5 BULLETIN 744 5 AGRICULTURAL ' TEXAS AGRICULTURAL NSION SERVICE EXPERIMENT STATION éastor 16211145 Cams TEXAS AGRlClllTllRAl EXTENSION SERVICE G. G. Gibson, Director, College Station, exas F "a! 0r y,“ “as nu cont TEXAS AGRlClllTllRAl EXPERIMENT STATION R. D. lewis, Director, College Station, Texas A CK N O WLEDGMENT Acknowledgment is hereby made for the use of informa- tion on castor bean research by Dr. D. L. Van Horn, Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and Agricultural Engineering, U. S. Department of Agriculture, and Dr. W. E. Domingo formerly with the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and Agricultural En- gineering, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Castor bean re- search in Texas during the past 10 years has centered largely at Substation No. 12 at Chillicothe. For the past ten years, the United States Department of Agriculture, state and private agencies have been conducting an extensive program of agronomic research on the commer- cial cultivation of .castor beans. New varieties have been developed to improve the yield and the adaptation of the crop to mechanical harvesting. Engineering research is in progress to build better me- chanical harvesters and to improve hulling and handling fa- cilities. The results of this program are so encouraging it is be- lieved they warrant careful investigation by the farmers in areas adapted to the production of castor beans. The interest in the program and the favorable reception by the growers warrant continued research in the develop- ment of improved varieties for the domestic production of castor beans and of improved machinery for harvesting the crop. _ Q __ ON THE COVER Cover picture shows the Conner variety of Castor Beans. Photo courtesy of The Farmer-Stockman. éastor Beans in 3cm: E. A. Miller, Extension Agronomist; J. Roy Quinby, Superintendent, Substa- tion No. l2, Chillicothe; B. C. Langley, Superintendent Substation No. 20, Ste- phenville, and Joe H. Rothe, Brown County Agricultural Agent, of the Texas A. & M. College System; Joe R. Walzel, Agronomist, and R. H. Nelson, Pro- gram Specialist, of the Production and Marketing Administration, U. S. De- partment of Agriculture. . INTRODUCTION Castor oil, one of the oldest commercial products, dates back to the lamps used by the ancient Egyptians more than 4,000 years ago. The seeds have been found even in ancient tombs. The many new industrial and strategic uses of pro- ducts developed from castor beans have moved it into an im- portant position in the Nation’s economy during the past de- cade. The castor bean plant (Ricinus communis), sometimes called Palma Christi or mole bean, belongs to the spurge fam- ily. It is not a legume as the name implies. It is considered by most authorities to be a native of tropical Africa. The plant is grown in Texas for its seeds which contain about 50 per cent oil. The seeds and other parts of the plant are pois- onous. The poisonous principle remains in the press cake after the oil has been extracted. The castor bean plant has become naturalized in most tropical and warm temperate climates and has been grown commercially to some extent in a good many countries. Like most other crops, different varieties of castor beans grow to varying heights under the same conditions. Some varieties, un- der highly favorable conditions, attain a height of 20 feet or more and grow to tree-like proportions. They are not adap- ted to commercial production in Texas. Until recently, practically all castor beans crushed in the United States were imported from Brazil, Manchuria, Africa and India. The supply from these sources is uncertain and is not sufficient to meet present needs. Also, in time of emer- gency, the United States should have an adequate supply from domestic sources. During time of peace, this country uses about 400 million pounds of castor beans annually. This use 3 A typical field of castor bean plants. This picture was made at the Agricultural Experiment Sub-station at Chillicothe. Will probably increase since more than 100 products are made from castor oil and many more are in the development stage. Some authorities estimate that there will be a future peace- time demand for 400,000 to 500,000 acres of castor beans in the United States. a ~ USES OF CASTOR BEANS Oil and chemicals obtained from castor beans are now used in ever-increasing quantities in medicine, hydraulic fluids, lubricants, electrical systems, paints, varnishes, plastics, rub- ber compounds, lacquers, asphalt floor tile, textiles, nylon, printing inks, cosmetics, artificial leather, leather finishing, belt dressing, caulking compounds, fertilizers, fungicides, pol- ishes and waxes, protective coatings, rust removing agents, soaps, and a host of other products. After the oil has been extracted from the seed, the resi- due is known as castor pomace. This product has consider- able value as an organic fertilizer as it contains an apprecia- able amount of nitrogen, some phosphate and potash, and a number of minor plant food elements. The poisonous prin- ciple, ricin, remains in the pomace, hence it cannot be used for livestock feed Without expensive processing. 