Dow AgroSciences Acquires Research Station

Dow AgroSciences has expanded its PhytoGen cottonseed research with a move to a recently acquired, 225-acre facility in Leland, Miss. The purchase is part of the company’s commitment to offer cotton growers choices with superior fiber length, strength, micronaire and yield potential.

By the end of June, the PhytoGen staff will be operating from the station that Dow AgroSciences purchased from Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc.

"This facility will provide improved amenities, and will increase the irrigated acreage needed for more cotton breeding. PhytoGen has been increasing the strain-testing program in the South for several years, but the existing station was too small to manage the increased volume," John Pellow, field station manager for PhytoGen.

Adds Duane Canfield, PhytoGen marketing manager for Dow AgroSciences: "The PhytoGen research facility will be the control center for all Dow AgroSciences upland cotton variety developmental research conducted across the Southern U.S. from Texas to the Carolinas," adds

More research and storage at the new facility will allow additional staff and equipment to be brought in, while a 185-acre parcel of research plots will enlarge current breeding initiatives.

“We’ve been experiencing tremendous growth and success through our current research and development efforts. This acquisition and investment will allow us to expand our efforts to make PhytoGen cottonseed varieties a choice growers can count on for years to come,” Pellow says.

This year PhytoGen released PHY 375 RF, its first early season WideStrike Insect Protection/Roundup Ready Flex stacked variety. The release of this new variety is the latest in a portfolio that will begin including full-season offerings and innovative, in-plant technologies like root-knot nematode, reniform nematode and seedling disease resistance; plant bug tolerance; specialty fibers; and much more.

"Growers can expect to see even more quality varieties and innovations as PhytoGen continues its legacy of elite germplasm, high yield potential, maximum quality and innovative technology,” Pellow says.

For more information about PhytoGen cottonseed, visit www.PhytoGenYields.com.