Ever consider replacing your planter disc openers with high-pressured water jets? The concept is called aqua-till. The idea has been pioneered by the South Australian NoTill Farmers Association (SANTFA). Earlier this week, SANTFA research and development manager Greg Butler traveled north to Ontario to showcase the technology for farmers attending the annual FarmSmart Expo near… Read more »
Category: Corn Planting
Corn School: How deep should you plant your corn?
What’s the ideal depth for planting corn? What happens if you plant too shallow? In this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, PRIDE Seeds agronomist Aaron Stevanus digs into a seeding depth trial to show how planting depth can impact early-season growth. We catch up with Stevanus at the company’s Elmira, ON, research site where he evaluates the… Read more »
Corn School: A 3-point post-planting scouting checklist
Hot, humid weather across much of corn-growing areas of Ontario has the crop adding a leaf stage about every four days. As corn pops in to that 4-leaf to 5-leaf stage, it’s time to get some dust on the boots and check three key aspects of early crop establishment: plant health, weed escapes, and planter… Read more »
Corn School: When to switch to shorter-season hybrids
When should you consider switching corn and plant a shorter-season hybrid? That’s a question many growers in some southwestern regions of Ontario are wrestling with as the calendar pushes ever closer to June. Spring weather conditions in many areas of the province have been good and planting is proceeding at a strong pace. However, heavy… Read more »
Use active math when evaluating nitrogen stabilizers
When growing corn, many farmers utilize nitrogen stabilizers to protect their fertilizer investment. Agrotain has become a popular stabilizer choice for its ability to inhibit nitrification and protect nitrogen from ammonia volatilization. There are also products that protect against losses from denitrification and nitrate leaching. AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan says farmers can see a yield… Read more »
Corn School: Six questions to ask before upgrading your planter
Planting season is just around the corner, but many farmers are still contemplating their planter needs for 2018. Kearney Planters service manager Shaun Dilliott says he gets consistent calls from corn growers who are making planter upgrade decisions or contemplating buying new or used planters. “One of the things we get a lot of is… Read more »
Corn School: Doing the math on multi-hybrid variable rate planting
Many Ontario corn fields have high levels of variability; soil profiles can change from sand to highly productive loam in a matter of footsteps. One way to tackle this variability is to identify management zones in the field and plant multiple hybrids at variable rates. In this episode of RealAgriculture Corn School, we catch up… Read more »
Corn School: Understanding 30 years of rising yields
Ontario will set a new corn yield record in 2017 with the crop expected to hit an average of 180 bu/ac or better. Where is all that yield coming from? Corn physiologist Dr. Thijs Tollenaar has poured over the data and identified three key factors driving corn yield improvement. A long-time University of Guelph professor… Read more »
Corn School: Profit strategies for fixed and flex ear hybrids
Not all corn fields are created equal. Some will produce higher profits when planted with a fixed ear hybrid, others will benefit from a flex ear hybrid, and some fields will perform best with a bit of both. In this episode of RealAgriculture Corn School, Pride Seeds market agronomist Aaron Stevanus explains the basic difference… Read more »
Corn School: ‘Wins’ of spring 2017
2017 may well be remembered for the spring that just kept on giving. From flooding to hail, Mother Nature threw just about every challenge imaginable at Ontario farmers during the early portion of the growing season. But despite difficult conditions that wreaked havoc on spring tillage, planting, weed control and nutrient application, farmers have persevered…. Read more »
Corn School: Does wet soil need more nitrogen?
The rain keeps falling in Ontario and all the water-logged soils make it tough to get a good read on how much nitrogen is available to the province’s corn crop. In this edition of RealAgriculture Corn School, agronomist Peter Johnson discusses whether corn acres need supplemental nitrogen and how much they might need. It depends on… Read more »
Corn School: Can fungicides help minimize hail damage?
Ontario crops have experienced widespread hail damage in recent weeks and many growers are asking how they can minimize the yield impact. In this episode of RealAgriculture Corn School, agronomist Peter Johnson takes us to a field of eight-leaf corn that has been shredded by a recent hailstorm. He says at this stage, yield loss… Read more »
Corn School: Getting to the bottom of rootless corn
Dan Foster has seen a lot of agronomic head scratchers in his career, but he witnessed a first in a cornfield near Sarnia, Ontario this spring. On this episode of Real Agriculture Corn School, Foster, Pride Seeds market development agronomist based at Chatham, takes you to a field with rootless corn syndrome. Foster describes how… Read more »
Corn School: Time to start talking NPK and S
The N-P-K conversation – nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium – is the focus of most corn nutrient management discussions. But is it time for the letter S (sulphur) to be a routine part of that conversation? In this edition of RealAgriculture Corn School, AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan is joined by crop sales specialist Mike Veenema to… Read more »
Corn School: Cold and wet means less available nitrogen
What a difference a year makes. In 2016, Ontario’s cold and dry spring conditions produced plenty of available nitrogen for the emerging corn crop. But when you fast-forward to 2017, those cold soils are now waterlogged and the wet conditions mean there’s very little nitrogen available to the crop. The wet soil conditions have a… Read more »