2022 Winter County Production Meetings for Cotton

The 2022 meeting season is upon us. We currently have several cotton production meetings slated across the state from February 2nd through February 11, 2022. These meetings will include the latest applied research and Extension recommendations regarding cotton agronomics, variety selection, insect and weed control, new developments in cotton diseases, and will also discuss the N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Cotton Seed Testing Program. As of now, all meetings will be held in-person, with one virtual option on the evening of February 10th. Additionally, meeting dates and times for these production meetings can be found at the NC State University Cotton Portal website under “Events” along the top of the main page.  It is important that growers reach out to their local county agents for meeting details and registration.

EPA recently told NCDA&CS to move forward with auxin training in 2022 with the federal labels of Engenia, XtendiMax and Tavium as is. Therefore, NC State Extension, in cooperation with NCDA&CS, will continue to provide training to North Carolina famers, applicators, and retailers via the Auxin Herbicides-Best Management Practices training. Given the success of the hybrid 2021 training, we will continue with that format in 2022. See details below for more specifics.

It is unlikely that North Carolina will receive approval for 24(c) labels that would change the application cut-off dates for dicamba or to require training for applicators utilizing the Enlist system. That means the application cut-off dates for dicamba products of June 30 for soybean and July 30 for cotton will likely stand. 

Training Options:

1)     Live Zoom: 2022 Auxin Herbicides-Best Management Practices

Description: Drs. Charlie Cahoon and Wesley Everman will offer 6 Live Zoom training options. Trainings will be held every other week from mid-January through late-March. See training dates below. All Live Zoom trainings will start at 8:30 AM. Applicators will use the same Zoom link and passcode for each individual Live Zoom meeting (reach out to your county extension agent for Zoom registration link and password).

Attendee Requirements:

A. Registration is required before attendee can join the Live Zoom training (this can be completed just before joining the Zoom session).

B. Attendee must include name, email address, phone number, county, and NCDA&CS Certification/License number at registration.

C. To receive credit for a virtual training, NCDA&CS requires the following of all attendees:

i. Identity verification at the beginning of the course and after any breaks

ii. Active participation by each attendee throughout course to ensure attendee is present (polling questions will be used for Live Zoom meetings).

iii. Attendance must be taken at the end of the course.

iv. No partial credit is given for those that arrive late or leave early.

Training Dates (all Live Zoom meetings start at 8:30 AM):

2)     Pre-recorded video: 2022 Auxin Herbicides-Best Management Practices

Description: Drs. Charlie Cahoon and Wesley Everman will provide a pre-recorded video of the 2022 Auxin Herbicides-Best Management Training to county agents. This video can be incorporated into winter meetings (live or virtual) scheduled by County Agricultural Agents. If used in conjunction with a virtual meeting, see NCDA&CS requirement for active participation above. If incorporated into a face-to-face meeting, agents will capture attendance normally (hard-copy rosters or scanning pesticide license upon entry).