Education:
BS – Lubbock Christian College, 1988 – Education
MS – Texas Tech University, 1998 – Entomology
Ph.D. – Texas Tech University, (in progress) – Agronomy
Experience:
1997 Independent Crop Consultant
1996-1998 Research Assistant Entomology, Texas Tech
1999-2000 Adjunct Instructor of Environmental Ecology, Dallas Christian College
1998-2000 Extension Agent – IPM – Fire Ant, Texas AgriLife Extension, Dallas & Tarrant Counties
2000-present Extension Agent – IPM, Texas AgriLife Extension, Terry and Yoakum Counties
IPM Unit Description:
The Terry and Yoakum IPM Unit is located in West Texas just east of New Mexico. The IPM Agent provides pest management and crop production information to agricultural producers in the large agricultural complex located there. The Terry-Yoakum unit has planted a 10-year average of over 386,000 acres of cotton per year with an average value of over $101 million per year. In addition, farmers in the unit plant a 10-year average of over 48,000 acres of peanuts each year which have an average value of over $34 million (NASS 2011). Grapes, pumpkins, watermelons, wheat and pecans produce significant revenue as well.
Meetings and Publications:
Hundreds of county, state, and local presentations
Co-wrote three extension publications
Internet posting of T-Y IPM News (about 7 issues per year)
Numerous video and slide shows and teaching curricula developed
Over 322 newspaper articles, ag press, radio and TV interviews
Collaborative Work:
Texas Tech University, New Mexico State University, Texas AgriLife Research, New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service, New Mexico Agricultural Experiment Station, USDA-ARS Peanut Research Laboratory, Peanut processors and shippers, Western Peanut Growers, Texas Peanut Producers Board, Plains Cotton Growers, Texas Sorghum Producers Board, American Peanut Research and Education Society, Peanut Field Day (Collaborative effort with New Mexico), Southern Extension and Research Activities –Information Exchange Group VII Peanut Insects,
Scholarly Presentations:
Numerous local, state and national presentations
Selected Presentations:
Russell, S. A. 1997. Fire Ant Dispersal Along Texas Highways. Southwestern Branch Entomological Society of America. February 1997.
Russell, S. A., H.G. Thorvilson and S.A. Phillips, Jr. 1998. A Comparison of Red Imported Fire Ant Populations in Texas Department of Transportation Rights-of-Way and Adjacent Grasslands. In Proceedings of the 1998 Imported Fire Ant Conference. Hot Springs, AR. April 6-8, 1998.
Russell, S.A. 2000. Community-wide Fire Ant Management in Dallas and Tarrant Counties Texas: An Overview. Imported Fire Ant Conference, Chattanooga, TN. April 7, 2000.
Russell, S.A., M.E. Merchant, and M. M. Porter. 2000. Educating the Public about Fire Ant Control: A Campaign in Dallas, Texas. National Conference on Urban Entomology. Ft. Lauderdale, FL.
Russell, S. and B. Lewis. 2004. Pink Bollworm Threat and Control. Southwestern Branch Entomological Society of America. Lubbock, TX. Feb. 26, 2004.
Russell, S. 2006. Pink Bollworm Management and Review Update. High Plains Association of Crop Consultants. Lubbock, TX. March, 2006.
Russell, S. 2006. Pink Bollworms on the Texas High Plains in 2005. Texas Pest Management Association. San Angelo, TX. Feb. 2006.
Russell, S.A., C.R. Crumley, J.E. Woodward and T.A. Baughman. 2008. Pest Management in West Texas Peanut. American Peanut Research and Education Society. Oklahoma City, OK. July, 2008.
Russell, S.A., C.R. Crumley, J.E. Woodward and T.A. Baughman. 2007. Efficacy of Fungicides in West Texas Peanut. American Peanut Research and Education Society. Savannah, GA. July, 2007.
