1
May
2020
Don’t just tell me. Show me. Spending time at home with young children, as many of us have done recently, proves this axiom to be true, and it carries forward with adults making critical decisions throughout the world.
Categories: CropTalk, 2020
Tags:
While the focus among farmers right now is getting the crop planted and established, soon there will be decisions to make about keeping the crop healthy for the duration of the growing season. One of the primary tools available in maintaining plant health is fungicide, and while fungicide use is common and widespread across the corn belt, the decision on whether to spray and when to spray can be one of the more difficult management decisions a farmer must make.
What the 2020 growing season will offer is yet to be seen, but there is a strong trend toward higher precipitation levels and more significant rainfall events. What can we do to adjust our nitrogen management to better cope with the uncertainty these trends present?
As we move into the planting season, it is important to remember some of the key factors that limit yield. It is widely accepted that population is at the top of the list. It would stand to reason that without plants, there is not much you can do to preserve or create yield. Assessing population has been a challenging task considering the time constraints of spring. We can now use drones, models like the Phantom 4 or newer, to quickly and accurately assess the population of a field.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.” - Matthew 7:24-25
Tags: CropTalk, The Sower
8
Apr
Need help controlling difficult-to-manage weeds this spring? Southern Illinois Practical Farm Research (PFR) Technician and Herbicide Specialist, Joe Bolte, has pre-emergent herbicide management tips to mitigate pesky weeds like marestail, morning glory, cocklebur, waterhemp, giant ragweed, pigweed, lambsquarter, velvetleaf, and foxtails.
Categories: PFR, PFR Reports
Join Camille Lambert, Beck’s Hybrids’ Kentucky Agronomist, and Brandon Somers, Henderson, KY, Practical Farm Research (PFR) Location Lead, to review best management practices for spring anhydrous ammonia applications this 2020 planting season.
Uniformity and consistency are two terms we often heard when farmers describe their ideal field with a “picket-fence” stand crop. These types of stands go hand-in-hand with high yields. However, this is potentially the most difficult objective to achieve.
So, we posed the question, “how can we obtain this desired uniformity?”
2
When you have a community of people willing to guide you and lend a helping hand, a positive attitude, and a true passion for what you do, you can accomplish anything. That is what I learned from two young farmers who were both top ten finalists for the National Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Achievement Award.
Tags: CropTalk, community talk
Beck’s continues to partner with technology companies to put our customers at an advantage when it comes to choices. Traditionally, that message refers to the diversity of traits offered in the Beck’s lineup. In 2020, we’ve added an opportunity for Beck’s customers to access the latest in plant health fungicide protection and weed control.
Tags: CropTalk, BASF, S.T.O.P.
Unfortunately, for many farmers, the story of the 2019 season has yet to be entirely written. The historically wet planting season across much of the Corn Belt not only challenged planting intentions but, for many, planting conditions were also compromised in an attempt to get the crop in the ground. The end result was many acres left fallow, wet areas of fields left unplanted or drowned out, and soil structure impaired due to planting conditions. Fields with compaction issues due to 2019 field conditions and unplanted or fallow acres will require specific management strategies to maximize production in 2020.
Tags: CropTalk, soil fungi, fungi activity
Target Spot is not a new disease but has become more of an issue in the past few years, especially in the southern regions of our marketing area. Historically, it has not been a yield-robbing disease because it typically remains in the lower canopy of a soybean plant, and those leaves do not contribute to overall yield. In 2014, pathologists began seeing more severe infections, and by 2016 it was considered a disease with significant yield impact in susceptible varieties.
Tags: CropTalk, soybeans, target spot
For farmers across the Midwest, the 2019 growing season proved more challenging and stressful than your “normal” year. While some suffered more than others, 2019 yields as a whole were not as catastrophic as many predicted. This is mainly due to the nearly ideal weather we experienced in September.
Tags: CropTalk, PFR Studies, 2020 pfr
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. - Romans 12:2 (NASB)
4
Mar
This latest PFR Report features Jared Chester, PFR Lead at our London, OH facility discussing our recent downforce study using DeltaForce® from Precision Planting.
This latest PFR Report features Clayton Stufflebeam, PFR Location Lead at our Central Illinois PFR discussing how to get your corn planter dialed in for #plant2020. Clayton spends time discussing how to index your planter and the importance of doing so.
Learn all about the Prescription Tillage Sabre Tooth Planter (STP) Disc Openers now!
For most, the words “super” and “bowl” together bring memories of hot wings, outrageous halftime shows, or funny commercials. But here at Beck’s, these words make us think of one of our favorite small seeds — alfalfa!
Tags: CropTalk, alfalfa
We're always looking for ways to make things more efficient, profitable, and sustainable. One of the major challenges we face as farmers is making the decision to purchase a new technology for our planter, sprayer, or combine. Then, after our purchase, the challenge is in determining if it's providing us with the advertised return on investment (ROI).
Tags: CropTalk, Farmserver, ROI
For some, the prospect of growing corn following corn is challenging and promising. For others, in contrast to a corn following soybean (SB-C) rotation, the corn following corn (C-C) rotation imparts concern and consternation.
Tags: CropTalk, corn, crop rotation, corn after corn