Alternative Crops Archives - Department of Soil and Crop Sciences

Trostle named statewide AgriLife Extension hemp specialist

8May

By: Kay Ledbetter

Calvin Trostle, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist, Lubbock, has recently been named the statewide hemp specialist for the agency.

“We’ve had a lot of excellent work being done by our AgriLife Extension Industrial Hemp Initiative team to prepare Texas for the production of industrial hemp,” said Dan Hale, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension associate director — agriculture and natural resources, College Station, in announcing the new position.
Calvin Trostle speaks to attendees of AgriLife event.

“Dr. Trostle has worked tirelessly in this area and has already been serving in a lead specialist capacity. He will do an excellent job in helping lead our Initiative team’s and agency-wide Extension and research activities.”

AgriLife Extension formed an Industrial Hemp Education Initiative Team to provide information concerning industrial hemp production in Texas after House Bill 1325 was signed into law by the Governor last June.

AgriLife Extension agronomist Calvin Trostle, Ph.D., will serve as the agency’s statewide hemp expert.

While the U.S. Department of Agriculture was finalizing federal regulations and guidelines, along with the Texas Department of Agriculture writing of state regulations and guidelines and getting them approved by the USDA, Trostle was already at work.

The industrial hemp education team helped develop resources for agents and specialists to utilize across the state in producer and public education programs. Trostle led or participated in about 20 educational hemp seminars from Dumas to the Lower Rio Grande Valley. He also made trips to New Mexico, Oklahoma and Colorado, where hemp is already legal to grow, in order to learn more about the crop.

Industrial hemp hasn’t been grown in Texas since the 1930s, when there was some hemp production in South Texas. So, there’s no track record of what varieties might work in Texas, and only this year will there be any research on industrial hemp, Trostle said.

Trostle said initial hemp field efforts will begin with implementing the Texas A&M AgriLife variety testing program for hemp. These hemp cannabinoid, fiber and grain trials are planned for Plainview, Commerce, San Angelo and College Station.

“We won’t be able to implement meaningful planting date studies until 2021,” he said. “Procuring funding for any field work will be key in how quickly we can address research questions.”

Another of Trostle’s initial objectives for Texas hemp is investigating and encouraging improved hemp seed quality.

“Apart from business issues, poor seed has been the No. 1 production issue in most states already growing hemp,” he said.

Trostle grew up on a farm and ranch in eastern Kansas. He earned his bachelor’s degree in agronomy from Kansas State University, his master’s in soil chemistry from Texas A&M University and his doctorate in soil science from the University of Minnesota. He joined AgriLife Extension at Lubbock in 1999 after three summers in rice research at the Texas A&M AgriLife center in Beaumont.

The new title of statewide hemp specialist fits in with how has been known in West Texas – as the “alternative crops guy.” After serving in Lubbock for two years and learning more about the region’s farming, Trostle said he chose to pursue a broad working knowledge on many different crops rather than focus heavily on just one or two.

“I believe I made the right decision,” he said. “That approach has positioned me better to start from scratch with learning about hemp.”

He also is currently the state specialist for sunflowers, as well as provides education and applied research support in the South Plains region and across Texas for grain sorghum, sunflowers, peanuts, wheat/small grains, guar, alfalfa, winter canola, summer annual forages and sesame.

Trostle said while he knows this first year or two of hemp work will keep him busy, he will maintain his educational programs on all the crops he’s working with.

“I want farmers of grain sorghum, wheat, alfalfa, peanuts, guar and other crops to know that I remain fully committed to maintaining my Extension support to their cropping needs. I will have to reduce my field work in these crops, but the 21+ years of experience I have gained isn’t going anywhere.”

Trostle can be reached at 806-746-6101 or ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu. He has written a monthly hemp newsletter since November and has initiated an AgriLife Twitter account @TXAgriLifeHemp. Trostle also contributed to the AgriLife Extension hemp resources page, along with members of the hemp team.

Texas A&M ready to begin hemp variety trials

8May

By: Kay Ledbetter

Texas A&M AgriLife will be planting hemp variety trials for the first time this spring, with a goal to provide producers, hemp seed companies and the larger hemp industry with a reliable, independent scientific assessment of hemp varietal performance in Texas.

