Texas Agriculture Today

*The Hessian Fly is getting worse in Texas wheat.    *The Texas Beef Council’s Bar-B-Quest television show is a very successful way to promote Texas beef.   *The Texas legislature passed an 18 billion package to reduce property taxes.   *The sorghum checkoff is helping farmers to grow the crop on the Texas High Plains. *Bermuda grass pastures are now dealing with a new pest.   *We are in the middl...

Recent rains have led to a dramatic recovery for some grazing lands in the Texas Panhandle. Some farmers in Williamson County in Central Texas could see much higher corn yields this year. Texas A&M AgriLife continues its research on some of the best ways to use dogs to protect sheep and goat herds. Chronic Wasting Disease has been found in two additional deer breeding facilities in Texas. Texa...

*U.S. corn farmers are expected to produce a record crop this year.     *The Texas corn and sorghum crops are looking great.     *We could have a good year for row crops on the Texas High Plains, but farmers there do have challenges to address.   *The Central Texas corn harvest is getting underway, while cotton and pastures need a good rain.     *It’s a good idea to have a biosecurity plan to prev...

*The Texas wheat harvest is just about done, but in the northern Texas Panhandle farmers are struggling to wrap up harvest.    *The 75th annual Texas A&M rice field day is coming up Thursday in Beaumont.   *The American Lamb Board is spending extra money promoting lamb to consumers. *There has been a large amount of rain received in the Texas High Plains recently, but irrigation is still a big...

*The 95th annual Texas FFA convention kicks off this week in Dallas.   *The Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association is holding their annual meeting this week in Kerrville.   *Texas Congressman Jodey Arrington is working closely with House Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson to fund a 2023 Farm Bill that strengthens the farm safety net.  *The Texas High Plains have gone from one of the wo...

*Wheat harvest is wrapping up with some surprising results.   *The Texas Farm Service Agency is now accepting nominations of farmers and ranchers to serve on local committees.   *44 Farms of Cameron, Texas received the Beef Improvement Federation’s Seedstock Producer of the Year award.   *This has already been a challenging year for growing cotton on the Texas High Plains. *The latest technology f...

*The Texas corn, sorghum and rice crops look very good, but cotton is a different story.    *The Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course is just a few weeks away.   *Texas farmers and ranchers should apply for the Emergency Relief Program and the Pandemic Assistance Revenue Program by July 14th. *Researchers in the Texas High Plains are studying the use of manure based fertilizers alongside chemica...

*Two grain elevators collapsed in South Texas, killing one and injuring two others.   *Texas farmers and ranchers now have more time to sign up for a program that will improve migratory waterfowl habitat.   *No till farming is paying off for one Texas High Plains farmer.   *We produce a lot of milk in the state of Texas.   *The right to farm and ranch in Texas will be on the ballot this November. ...

*Farmers and ranchers need to protect themselves from the high Texas heat and sunshine.   *Texas corn and sorghum acreage is up this year while cotton acreage is down.    *The EPA is not giving up on its Waters of the U.S. rule, despite the recent Supreme Court ruling against it.  *The huge rainfall over the Texas High Plains this spring has brought in a bumper crop of weeds. *The Texas Rolling Pl...

*USDA’s Planted Acreage report shows a big increase in U.S. corn acreage and a drop in cotton acres.    *The first case of anthrax has shown up in Southwest Texas.   *An animal health company is helping to provide scholarships for veterans’ families. *There has been a big jump in Texas sorghum acreage this year.   *New technologies and seed varieties were on display at a recent field day in Southe...

*A Texas wheat farmer is facing a unique harvesting challenge thanks to illegal immigration.    *A small Texas meat processor is getting a grant to expand.   *A coalition of trade associations is asking a Texas court to put an end to the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. rule.   *The acreage report put out by USDA Friday provided quite a surprise on corn acreage.   *June was a very active weather month, an...

*The Texas wheat harvest has been challenging, but there is some good news to be found.   *A Texas Tech Veterinary School professor has received a grant to study ways to improve immune responses in cattle.   *The summer 4th of July cookout will cost slightly less this year, but still much higher than two years ago.   *The two largest cities on the Texas High Plains are teaming up to win more jobs...

