Features

Reduce digging losses with proper setup and field checks. • By Amanda Huber • Once the decision to dig has been made and equipment is readied and pulled into the field, a quick field test is needed to put the final adjustments into place. Clemson University agricultural engineer Kendall Kirk says that producers should synchronize the speed of their digger’s ... Read More »

NCSU Research And Extension Plant Pathologist A Voice Of Accuracy And Precision • By David Jordan • This fall, Dr. Barbara Shew will retire after many years of contributions to the peanut industry. Her work has encompassed the core components of the land-grant system — Extension, research and teaching — and in doing so, she has touched the lives of ... Read More »

Learn how to properly collect soil and root samples to test for nematodes. Nationwide, crop losses caused by nematodes are estimated at around 5% to 10% annually. In the Southeast, where environmental conditions favor growth and reproduction of nematodes, losses are even higher. The seven most damaging nematode species that affect Alabama growers are soybean cyst, lesion, stunt, lance, reniform, ... Read More »

Dig at optimum maturity with the aid of a profile board. • By Amanda Huber • Determining when to dig is always tough. The maturity profile board, developed in 1981 by E.J. Williams and J.S. Drexler, ushered in a new era of determining how close to ready a crop was without special equipment and the destruction of the pods. Auburn ... Read More »

Cover crops protect and improve the soil when a cash crop is not growing. Ways that cover crops lead to better soil health and potentially better farm profits are outlined in the following 10 key impacts. 1 Cover crops feed many types of soil organisms. Most soil fungi and bacteria are beneficial to crops. They feed on carbohydrates from plant ... Read More »

What to expect for the rest of this growing season and into the fall harvest period. • By Pam Knox, University Of Georgia Weather Network And Agricultural Climatologist • Now that June 1 has passed, we are in climatological summer and also in the official Atlantic tropical season. What can we expect for the rest of this growing season and ... Read More »

Increase water-use efficiency with the aid of sensors for irrigation scheduling. • By Michael T. Plumblee, Clemson University Precision Agriculture Extension Specialist • Water is needed for the plant to grow, and for peanuts specifically, it is needed to move calcium from land plaster into the pegging zone and then into pods. It also improves the effectiveness of pesticides, such ... Read More »

Have plant geneticists found the key to Palmer amaranth’s glyphosate resistance? Just hearing “pigweed” can cause fear in row-crop farmers, but Clemson University geneticist Chris Saski and other researchers believe they have discovered the armor this dreaded weed uses to protect itself against glyphosate herbicide. According to researchers, a specific genetic feature — the extrachromosomal circular DNA (eccDNA) replicon — ... Read More »

Industry groups adjust to meeting online, hope for added participation. • By Amanda Huber • ‘‘The show must go on!” This was the cry of the circus ringmaster in his fancy coat and top hat to the crowd of spectators. Performing with live animals or carrying out daring acrobatics high above the big top often led to mishaps briefly stopping ... Read More »

A well-known scientist in the peanut industry, University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences research pathologist Albert Culbreath has been named a Fellow of the American Phytopathological Society. The society grants this honor to members in acknowledgement of distinguished contributions to plant pathology or to the APS. The Fellow recognition is based on significant contributions in original research, ... Read More »