Many areas of the Midwest have been experiencing a significant amount of dry weather over the last few weeks. Because of this I have received a number of calls and questions from farmers regarding floppy corn (rootless corn) syndrome. In this video, I am in East Central Illinois in a field that was planted on May 10, 2017. Since planting, this area has gone through a significant dry spell, which is uncommon for the area.

Did you know that Septoria brown spot (SBS), also know as brown spot, is the second biggest disease threat to soybean yield after soybean cyst nematodes?
 
Since SBS has the potential to reduce soybean yields more than most farmers and agronomists realize, it's important to implement additional attention and control measures to manage this disease.

1. Variety Selection. Select varieties that are best suited for your operation’s needs, whether that’s based on maturity for harvest timing and soybean double-cropping, straw and/or grain yield, management level, or a combination of these needs. In addition, maturity and harvest timing may be important for timely manure management, summer drainage tile projects, or timely cover-crop seeding. Utilize data from universities, third-party testing services, seed companies, and local performance-based product recommendations from your Beck’s representative to help select the best varieties available. University of Illinois research from 2013 and 2014 shows a 20 percent difference in grain yield just by selecting top-performing wheat varieties.

In some areas, the window of opportunity for planting corn, and environmental conditions that followed, were not ideal for rapid germination and emergence. The cold soils and excessive rainfall we experienced shortly after planting has led to uneven emergence, delayed emergence, and an onset of seedling blights. We have also seen the use of rotary hoes in some areas with crusted soils. 

Soil fertility tests can be a moving target since soil chemistry is constantly changing, the soil is a living organism, and crop removal is different each year. Because of these and other factors, results can be dynamic over time. Potassium soil test results this fall have been lower than expected, even with a proper history of recent K₂O fertilization. In talking with several farmers and reputable Midwest soil testing lab scientists about these results, lower potassium readings have led to many questions this fall.

Some areas throughout my geography began planting corn as early as April 1 - 6. Other notable planting windows have been April 10 - 17 and April 21 - 24. Soil texture and moisture have been desirable for field work in these areas, however, cold soil temperatures and rainfall forecasts have been a concern recently. 

I have been asked several questions about the number of days required for corn emergence...

Soybean Emergence Issues
A large amount of soybeans were planted throughout the area May 7-12. Unfortunately, on May 14 the weather turned unseasonably cool and wet, with daily high temperatures only reaching the 50s for four consecutive days.

Sulfur Deficiency in Corn
Sulfur is an essential nutrient for crop production. Historically, however, sulfur has not been a common component of crop fertility programs. Sulfur has naturally been supplied through atmospheric deposition, manure application, and mineralization of organic matter.

Nitrification Inhibitors for Sidedressing Nitrogen (N)
Many growers are or will be sidedressing corn shortly. One question we often get this time of year is, “Do I use a nitrification inhibitor?” As is often the case, it is not an easy answer.

ADD ZINC TO YOUR STARTER FERTILIZER PROGRAM
One of the common questions I have been getting lately is definitely not a new one. “Should I be using liquid starter fertilizer at planting for corn?” While some farmers in the Midwest have been using starter for many years, others are just getting started.

TISSUE SAMPLING FOR HIGHER YIELDS
Have you mastered the “Seven Wonders of the Corn Yield World” and “The Six Secrets of Soybean Success?” Most likely, your answer is “No, but I give it my best shot to control what I can!” Although Dr. Fred Below’s recipes do not include foliar nutrition, plants lacking optimum levels of macro and/or micronutrients usually fail to produce high yields.

WHEAT CROP STATUS UPDATE
The wheat crop in our area has gone through one of the coldest winters on record. Growth stage currently ranges from Feekes 2- Feekes 4. Using October 12 as a planting date, we are 321 wheat growing degree days (GDDs) behind the previous year through April 12. If we have average temperatures in the last half of April, this will correlate to a two week delay. Given that some fields didn’t get planted until the last week of October, we are closer to a delay of 3-4 weeks.