Many parts of Indiana, Missouri, and Kentucky have received over 4 in. of rain in a very short amount of time which has caused severe flooding in some areas. Because of this, I have received a number of questions from farmers wondering how long corn can survive under water and how much of their nitrogen (N) will still be there when the water finally recedes.

With the nice weather we are currently experiencing, many farmers find themselves asking the question, “should I be planting?” Here are a few factors to consider when answering that question.

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).

Over the past few weeks, many farmers have called me jokily asking, “is it too early to plant?”

My answers always seem to be long, with a lot of details and factors, as I try to help them determine if it is or isn’t too early. With that said, let’s look at our ideal planting dates and things you need to consider before planting.

As planting gets underway, we need to remember the importance of seeding depth. Planting too deep or too shallow can have an impact on stand establishment and uniformity. Uneven plant emergence can result in plant-to-plant variation and, in certain instances, can impact final grain yield. Soil conditions should be watched closely as these changes will dictate how seeding depth should be adjusted.

Spring is once again upon us! As with every year, it’s a great idea to review your field plans one last time before the rush begins. This year, I’m excited to work with farmers in our PFR Partners program. This will be a great tool that farmers can use to test studies from the Practical Farm Research (PFR)® book on their own farm, and to help prove the value of these products and practices out in the field.

As we enter this spring season, many of us are wondering…what will the repercussions be of this past winter’s mild temperatures? While no one really knows definitively if we’ll experience increased insect or disease pressure, we do know we’ll likely have increased winter annual weed pressure in our fields. Last fall’s extended season, along with the warm soil temperatures this spring, have resulted in an increase in marestail population as well as size of marestail rosettes.

With spring, comes a flurry of activity. There are a million things to get done to raise a successful crop. In all the commotion of planting season, I recommend keeping a watchful eye on plant nutrition. You may say, “no sweat I already have my N, P and K applied so I checked that off the list weeks ago”. Applications of the big three nutrients are vital, and while I don’t want to minimize their importance, we shouldn’t assume that since we made our annual fertilizer applications that providing all the nutrition our crops need is complete.

I want to share a few reminders about the impact our management decisions and environmental factors can have on successful stand establishment. Key factors impacting corn emergence are soil moisture, availability of oxygen, soil temperature, seed quality and protection with seed treatment, variety selection, planting depth, seed-to-soil contact, uniform spacing, and singulation.

One of the most common questions this year has been what effects will the warm winter have on crop production for 2017? Will we see increased insect pressure, weeds, diseases, and crop stres? Only time will tell, but the lack of frozen soils usually means more issues with insects and diseases that can overwinter.