Calvin Trostle, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist and statewide hemp specialist, Lubbock, said they will begin implementing the Texas A&M AgriLife fee-based variety testing program for hemp cannabinoid, fiber and grain at Plainview and San Angelo under irrigation, and Commerce and College Station, both rainfed.

Hemp variety trials will be conducted by Texas A&M AgriLife. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Kay Ledbetter)

These trials will be conducted under the long-time Texas A&M AgriLife Crop Testing Program, which is a combined effort of AgriLIfe Extension and Texas A&M AgriLife Research faculty, Trostle said. This self-supporting program has offered public variety trials for wheat, grain sorghum, corn, sunflowers and soybeans, as well as other crops, for decades.

Due to the urgency to get trials planted in May, the due date for receiving entry forms, seed and payment is May 8. Anyone with questions about the program and protocol should contact Trostle at ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu or call 806-777-0247. He can provide the program description, fee structure and entry form, which can also be accessed at http://varietytesting.tamu.edu.

“We are adding hemp testing to the program for 2020, however, because we are getting a later start than we wanted due to meeting licensing requirements, we will not test in South Texas this year,” he said.

AgriLife Extension’s Industrial Hemp Education Initiative Team, established shortly after House Bill 1325 was signed into law by the Governor last June, determined the variety trials are the next step in educating potential hemp producers. The team has already gathered many hemp resources since that time. However, this is the first step in conducting Texas testing.

“Trial results for crops tested by Texas A&M AgriLife are used by farmers across Texas to make decisions on their planting seed,” said Larry Redmon, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension program leader for the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences and associate department head. “Our goal is that Texas hemp producers may enjoy the same type of information for their seed selection decisions.”

Utilizing the full expertise and resources of Texas A&M AgriLife, Trostle said it is especially important to identify varieties with low THC. THC must remain at or below 0.3% or the crop must be destroyed. As such, THC levels and seed quality are two of the main issues other states have dealt with since hemp was legalized.

He said the entry fees charged will cover the cost of conducting the program, which was established after reviewing the methodology of the few hemp variety trials to date conducted in other states.

“We will seek a balance between a bare-bones approach vs. an intensive assessment of hemp variety growth and performance,” Trostle said.

“This year will be trial run in some ways as we prepare for broader statewide testing, including South Texas in 2021,” he said. “For now, we are emphasizing seed trials rather than transplants or clones, though we will consider those planting stocks if needed.

“Long-term we believe field agriculture hemp will move toward mostly seeded production, which should have lower costs. With AgriLife’s eventual emphasis on certified Texas hemp seed, I think this will fix some of the concerns we hear about poor seed quality in other states.”

Certified seed should have improved genetic purity, higher germination and seedling vigor, Trostle said.

“If you are interested in participating, please notify me as soon as you can as we are working on the individual sites for field preparation,” Trostle said. “We will do our best to accommodate all interested companies, but if we receive more entries than we can handle, we will ensure that each company is represented as best we can. If the small-plot research is still tight for available planting area, we will choose submissions that are pursuing certified seed status in Texas.”

Federal hemp rules announced

16Dec

Writer: Kay Ledbetter

The wait is over, and the first look at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s interim final hemp production rules are now available. The rules were published in the Federal Register on Oct. 31 and public comment will be allowed for 60 days on the USDA website.

These rules do not, however, grant anyone the right to begin planting hemp in Texas. There are still several more steps to the process to finalize Texas industrial hemp rules, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service specialists working with hemp.

Industrial hemp legislation is in the works, but it is not yet legal to produce in Texas

Hemp refers to the Cannabis plant with tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis. Cannabidiol, or CBD, is the most referenced product aligned with hemp production, but non-consumable hemp products include cloth, cordage, fiber, fuel, paint, paper, particleboard and plastics.

USDA hemp rules prompt Texas action

Tiffany Dowell Lashmet, AgriLife Extension agricultural law specialist, Amarillo, said a significant portion of the USDA rules tell tribes and states who are outlining their own hemp production plans what must be included. Another portion puts in place rules for producers in states or tribes that don’t want to create their own plan.

Texas, through the Texas Department of Agriculture, will be submitting a state plan, which must be approved by USDA. Until that happens, no physical procurement of hemp seed, planting or production is allowed in Texas, said Calvin Trostle, AgriLife Extension agronomist, Lubbock.

AgriLife Extension is gearing up to help producers work through the regulatory compliance and production processes.

