Baldwin County Extension Office
302A Byrne Street
Bay Minette, AL  36507
(251) 937-7176
Richard L. Petcher
Regional Extension Agronomist for Southwest Alabama
(251) 847-2295, cell (251) 202-1009, SL 7*145

News Letter June 2006 

To Row Crop Producers in South West Alabama.  Some of this news letter is concerning new information and some of this will serve as a reminder of production practices that you already know, but may serve as a simple check list to go over before planting.

The Cotton Pick Sack is also a very good news letter that comes out around the middle of each month.  It is written by the Auburn University Cotton Specialists.  This as well as other Alabama cotton information can be found at:  www.alabamacotton.com

Another website that you may be interested in visiting for weekly crop updates is:

 www.nass.usda.gov/weather/cpcurr/al-crop-weather

                                           UPCOMING MEETINGS

Peanut Fungicides and Growth Regulators on Cotton

Creek Bank Restaurant on Highway 43, a few miles South of Leroy in Washington Co..

Speaker:  William Reed with BASF

Time:  11:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Complying with the USDOT Number Meeting:

In an effort to try and answer some questions about complying with the intrastate USDOT number system, the Alabama Cooperative Extension System will be hosting a meeting on June 15, beginning at 12:00 noon in the David Burt Building auditorium, located behind the Conecuh County Courthouse, in Evergreen.  Sgt. K. D. Kelley with the Alabama Department of Public Safety will be on hand to explain the USDOT number system and to answer any questions about complying with the system that you may have.  The meeting will be broadcast live via video conference to the Gulf Coast Research and Extension Center in Fairhope and also the Jon Archer Building in Mobile.

As the Department of Transportation begins enforcing this system, it will have an impact on people hauling cattle, farm equipment, etc.  We encourage you to join us at this important informative meeting to discuss what producers need to do to be in compliance with the law.  For more information about the meeting, please contact Anthony Wiggins at (251) 238-2007 or Ken Kelley at (251) 238-0373.

Early Season Peanut Short Scout School

Creek Family Restaurant in Atmore for a Dutch Treat Breakfast at 7:30 a.m.

Then travel to Huxford and McCullough for field scouting.

Ron Weeks, Auburn University Peanut Entomologist

Date: Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Liberty Link Cotton Field Test in Grand Bay.

Speaker:  Jake Ford and Jerry Spivey with FiberMax and Dr. Mike Patterson, Auburn University Weed Scientist.  This test is on Driskol Farm in Grand Bay, Mobile County.  We have not set a date as of yet, however if you are interested in seeing this plot please call me at 334-406-8818.

Southern Peanut Grower’s Conference:  July 16-18 at Panama City Beach, Florida.

3rd Annual Precision Ag and Field Crops Day

July 19, 2006 at Dee River Ranch in Pickens County

For more information call Shannon Norwood@256-412-1696 or hubers@auburn.edu.

Huxford Cotton and Peanut Field Day

Date:  Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Starting Place: Huxford Baptist Church.  From I-65 at Atmore take Highway 21 North for about 8 miles.  Just past the pole mill take highway 30 going west toward McCullough.  Continue for ½ mile. The Huxford Baptist Church is on the left.  . 

Time: 8:30 a.m.

Topics:  DeltaPine Variety Test:  Dru Rush

Nematode Tests:  Randy Ackridge, Dr. Kathy Lawrence and Dr. Bill Gazaway.

Cotton Variety Test:  David Womack’s Farm, Cotton Representatives.

Peanuts: Dallas Hartzog

Dinner: Sponsored

Mariana Florida, Peanut Field Day

August 24th in Mariana, Florida.  I consider this the best meeting of the year where a grower can go for one day and learn in the field all he can about peanuts.  Peanut Specialists from Georgia, Alabama and Florida will be talking about their research.  Dr. Barry Tillman from Fruitdale, Alabama is now the Peanut Plant Breeder for the University of Florida and he will be heading up this day.     

ROW CROP INFORMATION

Cotton Insect Hot Line: 1-800-458-3738  Dr. Ron Smith, AU. Cotton Entomologist.

Fertilize Cotton By Bloom Time: Research has shown that regardless of how much N you apply after early bloom there is no increase in yield. 

*Alternatives to the High Cost of Nitrogen Fertilizers. The article below was written by Dr. Charles Mitchell, Auburn University Soil Specialist. 

