Ferrie: How to Keep ‘$6 Corn’ Happy? Use Your Starter
Concerns about fertility availability and prices are front and center in Ken Ferrie’s current conversations with farmers, as they look toward spring planting.
Some growers have already cut or plan to reduce the phosphate and potash in their fertility program, according to Ferrie, Farm Journal Field Agronomist and owner of Crop-Tech Consulting Inc., Heyworth, Ill.
The second thing farmers are telling him is they are evaluating whether to pull starter fertilizer from their program, since some are seeing costs for starter fertilizer explode.
“With this we must be careful. We don't want corn to ever have a bad day – especially with $6 corn,” he says.
When you pull back or drop out DAP completely, Ferrie says you may not see any visual differences in corn growth or even yield reductions, though you will see a reduction in soil-test values.
But if you cut the starter, look out – you will see a difference in corn emergence and growth because of the horsepower starter fertilizer provides.
“Five gallon of 10-34-O will give you a bigger kick than 300 pounds of broadcast DAP, due to placement and timing,” he says. “Furthermore, if you have already reduced or cut out the DAP, you're putting more pressure on the early growth stages of corn when yield potential is being set. If you pull out the starter, you have to be prepared for the corn to have some bad days.”
Use the 4Rs
Right time, right place, right product and right rate can help you manage costs most effectively this season, Ferrie advises.
“Right time is covered, if you apply starter fertilizer with the planter,” he says. “Right placement has a big impact on the other two Rs (product and rate).”
In starter trials Ferrie and his team have conducted over the years, the strongest responses have come from products being placed off to the side of the seed.
“That's mainly because we use higher rates and, in most cases, cheaper products,” he explains.
He says when you go with an in-furrow product, you must pay attention to potential salt burn on the seed. This factor reduces the rate and restricts which products you can use.
Ferrie encourages his customers who are “off the seed” to experiment with rates to see at what point the corn stops responding to additional starter.
As starter rates go up, there's a point where corn stops responding and the yield response is flattened out. This rate will vary by product being used and fertility levels on the farm, as well as hybrid response.
“In our 10-34-O plots where starter is placed beside the seed, it's common for our starter responses to flatline in that 7-gallon to 10-gallon range,” Ferrie says. “So, if your corn response curve flattens at 7 gallons of 10-34-O, it's telling you that it only takes about 27 pounds of phosphate to maximize your response on the planter.”
Starters Can Vary Widely
Not all starters are the same, Ferrie says.
“For instance, if you switch to a 6-18-6 grade starter because it's $1 gallon cheaper, you're going to have to put on 14 gallons instead of 7 gallons to get the 27 pounds that your corn’s asking for. That math doesn't work,” he says.
When going in-furrow, it's hard to hit a rate where the corn will flatline in response without burning the seed from too much salt. And while there are low-salt starters, Ferrie says there aren't any no-salt starters.
“When in-furrow you're looking for the rate that will give you the best response with the least amount of salt burn on the seed,” he says.
When you go in-furrow, the top rate used will be based on the salt index of your starter and the seed quality.
“Seed samples that have higher than 6% severe pericarp damage we recommend being very careful with using any in-furrow, especially if you're planting in dry conditions,” he says.
Severe pericarp damage means that the seed has a tear in the pericarp at the embryo axis. This seed succumbs to salt burn quickly.
“And if you lose more than 6% of the stand, your starter response won't be enough to offset the loss,” he notes.
Consider Your Options
Today, there are many options to get starter off the seed, though he advises to not to get much further than 2” off to the side.
“Once we're off the seed, we're not concerned about seed burn, our options are wider and our rates can go higher,” Ferrie says. “We can use polyphosphates instead of orthos and regular potash to cheapen the cost.”
Based on test plot results, Ferrie recommend zinc for use in all starters containing phosphate.
“We've also found products that keep phosphate more available -- like your P.Max, Avail, NutriCharge -- they do give starter more kick. They tend to make 3 gallons act like 6 gallons – a big plus when we go in-furrow. You get more kick with less threat of salt burn.”
In treatments off the seed, you could take the money that is invested in the additive and spend it on more fertilizer. Once you reach that point where the response is flattening, adding an additive to make it more available doesn't help, he says.
Make Them Earn Their Way
“There are more starter additives out there than flavors of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream,” he says. “My recommendation is to make them earn their way on your farm.”
Side by side starter trials are some of the easiest to put in, he notes. Put them close to the road, so you can look for visual responses early in the season.
“Trying to replace a good starter regiment with a pint of ‘special sauce’ is something you do on a small number of acres,” he adds. “Take it from someone who's had to clean out tanks and jar test everything before it goes in the planter. It’s not a bad idea to let that jar sit a couple days, so you know what you’ve got if you get rained out.”
In addition, think about situations where the starter has the best possibilities to provide the biggest response – on marginal soils, low fertility fields, fields with phosphate tie-up or other issues, reduced tillage fields and cover crop fields.
Along with that, Ferrie says to think about hybrids that will give you the strongest response to starter. “They’re going to be what we call the G and the L1 hybrids,” he says.
“Our starter trials had strong responses this past year, even though tar spot killed the plants,” he adds. “I'm not sure why, but my guess is pushing maturity up seven days meant maybe more grain fill before the plant shut down.”
Listen to the entire Boots in the Field podcast report here:
Get Off to the Right Start with Starter Fertilizer
How Today’s Fertilizer Prices Could Reshape The Industry
One Step To Soften Fertilizer Prices
Ferrie: Expect a Rocky Start with Corn in 2022 from Fall Anhydrous Only Use
Five Prizewinning Fertilizers Seen as Next Generation Tools for Farmers