Russell, S.A., J.E. Woodward, T.A. Wheeler, A.C. Cranmer and T.A. Baughman. 2009. Evaluation of Fungicide Application Timing for the Management of Sclerotinia Blight of Peanut in West Texas. American Peanut Research and Education Society. Raleigh, NC. July, 2009.
Dotray, P.A., L.V. Gilbert, K.T. Siders, S.A. Russell and M.G. Cattaneo. 2010. Peanut Response to Flumioxazin in the Texas High Plains. Southern Weed Science Soc. Little Rock, AR. Jan., 2010.
Wheeler, T.A., J.E. Woodward, S.A. Russell and M.G. Cattaneo. 2010. Sampling for Pod Rot of Peanut. American Phytopathological Soc. Charlotte NC. Aug., 2010.
Russell, S.A., T.A. Wheeler, M.G. Anderson and J.E. Woodward. 2011. Developing an Economic Threshold for Pod Rot of Peanut in the Texas South Plains. American Peanut Research and Education Society. San Antonio, TX. July, 2011.
Recent IPM Emphasis and Accomplishments:
Mr. Russell’s primary interest, emphasis and accomplishments have been in teaching the public about managing pests in agricultural and urban environments. Prior to 2000, he worked in the Dallas County area with emphasis on the management and spread of the red imported fire ant. Russell began working in integrated pest management of the agricultural crops in Terry and Yoakum Counties in West Texas after 2000. His emphasis has been providing growers with research based information to help them improve IPM and production practices for peanuts and cotton, but he has also worked to provide similar information for grape, grain sorghum, wheat, watermelon and pumpkin growers in Terry and Yoakum counties.
Seventeen growers responded to a survey in the fall of 2010. Cumulatively, they reported that adopting IPM practices had a value of $53.60 per acre on their farms and that the value to them of all the information generated by the IPM program was $71.20 per acre each year. If the survey respondents accurately represented the value of the program, just to the unit’s cotton producers, the survey and acreage data provide evidence suggesting that the IPM program has an economic value of $27.5 million to producers in the two-county area.
Scholarly Publications:
Russell, S. A., H.G. Thorvilson and S.A. Phillips, Jr. 1998. A Comparison of Red Imported Fire Ant Populations in Texas Department of Transportation Rights-of-Way and Adjacent Grasslands. In Proceedings of the 1998 Imported Fire Ant Conference. Hot Springs, AR. pp. 101-107
Drees, B.M., C.L. Barr, N. Riggs, L. Lennon, P. Traylor and S. Russell. 1999. The Texas imported fire ant research and management plan – Project highlights for 1998 and community-wide fire ant management projects in Mt. Pleasant, San Antonio, Austin, Houston and Dallas. In Proc. 1999 Imported Fire Ant Conference. Charleston, SC. pp. 1-5.
Drees, B.M., C.L. Barr, L. Lennon, N. Riggs, S. Russell, P. Nester, and R. Best. 2000. Progress report: The Texas imported fire ant research and management plan – September 1997 – March 2000. In Proc. 2000 Imported Fire Ant Conference, Chattanooga, TN. pp. 42-125.
Russell, S.A. 2000. Community-wide fire ant management in Dallas and Tarrant Counties, TX: An overview. In Proc. 2000 Imported Fire Ant Conference, Chattanooga, TN. pp. 59-60.
Doederlein, T., B. Baugh, G. Cronholm, C. Crumley, J. Leser, J. Patterson, C. Riley and S. Russell. 2001. Beet armyworm and cabbage looper trials in the Texas High Plains. In Proc. Beltwide Cotton Conf. P. Dugger and D.A. Richter (eds). National Cotton Council, Memphis, TN. pp. 1000-1006.
Russell, S. A., H. G. Thorvilson, and S. A. Phillips, Jr. 2001. Red imported fire ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) populations in Texas highway rights-of-way and adjacent pastures. Environmental Entomology. 30(2): 267-273.
Russell, S. A., H. G. Thorvilson, and S. A. Phillips, Jr. 2001. Red imported fire ant populations in highway roadsides and rest areas. Southwestern Entomologist. 26(1): 63-71.
