Clouds Needed in the Agriculture Picture

As this article was being prepared Thursday, the sky didn’t have many clouds. Those that were present didn’t indicate rain was on the way. Listening to news people on television at night recently didn’t help either. The news people last week talked of upcoming weekend events and in pleasant voices were hoping rain would hold off until outside events were completed. The rain apparently did hold off. We need rain now on agriculture land as of the time this article was being written. We needed rain last week. We’ll take what Mother Nature has to send us whenever we can get it. We are sentimental towards those people who have been flooded in other states, but we are very dry. Our crops, lawns, trees, gardens, ditches, creeks and any other source needing rainfall is showing the stress signs.

Harvest of the wheat crop will soon be complete. The bright side here is the test

weights are doing well according to farmer and grain elevator reports. Millers dock farm prices when the test weight is low, and low test weights typically come from rainfall during harvest time. Wheat yields are below normal but have been worse in recent years.

The corn crop appears to be taking the hardest hit at present since some of the area’s corn is badly wilted and is in the tassel and silk stages of growth. Water requirements for corn from planting until now should be 13 or more inches of water total. Since the beginning of March, unofficial rainfall data from Harold McLamb indicate we have received a little over 6 inches total for the months of March, April and May combined to include zero for June so far. The corn crop typically requires over 20 inches of water for a good crop during the season and the crop is in the highest demand for water needs at present.

The cotton crop is a mixed bag of growth. Cotton planted prior to May this season appears to have better stands unless packing rains prevented germination. Rain showers have been isolated and some areas that received some of these showers obviously have better-looking cotton than others. One area of Lee County had cotton seed planted the first week of May with numerous seed still not yet germinated. No rainfall has been received here since planting time. Even though the most critical time for water on cotton is during the fruiting period (which normally begins in mid-June), there is not enough soil moisture to get a good stand in some fields. Thrips are plentiful in small cotton and are causing damage on the very small plants. A cotton crop can get by with a tenth of an inch of water a day from emergence to squaring(fruit set) but needs between ¼ th and ½ inch of rain per day during early bloom stage until boll maturity.

Water requirements for soybeans are also highest during the beginning of seed fill in a pod to full seed size as it develops, but sufficient moisture is not available for planting seed to germinate in the soil at present; therefore, planting after wheat is being delayed. Ain’t farming fun? There is still a chance to make a good soybean crop but cotton chances are lessening each day. Corn chances are very limited at present. We need a general rain.

A cotton herbicide test is being conducted on the farm of Steven Welsh in the Elliott/St. Charles area of Lee County at the corner of English Lane and Dog Island Road. We are evaluating applications of Roundup WeatherMax herbicide in several FiberMax cotton cultivars compared to applications of other herbicides. This is a full size replicated test, and we plan to harvest these plots to compare yields.

Japanese Beetles Back but Not by Popular Demand

Japanese beetles ran (flew) rampant in 2002, one of our driest years on record. They were problems in numerous ornamentals and fruit crops. After not being such a problem in 2003, they are already building populations this season. I witnessed these beetles in a cotton field recently but their numbers at the time had not caused appreciable damage. These insects look like miniature June bugs (beetles) and can play havoc on tender foliage as well as fruit to include roses and other ornamentals. The sweet smelling lures that are found in traps do a good job catching them and are safe to use but the lures will attract many more of the pests to the area. Carbaryl (active ingredient in Sevin products) is one of the best insecticides to use if the traps are not catching enough of the beetles. Read the label before applications because edible berries can not be picked for seven days after application. This could be a problem for fruit producers.

Tomato Problems Again

Two things a county extension agent can count on for keeping him/her busy is centipede and tomato problem calls. A huge problem in my own tomato patch this season just started about two weeks ago, Bacterial wilt. This is not the Tomato spotted wilt virus spread by thrips. This one will spread from one plant to the next in the soil, and the plant droops and dies soon after symptoms appear. I thought I was the expert on growing tomatoes but this is an humbling experience. Control? Nothing, just plant the tomatoes somewhere else for at least three years. At least the tomato spotted wilt has resistance. This one does not. It attacks any variety and doesn’t need much reason.