4 GROWING CASTOR BEANS Where Should Castor Beans Be Grown? The adaptation of castor beans is determined largely by the length of growing season, moisture supply, type of soil, and the prevalence of diseases. Varieties now recommended should not be planted Where the growing season is shorter than 180 days or in areas of frequent high humidity, because of probable disease damage. Dryland areas should have as much as 15 inches of rain during the growing season, April to November. Varieties Present varieties best adapted to dryland production are Conner, Cimarron, and U. S. 74. Conner has been used in commercial domestic production for a number of years. Satisfactory results have been ob- tained in Texas and Oklahoma the past few years. The Con- ner plant produces two crops, summer and fall, under favor- able conditions. The summer crop, first spike, requires hand- harvesting in late August or September. If the spike is not hand-harvested, considerable loss likely will occur by shed- ding of the capsules or by shattering of the seed before frost. Conner is one of the better drought-resistant, non-irrigated varieties. Extremely dry weather will cause the plant to shed most of its foliage, but it revives rapidly after a rain. Excellent fall crops have been obtained after summer rains where the summer crop was a failure due to an extremely dry spring. However, an early frost may reduce the yield of the late crop. The supply of Conner seed for the 1952 crop is more abundant than seed of other varieties which produce Well 0n non-irrigated land. Cimarron, which originated in Nebraska, is one of the latest improved dryland varieties released for commercial pro- duction. The first spike will remain intact until after frost, which permits harvesting of the capsules at one time. An in- crease in yield over Conner is expected of this variety. It, however, shows less drought resistance than Conner. This variety was first used for commercial production in 1951, so only a limited amount of information on commercial produc- tion is available. An adequate supply for general planting cannot be expected before 1953. 5 U. S. 74 normally will produce more than Conner under favorable conditions. The summer crop usually consists of four or five spikes. Dropping of capsules and shattering of beans of this variety are similar to Conner. U. S. 74 requires early hand-harvesting of the first spikes to prevent loss from shattering. This variety is not as drought resistant as Con- ner or Cimarron, and more reduction in yield may be expected from extremely dry periods during the growing season. It is well adapted to the higher rainfall areas. Only a limited sup- ply of pure U. S. 74 seed is available for the 1952 crop. Both Cimarron and U. S. 74 have yielded favorably un- der irrigation, as compared with dwarf varieties, but they are not generally recommended for this purpose because their excessive plant height makes mechanical harvesting difficult. Soil Types Castor beans will thrive on most friable and Well-drained soils. However, they do best on loamy soil of medium tex- ture-—they are poorly adapted to very fine-textured,- hard soils. Although the crop will give fair response on many dif- ferent soils, the best yields are obtained on soils which have these general physical characteristics: (1) good surface and internal drainage; (2) absence of compact and impervious layers or hardpans; and (3) ability to warm up early in the spring. In addition, the soils should have the capacity to store moisture and permit deep rooting of the plants. Castor beans do well on either lime or acid soils, provided the subsoil is permeable and there is good drainage. The soil should have an adequate supply of organic mat- ter, which can be supplied by including a green-manure crop in the rotation. Land that will not produce cotton, grain, or a good crop of peanuts will not produce castor beans profit- ably. Preparation of the Soil The castor bean plant, on suitable soil and under favor- able moisture conditions, develops a long tap-root. For this reason, the soil should be worked fairly deep. This opera- tion may be with a plow, subsoiler, or chisel. The type of implement to be used will depend on the soil type, the prev- ious crop, and the amount of residue that must be covered to prepare a clean seedbed. Where the amount of vegetative material on the surface is not too great, a chisel will do a sat- isfactory job. When there is an excessive amount of litter, 6 cutting With a disk and plowing may be necessary. The land should then be prepared for planting just as it would be for planting cotton, corn, or peanuts, by listing in low, flat beds. Row Widths should be 40 inches if the crop is to be harvested With the two-row stripper. Rate of Seeding The amount of seed required to produce the desired stand depends on the quality of the seed, the variety, and the na- ture of the seedbed. Recommended rates of planting depend on the variety since seed sizes are variable. The amount of seed required for dryland planting varies from seven t0 ten pounds per acre. The spacing of the plants in the row should be 20- to 30 inches for most dryland varieties. If seed of 10W germination is used, or if the seedbed is not in good condi- tion, the planting rate should be higher. Planting Dates Planting can be done over a two-month period with ex- pectation of normal yields. The dates of planting vary ac- cording to the locality, but planting should be done as soon as practicable after the danger of frost has passed and the soil has become fairly warm. While higher yields result from reasonably early plantings, the beans should be planted at ap- proximately the normal cotton or peanut planting time for the area. Later planting may be made, but no planting should be done after June 15. Planting Equipment Castor bean seeds are oily and easily broken. For this reason, care should be exercised in the kind of planter used. Most corn and cotton planters Will do, if a plate 0f sufficient thickness to prevent cracking of the beans is used, but peanut planting equipment is