Once the approved TDA rules are released, there will be requirements for an application and licensing process, fees for application and inspections, notification, rules to govern how industrial hemp will be tested in the field and more.

Production and testing will center on the acceptable hemp THC level, which is 0.3% taking into consideration the measurement uncertainty. Anything testing above the limit will be regarded as ‘hot’ or marijuana and could be subject to destruction.

Texas hemp rules timeline

TDA general counsel Tim Kleinschmidt said while the rules and regulations process might be wrapped up by February, it will likely be March before they are ready to begin taking applications for licenses and permits. The statute allows them 60 days to process a license.

He said they expect to file the Texas rules in early December and then must leave the comment period open for 30 days.

“If all goes well and once we adopt rules, it is 20 days before they are effective, which takes us into February,” he said.

Trostle said this timeline makes it questionable whether anyone will be ready for a March-April planting window that might be needed. And then the question will remain as to where and how the hemp will be processed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUApP4MrvBY

Read the rules

Lashmet suggested producers who hope to grow hemp read up on a few important segments of the rules, including:

Personal and production information required by the government regarding expected hemp production.
Sampling and testing for the “acceptable hemp THC” level.
Repercussions for crops that exceed that THC level and the requirements for destruction if required.

“It’s not as simple as you might think,” Lashmet said. “There are some provisions under the Controlled Substances Act and Drug Enforcement Agency regulations that will have to be followed for destruction.”

Financial risks of hemp production

Justin Benavidez, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension economist, Amarillo, also pointed out the cost and benefits section the rules, which indicate just how much risk is involved in growing hemp.

The rules outline some overall U.S. averages for what costs and returns are for different types of hemp production, Benavidez said.

“Keep in mind, these are not Texas A&M AgriLife budgets,” he said. “These are not saying what the costs and returns will be in Texas. This is a highly aggregated average from USDA sources.”

USDA published the cost of production per acre as $19,000 per acre. This is considerably higher than the $670-per-acre variable cost for corn and cotton in the High Plains.

Overall revenues outlined in the USDA rules vary depending on the production model, but as far as net returns, they range anywhere from negative $25,000 per acre up to a positive $7,000 per acre, he said. The range depends on whether it is a floral production, grain or fiber model.

Trostle said the higher side of USDA’s production figures are likely to be costs for smaller scale, high CBD production hemp.

“There’s a lot of risk involved, and it’s certainly something to think about when you are going forward with that hemp production model,” Benavidez said. “If you are seeing a $19,000-per-acre investment on the side of production and then are forced to destroy it because of THC levels, that is something to keep in mind.”

Texas A&M AgriLife creates team to answer hemp questions

12Aug

By: Kay Ledbetter
Contact: Dr. Larry Redmon – l-redmon@tamu.edu

Growing industrial hemp in Texas is not yet legal in the state of Texas, but that doesn’t mean there is not a rapidly growing amount of interest, questions and calls.

In response, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service has formed an Industrial Hemp Education Initiative Team to provide information concerning industrial hemp production in Texas.

“It is still not legal to grow hemp in Texas until several steps are taken,” said Dr. Larry Redmon, AgriLife Extension program leader and associate department head in Texas A&M University’s soil and crop sciences department, College Station.

Although House Bill 1325 has been signed into law by the Governor, Redmon said, it still requires the establishment of licenses, fees, criminal offenses and civil and administrative penalties.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture must finalize federal regulations and guidelines, followed by the Texas Department of Agriculture writing of state regulations and guidelines and getting them approved by the USDA.

When all of that is done, potential growers will have to complete the licensing process before a single seed is planted, Redmon said. The licensing program will be established by TDA and requires producers to go through a background check and have a third-party crop testing to validate THC levels.

Hemp was once grown in Texas and soon may be legal again, but not just yet,

“We don’t know a timeline on all these steps being completed, but USDA anticipates its part to be done by the end of this year,” Redmon said.

Hemp, as outlined in the bill, refers to the plant Cannabis sativa L., including the seeds and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts and salts of isomers with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis.

Non-consumable hemp products include cloth, cordage, fiber, fuel, paint, paper, particleboard and plastics derived from hemp.

Once all the pieces are in place, AgriLife Extension’s industrial hemp education team will help develop resources for agents and specialists to utilize across the state in producer and public education programs.

