We had a good turnout last week at the Southeastern Gin Harvest Meeting. Thank you, Southeastern Gin and Peanut, for hosting UGA Extension at your facility and for the meal that was served. Several UGA Specialists were in attendance and gave very timely information to the producers that were present. A couple of cotton fields have now been defoliated in Appling and some end rows in peanut fields have been dug and harvested as well. As we are making considerations on harvesting our peanut and cotton crops we need to be mindful of cotton jassid damage in fields and how this could effect our defoliation applications. In fields were we have had excessive damage by cotton jassid it is very important that we defoliate that cotton on time. Our three defoliation decision aids are 60-75% OB, 3 NACB, and Black seed layer on uppermost harvestable boll. If defoliation applications are delayed in fields were we have very red leaves we could end up with poor quality due to stuck leaves. Those red leaves are soon going to turn brown, and we need leaves that are photosynthesizing for the defoliant product to be taken into the leaf in order for the product to serve its purpose. If you would like assistance in determining defoliation timing give the extension office a call and we can schedule a visit. I have also been blasting many peanut samples and our early May planted peanuts are looking to be ready around 140-145 days, even 12Ys that I have checked look that way. The Mid-May planted crop looks like some fields could be going as late as 150 DAP. Our May 1st planted crop is currently 140 DAP.
Topics in this Update include:
- Potential defoliation/quality issues with jassids and Defoliation Update – Week of 9/15 (Dr. Camp Hand, UGA Agronomist)
- The state of peanut crop progress (Dr. Scott Tubbs, UGA Cropping Systems Agronomist)
- Ext. PA and Irrigation Blog Post (Dr. Wes Porter, UGA Precision Ag and Irrigation Specialist)
- Soybean Green Stem (Dr. Eric Prostko, UGA Weed Specialist)
- September Cotton Team Newsletter and Talkin’ Cotton Podcast (UGA Cotton Team)
- All About The Pod Podcast (UGA Peanut Team)
Southeastern Gin Harvest Meeting
Potential defoliation/quality issues with jassids and Defoliation Update – Week of 9/15 (Dr. Camp Hand, UGA Agronomist)
while defoliating cotton something got my attention that I believe is worth sharing. I sprayed the farm that I was at yesterday 2-3 weeks ago for jassid, and split the farm in half leaving half untreated. Below are a couple of tweets with observations I made yesterday while defoliating. Feel free to share –
Video and explanation- https://x.com/camp_hand16/status/1965428122498859028
Pictures from sprayer – https://x.com/camp_hand16/status/1965499489449570702
The big take home – I sprayed a product evaluated and recommended by Dr. Roberts, ON TIME, and these were the differences. We do not know the impacts this pest will have on defoliation and subsequent fiber quality, but we can certainly speculate as to the potential issues that could be caused.
Stress to your growers that if this pest is present in their fields that timely defoliation is critical to maintain optimum yield and quality!!!! If we protect the cotton up to the recommended stage I believe we have preserved yield potential – but if we do not defoliate on time and the jassids kill the leaves we could be facing other issues (leaf, trash, extraneous matter, etc.).
Do not want to scare anyone – but we need to be aware that these things are a possibility. Timely defoliation and harvest can help mitigate the potential of having these type of issues.
Defoliation Update
Pretty straight forward stuff this week, especially since I sent out more emails than I told you I would last week.
Looks like across the state it will be cool up until Thursday/Friday, when it will warm back up. But then by Saturday it will begin to cool back down as we look to next week.
Rates –
Thidiazuron – 4 oz/acre – lots of young growth out there and need a little higher rate with cool temps.
Folex/Def – 10 oz/acre – my preferred rate for all situations, but could back down to 8 if spraying Thursday.
Ethephon – 42 oz/acre – do it once and do it right.
As always unique situations come up, so if you have questions just holler. Have a good week!
The state of peanut crop progress (Scott Tubbs, UGA Cropping Systems Agronomist)
I want to send this as a follow-up to both my Peanut Pointers article from last week and of some of the information discussed on today’s podcast. Wes led off the episode and I book-ended the topic at the end of the episode related to where we’re at with this crop, and it is very much a “tale of two crops” right now. A deeper dive into some of the weather and rainfall distribution data is tracking right along with things we’re seeing with crop and maturity progression and offers some pertinent information on making our late season management and digging decisions. Please keep these things in mind as we enter the thick of harvest. (Note that all Figures referenced below are based on rainfall at the UGA Georgia Weather Network station for Tifton and can be adjusted for your local rainfall).
