholds for FCB in cotton. Anecdotal observations suggest some at-plant insecticides, such as aldicarb, provide control of FCB. If foliar treatment is warranted, FCB can be difficult to control. In some cases, a tankmix of acephate and bifenthrin are needed to manage populations.

W E T W E AT H E R P E S T S Slugs

Slugs are not an insect but are a growing pest of seedling cotton in Alabama. These critters, known as mollusks, are associated with cool, wet years and reduced-tillage systems. Infestations are more likely to occur following high residue crops, such as corn or grain sorghum. Slugs may damage cotton by feeding on cotyledons or true leaves, often leaving irregularly shaped holes on leaf edges. However, the greatest risk is stand loss from slugs feeding on the mainstem of seedlings.

Slugs are often most active at night and difficult to find during the day. To scout for slugs, scratch the soil surface back and look for them. There are no thresholds for slugs and few effective options for control after planting.

In high-risk fields where tillage is not an option, setting row cleaners more aggressively can push plant residue back which may reduce the risk of injury. Additionally, ensuring the furrow is closed can help reduce the chances of slugs clipping cotton MAY 2022 | COTTON FARMING

13

seedlings before they emerge. Baits containing iron phosphates or metaldehyde are available, but in many cases are cost prohibitive and not readily available.

Ultimately, the best management strategy for slugs is hot, dry growing conditions that are conducive for seedling growth and bad for slugs. It is important to note that insecticides have no activity on slugs and should not be used as a control measure.

Snails

Snails are another mollusk pest that are becoming more of a threat to cotton stand establishment. Although a more consistent issue in in south Alabama, infestations have been observed in central and in northeast Alabama as well. The most common species of snails currently observed in Alabama cotton feeds on detritus and decaying organic matter, not cotton plants.

Damage is caused from the sheer number of snails that climb on seedlings, with the resulting weight breaking the plants and causing stand loss.

For up-to-date thresholds and insecticide recommendations for cutworms, consult the Alabama Extension IPM Guide IPM0415 (https://bit.ly/36CieUA).

True Armyworms

Unlike slugs, snails are easily found during the day and can be differentiated by their shell. Snails may be worse in fields with high calcium levels or in areas where lime was over applied, as they mine this nutrient for shell production.

Like slugs, we do not have thresholds or effective control options. Currently, tillage is the only option to manage them.

High-risk fields or fields that have issues with snails in the past may benefit from at least light tillage prior to planting.

Cutworms

Several species of cutworms may be observed in wet springs.

Vegetation in fields prior to planting, such as cover crops or weeds, attract moths to lay eggs that results in finding caterpillars as the cotton emerges. Cutworms are more common in reduced till fields and may be more likely to be found in low lying areas where effective burndown was not achieved.

Cutworms are more active at night and damage seedlings by clipping plants at the soil level then feeding on leaves below the soil surface. Thus, the presence of severed stems with no leaves may be an indicator of cutworm infestations.

To scout for cutworms, look for signs of stand loss then scratch below the soil surface and look for the “dirty” looking caterpillar. If herbicide burndown applications are made less than four weeks prior to planting and conditions are cool and wet, preventative control measures may be justified. Mid labeled pyrethroid rates often provide adequate control of cutworms when applied with burndown herbicides or within seven days before or after planting.

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

True armyworms are a sporadic pest of seedling cotton in Alabama. Infestations are almost always confined to reduced-tillage systems as moths are attracted to existing vegetation for egg laying.

These caterpillars are commonly found on grasses in the spring and may require treatment in wheat. Thus, infestations may be more likely behind fields with grass cover crops, such as cereal rye. The caterpillars are a light brown or tannish color and have characteristic black bands around their legs. Like other spring pests, the threat of damage is from stand loss by caterpillars clipping seedling stems.

Scouting for true armyworm is best done in the morning, as larvae hide under plant stubble during the heat of the day.

There are no established thresholds for true armyworm in cotton. However, planting into fields with infestations is not advised. If populations are observed, mid labeled pyrethroid rates often provide adequate control when applied with burndown herbicides or within seven days before or after planting.

Summary

Insect management is different from all other aspects of cotton production. The cotton insect situation changes from year to year, week to week and field to field in the approximately 20,000 cotton fields across Alabama. To manage key and sporadic insect pests effectively and efficiently, scouting is critical.

Changes in the weather can affect which species of pests are most likely to infest fields.

Although pests, such as thrips, plant bugs and stink bugs are consistent threats, sporadic pests sometimes cause more headaches because many field advisors have less experience with them. The only way to know what insects are in fields and at what levels is to scout weekly. Familiarizing yourself with the “odd balls” is important to properly identify which insects are pests, which are beneficials and which are incidentals.