more easily adapted to planting castor beans. The planting machine should not crack or crush the beans. If this happens, dust will accumulate in the Working parts of the planter and cause clogging or irregular spacing of beans. In most planters the breakage may be kept to a minimum by replacing the metal cut-off and knock-out pawl i11 the seed box With the bristles of a small, stiff brush similar to that used in seeding shelled peanuts. Planter plates thinner than 5/ 16 inch or thicker than 3/8 inch will break too many beans. Forthe Conner variety, the cells should be 5/8 inch long and 5/ 16 inch Wide. For small- 7 er-seeded varieties, such as U. S. 74 and Cimarron, the cells should be 9/16 inch long and 1/4 inch wide. When making or altering a plate, undercut the cells to permit the beans to drop freely. Edge drop plates usually will give more satis- factory results, but planters with center drop plates also are satisfactory. Mechanical adjustments for proper spacing and ‘the elimination of breakage should be made before planting 1me. Depth of Planting The seed should be planted 1 1/ 2 to 3 inches deep, depend- ing on the amount of moisture and the soil type. Shallow planting at an inch or less often results in the young roots of the plants not becoming firmly established in the soil, while at depths greater than three inches many seedlings fail to reach the surface. Standard covering attachments are suit- able if adjustments are made to obtain proper covering of the seeds. Cultivation Castor beans should be kept free of weeds. Cultivations early in the season to kill weeds can be done with ordinary equipment, but they must be shallow to prevent injury to the many roots near the soil surface. Standard row-crop culti- vating equipment may be used. The rotary hoe has worked well in controlling annual grasses and weeds While the plants are small. Several cultivations and one hand-weeding may be necessary to insure a clean crop. Castor bean plants grow rapidly after reaching a height of six to 12 inches and will shade the ground in a short time. This shading effectively retards the growth of weeds. Fertilization The castor bean plant does not require heavy fertiliza- tion, although it will respond to fertilizer. A careful study should be made of the fertilization of the previous crop. Soils that require the addition of fertilizer to make a profitable yield of cotton, corn, sorghum, or peanuts, will usually need the addition of fertilizer to make a normal yield of castor beans. On sandy soils not deficient in potash, an application of 100 pounds per acre of 16-20-0 or 200 pounds of 10-10-0 or 12-15-0, is suggested. On land that is known to be deficient in potash, 200 to 300 pounds per acre of 5-10-5, or its equiv- alent in higher grades, should be used. In addition, a side- 8 This is a two-row castor bean harvester. The beans are stripped from the plants as the machine moves down the rows. dressing of 20 to 30 pounds of nitrogen per acre may be made when the plants are about two feet high. Generally, fertilizer recommendations for cotton in an area will also apply to castor beans. The soils should be test- ed to determine the kind and amount of plant food needed. Extra fertilizer should not be needed on land following ferti- lized legumes. Excessive nitrogen will produce too much vegetative growth, which often results in poor setting of beans. Harvesting Castor bean seeds are borne in capsules along a central spike. Harvesting consists of removing the capsules from the spike. This is done by hand or with mechanical harvest- ers. The more common commercial varieties of castor beans, such as Conner and U. S. 74, will normally require that the summer crop or first spikes be hand-harvested because part of the seed will shatter if left too long after maturity. These varieties produce their first flowers under normal conditions within 60 days of planting, and will require hand-harvesting in approximately 100 to 120 days after planting. Harvesting pwill take place in late August or September. Other spikes normally can be left on the stalks until after frost; then they can be hand-harvested or mechanically-stripped. Two-row strippers are available. Hand-harvesting simply consists of stripping the dry cap- sules from the plant without cutting off the spike. Workers will need gloves long enough to protect most of the forearm, and a cotton sack or large basket. A worker can harvest from 400 to 1,000 or more pounds of beans in the hull per day, depending on the condition of the beans. Some growers have designed harvesting scoops, modeled after a grass-seed strip- per, for stripping the capsules from the plants. These scoops hold two quarts or more and will speed hand-harvesting of large spikes containing more than a handful of capsules. When Should Harvest Begin? The seeds on the spikes mature from the lower capsules upward. Individual spikes should not be harvested until all of the capsules have turned brown, with long, white, length- wise cracks appearing in the capsule wall. On present dry- land varieties, two harvests probably will be necessary under average conditions. Favorable progress is being made in the development of improved varieties that will stand until frost without material loss from shattering. Under favorable con- ditions, these varieties can be gathered in one harvest. Hulling Pre-drying of beans in the hulls is not necessary if the beans are thoroughly ripe and are stripped under dry condi- tions. If beans are stripped before they are thoroughly ripe This is a castor bean hulling center where the beans are hulled for market. 