Other AgriLife Extension members are agronomists Dr. Calvin Trostle, Lubbock, and Dr. Reagan Noland, San Angelo; regional program leaders Todd Swift, Uvalde, and Dr. Brent Batchelor, Stephenville; economists Dr. Joe Outlaw and George Knapek, College Station; communications, Kay Ledbetter, Amarillo; and county agents David Graf, Wichita; Bryan Davis, Wilson; Jason Ott, Nueces; Zach Wilcox, Nolan; and Megan Eikner, Potter.

Industrial hemp has been grown in most U.S. states, including Texas. In the 1930s, there was initial hemp production in South Texas. Though the Texas Rangers and TDA inspected and approved the production, in 1937 it was banned by the Texas governor.

In addition to educational programs, the future could include Texas A&M AgriLife initiating a limited research plan on industrial hemp as early as 2020, Redmon said. The primary objective would be to identify which approved varieties, those with 0.3% or less THC, perform best in regional adaptation and production of biomass/fiber, seed and oil yield under different Texas environments.

Coffee Education Symposium held at Texas A&M

17Dec

Writer: Beth Ann Luedeker

Coffee researchers, roasters and others with an interest in coffee gathered at the Scotts turfgrass facility on the Texas A&M University campus to discuss opportunities for coffee research.

“Coffee is not one of our top crops, but millions of pounds are roasted and consumed in Texas each year,” said Dr. Leo Lombardini, Horticulture Professor and Director of the Texas A&M Coffee Center. “In the Houston area alone, there are about 100 small roasters and 15 large roasters.”

Researchers and members of the coffee industry gathered at the Scotts facility in College Station for the first Coffee Education Symposium. (Soil and Crop Sciences Photo by Beth Ann Luedeker)

Coffee is an important commodity for the United States. It has a $225.2 billion economic impact in the U.S. and provides more than 1.6 million jobs, he explained.

There is more than an economic impact, however. Since coffee is ground for a single use, there is a significant environmental impact to address.

“Coffee grounds are a large waste issue. Thousands of tons of used grounds are sent to landfills annually,” said Amanda Birnbaum, a doctoral student in Horticultural Sciences.

Companies like GeoJava, a cold-brew coffee company, are working with researchers to find ways the spent grounds can be of beneficial use.

Soil and Crop Sciences Associate Professor Ben Wherley is one such of the researchers. He had his team have joined forces with GeoJava to research possible uses for spent grounds in turfgrass systems.

Dr. Ben Wherley discusses coffee grounds research at TAMU. (SCSC Photo by Beth Ann Luedeker)

“Most sports fields are sand based, so spent coffee grounds can be used as a root zone amendment,” Wherley told the participants at the symposium. “We are seeing a layer of spent coffee grounds forming in thatch, and expect to see them contributing to increased water holding capacity in the future.”

Greenhouse tests indicate that the spent grounds help retain moisture, and they are now testing that in the research plots in College Station, he said.

Wherley said he has also had some success using grounds as a preemergent herbicide.

group of people looking at grass maked with grid

Participants at the symposium braved the cold rain to view research plots and hear Garrett Flores, a Master’s student in Wherley’s program, discuss his research. (SCSC photo by Beth Ann Luedeker)

“We are just scratching the surface of research,” he said. “Do we need to compost the grounds first? Do fresh grounds work better? How effective will they be as a pre-emergent? Those are questions we want to answer.”

During the conference researchers are also discussed their work on the sensory aspect of coffee, the constraints for smallholder coffee farmers, improving coffee quality through soil health remediation, and more.

Master’s student Garrett Flores pointed out some of the coffee grounds being used as a soil amendment in his research plots.(SCSC Photos by Beth Ann Luedeker)

Emi Kimura named AgriLife Extension state peanut specialist

24Oct

By: Kay Ledbetter

Dr. Emi Kimura has been named the state peanut specialist for Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.

Kimura joined AgriLife Extension in 2015 as an agronomist serving the Rolling Plains and surrounding areas from the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center south of Vernon.

Dr. Emi Kimura has been named the new Texas A&M AgriLife Extension state peanut specialist.

Dr. Larry Redmon, AgriLife Extension program leader and Texas A&M University soil and crop sciences associate department head in College Station, said Kimura will continue a long-standing tradition of having the state peanut specialist based in Vernon.

