Everything from weather to markets to field history factor into your annual crop decisions. Will you stick with a normal rotation for next year, or mix it up? Review this year’s plan, understand your budget and make decisions on a field-by-field basis.
“Every field needs to have some type of budget so at the end you can put all of those fields together to get your operation budget,” says Andrew Phillips, Channel seedsman. “That budget allows you to look at your management scheme and know where you can be more aggressive in savings or more aggressive in input purchases.”
Weigh Profit Potential
Take a look at your bottom line and understand how yield, and therefore, profit potential varies by crop. In addition, pay attention to what the markets are doing now and if you can lock in any prices even before seed hits the soil.
“I’m in a heavier corn-on-corn area, and it’s often hard to break that cycle,” says Adam Mayer, Golden Harvest agronomist. “A lot of times the economics don’t allow that, but this year it looks like soybeans could provide good opportunities.”
Switching crops comes with new considerations. If you’re switching from continuous corn to soybeans, there could be savings in terms of fungicides and insecticides. Although herbicides will likely be the same or slightly higher in cost than in corn, Mayer explains.
If you plan to repeat crops, understand your risks for the potential of increased insect pressures. Specifically, look at corn rootworm and the potential for higher rates of diseases such as sudden death syndrome and brown stem rot.
A Plan to Cover Every Base
In many cases, your weather and fertility situation can go hand-in-hand with the agronomic factors that weigh on your crop decision. If you’re low on moisture, you might need to look for seed genetics with moisture flexibility. At the same time, you need to consider disease and trait packages.
“Try to build a plan that covers every single base — from fertility to seed selection,” Phillips says. “In some areas we know we’re headed into a season where we don’t have adequate soil moisture. You can make revisions based on that.”
If you have heavy insect pressures in corn, or high weed pressure in soybeans, consider those factors when choosing crops.
