Core Ideas Winter wheat biomass had one‐phase exponential association with N application rate. A finer, more fertile soil produced more biomass than a coarser, less fertile soil. Biomass significantly decreased with a delay in planting for N rates ≥135 kg ha –1 . The effect of the initial drought on biomass was higher with an increase in N rate. The reduction in biomass due to the terminal drought was greatest at 135 kg N ha –1 . ABSTRACT Winter wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) is an important component of pastures in the southern United States. This study examined winter wheat biomass responses to N application rate as influenced by soil type, planting date, drought, and El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) for the Pineywoods region of Texas using a new forage wheat model that had been incorporated into the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer suite of crop models. Biomass was simulated for various scenarios comprising two soils, three planting dates, seven N rates, and 74 yr of weather data. The biomass response to N rate was represented by a one‐phase exponential association. Biomass generally peaked at 135 kg N ha −1 on the finer, more fertile Lilbert soil and at 269 kg N ha −1 on the coarser, less fertile Darco soil. Biomass decreased with a delay in planting date at N rates ≥135 kg N ha −1 for Lilbert and ≥202 kg N ha −1 for Darco. The effect of drought during September to October was greater for a higher N rate, the Darco soil, and an earlier planting date. The effect of drought during March to April was greatest at 135 kg N ha −1 and greater on Darco, with up to 45% reduction in biomass compared with 35% on Lilbert. Biomass reduction was up to 45% for the mid‐October planting and 32% for the mid‐September planting. Winter wheat biomass yield was not significantly affected by ENSO. These findings might assist winter wheat forage growers in this region in identifying soil type–, planting date–, and weather‐specific N rates to optimize forage production.

‘TAM 204’ (Reg. no. CV‐1155, PI 686859), a hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar with the experimental designation of TX06V7266, was developed and released by Texas A&M AgriLife Research in 2014. TAM 204 is an F4–derived line from the cross ‘TAM 112’/TX01M5009 made at Vernon, TX, in 2001. TAM 204 is an apically awnletted, medium‐maturing, semidwarf wheat with red glumes. It was released primarily as a grain, dual‐purpose, and graze‐out wheat with high grain and forage yield potential. It has good acid soil tolerance, is resistant to Soil‐borne wheat mosaic virus, Wheat streak mosaic virus and its vector wheat curl mite, greenbug, stem rust and stripe rust, and it is moderately susceptible to leaf rust. TAM 204 has a high level of resistance to Hessian fly biotypes GP and vH9 and a moderate level of resistance to biotype vH13. Compared with ‘TAM 111’, which is currently the most widely grown cultivars in Texas, TAM 204 has significantly higher grain yield in the Texas High Plains under both irrigated and dryland environments. Compared with ‘TAM 401’ and ‘Weathermaster 135’, which are currently the two most popular apically awnletted cultivars in Texas, TAM 204 has similar forage yield but higher grain yield across a wide range of environments. TAM 204 could be a better option for wheat growers and cattle owners under grain‐only, dual‐purpose (grazing‐plus‐grain), and graze‐out production system in the southern US Great Plains.

‘TAMO 411’ (Reg. No. CV‐384, PI 675450) winter oat (Avena sativa L.) was developed and released by Texas A&M AgriLife Research in 2012 based on the merits of its excellent grain yield, volume weight, forage potential, winter survival, and straw strength as compared to all recent Texas A&M AgriLife Research oat releases. It was also highly resistant to crown rust and moderately resistant to stem rust races prevalent in Texas during the time of its release. Authorized seed classes of TAMO 411 in the United States are breeder, foundation, registered, and certified. TAMO 411 was submitted for US Plant Variety Protection (PVP) under Public Law 91‐577 with the Certification Only option and a PVP certificate has been issued (Certificate No. 201500356).

