All the “knee-high by the first (or fourth) of July” photos have been posted on social media, with the crop looking nice from above, but what’s going on below the canopy? Now is the time to check weed populations and assess herbicide performance, says Jeanette Gaultier, senior technical services specialist with BASF, joining us for… Read More
Every corn crop is different. The year-over-year variables really play into a fungicide timing strategy, but the most important question to ask when strategizing for fungicide timing may be: “What is your corn crop doing right now?” Ken Currah, with BASF Canada, joins RealAgriculture’s Bernard Tobin for this episode of the Corn School to walk… Read More
If you applied a pre-emergent herbicide before planting your corn and didn’t get the moisture to activate it, don’t despair and don’t feel like you’ve thrown some money down the drain. You still get weed control during that critical weed-free period, says Rob Miller, technical development manager with BASF. As you can see in this… Read More
The hangover effects from a wet fall are giving farmers in parts of Western Canada a headache this spring. Saturated soil conditions right until freeze-up forced fieldwork that normally happens in fall to be delayed until spring. As a result, heavy harrows, vertical tillage machines, traditional cultivators, and even fire — all the tools in… Read More
With June arriving this week, corn is rushing ahead and growing rapidly. Now’s the time for growers to get out and scout fields to identify planting issues, determine yield potential and start fine-tuning your management plan, says Kinburn, Ont., agronomist Paul Sullivan. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Sullivan notes that stand assessment and… Read More
Should you go ground or air? That’s the question many growers struggle with as they try to determine the best method of applying disease-fighting fungicide to their growing corn crops. On this episode of RealAgriculture Corn School we tackle that question with two of North America’s leading plant pathologists — University of Kentucky’s Kiersten Wise… Read More
How many crop heat units (CHU) does corn need to emerge? That’s a question many growers are asking as their corn seed shivers through the cold spring 2020 growing conditions. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, we put that question to Dale Cowan, AGRIS Co-operative agronomist. He says that corn seed typically requires 165… Read More
Producers across the country are beginning to get into the fields and getting that corn seed in the ground. When it comes to planting corn, getting that seedbed prepped is imperative to ensuring a steady start — whether you are growing silage or grain corn. A key to this is ensuring your soil temperature is… Read More
If you aren’t in the field yet, chances are you are itching to get out there and get the tires rolling. This is probably especially true if you are fearing early frost come harvest season. Alana Serhan, market development specialist with PRIDE Seeds, says that before you even consider taking that corn seed out of… Read More
Does timing matter in strip till? Will corn planted into fall-made strips out-yield spring strips? That’s just one of many questions corn growers are asking as strip tillage gains popularity as a reduced tillage option that delivers the benefits of conventional tillage, says Ben Rosser, corn lead for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and… Read More
Strip tillage for corn continues to gain momentum as more growers cultivate strips to reduce total tillage and place seed and fertilizer in soil that warms faster prior to planting. But what about weed control? How do growers keep yield-robbing weeds at bay in these cultivated strips and optimize the potential of the growing environment… Read More
It’s mid-April and the weeds are growing in eastern Canada. Overall, good weather has many fields one month ahead of schedule, and in some cases, two months ahead of backward 2019 spring conditions, notes BASF agronomist Rob Miller. That means it’s time for growers to tackle perennial weeds and winter annuals like Canada fleabane before… Read More
Have you connected with your agronomist or seed dealer to discuss plans for 2020 on-farm trials? When it comes to corn and soybean management, there’s nothing that trumps on-farm experience when making profitable decisions, says Pride Seeds market agronomist Matt Chapple. On this episode of the RealAgriculture Corn School, Chapple reviews some of the agronomic… Read More
If you haven’t prepped your planter for 2020, there’s still time to get the job done. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Kearney Planters service manager Shaun Dilliott walks us around a typical corn planter and offers tips on key areas where growers should focus maintenance efforts. The frame segment is the first stop…. Read More
First there were strobilurins, then came triazoles, and now we have succinate dehydrogenase inhibitors or SDHIs. That can be a bit of tongue twister, but it also adds up to three classes of fungicides and multiple modes of action that more growers are stacking up to bring stronger disease protection to their cornfields. That’s the… Read More