Ron Smith, Farm Progress Journalist Profile

Articles

How to control volunteer cotton

3 weeks ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

If not controlled, volunteer cotton emerging in grain sorghum planted into abandoned cotton acres could produce hostable plants for boll weevils. A significant acreage of cotton in the Lower Rio Grande Valley was destroyed this year because of early drought and late storm damage. Much of that land was planted back to grain sorghum. Controlling volunteer cotton in sorghum: Three sorghum herbicides, Callisto, Starane, and Husky, stand out, with three others showing some efficacy. (Photo by Shelley E.
From destruction to eradication

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

The boll weevil crossed the Rio Grande into Texas cotton fields in 1892 to begin a relentless, largely unchecked march across the Cotton Belt, ultimately exacting more than $23 billion from U.S cotton producers, including yield losses and control costs. Rapid encroachmentThe boll weevil spread rapidly, averaging from 40 to 160 miles a year, reaching Alabama in 1910, Missouri in 1913, and by 1922 had infested Southeast cotton fields into the Carolinas.
Get boll weevils out of U.S.

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

Edward Herrera has been chasing the boll weevil across Texas cotton fields for almost 28 years — starting in Central Texas, then to Far West Texas, and now in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Herrera’s current objective is to push one of the most destructive invasive pests in U.S. agriculture history out of the country and to prevent it from reestablishing populations in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, the weevil’s last stand in the U.S. Cotton Belt.
Rain brings relief and new challenges

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith |Shelley E. Huguley

For the last two years Southwest peanut farmers have either delayed planting or cranked up irrigation to water the crop up. This year, they waited for fields to dry out. Waiting on soil to dry out enough to plant is a better option, say Oklahoma and Texas Extension peanut specialists. “We’re just getting started,” said Maxwell Smith, Oklahoma State University Extension specialist, Altus. The planter is running on Brent Hendon's Welch, Texas, peanut fields.
Benefits and challenges for U.S. agriculture

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

Resources are available to help producers combat feral hogs. Sam Craft, Texas A&M AgriLifeA pilot program in the last farm bill included projects in Texas and other states for intense feral hog removal with state and landowner participation. “Studies have shown that every dollar spent from the farm bill provides a $5 to $6 benefit to landowners,” said Bruce Leland, Assistant Director, Texas Wildlife Service, San Antonio.
Texas farmers combat feral hog damage with varied control methods

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

Jay Norman witnessed feral hog damage in cropland for the first time in 1984 on a farm in Dorchester, Texas. “It was 20 years after that before I had any damage on my Fannin County farm,” Norman says. Since 2004, hog damage has been an annual concern. “We have some damage every year; sometimes it’s just a partial field,” he said. “Last year we replanted 40 or 50 acres. We replanted 160 the year before and 600 the year before that. “Wild hogs are here all the time, just heavier sometimes than others.
Weed control strategies amid price pressures, herbicide loss

2 months ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

Southwest cotton farmers are caught in an all too familiar situation — between a rock and a hard place of trying to figure out how to make a cotton crop without spending more than they get back. Crop specialists and economists will agree that prices and input costs simply don’t balance out. They also agree that cutting too deeply on weed control reduces the chance of making a decent yield. The looming shadow of another drought year and the loss of a crucial herbicide add to the conundrum.
Cost-cutting strategies for farmers in tough economy

2 months ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

Grain sorghum, in addition to its importance as a valuable rotation option, also offers a relatively low-cost production system. In a tough agricultural economy, however, even grain sorghum growers might be looking for ways to cut costs. “With the environment we're in now, considering that commodity prices in general are low, everyone is looking to cut costs where they can,” says Brent Bean, director of agronomy for the United Sorghum Checkoff Program, Lubbock, Texas.
Production cost is biggest challenge for Texas rice

2 months ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

With production costs in the $1,600 per-acre range, the margin for rice producers is razor thin. They depend upon a ratoon crop. Cutting inputs is a risky proposition, according to an Extension agronomist. Ron Smith, Contributing WriterTexas rice farmers planted 65% to 75% of their anticipated 142,000 acres under near-ideal conditions—an open planting window followed by soaking rain. Planting is expected to be completed by late April.
Rain 'extremely important' to finish out wheat crop

2 months ago | farmprogress.com | Ron Smith

As harvest nears, Southwest wheat production faces many challenges, including drought, weeds in thin wheat stands and low vernalization. Ron Smith, Contributing WriterAs the Southwest wheat crop moves into the reproductive stage, farmers hope for more rain, which, until last weekend, seemed reluctant to oblige. While last week's rainfall brought relief, drought poses the most serious hardship to the 2025 wheat crop. Pockets of freeze damage and vernalization issues create additional concerns.