Furnace temperature monitoring, the cornerstone of furnace integrity monitoring, has traditionally been accomplished using alarm and trip limits set on individual temperature measurements of the copper coolers and refractory, with limits typically defined based on design criteria. Due to the changes in furnace operating conditions and the sheer number of temperature measurements available on a furnace, this often proves to be very ineffective. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to construct two models for furnace integrity monitoring: a short-term spike detection model and a long-term trend detection model. The Hotelling's T-2 statistic and the lack of model fit statistic SPE were used to monitor the furnace integrity in real time, alerting plant personnel of potential abnormal process conditions. Application of the system to provide more sensitive furnace integrity monitoring and its recent use in support of a decision to safely delay the timing of a furnace endwall rebuild are demonstrated.

The critical importance of tap-hole design and management for furnace performance and longevity is explored through examining some of the specific matte, metal, and slag tapping requirements of non-ferrous copper blister and matte converting and smelting, ferroalloy smelting, and ironmaking systems. Process conditions and productivity requirements and their influence on tapping are reviewed for these different pyrometallurgical systems. Some critical aspects of the evolution of tap-hole design to meet the diverging process and tapping duties are examined. Differences and similarities in tapping practices and tap-hole management are reviewed. Finally, core aspects of tap-hole equipment and maintenance are identified aspects that are considered important for securing improved tap-hole performance and life, so pivotal to superior furnace smelting performance.

'DALSA 0605' (Reg. No. CV-274, PI 671959) is an embryo rescue-derived interploid hybrid of St. Augustinegrass [Stenotaphrum secundatum (Walt.) Kuntze] resulting from a cross between TAES 5382 (African triploid PI 291594) and 'Palmetto' (diploid). DALSA 0605 was evaluated under the designation TAES 5471-18 and TXSA 19 and was approved for release as a new cultivar by Texas A&M AgriLife in 2014. DALSA 0605 is a vegetatively propagated, genetically stable, and uniform cultivar. It is distinguished from other cultivars of St. Augustinegrass for traits and characteristics that include (i) tolerance to gray leaf spot disease (caused by Magnaporthe grisea Couch), (ii) significantly reduced levels of fecundity and juvenile development of southern chinch bugs (Blissus insularis Barber) as compared to 'Raleigh' and 'Texas Common', and (iii) superior drought resistance conferred through a combination of tolerance to drying soil, deep rooting potential, and rapid recovery following drought. In addition, DALSA 0605 exhibited percentage rates of establishment and turfgrass quality ratings (normal and drought-stress conditions) comparable to commercial checks in multilocation (seven) and multiyear (two) field evaluations. DALSA 0605 is well suited for use on residential and commercial lawns, as well as other recreational sites, throughout the southern and southeastern United States.

Leaf and stripe rusts (caused by Puccinia triticina Erikss. and P. striiformis Westend. f. sp. tritici Erikss., respectively) are major disease problems in South Texas, Rolling Plains, and the Blacklands area of Texas where hard red winter wheat (HRW; Triticum aestivum L.) is a major crop, and wheat producers in these areas require rust-resistant cultivars. A significant breeding objective in South Texas is to develop HRW cultivars with robust resistance to both rust pathogens. Among these HRW cultivars is 'TAM 305' (Reg. No. CV-1108, PI 674514), which was developed and released by Texas A& M AgriLife Research in 2012. TAM 305 was derived from the cross TX97V3006/TX98V6239. The original cross, designated X00VC230, was made at College Station, TX, in 1999. TAM 305 was released not only for its leaf, stripe, and stem rust (caused by P. graminis Pers.:Pers. f. sp. tritici Erikss. & E. Henn.) resistance but also because of its excellent grain yield in the Blacklands and South Texas. Milling and baking quality characteristics of TAM 305 were rated by the USDA-ARS-Hard Winter Wheat Quality Laboratory in Manhattan, KS. Comparisons to the HRW quality targets showed that TAM 305 has average milling yield, very good wheat and flour protein, minimal mixing time, excellent water absorption and loaf volume, but below average mixing tolerance.

