Category Archives: Commodity

2016 Wheat and Growing Degree Day Accumulation

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Previous work in VA has demonstrated that we “normally” accumulate around 1350 GDD from planting to jointing in wheat in Virginia.  The warm weather this year has been anything but normal and so I don’t think we can follow that guidepost this time.

Our wheat varieties require at least 30 days of temps less than about 42 degrees to vernalize.  In most areas we made that threshold of at least 30 days between what I considered to be a normal planting date for the region and the end of the year.  For example near Richmond a crop with planting date of Oct 20 would have experienced 31 days with lows below 42F before January 1.  Other researchers have reported that wheat requires around 700 GDD after the vernalization threshold has been reached.  This seems pretty reasonable for use in VA.  When comparing to the 30 year average temperatures for central VA, 700 GDD accumulated from January 1 predicts a jointing date of March 20.   I believe this matches well with historical observations for the crop

Below is a figure showing GDD accumulated at 3 sites in eastern VA since January 1, 2016.

wheat_GDD_16

Yep – it’s been warm.   About 40% greater GDD accumulation at this point in the year compared to the long term average.  Normally we are accumulating about 5.75 GDD/day this time year.  This year it’s over 8.

I honestly don’t what this means for us in terms of wheat development.

If the temperatures return to the 30 year average tomorrow the warm weather thus far would have relatively little impact. Instead of predicting a jointing date of March 20 (700 GDD) we would get to 700 GDD on about March 15.

The 14-day forecast I’m looking at has us continuing to stay warmer, however.

If we stay near the current trend through jointing, it’s possible we will be 3 weeks ahead of the long term average.

I won’t pretend to be able to forecast the coming weather, but I think it’s likely that things may begin to happen very quickly with the crop.
This may impact our ability to split N applications as driving over wheat that’s already jointed damages the growing point.  I suspect weeds, insects, and disease are also responding to these warmer temperatures.  Small weeds are going to get to be big weeds sooner this year.  Diseases like powdery mildew have already been found in the crop in some places.  Scouting early and often may prove a valuable investment.

Peanut Variety and Quality Evaluation 2015 Report

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Due to suitability to the environmental conditions and existence of a strong peanut industry tailored to process primarily the large-seeded Virginia-type peanut, growers in Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina generally grow Virginia-type cultivars. In the view of a common interest in the Virginia-type peanut, the three states are working together through a multi-state project, the Peanut Variety Quality Evaluation (PVQE), to evaluate advanced breeding lines and commercial cultivars throughout their production regions. The objectives of this project are: 1) to determine yield, grade, quality, and disease response of commercial cultivars and advanced breeding lines at various locations in Virginia and the Carolinas, 2) develop a database for Virginia-type peanut to allow research-based selection of the best genotypes by growers, industry, and the breeding programs, and 3) to identify the most suited peanut genotypes for various regions that can be developed into varieties. This report (http://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/AREC/AREC-164/AREC-164.html ) contains agronomic and grade data of the PVQE tests in 2015.

Stakeholder input on Virginia’s State Pollinator Protection Plan

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The following advisory is posted on behalf of Dr. Hunter Frame:

I want everyone to check out this letter for stakeholder input on the pollinator protection plan that is being developed by VDACS. So for the cotton producers the nearest meeting will be on February 22 from 6-8 pm at the Tidewater Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Suffolk, VA. This is an important issue that needs to be discussed and solutions need to be developed so no tools for producers are lost and bees/beekeepers are able to thrive next to cotton and other crops! Look forward to seeing everyone there!

http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pdf/pollinatorprotectionplanletter.pdf

26th Annual Eastern Shore of Virginia Ag Conference & Trade Show

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The Eastern Shore of Virginia Ag Conference & Trade Show is on! We are snow free, and looking forward to a great event on January 26 and 27, 2016. The event will take place at the Eastern Shore Community College Workforce Development Center in Melfa, VA. The full program can be found at: http://issuu.com/esarec/docs/flipbookfinal/1. We have been approved for Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) CEU credits (details at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/f34f3spg4quni7a/CCA_Credits_Handout_2016.pdf?dl=0), Virginia Nutrient Management Credit (1 credit), and Virginia Pesticide Recertification credits (information in the program). See you there! Directions can be found at: http://es.vccs.edu/about/mapdirections/.ESCC

Eastern Shore Ag Conference & Trade Show

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Join Virginia Tech, Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Association of Potato and Vegetable Growers, and Industry to hear updates, research information, and innovative products for grain, oilseed, and vegetable crops important to Virginia’s Eastern Shore on January 26 and 27, 2016. This event is free and open to the public. Announcements concerning conference updates, weather delays and/or closings, etc. will be made at: https://www.facebook.com/EasternShore.Soils. Highlights of the program can be found in the attached flyer.

Ag Conf Press Release 2016

Grain Sorghum 2015 OVT Results in Virginia

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2015 Sorghum OVT Yield in Virginia

I hear that several seed companies offer a 9% discount for pre-ordered seed, so I though this information may help.

The link above takes you to the grain sorghum variety trials results in 2015 including yield, seed moisture, and test weight. 22 hybrids were tested this year in full season and double cropping production systems at several locations in Virginia: Suffolk, Warsaw, Windsor, and Locust Grove. In order to effectively desiccate before harvest, the full season hybrid trial was grouped in two desiccation groups based on hybrid maturity.  The first table in the attachment combines locations and desiccation groups; the others show data for each location, cropping system and desiccation with mean separation by the Least Significant Difference test.

In general, 2015 was a good year for grain sorghum in Virginia. In spite of seed sprouting in the head due to storm Joaquin and the short “visit” of the sugarcane aphid towards the end of summer at some southeastern locations, yields were good. Only at Windsor yields were near to but not quite 100 bu/acre. For all other locations, yields at and in access of 100 bu/acres were obtained for many hybrids. DEKALB’s DKS53-53, DKS51-01, DKS54-00; Sorghum Partners’ NK6638, Pioneer’s 83P17; Sorghum Harvest’s SH59G4; and Alta’s AG3101 and AG1203 were top yielding hybrids in both cropping systems.

Last but not least, I would like to acknowledge the collaborators for help with the OVT trials this year, Dr. Wade Thomason with the Crop and Soil Environmental Science Department and Bob Pitman with the Eastern Virginia AREC.

 

Peanut state meeting

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Virginia state peanut meeting is scheduled for February 10, 2016, at 9:00 am at the Airfield 4-H Conference Center in Wakefield, VA (15189 Airfield Rd, Wakefield, VA 23888
(757) 899-4901; http://www.airfieldconference.com/). See you there!