Dr. Scott Graham is an Extension entomologist with Auburn University. He may be reached at shg0013@auburn.edu.

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Industry News FiberMax One Ton Club Celebrates 17 Years BASF welcomed 51 farms to the FiberMax One Ton Club following the 2021 growing season.

Chase and Maegan Bubenik of San Angelo, Texas, were the winners of the 2021 FiberMax One Ton Club drawing for a two-year lease on a Ford Super Duty F-350 King Ranch truck.

Michael and Melissa Hoch of M & M Farms reported an average yield of 3,417 pounds of cotton per acre — the second highest yield on record for the One Ton Club — and a gross value of nearly $1,950 an acre.

Additional OTC awards include:  Highest yield/gross value: M & M Farms in Garden City, Texas: Average yield of 3,417 lb/A with FM 2334GLT and a gross value of $1,949.39 per acre.  Most acres: Kitten Land Company of Lubbock: Average yield of 2,129 lb/A on 933 acres with the FM 2398GLTP, FM 1830GLT and FM 2498GLT varieties.

Most varieties:  Jonathan James Farms of Floydada, Texas: Average yield of 2,151 lb/A using

FM 2498GLT, FM 2334GLT and FM 1621GL.  Kitten Land Company of Lubbock: Average yield of 2,129 lb/A using FM 2398GLTP, FM 1830GLT a nd FM 2498GLT.  Tucker Ross of Idalou, Texas: Average yield of 2,126 lb/A using FM 2 4 9 8GLT, FM 233 4 GLT a nd FM 2484B2F.  Eric & Christy Seidenberger of Garden Cit y, Texas: Average yield of 2,058 lb/A using FM 2334GLT, FM 1730GLTP and FM 2498GLT.  Martin & Mimms of Lorenzo, Texas: Average yield of 2,032 lb/A using FM 1730GLTP, FM 2498GLT and FM 1830GLT.  Highest loan value: Eric and Christy Seidenberger of Garden City, Texas, garnered $0.5792 on their qualifying acres with FM 1730GLTP. For more, visit FiberMax.com/OTC.

Louisiana Agriculture Hall Of Distinction Names Inductees T hree icons of L ou isia na ag r iculture were recently inducted into

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the Louisiana Agriculture Ha ll of Distinction.

The new inductees are former director of the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service and current chancellor of LSU Alexandria Paul Coreil, of Alexandria; long time Louisiana Radio Network farm broadcaster Don Molino, of Baton Rouge; and Jim Monroe, of Pineville, the former assistant to the president at Louisiana Farm Bureau, where Monroe worked for 47 years.

The Louisiana Agriculture Hall of Distinction is a joint effort of the LSU AgCenter, Louisiana Radio Network, Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation and Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

It honors individuals who have made significant contributions to agriculture or agriculture-related industries.

Previous inductees have represented farming, ranching, forestry, aquaculture, education and agribusiness.

To learn more about the Louisiana Agriculture Hall of Distinction, contact Eboni Register with the Louisiana Radio Network at 225-291-2727 or eboni@ louisianaradionetwork.com.

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MAY 2022 | COTTON FARMING

15

Specialists Speaking

Prepare For Early Season Pests ARIZONA Randy Norton

Nearly all the 2022 crop is in the ground with some of the earliest planted cotton in the western reaches of the state nearing first bloom. However, most of the crop across Arizona is not even to first square yet.

Managing very young cotton is critical to the eventual success of your crop. There are many potential pests that can affect early season cotton both seen, such as thrips, flea beetle, etc. and unseen, such as nematodes. Knowing your fields and scouting for early season pests is critical to maintaining a healthy and vigorous crop. Often, a limited amount of early season insect pressure can be sustained without jeopardizing production. However, higher levels of sustained infestation can lead to reduced leaf surface area, split (forked) terminals and generally unhealthy seedlings.

New technology on the verge of large-scale commercial release will help to manage some of these early season pests (specifically thrips).

Knowing your field and the soil before planting and taking appropriate management actions will help you manage the unseen pests, such as nematodes. Let’s also not forget about proper early season crop management from an agronomic perspective. A hot and dry spring and early summer winds can quickly desiccate the soil and lead to water-stressed young plants.

