Folks, today Dr. Calvin Trostle,
non-cotton extension agronomist district 2, released some helpful information
about pearl millet as an alternative to sugarcane aphid susceptible
forages. Should prove a useful tool if
hay or other forages are in your plan and managing the sugarcane aphid by other
methods seems intimidating for just a hay crop. Dr. Trostle released the following:
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension agronomy, forage, and entomology
has compiled the attached information about hybrid pearl millet as a potential
option for annual summer forage growers in lieu of sorghums where sugarcane
aphid may be an issue. This Is not a current issue in the High Plains
(but could be later this year), but for growers downstate where SCA is now
present (though not thriving due to rains and cool weather), this could be an
option.
For up-to-date information on sugarcane aphid, its
distribution, and its effect on all sorghums, access the on-line information at
http://txscan.blogspot.com/
With rains delaying planting across wide swaths of Texas a lot of acres
intended for sorghum/sudan, haygrazer, etc. remain unplanted.
Hybrid
Pearl Millet as an Alternative to Sugarcane Aphid-Susceptible Sorghum Family
Forages
With
the widespread presence of sugarcane aphid (SCA) in Texas in 2014 and the
apparent expansion occurring again in 2015 for this damaging aphid to Texas
sorghums—grain, forage sorghum, sorghum/sudan, etc.—growers interested in
annual forage and grazing may have another option that appears to be largely
unaffected by SCA. Hybrid pearl millet (HPM) is a leafy forage that may
fit some grazing and haying operations.
Field
observations in several Texas areas in 2014 by producers, county ag. extension
agents, and millet breeders found little to no SCA in HPM. Furthermore,
April testing by USDA indicates that HPM is essentially a poor host of
sugarcane aphid (e.g., was largely resistant to SCA).
The
Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences has developed a summary of potential hybrid
pearl millet use as an apparent alternative, at least for some acres, among
Texas forage producers who seed annual crops like sorghum/sudan. “Hybrid
Pearl Millet as an Alternative to Sugarcane Aphid-Susceptible Sorghum Family
Forages” is posted online at http://publications.tamu.edu/#forage
AgriLife
Today will also have a news release early next week. Additional key
millet points include:
·
Entomology
testing and field observations suggest that hybrid pearl millet is a poor host
for sugarcane aphid.
·
Although
two insecticides are labeled for use in sorghum family forages to control SCA,
both require withdrawal of livestock for 7 days.
·
Hay
and forage growers, especially on smaller acreages, may be less willing or less
able to spray for sugarcane aphid. This could be particularly damaging to
a forage crop as leaf area is lost thus making HPM more attractive for growers
even if forage yield potential may be lower.
·
Millet,
which is very small seeded, is best adapted to sandier soils, but it also
tolerates high pH soils better than sorghum family forages due to a different
iron uptake mechanism, and it does not develop prussic acid potential like
sorghums.
Thanks Dr. Trostle for the information,
Blayne Reed
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