Once again, a great deal of knowledge and wisdom was presented in winter meetings this year. So here are just a few of the quotable quotes that stayed with me.

“If we are just one more state growing industrial hemp, I think our chances for success go down. We are trying to do our best to position our products and our farmers in ways the industry knows that if it comes from South Carolina or from a South Carolina grower, you can count on it to be quality. Those things will be necessary to make a difference and to make a profitable enterprise going forward.”

• South Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Hugh Weathers, speaking at the Industrial Hemp Conference during the SC AgriBiz & Farm Expo in Florence.

“The only way we can improve basis (the difference between the current local cash price and the futures price of the contract with the closest delivery month) is if the integrators, in other words the livestock industry, would be willing to pay more for locally produced grain.”

• North Carolina State University Extension Economist Nick Pigott, speaking at the North Carolina Commodities Conference in Durham.

“This is my system for selection. This is the one I teach when I teach students in class. I want you to look at maturity class. I want you to know when that corn is going to silk, so you can avoid hot, dry conditions that are prevalent in our state during times in the summer. I want to try to avoid those if possible. I want to know what they are. I want to select a maturity date and planting date that match and avoid those conditions. I want to look at consistency.”

• North Carolina State University Extension Corn Specialist Ron Heiniger speaking at the North Carolina Commodities Conference in Durham.

“I bet a third of our peanut acreage in this state has soybeans in that rotation somewhere. My recommendation is that you plant soybeans right behind peanuts then you get three, four or five years of cotton, sorghum or corn after that before you go back into peanuts.”

• North Carolina State University Peanut Specialist David Jordan, speaking at the Bertie County Peanut Production Meeting in Windsor.

Many more quotable quotes were delivered in winter meetings across the Southeast. You can see those at www.southeastfarmpress.com.