Proper irrigation management early in the season is critical. This type of stress can result in aborted early season fruit set, increased vegetative growth potential and delays in maturity, among a variety of other management complications. Maintaining a healthy young crop from an agronomic perspective will also make the crop better able to withstand other stresses, such as insect and disease pressure. Information related to these topics, along with many others, can be found on our UArizona website at extension.arizona.edu/crops-soils. rnorton@cals.arizona.edu

TEXAS Murilo Maeda

Planting is right around the corner by the time you receive this issue of Cotton Farming. As of April 8, conditions in the Texas High Plains have not improved much since I last wrote to you. In fact, most of our region has been “upgraded” to extreme and/or exceptional drought on the last drought monitor released on April 7. While the northern High Plains saw a little moisture and some snow, mostly dry conditions are prevalent there as well. At the time of this writing, I see warm weather and some very windy days in the short-term forecast; however, we will continue hoping for enough moisture to allow planting, and subsequent rains to carry us through the season.

I mentioned last month about requesting warm/cool germination from your seed retailer as you commit to purchasing seed. Even though moisture is still the strongest limiting factor for seed germination and initial crop establishment at the field level, having this information can help you gauge the overall quality of the seed you are purchasing. That, in turn, can help you decide when to plant variety A versus variety B, for example. A recent survey conducted by Extension cotton specialists across the nation indicated that all samples testing below 80% warm germination also tested below 70% in cool germination. The cool germination test is known to be quite variable, but a good rule of thumb is the higher those numbers are, the better.

While on their own they will not guarantee an adequate stand of cotton, the vigor index (warm + cool germination) can help guide your planting decisions. Simply add the warm and cool germination values you obtained

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

for your seed. If the resulting number is below 120, that seed would be classified as having a poor vigor index. Between 140 and 159 is considered good, and 160 or greater would be classified as excellent. Faced with challenging conditions at planting, starting with higher vigor index seed will help ensure you are giving your crop the better chance. Wishing you all a successful 2022 season! mmaeda@ag.tamu.edu

TEXAS Ben McKnight

As of the first week of April, not much has changed from last month regarding any substantial relief from dry conditions across the state. Cotton in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and Coastal Bend has emerged if it was planted into moisture. With a dry weather forecast for the coming weeks, any remaining cotton that hasn’t been planted in the Coastal Bend will be dry planted ahead of the insurance cutoff date. Growers in the Upper Gulf Coast have made great progress getting the crop planted thus far, and soil moisture conditions in this region are better than much of the state south of Interstate 10.

A good friend once told me the highest yield potential a cotton plant will ever have throughout the entire life cycle is when it’s a seed. As soon as that seed is planted into the seedbed, the clock starts ticking and management decisions must be made to preserve as much yield as possible.

From a weed competition standpoint, nothing could be more accurate.

In the late 1960s, Gail Buchanan and Earl Burns conducted trials in Alabama evaluating weed competition in cotton. The results from their work highlight the importance of keeping a cotton crop weed free for the first eight weeks following emergence to maximize yield.

As a weed scientist by training, I am a big fan of starting clean and staying clean. Residual herbicides, when used according to label recommendations, can provide tremendous value to weed control efforts on the front end of the season. By reducing early season weed competition with an effective preemergence herbicide program, we are accomplishing two very important goals toward enhancing productivity. First, we are reducing the pressure put on postemergence products applied later in the season, which is an important component to an overall herbicide resistance management program. Secondly, effective early season weed control will reduce yield-robbing competition in the most critical time of the season to maintain a weed-free environment for cotton plants.

Keep in mind to always check the herbicide label on residual products for important information including rates, crop rotation intervals and moisture requirements for product activation. Additionally, a great resource available for all weed management topics in Texas cotton can be found at https://bit.ly/3JN2ueS. bmcknight@tamu.edu

OKLAHOMA Seth Byrd

As I write this in mid-April, most of the cotton producing areas of Oklahoma are still in need of rain to raise hopes as we creep closer to planting the 2022 crop.

While rain is something we can’t control, by and large, pest issues are something we can. There are a variety of ways to address potential pest issues. While diseases are largely mitigated through the use of seed treatments and variety selection (although that doesn’t alleviate all diseases as we’ve experienced in previous years), there are a variety of strategies that can be used to address weeds and insects.

The vast majority of cotton planted across the U.S. Cotton Belt contains a trait that provides auxin resistance, and Oklahoma is no exception.

