A GROUP of four nationally recognized cotton entomologists has written a book that is must reading for anyone growing cotton containing the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) gene.
The book, Bt Cotton & Management of the Tobacco Budworm-Bollworm Complex, is published by USDA's Agricultural Research Service and is available through the National Cotton Council and the National Technical Information Center.
Its authors are D.D. Hardee, research leader with the ARS Southern Insect Management Laboratory at Stoneville, Miss.; John W. Van Duyn, research entomologist with North Carolina State University; Blake Layton, Extension entomologist with Mississippi State University; and Ralph Bagwell, Extension entomologist with the LSU AgCenter.
“Preservation of the Bt technology is critical for cotton producers across the U.S. Cotton Belt because of increasing insecticide resistance and production costs,” the authors write in the foreword.
“This publication explains how Bt cotton is developed, how it controls insect pests and how it can most effectively be used in insect pest management. Restrictions and limitations to the use of Bt cotton are discussed, such as insects' development of resistance to it and approaches to preserving the technology for long-term profits.”
While copies last, they may be obtained from Hardee at USDA-ARS, P.O. Box 346, Stoneville, MS 38776; e-mail: email@example.com. Copies are also available from Frank Carter, National Cotton Council, P.O. Box 820285, Memphis, TN 38182.
Copies may be purchased from the National Technical Information Service, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, VA 22161; 703 605-6000.