Texas AgriLife Research and Extension personnel at Amarillo are looking at grain crops to identify more efficient breeding techniques and to examine the viability of pearl millet as a forage option with sorghum under pressure by the sugarcane aphid.

Kay Ledbetter, Texas AgriLife media developed two articles recently to show some of the work in progress at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Centers in Amarillo and Lubbock.

Time-saving machine for wheat breeders

Texas A&M AgriLife Research wheat breeder Jackie Rudd and Srirama Krishna Reddy, assistant research scientist, both in Amarillo, say a new walk-behind phenotyper may not be ready for prime time with respect to data analysis and management, but linking new technology with old technology is makes the process quicker and more reliable.

See Ledbetter’s report on the Texas AgriLife Today website.

Pearl millet possibilities as forage option

A hybrid pearl millet may provide a viable forage option in areas where some sorghum forages, especially particular sorghum/sudan or haygrazer, have been damaged by sugarcane aphids, say Texas AgriLife Extension experts in Lubbock.

The sugarcane aphid was widespread in 2014 and observers expect it to be a threat again this year. Hybrid pearl millet may offer an alternative.

“This is true especially for growers who need annual forage and grazing, as the hybrid pearl millet appears to be largely unaffected by sugarcane aphid,” said Dr. Calvin Trostle, AgriLife Extension agronomist in Lubbock.

This leafy forage may fit where some sorghum forages, in particular sorghum/sudan or haygrazer – a common annual choice for grazing and haying, suffered a heavy hit by sugarcane aphid in 2014, Trostle said.

Ledbetter’s article at Texas AgriLife Today offers more details.