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Specialists Speaking Although as we all know, these chemistries, much less the traits themselves, have not completely solved weed issues. I’d argue that in many cases it may have made them worse in the long run, but that’s a conversation for another day. A solid pre-emergence program, post-emergent use of residuals and rotating MOAs are all solid methods to address weed issues through chemical means. These are certainly not new approaches, and if you’ve heard a cotton weed science discussion in the last decade, all these are typically discussed as priorities when developing a herbicide program. Tillage or cover crops are other mechanical or cultural methods for suppressing weeds — likely used as an either/or approach. But these two methods could be combined in some systems. The key is to limit the number of weeds that emerge by any means necessary. Whatever method works best for you in achieving that should be the one to go with, as long as it also makes financial sense.

Like seedling disease, we can generally use seed treatments to address early season insect concerns. In Oklahoma, this is typically going to be thrips. Many acres are planted to seed with only a base (fungicide only) seed treatment, leaving them vulnerable to thrip damage. Last year, this not only triggered more oversprays of insecticides due to slow growing conditions but also revealed wire worm infestations in some areas, which resulted in significant stand loss and replants. Insecticide seed treatments can at least mitigate these issues if that option is elected, but in-furrow or oversprays may still be necessary for thrips. For mid-season pests such as plant bugs, flea hoppers and stink bugs that are not addressed by Bt traits, consistent scouting is required to ensure yield-limiting infestations don’t go unaddressed. seth.byrd@okstate.edu

LOUISIANA Matt Foster

According to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, cotton acreage intentions in Louisiana are at 200,000 acres, up 82% from the 110,000 acres planted last year. As I write this April 10, substantial rainfall is predicted for most cotton producing areas in the state as the optimal planting window approaches. Cotton planting should begin soon, depending on field conditions.

Once stands have been established, nitrogen applications are made for the upcoming season. Recommended N rates are 60-90 lbs/ac for coarse-textured soils and 90-120 lbs/ac for finer-textured soils. The lower recommended rates should be used on fields following soybean, corn or legume cover crops or fields with a history of excessive stalk growth. Do not apply excess N that can produce very tall and rank cotton. Increased vegetative growth will hinder reproductive growth and, ultimately, yield.

To limit excessive growth, producers will have to rely heavily on mepiquat chloride applications, which can potentially make defoliation difficult at the end of the season.

Best management practices suggest making split applications of N on sandy soils with high leaching potential or soils with a high saturation potential because of denitrification losses. For split N applications, onethird to one-half should be applied at planting with the remainder applied by early bloom at the latest.

Also, after crop emergence, producers should concentrate on managing the cotton plant from the first- through fifth-leaf stage. Reaching the fifth true leaf stage with minimal damage from thrips is a key factor in producing good cotton yields. Seed treatments for controlling early season insect pests play a valuable role in getting the cotton plant off to a rapid start. Depending on environmental conditions, seed treatments may last anywhere from 14-28 days. Oftentimes, under cool spring temperatures, reaching the fifth true leaf stage is delayed and seed treatments may lose their effectiveness. Under these conditions, foliar sprays may be needed. Automatic or convenience applications should be avoided if economic thresholds haven’t been reached. Best of luck during the upcoming season. mfoster@agcenter.lsu.edu TWITTER: @COTTONFARMING

ARKANSAS Bill Robertson The Prospective Plantings report released in March

by USDA-NASS estimated cotton planting intentions at 520,000 acres, up 8% from the 480,000 acres planted last year. This estimate is in line with the NCC estimate released earlier this year.

In our recent crop budget revisions, we see input costs for cotton increasing close to 40%. It is even more critical to do things right the first time. Oftentimes, we feel the need to plant as early as possible. The last two years have demonstrated that we can still optimize yields with delays in planting. When planting into cold soils, it is imperative to use the highest quality seed. As seed size decreases, seed quality becomes more critical when planting in marginal conditions.

When determining if replanting is necessary, many factors should be considered. First, it is important to evaluate the current stand of plants that will survive. Establishing the occurrence of skips greater than three feet in length — especially when this occurs simultaneously in adjacent rows — is critical. The ability of cotton to adapt and maintain yield potential at lower plant populations is often underestimated. If the decision to replant is difficult, it is usually best to keep it.

The period from planting to first square is a critical time for the cotton plant. While water and nutritional requirements for the plant are low, cotton is not a very good competitor. Allowing weeds or other pests to overcome pre-squaring cotton will impact yield potential. It is easy to sometimes overlook the importance of early season weed control when we have the tools to clean up a weedy mess down the road. brobertson@uada.edu

MISSISSIPPI Brian Pieralisi Cotton acres in Mississippi are expected to increase 11% from last year. With an increase in both acres and cotton prices, one can bet an abundance of early season pests will try to cause problems for seedling cotton.

