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[AgriLife Today] Cover crop costs recovered on Rolling Plains cotton

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By: Kay Ledbetter

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, [email protected]
Contact: Dr. Paul DeLaune, 940-552-9941 ext. 207, [email protected]

VERNON – Adoption of cover crops in the Rolling Plains has been slow as questions persist on water use and benefits. But after compiling economic data this past year, one Texas A&M AgriLife researcher is asking producers, “Can you afford not to adopt cover crops?”

Dr. Paul DeLaune, Texas A&M AgriLife Research environmental soil scientist in Vernon, said irrigated producers especially could potentially be reaping more dollars per acre if they include a cover crop on their continuous cotton.

DeLaune has been researching conservation tillage and cover crop effects on soil moisture and soil properties for the past eight years in the semi-arid environment of the Rolling Plains, with much of the data collected during an exceptional drought period.

He will be talking in detail about agronomic and economic impact of cover crops in cotton systems at the Beltwide Cotton Conference in Dallas Jan. 5-7 and the Red River Crops Conference in Childress Jan. 24-25.

“Water is often the limiting factor to crop production, so anything that is perceived to reduce the capability of soils to capture and retain rainfall hinders adoption,” he said.
Conservation tillage, which has shown benefits in regard to rainfall retention and storage, has been a hard sell in Texas, DeLaune said, with only about 16 percent adoption. So he expects cover crops to have an even lower adoption rate.

However, there has been much more promotion and excitement for cover crops due to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Soil Health Initiative, he said.

DeLaune said it is true after five years of research, he had hoped to see a buildup of organic carbon – but didn’t.

But he did see a reduction in the overall soil compaction and an improvement in water infiltration.

“The stored soil water at the time of termination of a cover crop will be lower, but when the rain does come, the infiltration rate is higher, and prior to the cash crop being planted, it seems to be recharging well,” DeLaune said.

Termination date can be important. Too early and the beneficial residue is lost, he said, adding they terminate about a month before planting.

“If you terminate early, the residue goes away quickly,” DeLaune said. “So when do you pull the trigger on termination? Let it get a little further along so the residue remains. Our infiltration data shows it will definitely be a benefit.”

In continuous cotton systems, he said his research has shown that infiltration did not differ between conventional till and no-till systems.

“But we did see a significant increase in infiltration when a terminated wheat cover crop was added to the system. In a low-residue system such as continuous cotton, no-till alone does not seem to be as beneficial in regard to infiltration, although we have seen alleviation of plow pans with no-till.”

The continuous dryland cotton system he has researched included trials of conventional till, no-till and no-till with a mixed species cool-season cover crop, as well as monocultures of crimson clover, hairy vetch, Austrian winter field pea and wheat cover crops.

Over a three-year average, expenses were significantly lower for the no-till system than all other systems except the wheat cover crop system, he said. Seed is a major factor and wheat has a much lower seed cost compared to other evaluated cover crop options.

In less humid regions, it is important to consider reasonable cover-crop seeding rates and not try to emulate high seeding rates that may be seen in cooler or wetter climates, DeLaune said. Within the dryland study, economic returns were not significantly different between cover crop and non-cover crop treatments.

“Although we have seen significant soil moisture use by cover crops, we have maintained lint yields with cover crops,” he said.

On irrigated cotton, the lint yield and net return were higher for the mixed cover crop and wheat cover crop systems in the third year of the trial. On the three-year average, per-acre net returns were $355 for no-till, $367 for conventional till, $398 for wheat cover crop and $406 for mixed species cover crop systems.

Added residue, either through crop rotation or cover crops, is a benefit to cotton systems in semi-arid environments, he said. Risks are much greater in dryland systems, but success can be found with educated management decisions.

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Farm & Ranch

Managing Show Cattle Through The Winter

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By Heather Welper

Husband and wife duo, Heather and Calvin Welper, are the Co-Owners and Operators or Two C Livestock, located in Valley View, Texas.

The pair’s operation has a show cattle focus where they raise and sell purebred heifers of all breeds and club calf Hereford steers.

When it comes to show cattle, the Welpers know a thing or two including how to prepare for the cold winter months and the Texas major show season run.

To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

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Farm & Ranch

Double M Ranch & Rescue

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By Hannah Claxton, Editor

As the sun rises each day, so do the dozens of mouths that Meghan McGovern is responsible for getting fed. Rather than the sounds of a rooster crowing, McGovern hears the bellows and bleats of a variety of exotic deer, the chortle of kangaroos, the grunts of water buffaloes, and the chirps of a lemur.

Nestled against the banks of the Red River, the Double M Ranch and Rescue, with its high game fences and deer sprinkling the landscape,s its in stark contrast to the surrounding ranches.

“Having deer is kind of like eating potato chips- you can never actually have just one,” said McGovern with a laugh.

McGovern has several herds to take care of- fallow deer, axis deer, water buffalo, goats, and bison. In smaller numbers, there’s also a few kangaroos, a lemur, a potbelly pig, a pair of zebras, a watusi, and a few horses.

To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

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Farm & Ranch

Acorn Toxicity

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By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH

With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.

If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.

Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.

To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

brown acorns on autumn leaves, close up
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