The early planted crop has received very adequate rainfall to meet the crop water demand for a large chunk of the season, minus a 3-4 week dry spell in mid-season. Unfortunately, that dry spell occurred at a critical time as we were trying to set a large proportion of the harvestable pods. Figure 1 represents the water-use/need curve for the peanut crop (blue dashed line) and can be compared to the actual rainfall received (yellow line) to get an idea of how it may affect maturity progression. Things turned dry from approximately weeks 11-14 of crop growth (weeks 27-30 of the year in Figure 1). This was causing anywhere from 1.0 to 1.5 inch deficits in each of those weeks, for four consecutive. Since that is roughly 77-98 days after planting for peanut planted around April 23, dryland peanuts could have a split maturity profile. Therefore, you will need to take a close look at the entire maturity profile when place these samples on the board and do not just pull the trigger based on the leading edge of the profile. As we are nearing the end of the season digging decisions need to also include vine and peg health as they could speed up your decision to dig. For example, If there is a healthy vegetative canopy that is not crashing and defoliating from leaf spot or other pathogens, then a grower may have the luxury of leaving them in the ground longer to progress a larger percentage of the late blooms without risk of losing the oldest and most mature pods (which will be your pods with the heaviest weight). But opening the pods to look at the interior and determine whether seed have turned loose in the hull (the funiculus detached between the kernel and the pod) will also help gauge whether those peanuts can hold on for longer, or whether they will soon break dormancy and begin sprouting on the vine, hence necessitating digging those early regardless of the profile recommendation.
Figure 1. Tracking an early planted (around April 23 = week 17 of the year) peanut crop, comparing water need (dashed blue line), 30-yr average weekly rainfall (dotted red line), and actual rainfall received (solid yellow line) from Tifton, GA, 2025.
A mid-May planted peanut suffered through the dry spell earlier in crop’s development, where roughly weeks 9-11 were at deficit (Figure 2 – weeks 28-30 corresponding). This means the early podset was affected more drastically and maturity may be more delayed as later maturing peanuts continue to develop. The maturity profile may not look “split”, just shifted a few columns later than “normal” in its progression. These peanuts could possibly benefit from later digging, giving them an extra week or two to mature. If that’s the case, these may need an extra fungicide spray to carry them through to maturity. Also noting the dotted red line on the graph, we are entering a period of the year (week 36) where historic average rainfall becomes less in quantity, as well as fewer events that may be further between. There is a substantial deficit between the blue dashed line and the red dotted line, so irrigation is still very important to maintain the yield potential and finish filling these pods, especially if they will be pushed late. Considering we haven’t received rain in the last 5 days, and there is little chance of rain in the next 10 days of the forecast, we will enter a dry spell when these peanuts still need water to complete the yield and grade potential that is currently still very good. Going dry at this period of time just before
harvest can also be a threat to aflatoxin potential, so keeping these peanuts irrigated where possible could be the difference in a Seg. 1 vs Seg. 3 load.
Figure 2. Tracking a mid-season planted (around May 14 = week 20 of the year) peanut crop, comparing water need (dashed blue line), 30-yr average weekly rainfall (dotted red line), and actual rainfall received (solid yellow line) from Tifton, GA, 2025.
Regarding the late planted crop taking place around the first week of June, these peanuts are just now entering their peak water need (Figure 3). The early dry spell during weeks 27-30 of the year did not affect these late planted peanuts much, causing only around 0.25 inch deficit per week for only two weeks (weeks 6 and 7 of crop development; corresponding to weeks 28 and 29 of the year). Thus, as of right now, the late planted crop is progressing very nicely in terms of weekly water need. However, we are turning dry at a point where peak water need is hitting, and while entering the drier part of the year with less rain. With adequate rainfall on the late crop up until this point, irrigation has probably not been very necessary and may have only been turned on once or twice. If we go dry for an extended period of time over the next few weeks, what is potentially a great late season crop could turn disastrous very quickly. Growers should be diligent in running irrigation on these peanuts where available to maintain and maximize yield potential. Otherwise, there could be a sharp cliff on the maturity board with a front-loaded podset and not much on
the back end. If those pods on the front edge of the maturity board start turning loose in the hull, there could be a short window to get those peanuts dug before these kernels start sprouting on the vine and a compact maturity profile could lose a large percentage of harvestable peanuts in a very short period of time.
Figure 3. Tracking a late planted (around June 4 = week 23 of the year) peanut crop, comparing water need (dashed blue line), 30-yr average weekly rainfall (dotted red line), and actual rainfall received (solid yellow line) from Tifton, GA, 2025.
Finally, remember that there is limited dryer capacity at most Buying Points. If peanuts are picked while they are still at high moisture and the dryers are all full at the Buying Point, your peanuts in the wagon are at risk to mold. It may be beneficial to leave peanuts in the field to naturally cure for an extra day or so where they are less risk to mold as quickly, and may not need to be dried, or at least spend less time on the dryer. Dryers will need to be operating efficiently moving wagons on and off quickly with such a large crop coming in during a short timeframe.
