Perry – The Georgia Cotton Commission held a research tour for its board members and invited guests on July 8, 2011, in Tifton. It was a day-long event and was an opportunity for Commission board members to observe, in-depth, the work in-progress at plot-side presentations given by the UGA Extension Cotton Team…work that is funded by the Georgia Cotton Commission with grower assessment dollars.
The main purpose of the tour was for the members to see that the research conducted is addressing Georgia growers’ production needs and concerns. At the same time, it was a chance to identify ways to enhance cotton producers’ research investment.
The field tour covered many important aspects of production: cover cropping systems in conservation and strip-till; fertilizer management; engineering; insect research; weed control; pathology; variety improvement; variety performance, PGR management and herbicide effects; recoverability from physical injury; management of parasitic nematodes and foliar diseases.
The indoor session at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center covered economics; irrigation; insecticide resistance; stinkbug natural enemies and insect research taking place in Athens.
Georgia Cotton Commission chairman, Louie Perry said, “Georgia’s cotton industry is fortunate to have the best scientists working on our behalves. We, in Georgia, have a great research infrastructure which includes the UGA Micro Gin and seeing all of this ongoing work today assures me that grower funds are being used in the best possible ways for the best possible reasons: to grow a high yielding, high quality and profitable cotton crop while, at the same time, always striving to be excellent stewards of our natural resources.”