Planters are just starting to roll, but based on the forecast, it could be a big week for planting progress in some states.
What’s the key to growing big yields? According to the reigning National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) Yield Contest champ, David Hula, you can’t have 300-bushel-per-acre yields if you don’t start with 300-bushel-per-acre stands.
Hula, who farms in Charles City, Virginia, is known for growing big yields. His winning national corn yield last year was a whopping 623.8 bu. per acre.
He says there’s no magic bullet in producing big yields, but based on one of his field trials last year, it can be something as simple as making sure your planter is set perfectly, which includes making sure the closing wheel system is centered.
“One row actually was as low as 198 bushels [per acre]. That’s not bad. But on a 24-row planter, one row was 302 bushels per acre. So, we had 104-bushel difference between that and the other row,” says Hula. “Did one row get better weather? Absolutely not. The planter was not performing like it should.”
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Hula says he was with corn yield champion Randy Dowdy at the time, and as fast as Dowdy could walk from one row to the next, he diagnosed the problem.
“It was a closing wheel system that wasn’t centered,” says Hula. “So, growers really have to stop and check things out. But they’ve got to start knowing that it’s set.”
He says ensuring your closing wheel system is truly centered and the planter is set correctly are two crucial steps for planting.
“We hear Missy and Bill Bauer and Ken Ferrie talk about it. The gauge wheels, are they set right? And then with fertilizer, make sure each row is putting on the same amount of fertilizer,” says Hula.
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Hula says many times a farmer wants to blame the weather, but sometimes it’s small mistakes that can cost big in lost yield.
“If a grower is striving for a 300-bushel-per-acre crop, he’s got to have a 300-bushel stand,” says Hula. “So if you get that first, then you just kind of let the plant tell you what it’s doing.”
Related Stories to Prep for Planting:
8 Planter Prep Tips for Spring
Your 19-Point Planter Checklist to Ensure Smooth Spring
In The Shop: Your High-Tech Planter Might Need these Tweaks
In The Shop: Prepping High-Tech Planters
