Wheat Field Day Set for April 28 8am to 11pm 3 CEU's are offered (1 IPM, 1 Laws, 1 General) $10 per person Don't miss this program. We will start at the Brandon Community Center with presentations on Laws and Regulations and a general wheat update from Dr. Rob Duncan, Extension Small Grains Specialist. We will then move the field (East of Mertens, TX on the side of Hwy 22 just east of the county line). We will view replicated variety plots, a plant population study, Canola and Flax. We will wrap up with updates from our two IPM Agents on insect and diseases. If you have questions give us a call at 903-654-3075

Master Marketer Program Coming to Waco in 2011

The Master Marketer program is designed for agricultural producers and agribusiness leaders experienced in marketing commodities and having some knowledge of futures and options markets. The course contains 64 hours of intensive marketing training, focusing on cotton, wheat, livestock and feedgrains.

In 2011 it will be held at the Texas Farm Bureau Headquarters.

Session dates are:
I-January 11-13
II-January 26-27
III-February 9-10
IV-February 23-24

Marking education and training pay dividends that will directly improve your bottom line! Previous graduates report their incomes have increased on average more than $33,000 per year.

Want to know more?

http://mastermarketer.tamu.edu/

Agricultural Waste Pesticide Collection Events

Texas AgriLife Extension Service, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and Texas Department of Agriculture have announced 2010 Agricultural Waste Pesticide Collection Events. These disposal programs allow agricultural producers to properly dispose of unwanted pesticides. According to the TCEQ website:

The free collections, conducted rain or shine, give agricultural producers who use pesticides in Texas an opportunity to dispose of unwanted products that may pose a hazard to them, their families, and their surrounding farming and ranching communities. The program is strictly voluntary and no one is required to participate. All this is done at no expense to them.
The participants do not have to identify themselves. However, there is a short survey in which the participants are asked questions similar to the ones listed below.
- What county are you from?
- How long has your waste been stored?
- How did you hear about today's event?
- What type of material are you bringing today?
The reason for asking the participant the fourth question–regarding the type of material brought in–is to determine how to properly handle it.

The closest event to Navarro County is to be held in Ellis County on Thursday, September 16 at the Ellis County Youth Expo Grounds. For a complete liest of events that will be held this September and October go to http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/assets/public/assistance/agwaste/FY_2011_schedule.pdf

Row Crop Update and CEU Seminar
Friday - January 29, 2010
Corsicana Public Library – Civic Room
Cost: $5 (Lunch will be provided)
5 CEU’s will be provided (2 General, 2 IPM, 1 L&R)

Topics and Agenda
8:15 am Registration and Introductions
8:20 Corn, Grain Sorghum, Wheat, Oats and Soybean Demonstrations - Derek Scasta, Navarro County Extension Agent - Agriculture
8:45 Growing Soybeans and Sunflowers in the Blacklands - Steven Beakley, Ellis County Producer
9:45 Cotton and IPM Update - Glen Moore, Extension Agent IPM
10:45 Laws and Regulations - Benji Parham, Texas Department of Agriculture
11:45 Lunch
12:15 Weed Control and Herbicide Tolerant Milo - Dr. Paul Baumman, Texas AgriLife Extension Service
1:15 Sprayer Technology, GPS, Nozzle Selection and Sprayer Demo - Johnny Walker, John Deere
2:15 Final Questions and pass out certificates

