Reaching Indian Farmers on Pink Bollworm Resistance
Resistance management is important in preserving the long-term value of insect-control traits in cotton. Read how a team in India engaged stakeholders and media through an open discussion about resistance data, and worked hard to ensure farmers knew the best way to manage insects on their farms.
Who should speak up for farmers?
As farmers look at the way the world works, its easy to think things need to change. Tennessee farmer Johnny Dodson says farmers need to speak up & be involved.
Farmers Learning from Each Other
I happened to be in one of the fields Johnny Dodson farms near Four Points, Tennessee with soybean farmers from the Midwest who came down south to see the issues on weed resistance that Johnny and his neighbors are facing.
What’s a Farmer to Do When Weed Resistance Threatens the Farm?
In a previous post, we learned a bit about Johnny Dodson and his Halls, Tennessee farm. In that post, things at the farm may have seemed idyllic. As he talked, the birds chirped and all seemed right with the world. But reality is, Johnny is in the epicenter of weed resistance. Having grown 30 crops [...]
On the Farm with Tennessee Farmer Johnny Dodson
This trip was long overdue. I’ve been lucky enough to talk to Halls, Tennessee farmer Johnny Dodson several times before – I vividly remember some Midwestern soybean farmers borrowing a cotton boll to show Johnny he wasn’t the only cotton person in Kansas City for a meeting and other chances to talk with him about [...]
Managing Weeds…Now
By Mike Burger, eCommunications Team Dave Rhylander, marketing lead for Deltapine Cotton, has spent years talking to cotton farmers. Most recently the discussions have been about farmers not being able to take advantage of a technology they’ve depended on for years to manage weeds – how it’s affecting them, and are there solutions on the [...]
It’s Coming Up Cotton in Texas
It sits on the Llano Estacado, the “staked” or “palisaded” plains in the southwestern U.S., one of the largest mesas on the continent. Spanish conqusitadors roamed here; a number of native American peoples like the Apaches, the Comanches and the Kiowa lived here. It is Lubbock, founded in 1876 and named for a Texas Ranger. [...]
Where’s the sales pitch? It’s in the yield, it’s in the field!
By Katie If you would have asked me 10 years ago what I wanted to be when I grow up, sales probably would have been one of the last things to come to mind. In fact, when I tell people now that I am involved in sales I feel like I need to explain exactly [...]
Video: What is Center Pivot Irrigation?
Not sure how many times I’ve had people ask me about these “big spoke things” going across fields, otherwise known as a center pivot and and used in center pivot irrigation. They are definitely easier to understand if a center pivot is running. They are intriguing I admit, and with a span that covers hundreds [...]
A Young Alabama Farmer’s Lifelong Balancing Act
By Jillian Very few college students look forward to waking up early on the weekends. Even fewer look forward to waking up to a day of manual labor in the humidity and in nearly 100 degree weather. My fiancé, Jared Etress,doesn’t mind waking up early—or working. Born and raised in Southeast Alabama, farming has always [...]
Video: Planting Drags Out, Moisture Issues at Every Turn
It seems like forever since we had an update on what was happening on Bob Walker’s cotton, corn and soybean farm. Planting that started back in mid-April faced torrential rains in early May. Planting started so long ago and the blog about it was written so long ago, that people have likely forgotten about it. [...]
Thinking Through Planting, One Task at a Time
Until I worked in agriculture, I really didn’t know what kind of work went into planting the fields that I’d drive by everyday. Man, have I learned a lot and yet there are so many things I’m still learning. Farmers like Bob Walker of Somerville, Tenn. have a lot to consider when planting. For quite [...]
What’s for dinner in 2050? Monsanto Talks Ag & Food at Fortune Brainstorm Green
This week in Southern California, a diverse group of political, not-for-profit organizations and business leaders are sitting down at Fortune Brainstorm Green to brainstorm ideas and approaches on how to work together to feed, clothe and fuel human activity and to do so in a sustainable way.
The Female Side of Farming – Don’t Underestimate It
By Raegan Johnson They’re there from sun up to sun down, operating machinery, cleaning equipment—whatever needs to be done. Tonya Ball, said they work just as hard—if not harder—than most of the boys. They are female farmers, and their role in agriculture is more significant than some may think. FAO estimates that women produce between [...]
An Official Update at the Unofficial Start of 2010 Planting
Co-authored by Janice Person and Nick Weber The unofficial start of planting season got under way today, as the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its 2010 Prospective Plantings report. It’s an annual report that the agency issues each March 31 as its best estimates on what farmers may plant for corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton and [...]
They’re Planting Biotech What?? Where??
But more interesting to me, are the answers to the “where?” and “what?” questions. As in, where are farmers planting biotech crops and what are they planting? Reviewing the list, I see countries that I haven’t seen before as well as new products that I haven’t heard of (blue roses anyone?). Here’s some tidbits that [...]
Farmers Produce Record Corn, Soybean Crops
Big notes of “Thanks” and “Congrats” are in order for U.S. farmers. On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service released its “Crop Production 2009 Summary.” This report highlights the USDA’s best estimates of what farmers produced during the 2009 crop year across several crops, including Monsanto’s core crops of corn, soybeans [...]
Beltwide 2010 – Definitely One for the Books!
It’s hard to explain the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. I know because I’ve tried for years. And the recent post to the company blog provided some insight on my personal connection to the event for almost 20 years! But I’ve gotten a few questions sent to me through email, tweets and Facebook posts so I want [...]
Pipeline Progress: Eleven Steps Closer
Yesterday, we moved a step closer. Actually, 11 steps closer. Every January, in conjunction with the first quarter financial results, Monsanto gives an update on the research and development status of our breeding and biotech traits. The update provides a look at projects that have advanced and new projects that have been added to the [...]
Fashion Tips from Beltwide
By Jillian Cross posted from Beyond the Shows I never imagined that I would learn about fashion at the Beltwide Cotton Conference. Don’t get me wrong, I KNOW where my clothes come from and what they are made of, but Cotton Inc. has surprised me again. If you are anything like me, you have seen the colorful [...]
How Does One Live Through Their First Beltwide?
I know the question itself sounds overly dramatic. I didn’t use that title for emphasis either. I’ve been to the Beltwide Cotton Conference every year for two decades now. It’s a conference that can test physical and mental strength. After all these years, I still remember my first Beltwide. I was in graduate school working [...]
Farmers Love Data!
It’s Saturday morning and I’m sitting in a meeting room… got here at 8 a.m. and we will be running until the afternoon. As the speakers have taken the stage or videos hit the screen, I’m reminded of how important data is to farmers. The data presented today is on cotton – yield, fiber quality, [...]
Another Cotton Pickin’ Post
By Tyne Morgan This week, it’s all about cotton — a crop I knew very little about until about a year ago. It’s used in more things than you might realize: money, cooking oil, and diapers to name a few. It’s a crop that truly is a part of our daily lives. I remember when [...]