'TAM 304' (Reg. No. CV-1109, PI 655234), a hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar with the experimental designation TX01D3232, was developed and released by Texas A&M AgriLife Research in 2008. TAM 304 is an F-4-derived line from the cross TX92U3060/TX91D6564 made during the winter of 1994-1995. TAM 304 is an awned, medium-early maturing, semidwarf wheat with white glumes. It was released primarily for its excellent grain yield potential particularly in irrigated and adequate rainfall areas across Texas and similar areas in the southern Great Plains, excellent straw strength, resistance to leaf rust (caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks.), and good milling and bread-baking characteristics. Licensed to Scott Seed Company for marketing, TAM 304 is currently one of the most popular hard red winter wheat cultivars adapted to the adequate rainfall or high input irrigated production system in the southern Great Plains.

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'TAM 112' (Reg. No. CV-1101, PI 643143), a hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar with experimental designation TX98V9628, was developed and released by Texas A&M AgriLife Research in 2005. TAM 112 is an F-4-derived line from the cross U1254-7-9-2-1/TXGH10440 made at Vernon, TX, in 1992. U1254-7-9-2 is a USDA-ARS germplasm line from the Plant Science and Entomology Research unit, Manhattan, KS, and TXGH10440 is a sibling selection of the cultivar TAM 110. TAM 112 is an awned, medium-early maturing, semidwarf wheat with red glumes. It was released primarily for its excellent grain yield potential particularly in dryland environments of the southern Great Plains; resistance to stem rust (caused by Puccinia graminis Pers.: Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn.), powdery mildew [ caused by Blumeria graminis (DC.) E. O. Speer f. sp. tritici Em. Marchal], and greenbug [Schizaphis graminum (Rondani)]; and good milling and bread-baking characteristics. Compared with existing hard red winter wheat cultivars at the time of release, TAM 112 is most similar to TAM 110 with respect to area of adaptation and disease and insect resistance, but it has significantly higher yield and better bread-baking characteristics than TAM 110. Licensed to Watley Seed Company for marketing, TAM 112 is currently one of the most popular hard red winter wheat cultivars adapted to the dryland production system in the Texas High Plains and similar areas in the southern Great Plains.

Synopsis The key aspects of process metallurgy that distinguish platinum group metal (PGM) concentrate smelting from that of other base metal sulphide concentrates are presented. These differences include considerably higher input chrome and magnesia contents that directly raise the slag liquidus temperature and have the potential to increase accumulations of refractory spinels. Most importantly, the higher processing temperature required for PGM smelting and the resulting very high matte superheat lead to considerably more onerous smelting conditions than those typical of other smelting operations. This has presented challenges to furnace design and integrity, especially when coupled with the progressive intensification of smelting, involving doubling, and then redoubling, of furnace power inputs over the past 20 years. These power increases have been enabled by increasingly more advanced furnace cooling and structural technologies. Key technologies include strong constant-force spring-loaded bindings acting in three dimensions to minimize infiltration of superheated matte into brick joints, and robust well-cooled tapholes for reliably tapping the superheated matte. The result has been substantially improved productivity, and reduced smelting capital cost outlay per unit of production. A significant challenge, which was not anticipated, presented itself in the form of insidious corrosion of the furnace lining, and especially high-intensity copper cooling elements. Investigation of corrosion in related industries eventually identified ‘chlorideaccelerated sulphidation’, and this term has been retained as it generically describes the most pertinent aspects of the accelerated low-temperature wear of copper coolers observed in PGM smelting. In addition to discussing the corrosion mechanism, this paper describes a number of solutions that were developed jointly by Anglo American Platinum and Hatch to address the copper corrosion problem. First, new monitoring technologies allowed furnaces to be operated more safely for a longer period of time. Second, a system for replacing corroded coolers from outside the furnace during a fast ‘hot’ shutdown minimized the impact on furnace operating factor and hearth life. Finally, a corrosionresistant graphite-protected cooler design significantly improved furnace campaign life, and heralds a more lasting solution to cooler corrosion in PGM furnaces.

