​Planting Considerations for Short-Season Environments

April 2021 | 41 min., 14 sec.
by Seth Byrd, Jourdan Bell, and Stewart Duncan
Oklahoma State University, Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension, and Kansas State University

Audio IconSummary Webcast IconStudy Guide IconSlide Deck Icon

​​​

Summary

This presentation begins with a review of the three key factors to consider during the first few weeks of the cotton season: planting date; variety characteristics; and planting conditions and practices. Next, the discussion turns to the factors that affect plant stands; data from the Texas Panhandle document an average 50% germination rate of planted seed. Plant growth regulators and microbial seed treatments are discussed as means of improving germination and seedling vigor. Finally, the presentation addresses planting conditions for rapid germination and emergence: a minimum soil temperature of 60–62 degrees; a favorable 5-day forecast (50–75 degrees); planting in a firm, moist seedbed; and using a proper and uniform seeding rate.​​​

About the Presenter

​​Seth ByrdSeth Byrd is the Extension cotton specialist for Oklahoma State University. He received a bachelor’s degree in agronomy from North Carolina State University, a master’s degree in agronomy from the University of Florida, and a PhD in crop and soil science with a focus on cotton agronomics from the University of Georgia. (OSU photo by Todd Johnson)​





Jourdan BellJourdan Bell is the regional agronomist for Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension at Amarillo. She received her PhD in soil science from Texas A&M University and her BS and MS degrees from WTAMU in Canyon in agriculture and plant, soil, and environmental science. Prior to joining Texas A&M AgriLife in 2014, Bell worked as a research technician for the USDA-ARS at Bushland for 14 years in the Soil and Water Management Unit. With USDA-ARS, she assisted in research on manure management, soil water dynamics in dryland cropping systems, and irrigation scheduling. Her current research and extension programs evaluate and promote agronomic practices to enhance crop production and profitability under limited irrigation and dryland systems of the Texas High Plains. She is a current member of the American Society of Agronomy, the Crop Science Society, and the Soil Science Society of America. She previously served as the vice leader (2014) and leader (2015) of the American Society of Agronomy Crop Irrigation Strategies and Management Community.​

Stewart DuncanStewart Duncan grew up on a small farm in Osage County, Kansas. He earned a BS in production agronomy from Kansas State University in 1977, and after graduating, he served as the Jackson County Extension Agricultural Agent based in Holton. In 1986, he returned to K-State and earned an MS in agronomy, investigating relay intercropping soybeans into wheat. While finishing his MS, Stu pursued a PhD to further investigate plant responses and growth habits, canopy architecture, row direction, and irrigation regime in a relay intercropped environment. He earned his doctorate in 1991 and immediately began working as the South Central Area Extension Agronomist for K-State based out of Hutchinson. While stationed in Hutchinson, Stu was introduced to cotton production in 1995. The SC Area Office was closed in 2004, and Stu relocated to Westmoreland, from which he commutes to the main campus or to one of the 27 counties in the Northeast Extension Region. His main purpose is to help build and reinforce regional, county, and district Extension agronomic educational programs by generating and disseminating practical information through sound, research-based agronomic practices with emphases on establishing both large and small on-farm strip and/or replicated plots, as well as on experiment fields.

 Sponsorship

In 2020, Grow webcasts had more than 110,000 views. Help support our mission to provide comprehensive high-quality, science-based resources to and for plant health researchers and practitioners at no cost.

PDMR submission guidelines are available online.

LEARN MORE

Plant Health Progress is a peer-reviewed multidiciplinary, online journal of applied plant health.

LEARN MORE