Summer crops, cotton to be spotlighted at Red River Crops Conference Jan. 27-28 in Childress

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contacts: Stan Bevers, 940-552-9941, sbevers@ag.tamu.edu

CHILDRESS – A day each of in-season and summer crops information and cotton talks will highlight the annual Red River Crops Conference on Jan 27-28 in Childress.

The two-day event is designed to provide crop production information for producers on both sides of the Red River in Southwest Oklahoma and the Texas Rolling Plains, said Stan Bevers, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agricultural economist in Vernon.

The event will begin with registration from 7:45-8:15 a.m. Jan. 27 and continue through 4:15 p.m. Jan. 28 at the Fair Park Auditorium, 1000 Commerce St.

Preregistration by Jan. 23 is encouraged, Bevers said. The fee of $25 covers both days and includes noon meals.

To register, print the form fromhttp://agrisk.tamu.edu/. Make checks payable to and mail to the Red River Crops Conference, 100 N.W. Ave. E, Courthouse Box 9, Childress, TX. 79201-2351.

Continuing education units for private pesticide applicators and certified crop advisors are pending with both the Texas Department of Agriculture and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture.

Bevers said AgriLife Extension and Oklahoma Cooperative Extension jointly host the annual event, which alternates between Oklahoma and Texas.

In-season and summer crops will be featured on Jan. 27. Discussion topics and speakers will include:

– Climate Update, Gary McManus, Oklahoma Mesonet state climatologist, Norman, Oklahoma.

– Specialty and Alternative Crops, Dr. Calvin Trostle, AgriLife Extension agronomist, Lubbock.

– Canola Production and Crop Year Outlook, Joshua Bushong, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Servicewinter canola specialist, Stillwater, Oklahoma.

– 2014 Farm Bill Decisions, Dr. Joe Outlaw, AgriLife Extension economist, College Station.

– Weed Management in Wheat, Gary Strickland, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension educator in Jackson and Greer counties and Southwest Research and Extension Center dryland cropping systems specialist, Altus, Oklahoma.

– Wheat Grain and Grazing Interface, Bevers.

– Commodity Market Outlook, Jason Pace, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension agricultural economist, Southwest Area Office, Duncan, Oklahoma.

Cotton will be featured on Jan. 28, with topics and speakers including:

– National Cotton Council Update, Dr. Mark Lange, National Cotton Councilpresident and CEO, Cordova, Tennessee.

– Cotton Market Update and Outlook, Dr. John Robinson, AgriLife Extension economist-cotton marketing, College Station.

– Cotton STAX Insurance, Dr. Darren Hudson, Cotton Economics Research Institute director, Texas Tech University department of agricultural and applied economics, Lubbock.

– Cotton Disease Management, Dr. Jason Woodward, AgriLife Extension plant pathologist, Lubbock.

– Cotton Weed Management and Xtend Flex, Shane Osborne, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension specialist, Altus, Oklahoma, and Dr. Ty Witten, Monsantocotton specialty crop product management lead, St. Louis, Missouri.

– Cotton Fertilizer Management, Dr. Mark McFarland, Regents Fellow and acting associate head for AgriLife Extension in the Texas A&M University department of soil and crop sciences, College Station.

– New Cotton Genetics Performance,Dr. Gaylon Morgan, AgriLife Extension agronomist-cotton, College Station, and Dr. Randy Boman, Oklahoma State University Southwest Research and Extension Center director and cotton program leader, Altus, Oklahoma.

For more information, contact a local Extension office in either Texas or Oklahoma, or call Bevers at 940-552-9941, extension 225.

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