Safflower Field Day held at Texas Tech research farm
High Plains research aimed at boosting regional safflower crop production was showcased at a field day on July 21 at Texas Tech University's research farm. The facility is located in Lubbock at 2nd Street and Quaker in Lubbock.
Oil is extracted from safflower seed and used mainly in margarine and cooking oil in much the same way as sunflower seeds. According to energy officials, safflower also makes an excellent feed stock for biodiesel.
"We think that winter and spring safflower has great potential as an oilseed crop for this region," said Dick Auld, the Rockwell Endowed Chair in Tech's Department of Plant and Soil Science.
Hosted by Texas Tech, Dreamland Industries Inc. and Texas AgriLife Research and Extension, the morning field day ran from 10 a.m. to noon and included presentations by researchers, private seed companies, growers and processors.
Featured among the day's speakers was Jerry Bergman, superintendent for the Montana State University Eastern Agricultural Research Center, who has conducted research on safflower production for more than three decades.
Steve Oswalt, a Texas Tech research associate and farm manager of the Quaker Research Farm, provided an update on performance of spring and winter safflower and irrigation response. Ray Templeton, CEO of Abilene-based Dreamland Industries Inc., gave an overview of safflower crop production in West Texas.
Safflower, which comes from the same plant family as the sunflower, is adapted to dryland or irrigated production, and can be planted using the same equipment as wheat or sorghum. The thistlelike safflower was originally grown for its flowers which were used in making red and yellow dyes for clothing and food preparation. Now, the annual oilseed crop primarily supplies oil, meal and birdseed.
Safflower production in the United States reached 310 million pounds in 2008, a 47 percent increase from the previous year. Today, California grows more than 50 percent of the U.S. safflower crop
"We think it (safflower) will find a place in West Texas crop rotations," Auld said.
Written by Norman Martin
CONTACT: Dick Auld, Professor, Department of Plant and Soil Science, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-5704 or dick.auld@ttu.edu
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Click here for a slideshow of this event.
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