Anderson, J. T., H. G. Thorvilson, and S. A Russell. 2002. Landscape materials as repellents of red imported fire ants. Southwestern Entomologist 27: 155-163.
Vogt, J.T., T.G. Shelton, M.E. Merchant, S.A. Russell, M.J. Tanley, and A.G.Appel. 2002. Efficacy of Three Citrus Oil Formulations Against Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), the Red Imported Fire Ant.Journal of Agricultural and Urban Entomology. 19: 159-171.
T. Wheeler, C.E. Simpson, and S.Russell. 2006. Techniques for screening Spanish and Runner peanuts against Cylindrocladium black rot. Texas Peanut Producers Board Reports.
Crumley, C.R., S.A. Russell, K.T. Siders, T.A. Baughman and J.C. Reed, Jr. 2007. Peanut response to foliar growth promoters in Texas. Proc. American Peanut Research and Education Society. p. 68.
Baughman, T.A., P.A. Dotray, J, Grichar, M. Black, J. Woodward, C. Trostle, S.Russell, C. Crumley, P. Porter, L. Hew, P. Baughman and M. McFarland. 2007. Texas Peanut Production Guide. B-1514. 57 pages.
Muegge, M., D. Kerns, M. Parajulee, M. Vandiver, W. Multer, E. Nino, D. Patman, S. Russell and K. Siders. 2010. Development of a binomial sampling plan to estimate thrips populations in cotton to aid IPM decision making. In Proc. Beltwide Cotton Conf. S. Boyd, M. Huffman and B. Robertson (eds.).National Cotton Council, Memphis, TN. pp. 1013-1016.
Wheeler, T.A., J.E. Woodward, S.A. Russell and M.G. Cattaneo. 2010. Sampling for pod rot of peanut. Phytopathology 100:S136.
Muegge, M.,D. Kerns, M. Vandiver, W. Multer, T. Doederlein, D. Patman, S. Russell, K. Siders, C. Multer and M. Parajulee. 2011. Comparison of sample methods and sample plans for thrips in cotton. In Proc. Beltwide Cotton Conf. Boyd, S., M. Huffman and B. Robertson (eds.).National Cotton Council, Memphis, TN. pp. 799-803.
Woodward, J., S. Russell, and T. Baughman. 2011. Management of Sclerotinia blight of peanut in Texas: an integrated approach. Phytopathology 101:S193. (In press.)
Woodward, J.E., T.A. Wheeler, M.G. Cattaneo, S.A. Russell and T.A. Baughman. 2011. Evaluation of soil fumigants for management of Verticillium wilt of peanut in Texas. Online. Plant HealthProgress. doi:10.1094/PHP-2011-0323-02-RS. March 2011.
Awards:
2001 Outstanding South Plains District Result Demonstration Handbook – Two Agent County.
2003 Second Place South Plains District Result Demonstration Handbook Award – Two Agent County.
2004 Certificate of Appreciation, Entomological Society of America – Southwestern Branch , Insect Expo Chair.
2005 Certificate of Appreciation, Entomological Society of America – Southwestern Branch, Insect Expo Chair.
2005 Outstanding 4-H Leader, Terry County.
2008 American Peanut Research and Education Society; Peanut Education for Excellence Program. (sponsor: Bayer Crop Science).
2008- Team Member, Outstanding State IPM Program (team), Southern Region IPM Center
2010- Texas AgriLife Extension, District 2 Outstanding Interpretation and Marketing Brochure.
Team member.
2011 Texas AgriLife Extension, District 2 Out Standing IPM Outcome Award. May 2011
2011 Texas AgriLife Extension, District 2 Multi-County Ag Program Award. IPM Agents Weekly Radio Program. Team member. May 2011
2011 Texas Pest Management Association – Excellence in IPM Award (7+ Years Category).
2011 Spur Clip Award, Terry County 4-H (for outstanding dedication and leadership to the Terry County 4-H Program).