Planting season was unusually tough last year due to excessive cool, wet weather throughout May. As I write this, the 2022 planting season remains untarnished with hopeful expectations of planting during the optimal window of May 1-10. Growers should focus on management tactics within their control and take advantage of any favorable planting opportunities.

Thrips are the primary early season pest affecting Mississippi cotton.

Over the past several years, thrip pressure has been unusually high, causing multiple applications in some cases. This can likely be attributed to slow growing cotton, met with environmental conditions favorable for this pest.

Typically, by the three- to four-leaf stage, cotton plants are past the most susceptible stage for economic injury or delays in maturity. However, a sound management plan is in order to mitigate injuries from thrips.

Early season thrip management typically consists of imidacloprid-treated seed or in-furrow treatments, followed by foliar applications. In-furrow treatments of 1.1 lbs. acephate, or 8 oz. imidacloprid, should be directed on or below the seed for most effective control. Under high reniform nematode populations, 3.5-5 lbs. aldicarb is another option. Most current cotton varieties are pretreated with recommended fungicides; however, using in-furrow insecticides increases susceptibility to cotton seedling diseases.

Be sure to plant seeds treated with a recommended fungicide.

Lastly, most cotton grown in Mississippi is conventionally tilled and cutworms are not an issue. However, with an increase in both cover-cropped and no-till acres, cutworms could establish on existing vegetation. Cover crops should be terminated at least three weeks prior to planting to avoid risks associated with stand reduction. If vegetation is not terminated three weeks prior to planting, a pyrethroid should be used at planting time, which will protect early season cotton seedlings from stand reductions. bkp4@msstate.edu MAY 2022 | COTTON FARMING

17

Specialists Speaking TENNESSEE Tyson Raper

In my opinion, the 2022 season represents a high risk, high reward scenario. My colleagues and I have spent the winter months talking about decisions that minimize risk and increase your likelihood for remaining profitable in 2022. When boiled down, the three most important decisions to make right now are seeding rates, residual herbicides and nitrogen rate.

Data collected through the Mid-South suggests we may be able to reduce seeding rates. Planting too thick will likely not increase yields but will increase your financial risk by more than just the cost of seed. Stands that are too thick have the potential to delay maturity, increase the need for plant growth regulators and decrease penetration of foliar-applied inputs like insecticides or defoliants.

Second, residuals are key for 2022, and you should plan to overlay them to minimize reliance on other products that may be difficult to find. Finally, properly select your nitrogen rate and be sure not to over apply. I’d carefully consider a substantial reduction in nitrogen during 2022 since an over-application of N often increases the need for so many other inputs. As we move into planting, I encourage you to reach out to your agronomist to make sure you’ve optimized each of these numbers. traper@utk.edu

NORTH CAROLINA Guy Collins

As I write this April 4, there’s no way to know what the weather will be during planting season. It’s hard enough to assess the weather forecasts even within a few days during this time of the season. Every year seems to be different but challenging in its own way.

Planting will likely be underway by the time this article is published. We’ve harped on the importance of having seed tested by NCDA quite a bit, so hopefully most growers have used that resource to know the warm and cool germ of seed they purchased and use it to make better planting decisions. The Cotton Planting Conditions Calculator can be found on the NCSU Cotton Portal website (https://cotton.ces.ncsu.edu/) under “Calculators and Decision Aids” or directly at https://products.climate.ncsu.edu/ag/cotton-planting/.

We encourage growers to check this calculator every morning and every evening during planting season. It uses National Weather Service forecasts and provides a real-time assessment and rating of the five-day forecasted planting conditions for cotton. The calculator applies both predicted temperatures and heat unit accumulation, as well as the likelihood of rainfall. Checking it every morning and evening will allow growers to see how subtle changes in weather forecasts may affect the rating for planting conditions. This is especially true during periods when conditions are less than ideal but are still acceptable — or when the predicted heat unit accumulation is right on the cusp of one category versus another. Using this resource, along with knowing the warm and cool germ of seed, will help you navigate through planting season with the best decisions possible.

Last year illustrated the importance of proper planting depth. As the planting season progressed, our top soils got drier, which in turn, encouraged growers to plant deeper in order to “chase” moisture. For cotton, this is a mistake that often leads to poor stands and necessitates replanting.

Most of our cotton is grown in strip-till or no-till systems without a bed.