When the Vernon agronomist position was open for two years, the state peanut specialist position was transferred to plant pathology in Lubbock in the interim, and now the position is being returned to Vernon, he said.

“Emi is an excellent agronomist, who, as a forage scientist, has become an excellent cotton, wheat, canola, etc. specialist,” Redmon said. “She is well-respected by the industry, growers and AgriLife Extension county agents.”

Kimura’s AgriLife Extension associate, Jonathan Ramirez, has conducted the peanut work in the past for other agronomists, so she is already familiar with the crop and will do well in the role, Redmon said.

Texas is the second largest peanut-growing state in the U.S. and is unique in that it grows all four types of peanut. The majority of Texas peanuts are grown within 90 miles of Lubbock, with Gaines County being the top peanut-producing county in the U.S. There are also pockets of peanut growers in the southeast Panhandle, the Vernon area, south of San Antonio and in the Comanche County area.

Kimura said she will begin working on statewide cultivar trials, management of peanut diseases, herbicide-resistant weed control, organic peanut production systems and, most importantly, outreach efforts through publications, field days and tours with producers.

She will closely work with Texas Peanut Producers Board and deliver information generated from applied research trials. Information generated from Kimura’s program will be updated in the variety testing website at http://varietytesting.tamu.edu/peanuts/.

After graduating high school in Kyoto, Japan, Kimura moved to the U.S. and earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Wyoming and doctorate from Washington State University.

She completed her postdoctoral work with the Washington State University department of crop and soil sciences. During her graduate and postdoctoral work, she specialized in forages and crop management.

Kimura has conducted cultivar trials with cotton, small grains, cool-season grasses and canola. She also has run multiple studies on nutrient management and planting population studies on cotton and wheat. She said she is continually looking for alternative crops that can fit into area cropping systems and be environmentally and economically sustainable.

Kimura said she believes including the peanut program will further improve current agronomy programs for clientele in Texas.

Guar, wheat integration focus of new study

18Sep

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-77-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contacts: Dr. Curtis Adams, 940-552-9941, Curtis.adams@ag.tamu.edu
Dr. Calvin Trostle, 806-746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu

A team of scientists from Texas A&M AgriLife and the University of Florida are working to increase and stabilize guar production in the U.S. by testing integration of guar into existing wheat production in the Southern Plains.

The team is funded for the next four years to conduct this work by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s “Sustainable Agroecosystems: Functions, Processes and Management” grant program.

Guar produces a seed containing galactomannan gum, which is used in many food and industrial applications as a lubricant, binder, thickener and hardener, among other uses.
“Most people don’t know it, but guar affects our lives every day,” said Dr. Curtis Adams, Texas A&M AgriLife Research crop physiologist in Vernon. “Guar gum is in many of the foods we eat, it’s in products we use in our homes, it’s used to extract oil and gas from the ground.”

Guar is being studied in rotation with wheat in the Vernon and Lubbock areas as part of a new Texas A&M AgriLife research project. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Dr. Curtis Adams)

In recent years, Adams said, demand for guar gum has increased substantially, and the U.S. is the world’s largest consumer. In 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the U.S. imported $1.1 billion in guar.

Guar is a legume, which means its roots can associate with Rhizobium bacteria in the soil to convert atmospheric nitrogen into fertilizer for the plant and soil, he said. It’s adapted to the semi-arid conditions of Texas and is among the most drought-tolerant crop plants, with relatively low water use.

“Introducing legumes, especially well-adapted legumes like guar, into our cropping systems provides a potential opportunity to improve soil nitrogen fertility and reduce input costs,” said Dr. Calvin Trostle, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist in Lubbock.

“Despite high guar consumption and benefits the plant can provide in cropping systems, U.S. guar production is unstable and only amounts to a small fraction of the world’s guar supply,” Adams said. “We believe this represents missed economic and environmental opportunities.”

U.S. guar production is centered in the Southern Great Plains region of Texas, though acreage has remained low relative to major crops in the region due to a variety of factors.

“One reason U.S. guar production is low is that guar has typically not had the income potential of cotton, the dominant summer crop in this area,” Adams said. “A lack of crop insurance for guar is another reason, which may be attributed to the lack of development in the industry.”

When guar is grown here, it is usually in cotton systems, and then only when cotton prices are particularly low or as an emergency crop following failed cotton, he said.
“We expect competition with cotton to be an ongoing barrier to guar production for producers,” Adams said. “But, wheat cropping systems, which are left fallow in the summer, may provide another venue for guar.