The modern, 21st Century, Alabama cotton farmer has few alternatives to the increasingly high cost of fertilizers.  It’s kind of like alternatives to gasoline.  There are some, but our society has become addicted to cheap fuel and it will be a major lifestyle change to adopt these alternatives.  Since World War II, modern Alabama agriculture has also become addicted to relatively cheap, inorganic fertilizers.  We have often used increasing rates of fertilizer nutrients to substitute for intensive management e.g., managing winter legumes as a source of N.  No one really knows at what price or when fertilizer prices will stabilize but we are almost certain that they will continue to rise in the near future.  So, what alternative does an Alabama cotton farmer have?

     1) Avoid ammonium nitrate (34-0-0).  This is absolutely the most expensive source of N.  It is good and effective but at over $0.50 per pound of N, it really adds to the cost of production.  Alternatives are liquid UAN solutions e.g., 32-0-0, 30-0-0, or 28-0-0+ S (~$0.40 per pound N).  These are a mixture of urea and ammonium nitrate.  The urea component is subject to ammonia volatilization losses if the solution is sprayed on dead vegetation such as in a no till situation.  There are ways to minimize potential volatilization losses.  It can be injected into the soil, cultivated into the soil, irrigated into the soil, applied within a day or two of rainfall, or applied through an irrigation system (fertigation).  A chemical additive, Agrotain®, suppresses the urease enzyme which is responsible for volatilization losses.  However, this adds additional cost to the nitrogen solution.

     Dry urea (46-0-0, ~$0.36 per pound N) can be handled like ammonium nitrate but is highly susceptible to ammonia volatilization losses when (1) temperatures are high e.g., above 90°F, (2) applied to soil surfaces containing a lot of plant residue, (3) applied to alkaline soils (pH> 7.0), and/or (4) soil surface is dry and no rain is forecast for several days.  Again, losses can be minimized by following the suggestions for UAN nitrogen solutions lists above.  The cost of using Agrotain® with dry urea must be weighed against the cost of applying a little extra urea to account for potential volatilization losses.

     2)  Poultry litter (~ 3-3-2).  Alabama produces enough poultry litter to fertilize every acre of cotton in the State.  However, only a few cotton producers are taking advantage of this resource.  Most who use poultry litter apply it at or before planting.  A ton of litter will contain around 60-60-40 pounds total N-P2O5-K2O.  Most assume that around 2/3 of the total N will be available to this year’s crop so a ton will supply around 40 pounds of available N.  Most growers apply around 2 tons per acre (~80 pounds available N) and supplement the N with a side-dress application of ammonium nitrate, urea, or UAN liquid N.  Auburn University’s standard N recommendation for cotton is 90 pounds total N per acre (± 30 pounds N).

     3)  Legume N.  It’s too late for the 2006 crop but some cotton producers may want to plan ahead for 2007 and use the time-honored and proven technique of growing your own N in the form of winter annual legumes.  Long-term research on the “Old Rotation” experiment at Auburn (circa 1896) indicates that a good winter annual legume can fix 100 to 150 pounds N per acre, more than enough N to produce 2+ bales per acre.  However, growing a legume in a conservation tillage system requires timely planting and lots of management but it can be done, and it will definitely reduce fertilizer N use.  Legumes are an excellent choice where soil test P and K levels have been built up to “high” from past poultry litter or fertilizer applications.  Some legumes which have been tried include crimson clover, hairy vetch, common vetch, and lupins.

     Just like there is no easy, cheap and quick solution to the high cost of gasoline, there is no easy, quick, and cheap solution to the high cost of fertilizers.  Both situations are related to dwindling supplies and high demand for fossil fuel.

June Soybean Update:

As of today, June 1, Asian Rust has not been found on any Soybeans in the U.S.  This is probably because the Panhandle of Florida has had such dry weather.  Last year Asian Rust was found in Baldwin County on June 30th.  So soybean growers should be on the alert.  There are four Asian Rust Soybean Sentinel Plots in Southwest Alabama that are being monitored.  And as of today the plots are clean as can be and free of any diseases.  The plot in Baldwin and Washington Counties were planted in mid March.  The beans are in the pod fill out stage.  Both group III and IV were planted.  The group III and especially the group IV are doing remarkably well as far as producing an outstanding crop.  They must have hit the day length sensitivity of the group IV bean just right.  These beans will mature and be ready for harvest by late July or early August.  As far as I know there are no farmers planting soybeans in March in Alabama.  The ole timers tell me that years ago it was a common practice for farmers to plant soybeans in March when they planted their corn.  This is not an Auburn University recommendation however, growers in our area may want to experiment with this.  Plant a group IV bean in March.  Get a crop in the ground when you have a little extra time. Get ahead of the heavy insect and disease pressure and harvest in time for August delivery for the market premium.       

