Research Update (July 6, 2026)

Diligence Technologies Inc., West Tennessee

EVENTS FROM THE PAST MONTH:

Once again Larry Steckle and crew put on an excellent weed tour at the experiment station in Jackson.  His is one of a few tours that continues to have good attendance in an era where tour attendance is declining overall.  As such, it is a great opportunity for us to catch up with old friends and learn what is on the horizon in the world of weed control.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Milan No-till Field Day (July 23, 2026)

Agricenter Feast on the Farm, Memphis, TN (August 1, 2026)

SWSS Weed Contest, Knoxville, TN (August 5-6, 2026) 

UT Cotton Tour, Jackson, TN (September, TBD)

 

CROPPING SEASONS:

Except for possibly a few late soybean trials, all our yielded trials are finally in the ground.  Both May and June were filled with scattered and frequent rain showers that made planting progress sporadic.  We have managed to start a few weed control and insect trials along the way, but there are still several that remain to be established.  We even have a few cucumbers to plant for some late-season fungicide work.

 

GREENHOUSE ACTIVITIES:

Most of our greenhouse work is wrapping up now and barring some unexpected requests, we may be largely out of the greenhouse until this fall.  We appreciate all the greenhouse trial work this past season, but the logistics of conducting greenhouse trials in the heat of field season are quite challenging.  Maybe we can slow down in the greenhouse for a while and pick things back up in the fall.

  

UPCOMING TRIAL REMINDERS:

COTTON DEFOLIATION

Depending on the speed of cotton maturation and our original planting dates, we generally spray defoliation trials in late September and early October.  Therefore, if you are looking to get in a cotton defoliation trial this season, please let us know as soon as possible.

Also, do not hesitate to contact us even if you were not aware of the trial when we were planting cotton.  We have access to some large blocks of cotton that can be cut into research trials.  Just let us know before defoliation season so we can save you a spot.

 

WEATHER INFO:

As mentioned earlier, frequent showers have been a major challenge this spring.  While it certainly beats the alternative, it has also made us later getting some of our trials established.  Many thanks to those who have waited patiently for their trials to get established.

 

PEST INFO:

Weeds have been a challenge this season.  Many of the sites that were tilled early in the season require additional burndown and tillage to get new trials established.  This just makes everything go that much slower.

Insect populations seem to be building in cotton much better than last season.  Last year we had difficulty finding research grade populations of plant bugs.  At least for now, things are looking much better on the insect front for this season.

 

Let us know if you have any late trials that we help with.  It seems there is always room for one more.

Tim, Jackson, Jake, Will, Jim, & JT

 

Proverbs 27:23-24

Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds; for riches are not forever.

Research Update (June 1, 2026)

 

Research Update (June 1, 2026)

 

Diligence Technologies Inc., West Tennessee

UPCOMING EVENTS:

UT Weed Tour, Jackson, TN (June 17, 2026)

Milan No-till Field Day (July 23, 2026)

Agricenter Feast on the Farm, Memphis, TN (August 1, 2026)

SWSS Weed Contest, Knoxville, TN (August 5-6, 2026) 

UT Cotton Tour, Jackson, TN (September, TBD)

 

CROPPING SEASONS:

The rain we missed in April showed up in May making continued advancement more difficult.  In several cases, the hard and frequent May showers resulted in the need to replant cotton trials.  Soybean planting has slowed due to our inability to get in the field for long stretches.  At least the corn generally looks good.

 

GREENHOUSE ACTIVITIES:

The odd thing about this season is that going into June we are still talking about greenhouse trials.  We had several greenhouse projects that have spilled over into late spring and summer.  We may be shifting to a model with a longer greenhouse season if we can figure out how to manage it well.

 

WEATHER INFO:

As mentioned earlier, our fast start in April was slowed substantially as we had weeks of continuous rainfall in mid-May.  We are appreciative of the water, but we could use some drying days so we can head back to the field.

  

PEST INFO:

The frequent rains of late have done wonders for weed emergence.  We went from relatively clean fields to a sea of pigweeds in a hurry.  If you need a weed trial, you are in luck.

 

Thanks to all who have sent us protocols this spring.  We are working to get everything established.  If you have additional trials come up, please let us know.  We are here to help.

Tim, Jackson, Jake, Will, Jim, & JT

 

Proverbs 21:5

The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness.

