The Eastern Region of Texas is the largest region of the state. It spans from the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, blackland prairies of Temple, the piney woods of Overton, and the coastal regions of Beaumont and Corpus Christi. With a state as large as Texas, temperatures, soil quality, precipitation, and geography greatly vary.
This region is especially unique due to the wide span of climates and community types. For example, the Eastern region includes urban Dallas and also coastal plains and beaches.
In the Dallas area research focuses on urban issues such as pest management, irrigation, and landscapes. While Temple is located in the Texas blackland prairies – named after its rich dark soil that poses unique aspects of farming.
The other extreme includes Corpus Christi – a coastal city in South Texas with a humid, subtropical climate with high winds. And Beaumont on the Texas’ coastal plain, about 30 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and just south of the dense pine forests of East Texas. Beaumont is home to the first rice mill in the state which opened in the late 1800’s, and rice farming continues to be a point of research in the area.
Research Impacts
- Beaumont center scientists identified antioxidants that reduce the effects of reactive oxidative species by preventing damage to rice cell membranes. Experiments have shown a 5.7% increase in yield, which if applied to the entire Texas population would have a value of $9.26 million per year.
- Corpus Christi research on fungus has led to the discovery of the best resistant genes for hybrid grain sorghum grown in the region.
- In 2014 the Dallas Center’s Urban Water Team constructed 4,800 rain barrels, which collect 7.6 million gallons of water annually and save their owners $60,000 per year on water bills.
- The SWAT hydrologic model developed at the Temple Center assesses impact of growing crops for biofuels. Scientists discovered that conservation practices in streams of the Upper Mississippi River reduce sediment loads by 31%.
- The Overton Center boosts state income by $150 million in the forage, pasture, and livestock industries of East Texas.
Projects
Urban water management
Rapid land development without sufficient planning puts the city at risk for floods, damage to fish habitats, and less drought resilience. That’s why the Hydrologic Modeling Team at the Blackland Research and Extension Center is working with Austin, Texas to improve water management in the city.
The team has updated and expanded the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model to simulate the hydrology of urban watersheds in Austin, TX. As a part of this project, the team is developing tools for rainfall-runoff modeling at sub-hourly time steps, stormwater best management practices, and green infrastructures to improve downstream water quantity and quality.
Increased yield of peanut varieties
Corpus Christi scientists have developed new peanut varieties that have a greater potential yield and make better use of irrigation water. They also looked at new herbicides to better control weeds and more effective fungicides to help with disease resistance. All of these developments have led to better control of disease and increased yield. The increased yield is almost 50% per acre, as compared to 20 years ago, and the added gain can be $100-150 per acre.
New rice cultivars have great potential to increase rice production and revenue
Beaumont researchers developed AgriLife’s first rice cultivars – Colorado and Antonio. They were released for large-scale commercial production in 2015. If there is 15% adoption rate over the next five years, the 5% yield advantage will increase statewide rice production revenue by $1.22 million per year.
Improvement of human nutrition in rice grain
Dr. Lee Tarpley is a co-leader in discovering molecular markers and genes that control the concentration of minerals affecting human nutrition in rice grains. This research represents the largest effort of its type for a crop species. The plant populations and physiology methods used at the Beaumont Center are unique tools aiding this gene discovery. The National Science Foundation recently funded a rare fifth-year creativity extension.
Genotyping cotton for drought resistance
Corpus Christi Center is home to the Drought Tolerance Laboratory, where scientists study drought tolerance of cotton and sugarcane. One study found two cotton genotypes that showed that high water use efficiency as a result of higher biomass partition into seed cotton. Two transgenic sugarcane varieties showed higher water use efficiency while maintaining biomass production.
Legumes for alternate uses
Researchers at the Corpus Christi Center are studying warm-season legumes – such as peanuts and soybeans. Researchers want to know if these legumes can be used as grain, hay, grazing or bioenergy crops. Legumes can be beneficial since they provide nitrogen and soil stabilization for grasses that are use for bioenergy or livestock grazing.
Effects of military training on land
What can 60 years of military training due to land erosion? Researchers at the Blackland Center are monitoring just that. Located in Central Texas, Fort Hood is one of the largest military installations in the world with combat training as its primary mission.
Over sixty years of training exercises with heavy armor units has significantly degraded the land by accelerating the soil and vegetation erosion processes. This also impacts downstream water resources that provide drinking water for nearly a quarter million Central Texans.
The Center’s Water Science Laboratory has monitored stream flow and associated sediment export from many Fort Hood training areas since 1995 using a Continuous Monitoring System. This system represents actual rangeland conditions so leaders can make adjustments to the training scheduling to minimize vegetation damage and erosion.
Cropland Assessment Efforts
The Conservation Effects Assessment Program (CEAP) Modeling Team at the Temple Blackland Center helps state, federal, and nonprofit environmental groups with high-priority concerns such as soil erosion. The team completed 12 reports for the 2003-2006 CEAP Cropland Assessment. The research showed significant improvement in the loss of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides from cropland by adopting conservation practices. More work is to be done in conservation planning for high fertilizer loss.
