This study uses a simulation approach to determine the economic viability of two different production systems in the Texas Southern High Plains. Results show that a traditional cotton monoculture system is more profitable, although integrated cotton/forage/livestock systems require less water.

Feedlot dust control is an important issue in the Texas High Plains. Water application, with either a solid-set or a water truck sprinkler system, is the most common method of dust control. An analysis conducted suggests the economically optimal system depends on length of ownership, inflation,...

Improved software now makes Bayesian estimation a strong alternative to nonlinear maximum likelihood. Bayesian methods were used to estimate a linear response stochastic plateau for cotton and were shown to provide estimates similar to maximum likelihood. Optimal levels of nitrogen were lower...

The relationship between U.S. nursery industry sales and seven major Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices was investigated using smooth transition spatial autoregressive models. Controlling for selected production, management, and marketing practices, the results showed that the...

The relative price of various combinations of a stock index to a commodity-related index is filtered using a Christiano-Fitzgerald (CF) filter. We find that the market is still bull for commodity-related stocks as of June 2012. The business cycles obtained from the CF filters and the NBER do not...

Iran is the major producer of pistachio nuts in the world. Iran dominated the international pistachio export markets until 1982, when a new competitor, the United States, emerged in the international markets. Currently, both Iran and the U.S. are major pistachio exporters to Japan. The empirical...

The objective of this study is to investigate the reactions of corn and soybean futures markets to crop progress and condition information of USDA's Crop Progress (CP) reports in an event study methodology over the period 1986 to 2012. Results show, first, significant differences in...

In the South, turfgrass-sod has been a profitable alternative to row crops for many years. With depressed housing markets and higher crop prices, the current economic competitiveness of turfgrass-sod depends critically on the ability to harvest the crop as soon as it matures, and on input and...

Switchgrass (panicum virgatum L.), a viable option for second-generation renewable fuels, has an extended harvest window with optimal harvest affected by yield, storage losses and nutrient uptake. This research shows that optimal harvest occurs later than maximum yield for Haskell, OK and...

Profit-maximizing nitrogen rates were determined for two bermudagrass hay producers, one who considers nitrate toxicity to cattle and one who does not consider nitrate toxicity. Producing bermudagrass hay with a reduced probability of nitrate toxicity requires a $6.02/ton premium to breakeven...