Wheat Pete’s Word, Sept 9: Broadcast risks, upping seeding rates, and tickling 200 bushels per acre

They don’t call him Wheat Pete for nothing. It’s September and that means it’s time to talk about wheat, wheat, wheat.

In this week’s episode of Wheat Pete’s Word, host Peter Johnson is answering the most timely questions regarding the winter wheat crop, choosing seeding rates, the importance of seed treatments, and so much more.

Have a question you’d like Johnson to address or some yield results to send in? Disagree with something he’s said? Leave him a message at 1-888-746-3311, send him a tweet (@wheatpete), or email him at [email protected].

SUMMARY

• September has blown in and flipped the switch from summer to fall rather abruptly, especially for those in Western Canada who got a very hard frost already this week (as low as -10, people. Yikes).
• Yes, the crops are still moving forward, Pete promises
• Based on the late summer yield tour, there could be a record soybean crop building in Ontario. How did we get here?
• Corn crop still looks like an ocean — waves for dayz
• Past high winds definitely showing its effects on the corn crop (goose necks). Most don’t have cobs, though. Really disappointing
• The Mayor of Middlesex says stop comparing us to Washington State if you’re not going to share the recipe! It starts by starting the crop early
• But how early is too early?
• Broadcasting wheat seed into standing soybeans carries risk
• What about seed treatments? Always! Bunt is bad, y’all. And avoidable (unless you’re organic)
• Be cautious if broadcasting into lodged soybeans
• Remember that slugs love wheat on the surface (and they are in the mollusk family, not insects, so you can’t spray for them)
• Reports of some tiny seeds! This is why you do a 1,000 kernel weight and calculate based on seeds per acre
• Use the optimum seeding date as your benchmark for upping or lowering the seeding rate for wheat. Check it out at GoCereals.ca
• Late wheat needs more more more seeds
• MESZ (Micro Essentials Sulphur Zinc) vs MAP (Monoammunium phosphate)– what’s the yield difference? There likely isn’t one, but product flow may change
• Wheat after corn, the big risk is fusarium. At the end of the day, if you can get the silage off and get the wheat in early, that may be worth it. BUT plan for a fungicide for sure for sure and use the most tolerant variety that fits
• Oats on as a cover crop, when do you spray? Economics are similar to fungicide on alfalfa. At least 3 weeks of growth are needed, and maybe should have already had it done

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