Steve M. Brown is a 1978 graduate in agronomy and soils from Auburn University and later earned MS and PhD degrees in agronomy/weed science at Auburn and Texas A&M, respectively. He worked as an assistant county agent in a cotton pest management role for a couple of years in northern Alabama and then served as a research associate in a Cotton Incorporated-funded project on no-till cotton from 1980 to 1984. From 1987 until 2008, he served as an Extension weed scientist and cotton agronomist for the University of Georgia in Tifton. He worked for a major seed and biotechnology company from 2008 until 2019, when he joined the faculty at Auburn. His entire career has focused on cotton.
Brian Pieralisi is currently the Extension cotton agronomist at Mississippi State University. He was previously employed at the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, Mississippi, as a research associate under Dr. Bobby Golden while pursuing a PhD in soybean nutrient uptake. Brian has experience with both soil fertility and weed science research in cotton, corn, soybean, and rice. He served as a fourth-generation cotton, corn, and soybean producer in the Mississippi Delta for 15 years before earning a PhD at Mississippi State. Brian also earned an MBA from Delta State University while operating a 4,500-acre farm in 2005.
Brian Arnall is a precision nutrient management Extension specialist for Oklahoma State University. He has served in that role since earning his doctorate in soil science from Oklahoma State University in 2008. Brian's Extension, teaching, and research efforts are focused on precision technologies and nutrient management in all of Oklahoma's cropping systems, with an emphasis on site-specific techniques. He works closely with Extension educators and industry personnel to improve nutrient management practices among Oklahoma producers that will lead to increased profitability. Ongoing studies are focused on developing methods to use sensor-based technologies, improving the timing and placement of nitrogen fertilizer, increasing nutrient use efficiency, and improving recommendations for phosphorus fertilizer. In addition, Brian has a crew of developers producing iOS and Android applications.
Hunter Frame has been the field crops agronomist at Virginia Tech’s Tidewater Agricultural Research and Extension Center since 2012. In this role, he serves as Virginia’s cotton specialist and manages the Official Cotton Variety Testing program; the bulk of his research is focused on soil fertility and plant nutrition issues in cotton production. Projects in Dr. Frame’s research program have focused on nitrogen, sulfur, potassium, and micronutrients. Understanding how cotton yields can be improved through managing nutrients and other agronomic inputs is paramount to enhancing the profitability and sustainability of U.S. cotton producers. This is the overarching goal of Dr. Frame’s research and Extension program.
