Earlier this week I scouted some fields in Southern Illinois following the rains we received last weekend. 

With this wheat in this field pushing Feekes 7, I plan on taking some soil and tissue samples in a few different spots to see what's going on in these plants. 

Did this year's freezing temperatures affect your yield potential?

While total wheat acres are down this year due to commodity prices, there there are still several thousand acres of Beck’s wheat planted throughout the South.

Unfortunately, that wheat has had a very troubled start this season. During planting, we experienced several weeks of dry weather that slowed emergence and even delayed planting. Then, in early January, we experienced two weather events that brought below normal temperatures (single digits in some areas) for extended periods of time. I have had several concerned farmers call and ask me if these weather events damaged their wheat crop and, true to my agronomist nature, my answer has been, “it depends on several factors.”

Much of the wheat throughout my territory is now between Feekes 10 (head in boot) and Feekes 10.1 (grain head visible). This means that within the next two weeks, it will be time to start making fungicide applications to protect our wheat against Fusarium head blight (head scab).

Beck’s agronomist, Austin Scott, provides an update to last week’s wheat webinar on freeze damage.

Earlier this month I sent an update discussing how the warmer weather could affect nitrogen (N) applications on wheat. With another stretch of unseasonably warm weather upon us, I thought it would be a great time to provide a quick update on our wheat crop.

I’ve recently had the opportunity to scout a few wheat fields and I wanted to share with you a few updates. 

The cool temperatures we have experienced over the last several nights have led to questions regarding frost damage. We are seeing some signs of frost damage here at our Ohio Practical Farm Research (PFR)® location, however we won’t know the severity of this damage until three to five days following the frost event. With the low temperatures leading up to this recent frost event, the hardening off process had started making our crops more tolerant of cool temperatures. Wet soils and dew present helps to maintain soil temperatures, thereby decreasing the risk of injury.

Fall fertility decisions in northwest Illinois have traditionally been based on crop removal and recent soil test levels. That may remain unchanged for some in 2015, while others may find the need to adjust levels lower due to economics. The cost to apply major nutrients like P and K have not dropped at the same rate as grain prices, resulting in heightened interest of economical use of these nutrients. Referring to soil test information, P and K can be allocated to only those areas most likely to respond to applications. Be sure to review critical levels of nutrients for corn, soybean, wheat, and alfalfa. The probability and magnitude of return to P and K fertilizer will increase when applied to soil test levels below the critical level.

Nitrogen (N) management is a key yield component. I like to see multiple N “meals” served to corn prior to tasseling. The main reason for this is how much N your soils can hold at any one time. A general rule of thumb is 10 lbs. N for every CEC unit. As an example, a sandy loam soil with a CEC of 6 theoretically can only “hold” 60 lbs. N at any one application. Conversely, a silty clay loam soil with a CEC of 18 can “hold” 180 lbs. N at any one application.