Needless to say, soils remain cooler than cotton grown on beds. When chasing moisture by planting deeper, we actually cause more stress on cotton seedlings by prolonging the time and energy required for emergence and potentially placing seed in cooler soil zones. In these situations, moisture is already limited, therefore what moisture remains may be enough to sprout the seed but not enough for it to emerge. To compound matters further, any badly needed rain is likely to cause crusting in many of our Coastal Plains’ soils, which further exacerbates the problem. Planting cot-

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

ton at a ½-inch deep (or the minimal depth required for soil coverage) in completely dry soil may require waiting on a rain. But in nearly all cases, it results in much better stands once rains return and is less likely to necessitate replanting. guy_collins@ncsu.edu

GEORGIA Camp Hand

As I write this April 12, it is a beautiful, sunny afternoon in Tifton. I think I might plant some cotton tomorrow, but I hope that if you are a grower in Georgia reading this that you waited longer than me. I can’t wait any longer!

In my last rendition of Specialist’s Speaking, I addressed starting the season on the right foot in terms of seeding rates. One major way we can make sure we start the season off right is by managing early season pests. I mentioned in the latest UGA Cotton Team Newsletter I have been thinking a lot this year that we need to control the things we can control. How do we do that in terms of early season pests?

First thing for me is weed management. We can’t control the product shortages that folks have been talking about for months, but we can control what we do at planting. Putting residuals behind the planter is a way for us to control the things we can control. It buys us time, gets the crop off to a good start and allows us to use other inputs as efficiently as possible. The second thing is thrips. Dr. Roberts tells me these are one of the most consistent pests we face, and they can cost a grower a half a bale of cotton. At-plant insecticides, coupled with a seed treatment, are an easy way to protect your crop and allow yourself that good start. Lastly, are nematodes. Dr. Kemerait tells me that once the furrow is closed, you watch from the sidelines in terms of nematodes. If they are a problem in your field, let’s make sure to handle that by using a nematicide or planting a resistant variety. The last thing we want to do is hinder our crop right out of the gate and not use our inputs efficiently.

One last thought: Dr. Glen Harris and I have talked a lot about fertility this year, particularly as it relates to nitrogen. Pre-plant nitrogen is one thing that would be easy to cut, but I wouldn’t go with nothing up front. It scares me to do that because of what happened last year (delayed sidedress because of rain). What if we can’t be timely with a sidedress application? Once you’re behind, it’s hard to catch up.

Although inputs are high, the cotton price is high, too. Let’s set the crop up to be successful early, and we’ll be in good shape. Your local UGA county Extension agent and specialists are here to help! Reach out if you have any questions. camphand@uga.edu

FLORIDA David Wright

May is the key month for cotton growers in establishing stands and protecting the tender plants from pests.

April is often too wet or cold, while May tends to be dry.

In the past few years, growers have had dry weather conditions to contend with at planting into May. A target of killing cover crops four to five weeks in advance of planting is a good idea for moisture conservation, as well as reduction in insect pests that could damage young cotton seedlings. Many growers strip rows off several weeks ahead of planting to spread the workload and to allow a smaller tractor with planters to come in for the planting operation. All of these can work to ensure that new weed growth does not occur between time of killing cover crops and planting, or strip tilling and planting.

Generally, 2,4-D-type materials applied five weeks ahead of planting will kill many of the broadleaf weeds that may be harder to control with glyphosate. Many growers are using residual herbicides in the burndown application to keep weed growth from coming on before planting. If moisture is conserved from the late March killing of the cover crop, cotCOTTONFARMING.COM

Specialists Speaking ton can be planted at almost any time in mid- to late April to early May with good results.

Starter fertilizer usually helps cotton yields on sandy fields and is more efficient than broadcast applications. This should be considered if high amounts of phosphorus are required. Take care with nitrogen to keep it 1 inch away from the row for each 10 lbs./acre of N applied as a starter. Phosphorus has been shown to be more effective when applied as a starter in a band near the row, or 2” X 2” as compared to broadcast applications. Therefore, consider starter applications if high amounts of P are required for the cotton crop. Test this on your own farm by splitting fields with broadcast applications vs. banded starter applications. We do not recommend “pop-up” fertilizer in row. It will reduce stands in many cases. wright@ufl.edu

ALABAMA Steve M. Brown Planting season always brings a RUSH — both the excitement of starting a new crop and the compelling urgency to get seed in the ground. Delays caused by a wet, cool spring further heighten the need to hurry.

The busyness of planting should not distract us from watching and managing emerging cotton. Thrips continue to be a key pest, one that threatens seedling cotton typically up through the fifth leaf stage and, infrequently, slightly beyond.

At-plant options for thrip control include premium seed treatments, in-furrow sprays and in-furrow granular treatments. The former two usually involve imidacloprid, and the best of the best in-furrow granular product is aldicarb (AgLogic). Under moderate thrip pressure, seed treatments are often insufficient, and sometimes even the “Cadillac”

treatment of aldicarb needs a follow-up foliar spray.

