#Plant2026 for Success
You’ve weighed the agronomics and the economics — and now the planter is rolling. The decisions don’t stop, though. The weather changes plans, equipment breaks and pests pop up. Every step plays a role in the success of your planting season as well as the growing and harvest seasons to come.
Row spacing is getting a closer look from farmers who are evaluating the practices that contribute most to soybean yield. Agronomic experts offer their insights here to help growers heading to the field this week.
University of Tennessee Extension weed specialist Larry Steckel says as farmers prepare to plant, it might be uncomfortable to spray early when fields look clean, but it’s a smart strategy for effective weed control.
The weather forecast shows more farmers could start planting next week, and as farmers hit the fields, analysts want farmers to not lose sight of marketing opportunities during their busiest time of year.
Drought continues to tighten its grip across the Plains, forcing farmers in West Texas to make some very difficult decisions this growing season. It’s also causing concerns about crumbling cotton infrastructure.
It’s been a wet spring for many parts of the Corn Belt, and John Phipps says one of the advantages of his advancing age is the ability to start worrying earlier.
With the impending snowstorm in the upper Midwest and Northern Plains, it may seem like the 2023 planting season will be off to a slow start. However, in states like Illinois and Missouri, planting has already started.
Farm Journal Field Agronomist Ken Ferrie says there’s a lot of value in the concept of “start clean and stay clean” for full-season weed control. He shares some advice as farmers prepare for planting this year.
Two to three feet of snow is forecast to fall over parts of the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest this week. Some market watchers are beginning to question if 92 million acres of corn can actually get planted this year.
More ears at harvest is the key to higher yield. That requires starting with a picket-fence stand with photocopied plants, achieved by adjusting your planter as conditions change from field to field and within fields.
Just ahead of USDA’s Prospective Plantings report, the largest cotton growing state in the U.S. is seeing another year of drought, and with fields resembling the Dust Bowl, crop prospects are dwindling by the day.