Rotation Cropping Systems
Overton researchers are conducting trials to develop cropping systems using rotations of cowpea and forage rye to reduce nitrogen fertilizer inputs in forage and cowpea seed production systems for East Texas.
Sustainability of ornamental plants
Brent Pemberton studies sustainability of ornamental plants in the Eastern region of Texas. Specifically Pemberton develops roses adapted for heat tolerance and disease resistance. The best-adapted ones are called Texas Superstars®. These roses can serve as landscape plants that reduce the need for pesticides and have reliable ornamental value for home and commercial landscapes.
Legumes for bioenergy
Researchers at the Corpus Christi Center are studying warm-season legumes – such as peanuts and soybeans. Researchers want to know if these legumes can be used as grain, hay, grazing or bioenergy crops. Legumes can be beneficial since they provide nitrogen and soil stabilization for grasses that are use for bioenergy or livestock grazing.
A watershed and risk management tool for sustainable production of bioenergy feedstocks
John Jifon is studying bioenergy crops for biofuel feedstocks – sugarcane, Miscanthus, switchgrass, and miscane. He is using APEX – a watershed and land management simulation model – to evaluate combinations of feedstocks and water options under different weather and soil conditions.
In addition, they are using an economic financial model to estimate production costs and economic feasibility to determine the minimum price at which farmers can grow bioenergy crops. Finally, they will create an online tool for decision makers to evaluate cost-benefit ratios and the risk of investment.
Pest management and treatments for rice
Dr. M. O. Way’s entomology research program led to the development of insecticidal seed treatments and the development of cost-effective and sustainable rice integrated pest management (IPM) production systems. Approximately 60% of Texas rice-producing acreage receives IPM treatments, which minimize pesticide drift.
Model development for land and crop management practices
A team of researchers at the Blackland Center developed a set of simulation models and databases that serve as the foundation for agricultural and economic decision making around the world. The models evaluate the impacts of changes in technologies and climate on the productivity and sustainability of agriculture and natural resources. The core models assess the impacts of land and crop management practices on agriculture production and the environments on farms and watersheds of all sizes.
Crop-Weather Program for South Texas
The Crop-Weather Program (CWP) for South Texas is housed at the Corpus Christi Center. CWP is a web-based tool that tracks data from 32 weather stations stretching Fort Bend County to the Rio Grande Valley.
Rice breeding program
Dr. Rodante Tabien and Lloyd T. (Ted) Wilson released ‘Colorado’ and ‘Antonio’ in 2012, which are the first inbred rice cultivars developed by Texas A&M AgriLife Research. They are also the first cultivars of any crop species developed using marker-and model-assisted selection.
Dr. Lloyd T. (Ted) Wilson and Dr. Omar Samonte, now with the California rice breeding program, began laying the foundation for a hybrid rice-breeding program in 2007. In 2015, Professor Yan joined the center and worked with Dr. Wilson to create over 300 parental lines. A strong partnership with the Texas Rice industry focuses on creating a cutting-edge hybrid-rice-breeding program built upon advanced phenotyping developed around both marker- and model-assisted trait selections.
New varieties of clover and ryegrass
Dr. Gerald Smith’s research at the Overton Center has resulted in six plants being released and licensed: ‘Neches’, ‘Sabine’, ‘Blackhawk’, ‘Silver River, and two ryegrasses, ‘TAM TBO’ and ‘Nelson’. Smith found that the early and profuse flowering traits of ‘Neches’ clover will save stakeholders approximately $1 million each reseeding year, if ‘Neches’ is only 5% of total white clover use.
Water-Efficient Turfgrass
About half of the drinking water in Texas is used to irrigate turfgrass in home lawns, corporate landscapes, golf courses, and parks. The Dallas Center works to improve efficiency of plants that use this water. Researchers are working to breed new, multi-use turf varieties that need less water and are more tolerant of drought, cold, and poor soil condition. So far they have released 17 varieties, including new varieties of Zoysiagrass, the most environmentally friendly turfgrass variety.
Alternative Resources for Urban Water Conservation
The growing lack of freshwater – due to high urban population growth in Texas – is certainly a challenge. Scientists at the Dallas Center are exploring the use of alternative water sources such as graywater, air conditioning condensate, and rainwater. Scientists have found that it takes little effort to gather these alternative sources and can reduce demand on potable public water supplies. They are collecting data from Texas and Qatar, and will make recommendations for design, sizing, distribution, and reuse.
Fresh food in urban areas with limited produce
Dallas Center researchers are working develop new plant varieties that can grow in controlled environments such as greenhouses and vertical farms. They are also studying fundamental genetic and biochemical mechanisms that control efficient use of plant resources.This development could allow for fresh fruits and vegetables that are essential to human health, but hard to produce in the limited space of growing urban communities.