Cotton Field Day Returns To Judd Hill Foundation Farm With New Focus
Bill Robertson, extension cotton agronomist for the Division of Agriculture,
describes ongoing research at the Judd Hill Foundation farm during a June 22 field day.
RYAN MCGEENEY
TRUMANN, ARKANSAS
After more than a decade away, agronomists and researchers with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture brought the annual cotton field day back to the Judd Hill Foundation farm, with a new focus: sustainability.
On June 22, the research facility hosted about 60 attendees, including growers, consultants and other industry professionals. The return to Judd Hill was significant not only for the research on display, but also the return to in-person field days, generally, after two years of relying on remote viewing options due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bill Robertson, extension cotton agronomist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said much of the research conducted at Judd Hill and other stations focused on cotton is centered on soil health and water conservation — much of it seen through the lens of modern cotton varieties.
“It’s to the point now that we have varieties that put on so much fruit at such a rapid pace, that the plant has a hard time getting the potassium that it needs,” Robertson said. “The root systems are sometimes limited on our silt- loam soils because we don’t get deep water infiltration. That can be the result of soil compaction.
“So, some of the research I’m conducting here is basically a matter of implementing practices that improve soil health, and to look at how those practices improve water infiltration,” he said. “A better- rooting cotton plant has an easier time getting potash out of the soil, for example – so that’s going to reduce one of your input costs right there.”
Career step
Tina Teague, research entomologist for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the Division of Agriculture, said her initial work at Judd Hill focused on the boll weevil, which was largely eradicated in Arkansas more than 20 years ago.
“Once we were able to get past some of the challenges posed by insects, we were able to move forward with more sustainable growing practices,” Teague said. “It took my whole career to get to that next step of research.”
Teague secured funding for her cotton sustainability research in 2008.
Since then, she and other researchers, including partners with various other academic institutions and governmental and non-governmental agencies, have focused on examining how various conservational practices stack up against conventional farming practices, using metrics such as yield, water conservation, nutrient runoff and more.
“We’re not interested in single-factor-approach research,” she said. “We’re looking at what the benefit is to using an entire package of practices.”
Teague said that while she monitors the metrics within her areas of expertise, such as yield, earliness and fiber quality, researchers with the Natural Resources Conservation Service oversee water quality factors.
“They’ve got the equipment that can make that easier,” she said.
Among the specialized equipment in use at the Judd Hill research station is a series of collection boxes that help parse the nutrients in the water runoff from ongoing cotton trials.
“They’re autosamplers,” Teague said. “The flume collects water from 12 rows of cotton. Within 24 hours of an irrigation or rain event, we collect that water. It’s so co-mingled, it’s amazing.”
No penalties
Overall, the conservation practices being researched under Teague and her team have shown to reduce nutrient loss by 40 to 60 percent compared to conventional farming practices – all without negatively affecting other metrics.
“As far as yield, we don’t see a penalty with these conservation practices, and sometimes, we improve yield,” she said.
Teague said the team will eventually bring on an economist to study the economic costs and benefits of adopting a full conservation practice package.
The event drew attendees not only from Arkansas but also other states in the region. Karen Wynne, senior program coordinator with the Better Cotton Initiative, is based in Huntsville, Alabama. While she was one of the presenters at the event, she said she was also interested in how various aspects of research at Judd Hill would translate well to cotton producers in other states.
“To me, being here on a working farm, where they’re willing to innovate and try different things, working with researchers from the land grant universities – I think just seeing all that knowledge come together makes a difference,” Wynne said.
“I can take that back to Alabama,” she said. “What they’re trying in Arkansas might not be perfect for every cotton grower in different regions in the United States, but there are things that are pretty consistent. The soil health principles are the same – keeping living roots for more of the year, keeping your soils covered, and so on.”
Environmental and financial sustainability Robertson said that illustrating to growers how sustainable cotton practices will not only benefit the environment, but farmers’ bottom line as well, is key to widespread adoption.
“So, we’re doing research to illustrate how things like using a cover crop – things that are pretty different from the way we normally farm – show that there are dividends down the road,” Robertson said.
“When we look at things we do to improve soil health, a lot of times, they also have an impact on our pests,” he said. “There are several things that a cover crop does to help us on our pigweed, for example.
Having cover out there reduces germination of the pigweed seed.
“Using those cultural practices that don’t cost us much money is very beneficial,” Robertson said. “Doing everything from a jug – it’s getting to the point where sometimes the jug we want isn’t there.”
Robertson said that an increasing number of consumers, and as a result, retailers, are choosing where to spend their dollars based on the sustainability claims of products.
“There are things we can do, in terms of improving soil health, to make the farmer more profitable,” he said. “But it also allows us to produce a product that our supply chain values. So we can kill two birds with one stone.
“It’s not a one-size-fits-all,” Robertson said. “You have to see what works for you.” ∆
RYAN MCGEENEY: University of Arkansas