‘TAM 113’ (Reg. No. CV‐1081, PI 666125), a hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar with experimental designation TX02A0252, was developed and released by Texas AgriLife Research in 2010. TAM 113 is an F5–derived line from the cross TX90V6313/TX94V3724 made at Vernon, TX in 1995. Both TX90V6313 and TX94V3724 are Texas experimental lines derived from the crosses TAM 200“S”/TX78A3345‐V34 and U1254‐1‐8‐1‐1/‘TAM 202’ (PI 561933), respectively. TAM 113 is an awned, medium maturing, semidwarf wheat with white glumes. It was released primarily for its excellent grain‐yield potential in both irrigated and dryland environments of the Texas High Plains; for its resistance to leaf rust (caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks.), stripe rust (caused by P. striiformis Westend.), and stem rust (caused by P. graminis Pers.:Pers f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn.); and for its good milling and exceptional bread‐baking characteristics. TAM 113 has a similar area of adaptation and grain‐yield potential as ‘TAM 111’ (PI 631352) and ‘TAM 112’ (PI 643143). However, compared with TAM 111, it has better leaf rust resistance and better bread‐baking qualities, and compared with TAM 112, it has better resistance to leaf and stripe rusts. TAM 113, with better milling and baking characteristics and resistance to leaf, stripe, and stem rusts, will provide a good complement to other hard red winter wheat cultivars for wheat producers in the southern Great Plains.

‘TAM 401’ (Reg. No. CV‐1056, PI 658500), a hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar with the experimental designation TX03M1096, was developed and released by Texas AgriLife Research in 2008. TAM 401 is an F4‐derived line from the cross ‘Mason’ (PI 594044)/‘Jagger’ (PI 593688) made at College Station, TX in the fall of 1997. Mason is a soft red winter wheat cultivar released by AgriPro in 1996, and Jagger is a hard red winter wheat cultivar developed and released by Kansas State University in 1996. TAM 401 is an early maturing, apically awnletted wheat suitable for grain‐only, dual‐purpose, and graze‐out systems. TAM 401 was released primarily for its excellent grain yield potential across a wide range of environments in Texas; good fall and early winter forage potential; resistance to leaf rust (caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks.) and stripe rust (caused by P. striiformis Westend.); and acceptable hard red winter wheat end‐use quality. The proposed primary area of adaptation for TAM 401 will be the warmer and more humid areas such as South Texas, the Blacklands, and the Rolling Plains of Texas, where awnletted or apically awnletted hard red winter wheat cultivars with resistance to leaf rust and stripe rust are very limited.

‘Intercross’ (Reg. No. CV‐258, PI 658507) intermediate ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum × L. perenne Lam.) was developed by the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station—now Texas AgriLife Research—at what is now the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Overton, Texas. Intercross was approved for release in 2010 by Texas AgriLife Research. The objective for the development of Intercross was to improve turf quality while retaining the early transition from the annual parent. The annual parent, ‘Axcella’ does not have good turf quality, whereas the intermediate parent, experimental 01‐ARG, has good turf quality but transitioned as a perennial under Texas conditions. Therefore the cross was made in an attempt to widen the genetic base not present in the annual and then to select for improved turf characteristics in segregating populations. Intercross was tested under the experimental designation TXR2007‐TF‐PR‐A and is a turf‐type, intermediate, transition‐type ryegrass. Intercross is a diploid ryegrass where 2n = 2x = 14 chromosomes. Intercross should be labeled as an intermediate ryegrass, indicating that it has some characteristics of an annual and some characteristics of a perennial ryegrass. The main attributes of Intercross are a darker‐green leaf color compared with Axcella, ‘Axcella 2’, ‘Panterra’, and ‘Gulf’. Darker leaf color is more evident late in spring in Texas (April). Turf‐quality ratings are good from November until early May and then decline. The transition of Intercross is similar to that of Panterra and Axcella 2 and is much earlier than most intermediate or perennial ryegrass cultivars. Intercross has been evaluated in turf‐overseeding trials at Overton for the past 2 yr. Seed production of Intercross will be in Oregon.

