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Breeding efforts are being used to develop more drought resistant cotton varieties. Numerous weed control experiments are conducted at the station to evaluate the effect of different weed populations on cotton yield. Experiments are also being conducted to evaluate the effect of herbicide residue carry over on crop the following year.
Our current grape vineyard is used to evaluate how particular grape cultivars and rootstock perform in Oklahoma. A new grape vineyard will soon be established to evaluate grape foliar diseases and to establish a grape crown gall research nursery.
Research goals for switch grass include implementation of a breeding program to genetically increase biomass yield capability in switchgrass and to develop new cultivars which have higher biomass production potential over currently commercially used cultivars by classical population improvement techniques and modern biotechnology.
The photo above shows wheat being drilled at the station. In order to increase station production, land not being used for research is planted in crops that can generate station sales. However, we take every step to conserve moisture so we often plant our production fields into ground that has not been cultivated.
Our peach orchards are well known to the local populations. Each year we open the orchards to the public and they come to the station and pick their own peaches. Normally, our peach season lasts between 4 to 6 weeks and the peach sales are used to help support research station activities. Research is also being conducted in certain parts of the orchard in order to determine the efficacy of pecan shells as a mulch in peaches by monitoring the growth and development of young peach trees.
Peanut research (above) is being conducted to identify and characterize new sources of resistance to Sclerotinia blight and to integrate partial genetic resistance in currently available peanut varieties with reduced fungicide programs. Experiments are also being conducted to evaluate the effects of labeled and experimental chemistries on different weed spectrums and peanut injury.
Objectives of current pecan research (above) are: to evaluate pecan germplasm for potential cultivar release in Oklahoma; to evaluate new insecticide chemistries for pecan nut casebearer control; to evaluate the effect of ammonium thiosulfate on removing excessive fruit to improve quality and promote consistent nut bearing; to evaluate alternative strategies for zinc management on pecans other that foliar application; to determine the optimum vegetation-free area surrounding pecan trees for optimum yields; and to validate and improve the Oklahoma Pecan Scab Advisory Model currently available at the Oklahoma Mesonet website.
Research is being conducted to determine what the optimum vegetation-free area surrounding pecan trees should be in order to produce the highest yield. For more detailed information please contact Dr. Michael W. Smith at mike.smith@okstate.edu
Field trials are conducted and reported each year that evaluate disease management strategies on vegetable crops. Trial reports on weed control, insect control, and variety performance/crop culture are also available. Click here to visit the website for information on these field trials.
Many wheat research projects likek the one above are conducted here each year. The purpose of these projects are: to determine optimum fertilizer rates for optimum grain yields; to evaluate the use of Nitrogen-ramps in order to determine mid season Nitrogen applications; to test sensor based nitrogen Calcium algorithms in wheat; to evaluate different tillage practices and herbicides for cheat, ryegrass, and broadleaf weed control in winter wheat; and to evaluate different herbicides for controlling volunteer winter canola in winter wheat.
Cattle are not a part of research but are used to help manage the pastures and to generate production income for the unit.
