100-Dollar-Ideas
Pest management plans must be tailored to each management zone
Some problem pests just keep raising their ugly heads each season, and that’s certainly true for Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN). Despite a lot of work and effort on the part of university Extension and company researchers, this endemic pest continues to take a big bite out of soybean yields across the Midwest—to the tune of over $1 billion annually, according to the U. S. Department of Agriculture. Farmers know the typical signs that SCN is present in a field--plants are stunted, yellow and scraggly. In severe cases, SCN can destroy 80% of a field’s yield potential. University of Illinois research shows that when SCN goes undetected in fields--where symptoms aren’t present--it can still sap yields.
House Republicans on Monday unveiled an $81 billion disaster aid package to help hurricane-ravaged communities and states hit by wildfires.
By the time mid-August rolls around, corn growers often think it’s too late in the season to adjust their crop’s nutrient program. But that’s not at all the case according to John Leif, AgroLiquid Field Agronomy Manager. Leif says as he’s evaluated corn throughout the Midwest this season he’s seen the results of huge moisture differences from area to area, with some being too dry while others are too wet. He believes farmers on both sides of the weather extremes are likely to have crops that need additional nitrogen, potassium and sulfur.
John Phipps offers commentary on how to fix the dicamba drift problem for 2018.
Certified Crop Advisors (CCAs) across the country routinely address pests, diseases, weeds and other agronomic issues with their farmer-customers. In Illinois, CCAs are also working closely with industry stakeholders to address and reduce the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus the state contributes annually to the Gulf of Mexico.
To date, several dozen states have the green light from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use of the new dicamba formulations, BASF Engenia and Monsanto XtendiMax with VaporGrip Technology. Monsanto has also licensed its product to DuPont, which is marketing it as FeXapan with VaporGrip.
Starter fertilizer is a game of inches. That’s how precise of a role placement plays in feeding a crop early in its development.
How many times have you looked at a yield map and wondered why one part of a field outyielded another?