Soybean growers noticed that stink bugs last year got more than their share of the crop.  So be sure to scout and be ready to spray.

Grain Sorghum

Grain sorghum is an excellent rotation crop for peanuts or cotton.  It is a good source of organic matter and is a good crop to plant to help control weeds for the next crop.  Grain sorghum is sensitive to acid soils.  Soils below a pH of 5.8 will greatly reduce yields.  Planting date is up until July 15th.  Seeding rate should be around 80,000 seed per acre.  That is somewhere between 4 to 7 lb. per acre depending on the seed size.  The tendency is to plant too thick, causing lodging and not as much grain because of over crowding.  The two varieties that I recommend for South Alabama for grain are Pioneer 83G66 and Dekalb 5400 and DeKalb 53-03 for grazing and grain.  There are many other varieties to choose from.  Do not skimp on Nitrogen and expect to make a grain crop.  The Nitrogen rate is 80 to 100 lbs. per acre dry land.  Apply thirty to fifty per cent at planting and sidedress the rest prior to head initiation.  This is usually thirty days after emergence.  Look closely for insects especially at grain fill time.   

 Corn

Corn earworms and army worms have been in fields.  I am not aware of any fields that reached treatable thresholds.  Be alert to stink bugs.  Stink bugs are a major pest of young corn, particularly in South Alabama. If the growing point is badly damaged, the plant may develop multiple stems.  Moderate feeding results in a buggy whip symptom.  If more than 10 percent of plants show a buggy whip symptom, or if there are more than one or two stink bugs per plant, an insecticide treatment may be justified.  As corn gets older, stink bugs can damage developing ears. 

Trouble Shooting For Peanuts:

During the crop year 2005 while trouble shooting peanuts, often even if I did not think fertility was the problem I would take a soil sample anyway.  Ninety per cent of these samples came back with low pH for peanuts.  I would highly suggest that peanut growers take a Peanut Pegging Zone Sample on any peanut field where they even slightly think the Calcium level for their peanuts is not adequate.  Do this after planting, but before peanuts start pegging.  Take a soil sample right in the row to a three inch depth and request a Peanut Pegging Zone Calcium Sample be run at the Auburn University Soil Testing Lab.  Peanut growers have too much invested in their crop to let insufficient Calcium to reduce their yields. If your pegging zone Calcium is medium, apply 250 pounds of gypsum at blooming time.  If your pegging zone Calcium is low, apply 500 pounds of gypsum.

Another Formulation of Paraquat: Eric Prostko, UGA Peanut Weed Scientist 2006, Chetrum will be marketing another formulation of paraquat sold under the trade name of FIRESTORM. The Firestorm formulation of paraquat is very similar to the old Gramoxone Max formulation (i.e. 3 lb ai/gallon). You may recall that the Gramoxone Max formulation was discontinued by Syngenta and replaced with Gramoxone Inteon (2 lb ai/gallon). The normal use rates of Firestorm in peanut are 5.4-10.8 ozs/A.

WHEAT AND OAT HARVEST:

Yields have been from low to a little above average for most growers.  I do not know of any growers yet who said this was their best crop ever.  We have two wheat and two oat variety test plots planted in South Alabama.  Will Griffiths and Kenneth Carnley have the wheat plots and Walt Richardson and Dewayne and Jim Rhoades have the oat plots.  Both oat plots as of June 1 have been harvested.  I would like to give you the results of Walt Richardson’s oat test plot.  The results were very similar to University Variety Test.  

 Walt Richardson Farm   Washington County    Southwest Al.     Harvested May 24, 2006

TO BURN OR NOT TO BURN  Burning wheat or oat straw is really not recommended as the straw returns organic matter to the soil.  However, some growers burn the stubble for planting their next crop with the equipment they have.  Burning stubble has no effect on controlling the Hessian fly.  A few growers have found a market for wheat and oat straw.  This has been an added benefit to them. 

Again, I hope this letter will be of help to you and that we all receive the rains that our crops need.