As cotyledons unfold, the tiny, new terminal is vulnerable to the rasping effects of thrips, especially if significant numbers are present or if crop growth is inhibited by cool weather, herbicide injury or other stresses. It’s easy to scout from the truck or tractor and simply look at the overall growth of the seedlings and the health of the new leaves, but the important place — where the action occurs — is the Damage from thrips in a young terminal. tender terminal. The terminal is next week’s new leaves. If thrips are active in the terminal, the developing leaves will looked ragged in a few days. That ragged appearance may trigger a spray, but it’s one that would have accomplished far more had it been made several days earlier.

Properly timed, needed foliar sprays for thrips affect the bottom line.

They make cotton.

There is no substitute for walking, looking and careful examination.

The Thrips Infestation Predictor for Cotton from NC State (https://products.climate.ncsu.edu/ag/cottontip/) is an additional tool that can alert you to the likelihood of significant thrip pressure.

Effective early season thrip control is among the keys to a good start. cottonbrown@auburn.edu

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Ginners Marketplace COTTON

COTTON FARMING IS THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE GINNING INDUSTRY.

Cotton Ginners Marketplace

Julie Murphree, Arizona Farm Bureau outreach director, sat down with Kelci Morrow Murphree (her niece by marriage) to talk about the cotton ginning link in the cotton supply chain.

Armed with her business management degree from Arizona State University, Kelci set out to work in agriculture and celebrate the generational farming she comes from. In all of it, cotton has been the central crop for this family.

“It’s been fun watching her, and nephew Kyle, build a family and career around Arizona agriculture,” Julie said. “When she started as Pinal Gin’s manager, I had to continue tracking her career trajectory and find out her new experiences at the gin and get an insider look at this critical aspect of the cotton supply chain.”

Arizona Agriculture: Like many Arizona farm and ranch families, you come from a generational farm family in southern Arizona. Talk about what it means to stay involved in the industry, especially in your new role as manager for Pinal Gin? Kelci Murphree: My family has been farming since the 1970s and before that, they had a custom harvesting and trucking company. It has always been important to me to stay in the ag industry. It’s what I know and what I am passionate about.

Before taking on my position at Pinal Gin, I was with Helena Agri-Enterprises for six years. I loved the diversity and constant change that came with my position but at the end of the day, cotton has been my family’s focus. I am very proud to be a woman in ag. I feel like there are several of us paving the way for future women wanting solid careers in agriculture.

Arizona Agriculture: Describe what’s been most exciting and rewarding for you in your new role?

Kelci Murphree: This season (2021-22) everything has been exciting. Although I had worked at a gin before, I was not this involved. It has been exciting to learn about the entire process and be hands-on dealing with growers, marketers, vendors and the gin itself. I have learned so much in such a short time.

Arizona Agriculture: What do you like the most?

Kelci Murphree: To be completely honest, I like every aspect of my job. I get to deal with accounting, network with new people and do day-to-day problem-solving.

Arizona Agriculture: During the season, gins run 24/7. I’ve read that a cotton gin can’t afford any downtime, so managers always talk about “keeping the stands in.” Explain what this is and describe what it felt like during this latest cotton season?

Kelci Murphree: Yes, if the stands aren’t running, the rest of the gin has to stop production. It’s never a good feeling to check the cameras and see the stands out. That means there is a problem, and we are getting behind. This year, due to employee issues, we only ran a day shift, so it is important to be able to be as productive as we can within the 11-hour shift.

Arizona Agriculture: We had a pretty good cotton harvest season with USDA-NASS telling us we averaged 1,291 pounds per acre, the highest since the 2018 crop. Is that buzz about production and yield felt in the gin during peak season?

Kelci Murphree: As with everything else in the ag industry this year, acres were down. But with the good weather, most of our growers’ yields were up so the gin was not affected. We

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

PHOTO COURTESY OF BROOKE MARCELLA PHOTOGRAPHY

Conversation With The Gin Manager At Arizona’s Pinal Gin

Kyle and Kelci Murphree are rooted in Arizona agriculture. Their daughter, Karsyn, is the fourth generation if she pursues a career in agriculture. will end up ginning about the same number of bales as they did last year. Next year, however, may be a different story.

Arizona Agriculture: I’m told that once at the gin, the cotton really acquires its value when it becomes a bale ready to be shipped. Talk about this.