*The wheat market is experiencing a lot of volatility thanks to uncertainty in the Black Sea region. *The annual Southwest Dairy Day will be held in October in the Texas Panhandle.   *Texas watermelons will be available for the 4th of July.   *Cotton is facing challenges in the Texas High Plains this year.   *USDA is examining animal raising claims used on labels.   *The triple digit heat is havin...

*The Texas wheat harvest is now 75% done.   *The Texas corn and milo crops are looking very good, but that’s not the case for cotton.    *Weed pressure is intense this year, thanks to good spring rains.   *This is a hard time for the Texas dairy industry, but new dairy plants opening on the Texas High Plains are helping the situation.   *South Texas cotton and grain farmers have several priorities...

*Friday’s monthly Cattle on Feed report contained a surprise, with placements much higher than expected.   *A South Texas university received a federal grant to help bring more Hispanic students into agricultural careers.   *Dallas will turn blue and gold in two weeks as FFA students from across Texas attend the 95th annual Texas FFA Convention.   *We have had an abundance of rain on the Texas Hig...

*The Texas cotton crop is struggling with weather challenges.   *USDA is asking Texas farmers to file their crop acreage reports soon.   *One Texan was chosen for the National Cotton Council’s 2023 Emerging Leaders Program.   *There’s a lot of milk produced in the Texas High Plains, and it would be nice if more kids were drinking it.   *The United States Department of Transportation is trying to r...

*The Texas wheat harvest is now 63% complete, but rain is still causing a lot of harvesting headaches.   *Triple digit temperatures are causing major heat stress on livestock.   *There are four openings for Texas beef producers on the Cattlemen’s Beef Board.   *The Texas High Plains should be seeing some dryer weather soon.   *There are two corn diseases that Southeast Texas farmers need to watch...

*Harvest is underway on a great corn and sorghum crop in Central and South Texas.   *Texas high school students have a few more days to nominate their agriculture teacher for the Texas Ag Teacher of the Year award.   *The first bale of cotton in the United States has been harvested in the Rio Grande Valley.  *Severe weather has caused tragedy in another small town on the Texas High Plains. *There...

*Cotton insurance deadlines have passed, so what will farmers plant now?    *Over 1,500 high school 4-H members attended the annual Texas 4-H Roundup in College Station.   *New water legislation will help find alternative sources of water in Texas.   *Cattle feeders on the Texas High Plains are experiencing are enjoying a level of profitability they haven’t seen in almost a decade.   *We’ve had a...

*An Oklahoma congressman is pushing back on the recent regulation requiring a prescription for all animal antibiotics.   *Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett sends a warning to the Biden administration on a Taiwan trade deal.   *There are a lot of people in need following the devastating tornado that hit the northeast Panhandle town of Perryton last week.   *The heat is on all across Texas, with tripl...

*Texas corn growers are happy to see the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office challenge the Mexican biotech corn ban.    *The cotton market may stay in its current trading range for the rest of the growing season.    *A Texas congressman wants to see the 2023 Farm Bill address predation of sheep and goats.  *The Texas Panhandle town of Perryton is picking up the pieces after a devastating tornado hi...

The bottom fell out of the clouds last month, as the Texas High Plains saw the second wettest May on record.     The Texas legislature has approved 1.5 billion for rural broadband across the state.    Texas High Plains cattle producers are seeing dramatic improvement in grazing lands, thanks to the recent rains.   It has been a great year so far for grain sorghum in South Texas.     The Texas AgrA...

*The Texas wheat harvest is challenging, with rain showers causing constant delays.   *The Texas Panhandle is slowly drying out as farmers are finally getting back into the fields following a massive amount of rainfall in a short period.   *The last thing Texas Panhandle farmers need is hail, but that's what many of them are getting.    *An animal traceability system is a big priority for the catt...

*This is a great year for the Texas corn crop, with 77% of the crop rated good to excellent.   *The El Nino weather pattern is bringing rain to Texas, but it may take a while to completely break the West Texas drought.   *The Texas Pecan Growers Association’s annual conference and trade show is coming up next month in Denton.   *Many Texas Panhandle hog farms are starting to convert their faciliti...

*Cotton ground is going to other crops now that insurance deadlines have passed.   *A one-in-a-million albino calf has been born in East Texas.   *Registration is now open for the Texas Cattle Feeders Association’s annual convention.   *Corn farmers in the Texas Panhandle are trying to make some progress on planting.   *Hunting property is in high demand across Texas.   *June is considered a ferti...