Ext. PA and Irrigation Blog Post (Dr. Wes Porter, UGA Precision Ag and Irrigation Specialist)
Here is the updated blog post for this week. We have been doing some harvest agent trainings and I figured now was an ideal time to do a post and let everyone know that we have a new UGA Factsheet focused on the JD Cotton Picker (and Stripper) On-Board Module Weighing and Yield Monitoring system. Utilizing this system and calibrating it correctly can help you in many of your on-farm trials to aid in validation of module weights. At this time it shouldn’t replace the flat module weighing scales that you use, but a tool that can help in other ways and help your growers to quantify their on-farm trials.
I have done other work on the accuracy of this system, and that data are linked at the bottom of the Fact Sheet. If you have any further questions about either of these systems, feel free to reach out.
While I have already made a post about Irrigation Termination in Peanut, we still have a lot of peanuts that are yet to be harvested, and the environmental situation has gotten rough. It’s dry, and pretty hot for this time of year. Thank you to Scott Tubbs for working hard on developing these materials that step you through where you stand based on when you planted. It is important to look through these graphs (also notice the cool videos embedded for the graphs).
Peanut Water Usage by Planting Date | Extension Precision Ag and Irrigation
If you have any further questions about finalizing irrigation needs, please don’t hesitate to reach out. This year is definitely different and we need to stay on top of it.
Soybean Green Stem (Dr. Eric Prostko, UGA Weed Specialist)
Late yesterday afternoon, I received a phone call from Floyd Co. Extension Agent, Keith Mickler, about green stem in soybean (Figure 1.) I can tell you from personal experience that green stem can cause major headaches when combining soybeans. In fact, it took 6 man hours to clean out my small-plot combine last year after it got stopped up with green stemmed beans! (knife, machete, long screwdriver, torch, lots of sweat equity)
A few things to know about green stem:
1) Green stem is a term used to describe abnormal or delayed maturation in soybeans where the stems and/or leaves of affected plants stay green even after pods reach physiological maturity.
2) Any factor that reduces seed pod development and seed set can lead to green stem.
3) Natural senescence of soybean requires a strong draw of nutrients from the vegetative portion of the plant (source) to the developing seed (sink). When sink tissue is reduced, protein and sugars are retained in the source tissue resulting in green stems.
4) Seasonal environment stresses (water, temperature, hailstorms, animal damage, excessive soil nitrogen availability at R6-R7), certain viruses (Bean pod mottle virus, Tobacco ringspot virus and Alfalfa mosaic virus), insects (stinkbugs, common brown leafhopper, bean leaf beetle), soybean genetics (cultivars), and fungicides (especially strobilurims) are considered to be causal agents and risk factors associated with green stem.
5) Harvest aids or desiccants such as Gramoxone (paraquat) or Defol (sodium chlorate) have had some effect on green stem but are often inconsistent. Recent research showed that desiccants reduced green stem about 50% of the time. Defol 5 applied at R7 reduced green stem by 38.3%-50.9% compared to the NTC with short (0.5-1.0 point shorter than normal) and normal maturity groups but not in long (0.5-1.0 longer than normal) maturity groups. (FYI, I have never sprayed a single drop of Defol in my entire career.)
6) Combine operators will need to reduce speed when harvesting soybean fields with green stem.
7) Green stem can resolve itself after a hard freeze.
8) Current soybean harvest-aid/desiccant recommendations can be found on pages 265-266 of the 2025 UGA Pest Control Handbook.
https://fieldreport.caes.uga.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/SB-28-28_3.pdf
Information Sources (recently published in 2025):
Geiss et al. Understanding green stem in soybeans. Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management. 2025;11:e70065 (https://acsess.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/cft2.70065)
Kendall et al. Harvest aid applied at soybean growth stage R7 rarely impacted seed, protein, or oil yield. Agronomy Journal. 2025;117:e70109 (https://acsess.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/agj2.70109)
September Cotton Team Newsletter and Talkin’ Cotton Podcast (UGA Cotton Team)
Below is a link to the most recent episode of the Talkin’ Cotton Podcast. Remember the link takes you directly to buzzsprout, but it can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, etc.
If y’all have any additional questions don’t hesitate to reach out. Have a good weekend!
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2350262/episodes/17832862
All About The Pod Podcast (UGA Peanut Team)
EPISODE 28, Season 3
In this episode, Scott Monfort, Mark Abney, Scott Tubbs, Wes Porter, Bob Kemerait, Eric Prostko, and Albert Culbreath discussed digging recommendations of the early planted crop, and disease management/water needs for the rest of the crop. If you have any questions or would like to suggest topics for discussion on a future episode, contact your local UGA Extension agent.
EPISODE 29, Season 3
In this episode, Scott Monfort, Mark Abney, Scott Tubbs, Wes Porter, Eric Prostko, and Kaelyn Morgan discussed digging recommendations for the April to May 10th planted crop and management/water needs for the rest of the crop. If you have any questions or would like to suggest topics for discussion on a future episode, contact your local UGA Extension agent.