10 A portable huller for hulling castor beans where a stationary huller is not available. 0r under moist conditions, it will be necessary to dry the cap- sules before a satisfactory job of hulling can be done. This can be done by spreading the capsules on a dry floor which is protected from the weather. A dirt floor is undesirable be- cause of ground moisture and the danger of including rocks with the capsules which will cause difficulty in the hulling operation. If the capsules are gathered too green or are left on the spikes, drying will require more time, and it will in- crease the danger of their becoming moldy. Storage of un- hulled castor beans on the farm is hazardous because of dang- er of mixing castor beans with grain or other livestock feed. The hulls are removed by machines designed especially for hulling castor beans. Two types of hullers, one stationary and the other portable, are now in use. Special conveying equipment is essential for the successful operation of castor bean hullers to keep the percentage of cracked and broken beans to a minimum. Hulling centers are now located at Vernon, Chillicothe, Wellington, Brownwood, and Stephenville. Portable hullers may be used at some locations. It is anticipated that a num- ber of additional hulling plants will be erected in other sec- tions of Texas to handle the 1952 crop and those of future years. 11 Yield The yields a grower will get under the various conditions cannot be predicted. Yields 0f 300 to 800 pounds of shelled beans per acre can be expected in a favorable season by grow- ers who follow recommended practices. Some growers work- ing under favorable conditions may exceed this amount, while i others will produce less. This is no miracle crop. It requires good cultural methods and will respond read- ily to them. INFORMATION OF GENERAL INTEREST Seeds are Poisonous Castor bean seeds are poisonous to people and livestock. Care should be taken that children do not eat the attractive seeds, and that the seeds are not mixed with human food or with grain fed to livestock. No case of livestock being poi- soned by eating the leaves and stems has been established definitely. Most animals avoid eating these parts unless forced to do so by lack of other feed. Diseases and Insects No serious trouble has arisen with either insects or dis- eases in the production of castor beans in Texas. However, a disease known as gray mold has been sufficiently destruc- tive along the Gulf Coast, with its frequent periods of high humidity, to eliminate this section from commercial castor bean production unless disease-resistant varieties are develop- ed. The castor bean plant is affected by cotton root rot, and should not be planted on soil heavily infested with this fun- gus. No insects, other than corn ear worms which may defoli- ate the young seedlings, are known definitely to be a serious menace to the castor bean plant. However, the green stink bug, false chinch bug, and red spider have attempted to feed on the green capsules, but have not yet caused serious damage in Texas. The yellow-striped army worm has been known to destroy young castor bean plants. There is no specific evi- dence that the growing plant has any insect-killing or repell- 12 ing value, although certain insects that attack the leaves of the plant become paralyzed and fall t0 the ground. A fairly effective insecticide can be obtained from the leaves. It is, however, not being manufactured because of the cost of collecting the leaves and extracting the poison. Value of Hulls and Stalks Castor bean hulls decompose readily when plowed under. They add valuable humus and fertility to the soil. From 35 to 50 per cent of the gross weight of castor beans and cap- sules may be returned to the soil as hulls for soil improve- ment. In addition, the roots, stalks, and leaves are of value when cut into the soil and decomposed. The stalks are hol- low and are easily disposed of with a tandem disk or stalk cutter. Plant residue from a crop of castor beans will help protect the soil against both wind and water erosion. Castor bean hulls have greater fertility value than fresh barnyard manure. Listed on next page are averages of several analyses of castor bean hulls produced in Texas and Oklahoma in 1951, and typical analyses of cottonseed hulls and fresh» barnyard manure. Most hulling centers have erected bins for the conven- ience of the growers in returning the hulls to the farm with a minimum labor. The bin is shown at a hulling center where castor beans are collected to be taken back to the farm. There they will be put on the land for soil impro-vement. 13 Nitrogen Phosphorus Potassium Materials as NH3 as P205 as K20 Castor bean hulls 1.91 % .28 % 3.02 % Cottonseed hulls .50 % .05 % 1.10 % Fresh barnyard manure .50 % .25 % .50 % CONCLUSIONS It is strongly advised that castor beans not be planted unless adequate facilities for harvesting, hulling, and market- ing the crop are assured. Proved varieties are the only ones that can be planted with assurance of good production, ac- ceptable quality, and adaptation to mechanical harvesting. Seed properly conditioned for planting Will be available in areas approved for commercial castor bean production under the 1952 Castor Bean Program. Growers desiring additional information on cultural meth- ods should contact their county agricultural agent. Information concerning growers’ contracts, guaranteed minimum price, and availability of hulling and harvesting fa- cilities may be obtained from your County PMA Office. Additional information on improved varieties and on cul- tural and harvesting methods will be released from time to time. 14