“Integration of guar into wheat cropping systems has not been rigorously tested. But data gathered by our team showed that wheat planted immediately following guar had far higher productivity than wheat following three other summer crops, including cotton, sesame and sorghum.”

Trostle said the results of published studies on guar and wheat planting dates, water use and other relevant factors also suggest that the crops would complement each other in a combined cropping system.

“We hope this new USDA project will provide useful information on how and why guar should be integrated into wheat cropping systems, helping to boost and stabilize U.S. production of the crop,” Adams said.

Joining Adams and Trostle on the research team are Dr. Srini Ale, geospatial hydrologist, Dr. Seong Park, economist, and Dr. Paul DeLaune, environmental soil scientist, all with AgriLife Research in Vernon, as well as Drs. Gerrit Hoogenboom and Ken Boote, plant modelers from the University of Florida.

In the new project they will test various system management scenarios for integration of guar into wheat systems in Vernon and Lubbock, measuring and simulating impacts of the integration on crop, soil, water and economic factors.

The researchers will identify optimal cropping intensities to enhance productivity and soil nitrogen fertility. In doing so, they said they expect soil organic carbon and rates of microbial activity will increase in wheat-guar systems, an indication of potential improvements in soil health. DeLaune will work on this aspect of the project.

Another core aspect of the project is development of an original Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer, or DSSAT, model for guar to aid in data extrapolation and decision support. Hoogenboom and Boote will be working on development of the DSSAT model, while Ale will be making simulations with the new model.

“Our model will be the first of its kind for guar and will help improve our understanding of guar and how best to utilize the crop,” Ale said. “We expect the model to be used by researchers and policy makers in guar production areas around the world.”

Park will be assessing economic outcomes of the project. The team expects that integrated wheat-guar systems will bring higher proceeds than continuous wheat.

“Ultimately, we want to make producers aware of potential benefits and challenges associated with integrating guar into wheat production systems, benefitting producers and increasing domestic guar production,” Adams said.

Texas A&M releases new Ace cowpea

13Aug

Writer: Adam Russell, 903-834-6191, adam.russell@ag.tamu.edu

Contact: Dr. Gerald Smith, 903-834-6191, gerald.smith@ag.tamu.edu

A new forage cowpea variety – Ace – blends a number of desirable characteristics into into a well-rounded option for livestock, wildlife and improved soil health, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Research expert.

Ace is a small-seed cowpea cultivar developed for forage and hay production, as a cover crop and as a wildlife supplemental planting, said Dr. Gerald Smith, AgriLife Research plant breeder in Overton.

Ace cowpea is a new forage cultivar release by Texas A&M AgriLife Research. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo by Dr. Gerald Smith)

Cowpea is a warm-season, drought-tolerant legume. Diverse varieties are used as green vegetables for human consumption, for livestock forage and wildlife browse and as a nitrogen-fixing cover crop to improve soil health, Smith said.

The new cowpea variety was developed in the AgriLife Research Forage Legume Breeding Program at Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Centers in Overton and Vernon. It was released in May, certified by the Texas Department of Agriculture State Seed and Plant Board in June and is available from Turner Seed and Justin Seed.

AgriLife Research breeding produced a new variety with qualities including a small seed size, high biomass yields and an extended growing season. The variety’s biomass matures earlier with a first bloom in late August and seed maturity in northeast Texas by mid-October.

“It wasn’t bred to be an edible variety for humans, but it’s a great forage and browse cowpea, has good vegetation that grows throughout the season and can be utilized for hay or as a cover crop,” Smith said. “It can also be produced for seed here in Texas, which brings a value-added component to its potential.”

Smith said Ace is comparable to an older variety mix called Iron and Clay, which is widely used in Texas and the Southern U.S. as supplemental plantings for white-tailed deer. But Iron and Clay is a very late flowering variety and seed production is restricted in North Texas due to winter kill prior to seed maturation.

Ace cowpea is a good option for livestock forage and hay, wildlife browse or as a nitrogen-fixing cover crop. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo by Dr. Gerald Smith)

Forage biomass production of Ace on dryland acres in Overton was 2,539 and 4,200 pounds per acre in 2013 and 2016, respectively, Smith said. Forage biomass production at Vernon in 2015, 2016 and 2017 was 3,470, 5,302 and 6,015 pounds per acre, respectively.