‘TAMsoft 700’ (Reg. No. CV‐1042, PI 656607), a short, early‐maturing, and apically awnletted soft red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), was developed and released jointly by the Georgia Agricultural Experiment Station and Texas AgriLife Research in 2009. TAMsoft 700 was derived from the cross ‘Jackson’/2*GA881130 made in spring 1996 at the University of Georgia. The pedigree of GA88130 is KSH8998/FR 81‐10//‘Gore’ (PI 561842). KSH8998 was developed from a cross between a hard red winter line and a Triticum tauschii (Coss.) Schmal line to transfer Hessian fly [Mayetiola destructor (Say)] resistance gene H13 FR 81‐10 was selected due to its resistance to leaf rust (caused by Puccinia recondita Roberge ex Desmaz) based on the Lr37 gene and stripe rust (caused by Puccinia striiformis Westend.) based on Yr17 gene, from the cross ‘Novisad 138’/4(4) Aegilops ventricosa Tausch/Triticum persicum (Boiss.) Aitch. & Hemsl./2/‘Marve’*3/3/‘Moisson’ (PI 315998). TAMsoft 700 was released on the basis of its excellent grain yield under heavy Hessian fly infestation conditions in north central and eastern Texas. It also possesses good resistance to prevailing races of leaf rust, stripe rust, and powdery mildew (caused by Erysiphe graminis DC. f. sp. tritici Em. Marchal) in north‐central and eastern Texas. Milling and baking quality characteristics of TAMsoft 700 were rated as acceptable for soft red winter wheat use by the USDA–ARS Soft Wheat Quality Laboratory in Wooster, OH.

‘Nelson’ ryegrass is a newly released variety of annual ryegrass that will be used as a forage crop for grazing livestock in the southern USA. Nelson (Reg. No. CV‐257, PI 658137) Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) was developed by the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station—now Texas AgriLife Research—as a forage‐type annual ryegrass. Plant breeding of Nelson was conducted at what is now the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Overton, Texas. Nelson is a tetraploid where 2n = 4x = 28 chromosomes. Nelson is an open‐pollinated three‐way cross from ryegrass breeding lines TXR2000‐T2, TXR2002‐T17, and the cultivar ‘Jumbo’. Both TX breeding lines were from ‘TAM 90’ germplasm that had its chromosome numbers doubled from 14 to 28. Adjacent rows, which were replicated, were grown in an isolation block and allowed to cross‐pollinate and produce seed. Subsequent generations were grown and selected for high forage‐yield potential and crown rust (caused by Puccinia coronate Corda) resistance at Beaumont, Texas. Seed from these populations was increased in Oregon and was later tested for forage yield across the southern USA. Nelson has high forage‐yield potential, good crown rust resistance, and good cold tolerance for the southeastern USA. Nelson is improved for forage yield potential compared with most commercial cultivars in East Texas. The predominant use is projected to be in overseeding warm‐season pastures for winter production of forage for grazing animals. Seed production of Nelson will be in Oregon. Nelson was tested as TXR2006‐T22 and released in 2009.

