All posts by Tyson Raper, Cotton & Small Grains Specialist

Wheat update, April 13th

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Last week was beautiful. As we were all in the midst of figuring out life during  unprecedented times, nature appeared to thumb her nose at the COVID-19 pandemic; dogwoods in full bloom, crappie moving into shallow water, tree shaking gobbles echoing through t-shirt temperature mornings. But after almost a week of beautiful weather in West Tennessee, Easter brought a cold and unfortunately hazardous front through the area that will likely stay with us through the week. As I write this on Monday, the forecast for nighttime temperatures sits in the mid to lower 30s for the next several days. These temperatures likely summon difficult memories of the Easter Freeze of 2007. With that in mind, I wanted to pass along a little information that will hopefully put you at ease. Continue reading


Wheat questions on the first of April

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**Posted on behalf of Lindsay Stephenson, Haywood County Extension Agent**

As the warmer spring days approach, and hopefully some drier days ahead, planning your next steps on your wheat crop is probably on your to-do list.  I spent some time earlier this week reaching out to Extension Agents and Specialists to get their opinions on some commonly asked questions.  Below are answers to those questions to help you in your decisions about your wheat.

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Correlation between Stock Markets and Cotton Futures

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*Posted on behalf of Dr. Aaron Smith.  A pdf of this article can be accessed by clicking the title below*

Correlation between Stock Markets and Cotton Futures

By Dr. Aaron Smith, Associate Professor and Charles Martinez, Assistant Professor

Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Tennessee

Since mid-February, cotton and stock markets have plummeted due to the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The COVID-19 pandemic has reverberated through all sectors of the US and global economies. Probably the most effected of the agricultural commodities is cotton. Cotton is tied closely to global economic activity as, in general, clothing and other apparel purchases are not a necessity and can be delayed, unlike food. For this reason, there is a close correlation between stock markets, such as the S&P 500, and cotton futures (Figure 1). Continue reading


2019 TN Cotton Variety Trial Results now available

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The 2019 TN Cotton Variety Trial Results Publication (PB1742) is now available online. This document contains detailed results from all harvested trails in the 2019 University of Tennessee Cotton Variety Testing Program.  This expanded publication follows the recently published summary publication, the 2020 TN Cotton Variety Guide (W285) which was released a few weeks ago.

2020 Cotton Focus THIS THURSDAY, February 13th @ WTREC

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The 2020 UT Cotton Focus is this Thursday. This year’s meeting will be held at the West Tennessee Research and Education Center (605 Airways Blvd, Jackson, TN 38301) on Thursday, February 13th.   The agenda can be viewed by clicking here. Registration begins at 8:00 AM with opening remarks beginning at 8:25 AM.  UT Specialists will be presenting information on managing resistant bollworms and weeds, variety selection,  new diseases, and economic considerations for 2019, among other pertinent information.  The meeting will close with a provided lunch.  Pesticide re-certification and CCA points will be available. Look forward to seeing you there!


Upcoming Events

January 24, 2020 – Gibson County Extension Crop Production (Ed Jones Agri-plex) 8:00 a.m. – 2:45 p.m.  (Contact Philip Shelby for details)

January 30-31, 2020 – Cotton & Rice No-Till Conference (Memphis, TN)

February 3, 2020 – Henry County Extension Crop Production (Henry Co. Fairgrounds) 6 – 9 p.m. (Contact Ranson Goodman for details)

February 4, 2020 – Middle Tennessee Grain Conference (UT Space Institute in Tullahoma, TN)

February 6, 2020 – West Tennessee Grain and Soybean Conference (Dyer Co. Fairgounds, Dyersburg, TN)

February 7, 2020 – KY/TN Grain Conference (Russellville, KY)

February 11, 2020 – Haywood/Madison Extension Crop Production (Samuel T. Bryant Distillery, Jackson, TN) 9AM-12PM (Contact Jake Mallard or Lindsay Stephenson for details)

February 12, 2020 – Tennessee Agricultural Production Association Winter Agronomic Workshop (DoubleTree Hotel, Jackson, Tennessee) 8 AM – 4 PM

February 13, 2020 – Cotton Focus (West Tennessee Research and Education Center, Jackson, TN) 8 AM-12PM (lunch provided, pre-registration is not required)


2020 TN Cotton Variety Guide now available

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The 2020 TN Cotton Variety Guide is now available online.  This preliminary report serves as a precursor to the complete Variety Trial Results which will be published after the remaining samples have been ginned and classed. Summary tables from the 2019 season were calculated from five Official Variety Trials (OVTs) and nine County Standard Trials (CSTs) scattered throughout TN’s cotton producing counties. Continue reading


String-out, fall out, and estimating yield loss in cotton

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While the finish line is either within sight or has been reached by most, Tennessee still has several acres of cotton in the field.  Several have reported fall out, or seed cotton on the ground, on some of these acres.  There are several methods to estimate yield loss from fall out.  This article explains string-out, fall out, the method for estimating harvest loss from lock counts and covers potential sources of error in the estimate.  Continue reading