Protein content of Ace forage at Vernon in 2015 and 2016 was 16.5 percent and 16.4 percent, respectively, he said.

Smith said Ace is clearly applicable to produce browse for deer, but researchers also will be studying its use to supplement quail and turkey.

“It’s useful in mixtures with other wildlife plants such as millet, sunflowers and sorghum,” he said. “Its seed size means producers get more seed per pound, and that lends well to lower seeding rates, which reduces costs.”

Smith said the new variety has also shown potential for annual reseeding.

Greenhouse studies from two years of seed production indicate about half of an Ace cowpea seed crop will germinate in the first month after seed maturity, and the other half will germinate slowly over about 60 or 70 days assuming moisture and temperature conditions are appropriate for germination.

The reseeding trait of Ace needs further field testing but could be a valuable tool in stand management, he said.

“That’s another selling point for this variety,” he said. “If allowed to reseed, we think at least half the seed crop of Ace would germinate. That in turn will mean cost savings for producers.”

Smith said Ace represents a valuable cultivar with various market applications that will be important to the Texas seed industry.

“It’s a really good, new and different forage cowpea,” Smith said. “We think its characteristics and potential make it stand out as an option for a wide range of agricultural activities.”

Guar producer uses Texas A&M AgriLife support to prompt revisions in NRCS guidelines

12Jul

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contact: Dr. Curtis Adams, 940-552-9941, Curtis.Adams@ag.tamu.edu
Dr. Calvin Trostle, 806-746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu

VERNON – When a Texas Rolling Plains guar producer found himself to be potentially out of compliance with government guidelines, he turned to Texas A&M AgriLife to help get the guidelines updated.

Guar has been grown in Texas for more than a century and is becoming more attractive to producers because of its drought tolerance and relatively low water use, said Dr. Curtis Adams, Texas A&M AgriLife Research crop physiologist in Vernon.

Guar is gaining in interest as a rotational crop. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Dr. Curtis Adams)

“Guar being a legume and adapted to the region’s semi-arid dryland agriculture is increasing producer interest,” said Dr. Calvin Trostle, a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist in Lubbock and long-time investigator of guar.

“There are few legumes that are adapted in this type of environment,” Trostle said. “That is why this latest decision is important; to give producers another rotational crop, one that can provide nitrogen to the soil in an area it doesn’t rain a lot.”

Together Adams and Trostle provided updated guar residue measurements and data demonstrating reduced soil erosion due to modern reduced-till soil management. This prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resource Conservation Service, or NRCS, to revise their guidelines on using guar in a crop rotation.

Initially, NRCS classified guar as a low-residue crop, and therefore under USDA-Farm Service Agency guidelines, grower Guy Spears was not allowed to plant it in rotation with other crops considered low residue under his farm’s conservation plan.

The high-residue parameters are required at a certain frequency in NRCS conservation plans on “highly erodible land,” or HEL. Being out of compliance would make farmers ineligible for a variety of government benefits, including government-sponsored crop insurance, Adams said.

Spears began working with Trostle and Kelly Lindsey, the local NRCS county director, to push for a change. Then Adams was asked to provide on-the-ground data that, combined with Trostle’s ongoing research, determined guar residue was sufficient to meet NRCS criteria. This prompted a review and update of NRCS policy, which would regard guar as a residue equivalence, comparable to a “high residue” crop.

Fred Schrank, NRCS agronomist in Weatherford, said compliance isn’t automatic. To know if a producer’s plan will be in compliance will require a field-by-field determination. Each producer considering the inclusion of guar must check their original plan or revise the plan.

“The Vernon field office and I will be utilizing the Integrated Erosion Tool, or IET, templates developed to streamline assistance for planning HEL fields and farmers decisions,” Schrank said. “We will work with you and other farmers to keep compliance, production and conservation concerns achievable in these matters.”

“Thanks to AgriLife Research in Vernon and the measurements provided, which prompted the NRCS to re-examine their original documentation from 1985,” Spears said. “I have been notified that after reconsideration, NRCS has ruled a cotton/guar rotation or a continuous guar rotation will be in compliance if a grower is using minimum, no-till or strip till. Also, every grower will have to update their plan accordingly.”

