The race is on in many areas — and hopefully soon will be in others — to get this year’s soybean crop in the ground.
It’s critical to make some pit-stops along the way to adjust the planter or drill for optimum performance, as covered in this Soybean School episode.
Seed size can vary widely, depending on growing conditions the previous year and where seed was grown, reminds Dieter Schwarz, market development manager for corn and soybeans in Western Canada with Canterra Seeds.
“I get calls every year where, unfortunately, when people switch varieties, they don’t make any adjustments on their planter or drill and then find out they put on way more or way less seed than they intended, and that of course comes with agronomic consequences in the field.”
And even if you’re not switching varieties, one seed lot may not have been grown in the same area as another seed lot, so there can be variations within a single variety, notes Schwarz.
Seed size between #soybean seed varieties and sometimes seed lots can vary as much 16-20%. Be sure to calibrate your seeding equipment #MBag https://t.co/f5t7fBosmm
— Dieter Schwarz P.Ag. (@dieterschwarz) May 12, 2017
“All of us seem to be in a bit of a race at this time of year and it’s very easy to make some mistakes very quickly,” he says. “Take a minute when you’re picking up the seed and double check the seed sizing.”
Schwarz offers some last-minute reminders for getting the soybean crop off on the right track, and discusses the expectations for another large increase in soybean acres in Manitoba and Saskatchewan:
Watch more in the Soybean School here.
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