Kelci Murphree: The process is fast once the cotton is ginned. The finished bales will be shipped to the warehouse (usually by the next day) and from there they are graded and classed by the USDA and sold. I believe the grower usually will receive a payment within a week or two.

Arizona Agriculture: You’re seeing several links in the cotton supply chain. What makes our Arizona cotton supply chain links so special from your perspective.

Kelci Murphree: I believe our supply chain is special because of the people. I have met so many amazing people that I am lucky to deal with on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. I know that if I ever have a question or need help, I have multiple people to call on.

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Cotton Ginners Marketplace

HIGH CAPACITY VACUUMS

My Turn An Ominous Cloud

A

p h ot o w ou l d n’t and whopped that fellow on the side of his head.” have done it jus“Thank you,” said Gary with a disarming smile as he tice, but I wish I’d addressed the diminutive gray-haired woman. “If you tried. It was an don’t mind, I’ll summarize your testimony to be certain ominous cloud, massive and I’m clear on everything.” peculiarly long. I left the farm “Help yourself,” she replied. just after midday on March “You were at your kitchen window looking out toward 18 and headed toward home, Lake Blackshear about 10:30 pm. Is that correct?” going west on the Pinehurst“That’s right,” she affirmed.

Hawkinsville Highway. A cou“The distance from your kitchen window to the end ple of miles before the I-75 of the dock where the shooting occurred has been docNeil overpass I slowed to a snail’s umented to be 407 feet. Do you agree?” he inquired.

Joiner pace and stared in awe.

“I’ve never measured it,” she said, “but that seems Rain was predicted but this about right.” was no ordinary formation. A sharp point loomed daunt“It’s also my understanding,” continued Gary, “it was ingly over Pinehurst, securely attached to an oversized a rather dark night with a heavy fog and there were no spear that stretched toward Unadilla. Smooth edges pro- lights on at the dock or in the yard. Is that the way you vided a border almost absent of irregularities. A lighter remember it?” shade of blue supported the long cloud from below with “You’re right on track,” said the lady. a medium-blue sky pressing down from above.

“Is it possible,” Gary asked delicately, “you could be I called my wife to tell her she might want to look out mistaken about what you think you saw occur on the our front door. Although end of that dock 407 feet the tip of the point was not from your window on a “The darkest clouds are often a as well defined from her dark, foggy night?” prelude to the sweetest light.” view, it seemed to begin “Oh, no sir,” she said. “I across the road from our saw it clearly.” home. It’s difficult, however, to judge heavenly distances, “One more thing,” said Gary, adeptly disguising his which reminds me of a story I heard decades ago. confidence in the telling question he was about to presSteve English of Vienna was working in the crim- ent. “You apparently have exceptional vision, so I can’t inal justice system when he told me about a recent help but wonder about something. Just how far can you courtroom episode he’d attended as an observer. Gary see at night?”

Christy, a mutual friend and District Attorney at the “I don’t know,” she answered with a nonchalant time, had skeptically cross-examined a defense witness shrug. “How far is it to the moon?” in a murder trial. The incident had occurred on the Shortly after hearing that story, I saw Harry Hurt, Crisp County side of Lake Blackshear. our distinguished Superior Court Judge. Harry gently While fishing off his dock late one night, a man was informed me that tale had been around for ages. Steve shot and killed. The only witness was a 95-year-old was so convincing I’d had no suspicions. woman whose account contradicted the prosecution’s Wind, rain and house-shaking rumbles of thunder version. She maintained the shooter acted in self-de- came with that ominous cloud, but late in the day a fense, even though he was on another man’s property waning sun peeked through the ethereal quietness that and they had a history of conflicts. sometimes follows a storm. Delicate fingers of light Gary politely asked the elderly lady to recount the brushed soft pastels onto a canvas of tranquility. events of that night, which she did in minute detail.

Surrounded by a divine serenity, I was reminded that She had been looking out her kitchen window just the darkest clouds are often a prelude to the sweetest after the ten o’clock news while getting a drink of water light. A photo wouldn’t have done it justice, but I wish before going to bed. The men were waving their arms I’d tried. and appeared to be in a heated argument. “No doubt — Neil Joiner they were having some strong words,” she said, “but the Vienna, Georgia scuffle started when my neighbor grabbed his Zebco 33 gneiljoiner@gmail.com Cotton Farming’s back page is devoted to telling unusual “farm tales” or timely stories from across the Cotton Belt. Now it’s your turn. If you’ve got an interesting story to tell, send a short summary to csmith@onegrower.com. We look forward to hearing from you.

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COTTON FARMING | MAY 2022

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