Spears said he contacted NRCS officials not only for himself, but for owners of the thousands of acres of farmland designated as highly erodible land that could benefit from the wind erosion protection and soil–building properties guar provides as a rotational crop.

The NRCS was relying on guar residue data from 1985, post tillage, though management practices have changed since then, Adams said. Research showing reduction in erosion with no-till and minimum-till soil management, such as that done by Dr. Paul DeLaune, AgriLife Research environmental soil scientist at Vernon, and others was incorporated into the altered policy of NRCS. Management also includes row spacing of 20 inches or less, which is required to provide adequate crop residue coverage.

Adams said his lab took residue measurements on harvested guar fields and did visual scoring of percent ground cover on the Spears’ farm to establish the crop’s residue levels.

Adams said he measured a residue concentration at about 2.5 tons per acre.

“This level of cover is less than you would commonly see with grain crops, like corn and sorghum, but it is greater than many broadleaf crops, like cotton,” he said. “On the guar field, we noted that the soil was stable, with no evidence of erosion.”

Adams, Trostle and others are working on multiple federally funded projects aimed at providing more information for producers on guar in relation to agronomics, rotation and other issues.

“The fact is times change,” Spears said. “What is reassuring as a grower is having Texas A&M, the FSA and NRCS all working together to fix a problem for all of the farmers and leading us in the right direction.”

More information on guar can be found at https://lubbock.tamu.edu/programs/crops/other-field-crops/guar/.

Interest in alternative crops remains steady

10May

By: Adam Russell
Contact: Dr. Calvin Trostle, 806-746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu

Oilseed crops like sunflowers and canola are experiencing lower prices, but it appears overall interest in alternative crops remains steady, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert.

Dr. Calvin Trostle, AgriLife Extension agronomist, Lubbock, said alternative crop options such as sunflowers, sesame, canola and guar remain minor crops, but their viability due to drought and heat tolerance may increase their popularity as market demands rise.

Trostle said there is a large oversupply of confectionary sunflower seeds, which are the edible snack seeds, due to high and even record-breaking national yields per acre the past few years. Oversupply has hurt prices and demand for planted acres this year.

Sunflowers are one of several oilseed crops that have become popular alternatives for producers. This year, sunflower seed prices are lower due to an abundant supply following multiple years of record-breaking harvests. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo)

“One commodity broker in Lubbock typically contracts up to 40,000 acres in the Texas High Plains, but they contracted none this year,” Trostle said. “Regional prices are lower, so this means acres will go elsewhere. Growers don’t plant sunflowers unless they’re under contract, because otherwise there are no assurances there will be anyone to buy their crop.”

Prices are fair at best for oilseed sunflower, and the Texas oilseed acreage is expected to be down to about 35,000 acres from 50,000 acres or more. Planted acres include up to 9,000 acres in the Lower Rio Grande Valley for export to Mexico and about 20,000 acres for bird seed production.

With sesame, current contract acreage is limited to one company, Trostle said. He is uncertain about sesame acreage, but said it appears Texas production could be in the range of 50,000 acres to as much as 100,000 acres. Trostle said there could be some increased export demand from Japan, which recently reduced import regulations on the crop.

A second company is conducting test plantings with new non-shattering varieties to evaluate possible expansion of sesame in West Texas in the near future, he said.

The northern Texas Rolling Plains has some winter canola production. But one canola limitation in the region is the planting window, which closes early in October when some producers have not harvested summer crops like cotton.

Canola offers a rotational crop option to wheat in fields with grassy weeds that would be a potential problem, Trostle said. But canola also requires more management than wheat.
There is current interest in re-examining the spring canola potential on the lower Texas Gulf Coast, Trostle said. This area was a production region for spring canola through the 1980s.

Prices have fallen for another minor oilseed, guar, since the market ballooned in 2013, said Trostle.

Texas guar producers are expected to increase acreage by as much as 30 percent this season, he said. Guar prices continue to be low, but there is great interest in the heat and drought tolerant crop. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is providing $1.2 million across four research grants focused on the crop or in conjunction with other minor crops.

“Guar prices tend to follow petroleum production because it is used in the drilling process,” he said. “There is a huge market for it when drilling is active, and there is interest in it as a food-grade emulsifier. Guar is drought and heat tolerant, so there’s plenty of areas in Texas where it could be a successful crop.”