If you ride anywhere in rural South Georgia, you are bound to see dust in the air and tractors and planters in the field moving full-speed ahead…well, really at a tortoise pace. An unseasonably cool, dry spring has farmers in this area of the country a bit behind at the start of the season. And just when they put the planters in the dirt, a significant rain event came through Georgia that put a halt to the process once again.
This week, it’s “all hands on deck” as the Sunbelt Ag Expo is working to get fields turned and planted. The team is working with University of Georgia crop specialists on multiple trials on the Darrell Williams Research Farm. Stanley Culpepper, Extension Weed Scientist, will be evaluating a new 2,4-D formulation with the goal of determining if it is less volatile than current standard formulations in their tunnel studies. Then they will conduct quite a few experiments focusing on two new herbicide active ingredients, evaluating weed control and crop response, as these tools will be coming to cotton farmers, hopefully, in the very near future. Dr. Scott Monfort, Extension Peanut Specialist, is evaluating all of the newly available peanut varieties as well as new peanut lines that have not been released. A majority of these peanut trials study biological products for enhancing growth and productivity.
Nutrien Ag Solutions is also utilizing the farm for field trials. Tim Moore, an agronomist within Nutrien’s Southeast Division, is putting in large plots of their newest cotton variety, DG 4434B3TXF, to fine-tune PGR management. They will also be looking for how well it yields compared to other commercial varieties.
The early mornings and long nights on the farm are upon us. Check back next month for updates on what’s happening on the Sunbelt Ag Expo’s Darrell Williams Research Farm.
