Field Days means the fields are ready for “company.” We look forward to you visiting over the next two weeks. When you visit, you will see plots being managed by UGA researchers and agents. Last week, we featured the work done by UGA’s Forage Specialist Dr. Lisa Baxter. This week, we are featuring research by UGA’s row crop team. Visit the fields to see the research first hand.
UGA Weed Science
Contact: Stanley Culpepper, [email protected]
As family farms work tirelessly providing food, feed, and fiber for the world, the need for cutting edge research to support their sustainability is crucial. At the Sunbelt Expo, nearly 10 acres of land is used by the University of Georgia, working closely with the Expo Field Team, to conduct that much needed research focusing on cotton weed management. Controlling weeds in cotton is extremely challenging because of increasing herbicide resistance issues and regulatory restrictions that threaten the future availability of products such as in-crop dicamba, diuron, Cotoran, and MSMA. During 2024, research identifying future herbicides to improve the control of Palmer amaranth, annual grasses, morning glory, and spiderwort while also minimizing crop injury and maximizing yield and quality accounts for about 75% of the effort, consisting of 8 different replicated experiments. An additional 3-acre study evaluating the potential for using WeedOut’s (https://www.weedout-ibs.com/) Pollen to create non-viable Palmer amaranth seeds is in its third year of evaluation. Finding and implementing alternatives to herbicides within a systems approach for managing weeds in all crops is essential for long-term sustainability.
UGA Peanut Team
Contact: Scott Monfort, [email protected]
The team is conducting several trials at the Sunbelt Expo’s Darrell Williams Research Farm. The trials are all set up as large plot evaluations similar to how we conduct our on-farm evaluations. The 2024 research trials include: trial 1 & 2.) At -plant and foliar fertilizers and biological stimulants (Timac Agro, Nachurs); and trial 3-5.) biological stimulants (products from multiple companies). All trials will have crop growth, yield and quality evaluated to determine the effectiveness of these commercially available foliar fertilizers and plant growth stimulants. The results of these research trials will be shared with growers and county agents on the weekly podcasts “All About The Pod” and in crop production meetings next winter.
UGA Extension
Contact: Jeremy Kichler, [email protected]
County agents and Extension specialists provide research-based information to growers, consultants, and industry. One of the challenges to generating data is finding locations to conduct field demonstrations. The Sunbelt Expo has been a great partner over the years to help the Extension and industry generate data for the agricultural community. This year, the Colquitt County Extension has been conducting on-farm demonstrations in corn and peanut production at the Sunbelt Agricultural Expo.
The Sunbelt Ag Expo is one of six locations in Southwest Georgia participating in the UGA On-Farm Corn Variety Evaluation. Ten total varieties were provided from Agratech, Croplan, DeKalb, Dynagro, and Pioneer for this multi-location project, and each variety will have numerous replications across the field at each location. This location also included additional varieties from Integra, NK, and Seedway. Yield data from this project will be provided after harvest. Biologicals have been a topic of discussion in agriculture. Three biological treatments that are supposed to enhance nutrient uptake, decrease crop stress, and increase yields are being evaluated at the Sunbelt Expo again this year in corn production. This field experiment is replicated three times, and yield data will be provided after harvest. Another biological product will be evaluated in peanuts at the Sunbelt Ag Expo. The product is called Biowake. It was applied at planting and will be compared to the untreated check. Stand counts, emergence timings, and yield data will be provided after harvest.
Another biological product will be evaluated in peanuts at the Sunbelt Ag Expo. The product is called Biowake. It was applied at planting and will be compared to the untreated check. Stand counts, emergence timings, and yield data will be provided after harvest. This demonstration was replicated three times and will be taken to yield.