Journal of Plant Registrations, Vol. 1, No. 2, September 2007 127 respectively (A. K. Culbreath, personal communication). AP-3 had a lower shellout percentage than Georgia Green with a nonsignifi cant difference in blanching (82.8 vs. 82.3% whole blanch) and acceptable fl avor rating (4.0 vs. 4.0) data, compared with Georgia Green. AP-3 has a meat content (73.9 vs. 73.6%, nonsignifi cant) similar to ‘Andru II’ (Gorbet, 2006a). AP-3 received approval for a U.S. Plant Variety Protection Certifi cate (PVP no. 200300320) in August 2005 for growing only as a class of Certifi ed seed. Inquiries concerning Foundation seed and production of AP-3 should be directed to Florida Foundation Seed Producers, Inc., P.O. Box 309, Greenwood, FL 32443. Breeder seed will be maintained by the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station. Seed has been submitted to the National Plant Germplasm System for post-PVP expiration distribution. Further inquiries on small samples of seed for research purposes should be directed to the author. References Banks, D.J., J.S. Kirby, and J.R. Sholar. 1989. Registration of ‘Okrun’ peanut. Crop Sci. 29:1574. Beute, M.K., J.C. Wynne, and D.A. Emery. 1976. Registration of ‘NC 3033’ peanut germplasm. Crop Sci. 16:887. Branch, W.D. 1996. Registration of ‘Georgia Green’ peanut. Crop Sci. 36:806. Gorbet, D.W. 2003. AP-3: A new medium maturity peanut cultivar. Res. Rpt. 03-8. North Florida Research and Education Center, Univ. of Florida, Marianna. Gorbet, D.W. 2006a. Registration of ‘Andru II’ peanut. Crop Sci. 46:2712–2713. Gorbet, D.W. 2006b. Registration of ‘Carver’ peanut. Crop Sci. 46:2713–2714. Gorbet, D.W., T.A. Kucharek, F.M. Shokes, and T.B. Brenneman. 2004. Field evaluations of peanut germplasm for resistance to stem rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii. Peanut Sci. 31:91–95. Norden, A.J., R.W. Lipscomb, and W.A. Carver. 1969. Registration of Florunner peanuts (Reg. No. 2). Crop Sci. 9:850.

The paper describes the development of furnace designs by Hatch in conjunction with the smelting plants in Africa to meet the intense process requirements in certain applications; continued improvement in operating efficiency through increased throughput from existing crucibles; and improvement in campaign life and furnace integrity. The era of Hatch in Af rica has seen the doubling of furnace power in retrofit projects using existing crucibles to developing the highest intensity immersed electrode operations in the world. This has resulted in minimized OPEX and CAPEX per unit of production. Through the continued development of its cooling, binding and furnace power supply technologies and working with the experienced and knowledgeable personnel at the smelting facilities in Africa, Hatch has managed to meet the challenges of ever increasing furnace process requirements associated with increased power density and superheats prevalent in the operations. In addition to developing furnace crucible designs, Hatch has also intensified its 'after sales service and support' with the construction, commissioning and start-up technical assistance and operational readiness and operational support for ramp-up to nameplate capacity and beyond. The key areas of furnace risk associated with high superheat molten material tapping has also seen the development of diagnostic systems to mitigate risks and produce early warning signals for the operators.

Perennial ryegrass ( Lolium perenne ) has traditionally been used to overseed warm-season grasses in the southern U.S. when warm-season sods are dormant due to chilling temperatures. In this study we investigated overseeding turf-type annual ryegrass (two cultivars of L. multiflorum and one cultivar of L. rigidum ) and chewing fescue ( Festuca rubra var. commutata ) as well as perennial ryegrass onto a warm-season common bermudagrass ( Cynodon dactylon ) sod. The objective was to compare turf quality, turf color, and transition date of turf-type annuals with perennials and other cool-season grasses. Results for turf quality indicated that the annual ryegrass cultivars `Axcella' and `Panterra' ( L. multiflorum ) compared very well with perennials through March; however, in April and May, perennials were superior for quality. `Hardtop' fine fescue is a hard fescue ( F. ovina var. duriuscula ). It was inferior to the annuals for turf quality from December to April when the annuals began to die. For turf color, annuals had a lower rating compared to dark green perennials such as `Premier II', `Derby Supreme', or `Allstar'. `Panterra' was darker compared to `Axcella' in March and April. Chewing fescue was intermediate in color compared to annuals and perennials. For turf height, `Axcella' was taller than `Panterra', which were both taller than the perennials, and the fine fescues were shorter than the perennials. For transition in the spring, the annuals had a shorter transition and died about 1 month earlier than the perennials. `Transtar' ( L. rigidum ) had an earlier transition than the other annuals. The perennials tended to have a longer transition period. The fescues had a very long transition period and were similar to the perennials.