Blog Posts

Yes!  That was easy.

Many plant breeders and seed companies are hesitant to grow and sell organic varieties – as you know there is a lot of paperwork!  Also, even if the organic variety is superior there is the concern that conventional growers won’t buy or even look at a great variety with an organic label.  But there is a growing body of evidence that we need to be looking at varieties from below the ground first before looking at the above ground yields.

            What am I talking about?  Well according to many sources but in particular an article in Trends in Plant Science, “Breeding crop varieties with the target of improving soil health and reducing soil degradation will produce better conditions for crop growth through more efficient resource use and stress tolerance, so a win-win is possible where both yield and soil are improved and could be the cornerstone of regenerative agriculture.”

            “By targeting soil structure building traits (in plant breeding), abiotic (environmental) stress resistance of both plants and soils could increase through microbial habitat formation to improve nutrient cycling, stabilization of soil against erosion, and a greater capacity of soil to absorb, store and drain water,  … but these processes are generally ignored in plant breeding, where the primary focus is yield.”

            In other words, the scientific ability to monitor and measure what roots are actually doing is teaching us how important they are to “naturally” living and interacting with soil and all the microbiome in soil.

            “Perhaps plant breeding exacerbated soil degradation by focusing on yield and resource capture in conventionally fertilized soils.  Fertilizers (conventional) decrease the benefit of root-soil interface plant traits such as exudates and root hairs to capture nutrients (the normal, natural process) making those exudates and root hairs expendable.”

            This article, like many others, gets very technical and in-depth, but the premise is we need to look at what a variety is doing below ground as well as above ground.  In organic systems, plants must be able to interact with the soil microbiome in the root rhizosphere to take in nutrients, protect itself, and be more water efficient.  So, YES, we need organic breeding programs producing highly efficient, high yielding organic varieties!

Dr. Justin Tuggle did a great job at the Organic Cotton/Peanut Seminar discussing peanut seed quality.  He showed some great pictures of peanut seed with the seed coat removed showing the damage underneath. His point, which is 100% right, is that this damage is causing the germination problems in peanut fields and this damage is mostly caused by harvest equipment.  

I was in a “webinar” recently and part of the discussion was damaged cotton seed as well.  Some observations have shown that upwards of 30% of the seed in a bag is damaged in some way.  In some cases, the damage was up to 50%.  The seed may germinate but it is evident that the vigor is diminished.  This was in a conventional seed bag with seed treatments!

Corn seed can have just as many problems but again seed treatments can make a difference and do.  I have seen lots of estimates but in cold soils damaged corn seed in the bag can lower overall germination 20% to as much as 50%.

This issue is difficult to solve but realizing some of the causes is a big first step.

At the Organic Cotton and Peanut meeting in Seminole I asked producers to fill out a quick survey of their production. It was anonymous and the information is very valuable as we plan organic programs. Here are the results:

Average years farming – 18.6

Average of total acres farmed – 3,726

Average of total acres organic – 1,210

Average of organic peanut acres – 659

Average of organic cotton acres – 1,055

Rank all these problems you face as an organic  farmer?

#1 Weeds    (ranked most important)

#2 Disease or insect problems

#3 Adapted organic seed varieties

#4 Market Price or Marketing Issues

#5 Water/Irrigation

#6 Organic fertilizer  (ranked least important)

What is your source of information for organic farming?

#1 Other growers  (most responses)

#2 Consultants

#3 Company representatives

#4 Texas A&M AgriLife Extension/Research

#5 ACRES, Rodale, other organic groups

#6 Other sources  (least responses)

            When I asked the question how growers heard about the meeting, most said “from other growers” but in close second was the “Organic News” newsletter like the one sent out every other month. Still, most growers are getting news and information from each other!

Cotton Varieties Planted. I asked producers who did the survey to tell me the cotton varieties they plant.  I know there aren’t really any true organic cotton varieties but, these conventional varieties are the most used.

Cotton Varieties: University of Arkansas – UA48, Green Dirt Exceed –  2244, 4344, 6000 and 6494, Brownfield Seed and Delinting –  BX4, BX9, and BSD 598, Israel Ido Tal Pima – GL 6 and V 70, Gowan – 1432 Pima Hybrid

Peanut Varieties Planted. Same question for those that plant peanuts knowing that there is no “organic” peanut variety but plenty that are used on organic acres.

Peanut Varieties:  Spanish AT 9899, TamVal OL14 , Tamnut OL 06, Valencia C, Span 17, Valencia 309.

Here is the latest newsletter mailed to folks interested or involved in organic agriculture. Yes, I still mail out newsletters you can hold in your hand!

To see the newsletter just click on the picture above and it will take you to a pdf you can either read or download and print.

Lots of good information and as always I welcome your comments and suggestions.

If you farm in the Northwest Panhandle of Texas here is a great opportunity to get both conventional and organic corn and sorghum grain or silage production information.

I will be discussing organic corn and sorghum production, integrated pest management techniques and strategies for organic pest control, soil health and fertility related to organic crop production and a good emphasis on organic weed control. I will also discuss cover crops, rotations and equipment for organic weed control. This will be an in-depth look at the types of cultivators and timing for good control of weeds in an organic system. Should be fun!