**Please call and RSVP by January 26, 2010 at 5pm for meal and material arrangements**

County Wheat and Oat Demonstration Plot Yields Are In!
One of the pillars of Texas AgriLife Extension Service programming is field demonstrations that show results. This goes back to the old adage, “Don’t just tell me, show me!”. One of the types of demonstrations that are regularly conducted in Navarro County are variety trials that provide unbiased yield data on certain crops in order to assist producers in selecting the most productive and disease resistant variety for the following year. Today I want to share information and results on our recently harvested wheat and oat demonstration plots.
The wheat variety demonstration was planted with Caleb and Josh Martin in Frost, TX on October 27, 2008 using a John Deere 8300 drill planting at 95 pounds per acre following corn. Fertilizer applications included 100 pounds of 18-46-0 on October 24, 2008 and later topdressed with 350 pounds of 32-0-0. Pest management was accomplished using Lorsban and 2,4-D. For the hard varieties the plots average 64.3 bushels per acre (bu/ac) with Duster having the highest yield with 78.3 bu/ac followed by Fuller at 75.4 bu/ac and Jackpot at 73.8 bu/ac. TAM401 yielded 65.6 bu/ac followed by TAM203 at 65.3 bu/ac and Coronado at 58.6 bu/ac. The bottom two hard varieties were TAM304 at 39.9 bu/ac and Fannin at 39.9 bu/ac. For the soft varieties the plots averaged 54.7 bu/ac with USD 3295 having the highest yield with 84.0 bu/ac followed by Coker 9553 at 61.8 bu/ac followed by LA841 at 55.4 bu/ac. The three lowest yields were Crawford at 46.3 bu/ac, Coker 9700 at 41.8 bu/ac and Heavy Grazer at 38.7 bu/ac. The location of these plots allowed for avoidance of frost damage that severely affected many wheat acres in the county this year. The yields are not adjusted for moisture due technical difficulties with the moisture tester. Thanks to Caleb and Josh Martin for planting and harvesting the 2009 Navarro County wheat variety demonstration.
The oat variety demonstration was planted with the Reed family in Barry, TX on November 20, 2008 u sing a Great Plains Solid Stand 13 Drill at 95 pounds per acre following soybeans. Fertilizer applications included 200 pounds of 32-0-0 and 50 pounds of 18-46-0. The average yield was 87.5 bu/ac with Horizon 201 having the highest yield of 110.0 bu/ac followed by TAMO406 at 95.9 bu/ac and TX7682 at 93.8 bu/ac. The bottom four yields were TX 7473 at 86.7 bu/ac, Horizon 314 at 84.5 bu/ac, TAMO405 at 74.6 bu/ac and TAMO606 at 67.4 bu/ac. All yields were adjusted to 13% moisture for comparison. Thanks to Joe, Scott, Jacob, Russell and Pat Reed for planting the 2009 Navarro County oat variety demonstration. Also thanks to Brandon and Zane Nicholson of Barry for providing the combine to harvest the oat plots and to Dekalb for the use of the weigh wagon used for both wheat and oat plots.

Economical Considerations for Conservation Tillage

Field trials were conducted from 2003 to 2008 at the Stiles Farm Foundation in Thrall, TX to assess the economics of No-Till, Strip-Till and Conventional Tillage farming practices. These trials evaluated the yields and net profits of each practice for several different crop rotations.

CORN/CORN ROTATION
No-Till - Yield 87.62 bu/ac - Net Profit $73.76
Strip Till - Yield 93.79 bu/ac - Net Profit $80.81
Conventional - Yield 93.70 bu/ac - Net Profit $57.09

COTTON/CORN ROTATION
No-Till - Yield 78.14 bu/ac - Net Profit $37.37
Strip-Till - Yield 85.02 bu/ac - Net Profit $47.31
Conventional - Yield 79.35 bu/ac - Net Profit $(-6.91)

CORN/COTTON ROTATION
No-Till - Yield 574.4 #/ac - Net Profit $13.80
Strip-Till - Yield 629.3 #/ac - Net Profit $36.20
Conventional - Yield 678.0 #/ac - Net Profit $19.04

SORGHUM/COTTON ROTATION
No-Till - Yield 649 #/ac - Net Profit $67.67
Strip-Till - Yield 691 #/ac - Net Profit $73.94
Conventional - Yield 737 #/ac - Net Profit $77.29

COTTON/SORGHUM ROTATION*
No-Till - Yield 4739 #/ac - Net Profit $103.10
Strip-Till - Yield 5025 #/ac - Net Profit $112.17
Conventional - Yield 5228 #/ac - Net Profit $110.67

*5 years data due to sorghum blown down in windstorm in 2005

Wheat and Oat Field Day Set for April 23

April 23, 9am to noon, this is a joint effort between Hill and Navarro Counties with four demonstrations setup from Barry to Brandon. Demonstrations include: oat variety trial, 2 wheat variety trials and a wheat plant population study. 3 CEU’s will be offered: 2 General and 1 L&R. If you grow wheat or oats, this will be a tour that you will not want to miss.

Schedule
9:15 am – #1 Oat Variety Plots – Reed Farms - Barry, TX
10:00 am – #2 Wheat Variety Plots – Martin Farms – Frost, TX
10:45 am – #3 Wheat Variety Plots – Degner Farms – Mertens, TX
11:15 am – #4 Wheat Plant Population Study – Surovik Farms – Brandon, TX
12:00 pm – #5 Lunch at Brandon Community Center
· Texas Wheat Producers Association Presentation – Kody Bessent – Lubbock, TX
· Laws and Regulations Presentation

*Dr. Gaylon Morgan, Texas AgriLife Extension Service Small Grains Specialist will be on hand to provide updates on varieties, diseases, conditions and yields.

Remember 3 CEU’s will be offered (2 General and 1 Laws and Regulations)

Please call and RSVP to 903-654-3075 or 254-582-4022 by 5pm April 21st.