 

Research Update (May 4, 2026)

Research Update (May 4, 2026)

 

Diligence Technologies Inc., West Tennessee

EVENTS FROM THE PAST MONTH:

We wrapped up “winter” meeting season with the CPDA meeting in Austin, TX.  It was good to visit with several old and new friends.  That should put an end to meetings for a while except for our local field days.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

UT Weed Tour, Jackson, TN (June, TBD)

Milan No-till Field Day (July 23, 2026)

Agricenter Feast on the Farm, Memphis, TN (August 1, 2026)

SWSS Weed Contest, Knoxville, TN (August 5-6, 2026) 

UT Cotton Tour, Jackson, TN (September, TBD)

 

CROPPING SEASONS:

Corn planting is complete except for corn fungicide trials which we intentionally plant in May.  Cotton and soybean planting are underway with more expected as weather allows.  The Memphis location has been unusually dry so far this season, particularly compared to the past two years.  We have had better rainfall in Jackson but all west Tennessee is still behind on rainfall for the year.

 

GREENHOUSE ACTIVITIES:

We normally wrap up greenhouse trials around the end of April.  However, this season we have several late trials that will keep us doing sporadic greenhouse work for an extra month or two.  We are grateful for the work, but we also recognize that things will get a bit warm in there as move later into the spring.

  

UPCOMING TRIAL REMINDERS:

CORN FALL ARMYWORM TRIALS

We normally wait until the middle of summer to plant fall armyworm trials (July tends to work well).  While we are not taking these trials to yield, having young corn plants so late in the season gives us an excellent opportunity to evaluate products for the control of fall armyworms.  Let us know if you are interested and we will get you on the list.

 

WEATHER INFO:

The past month has been much dryer than April in 2024 or 2025.  While this allowed us to get a better start on planting, we hope the trend does not continue into the season.  Like everyone else, we could use an occasional shower to keep things moving along.

 

PEST INFO:

Winter annuals are either dying on their own or have been sprayed at this point.  However, they are rapidly being replaced by our summer annual weeds like pigweeds and grasses.  No big news on the insect or disease fronts at this point, but you can bet that will change soon.

 

Thanks to all of you for letting us be part of your research program.  Let us know what we can do to help.

Tim, Jackson, Jake, Will, Jim, & JT

 

Proverbs 21:5

The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness.

 

Research Update (April 6, 2026)

 

Research Update (April 6, 2026)

 

Diligence Technologies Inc., West Tennessee

EVENTS FROM THE PAST MONTH:

It felt a bit different attending the Southern Weed Science Society meeting in March, but the meeting still had the same flavor we have loved for years.  Always good to catch up with so many friends.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Meeting season is all but finished at this point.  Only the CPDA meeting in Austin later this month remains on the schedule.  Hope to see you there.

• CPDA
  April 27-29 | Austin, TX

 

CROPPING SEASONS:

Field season begins in earnest in April.  We have already begun to ease out into the field cutting out wheat trials and getting things ready for planting.  But it will really feel like spring when we start putting seed in the ground.  From that point on, it tends to be a constant stream of activity until fall.  After a long winter, I always look forward to it.

 

GREENHOUSE ACTIVITIES:

The greenhouse is still open and running as we finish off our last trials for the season.  As usual, we had a flurry of trials get started at the end of the greenhouse season so we may be at it for a while longer.  Many thanks to those who entrusted us with greenhouse research trials over the winter.

 

UPCOMING TRIAL REMINDERS:

 SOYBEAN INSECT TRIALS

We typically plant soybeans for insect trials late in our production window.  By doing this, we seem to have increased insect pressure as other crops and earlier planted soybeans begin to mature making these soybeans the last good thing to eat on the farm.  We can typically get good populations of soybean loopers and stinkbugs (our most requested pests).  We can also get things like hoppers and kudzu bugs if you need them.

Let us know if you are looking for some soybean insecticide evaluations and we will get them planted a little later in the season.

 

WEATHER INFO:

Most of March had the feel of spring.  We had above-average temperatures and lots of sun for a good portion of the month.  We hope the trend holds as we move into planting season.

 

PEST INFO:

Fields have been largely sprayed for winter annuals (although we might have a spot or two for a late burndown trial if you need it).  With the warm temperatures, I would expect the weeds and bugs to be out early this year.  We will see what happens.

 

Many thanks to all those who have sent protocols our way for the coming year.  If you still need to place some trials, please do not hesitate to let us know.  We will be glad to help.

Tim, Jackson, Jake, Will, Jim, & JT

 

Proverbs 12:27

… the substance of the diligent man is precious.