Seedconsultants0214vweb

vol. 30

February 2014

The Seed Consultant

A B I - M O N T H LY N E W S L E T T E R N E W S A N D V I E W S F R O M T H E F I E L D

What Factors Contributed to High Yields in 2013?

Many growers have asked me about the reasons for high corn yields in the Cornbelt last year.

Besides cool and wet weather, there were other factors which contributed to record high yields.

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However, I would give at least 75 % marks to Mother Nature for being kind to us last year after punishing us with heat and drought in 2012. I guess she wanted to let us know who the real

boss is for determining the final outcome. We think the following are some of the other factors that were responsible for high yields last year:

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Weed resistance What to watch for in 2014

Foliar studies 2013 studies in various applications

NON-GMO Corn Tips on producing a successful crop

Seed treater buyback Potential for 400% return

What Factors Contributed to High Yields... continued from page 1 Hybrid Genetics

Hybrids played an important role in higher yields last year. Hybrids used to last five to seven years but now the average life of a hybrid is not more than two to three years and farmers are adopting newer hybrids faster. Seed companies and farmers are also doing a better job of matching hybrids with different soil types to improve yields.

Earlier Planting

I am a strong proponent of early planting and have been advocating this management practice for a long time.

There was more corn planted early in 2013 than most years. With ample water availability, the canopy was formed earlier to take full advantage of the growing season.

Residual Herbicides

There is a greater use of earlier weed control. More farmers are using residual herbicides and controlling weeds earlier rather than depending on post herbicides alone. Small weeds do affect the yield potential when the corn plants are making decisions about the number of kernels they can produce.

Kernel row number is strongly influenced by the hybrid genetics; however, plants can vary the row numbers by two to four rows depending upon their microenvironment. Ample moisture and lack of

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stress when the corn plants were making decisions about row numbers and their potential progeny may have increased the number of kernel rows per ear and allowed the genetic potential of the hybrids to be fully expressed.

Tile Drainage

Seedling Emergence

Cover crops are growing in popularity.

More farmers are planting cover crops than ever before. Cover crops have been contributing to improvement in the organic matter content, soil tilth, porosity and adding nitrogen and other nutrients to the soil and help improving yields.

Seedling emergence was fairly uniform in 2013 which was conducive to the optimum growth and higher yield potential. There were fewer seedlings that emerged later.

Sidedress

More farmers have been applying nitrogen as sidedress. Knowing when to apply nitrogen and using sidedress to apply most of the nitrogen when the plants need it has led to higher yields.

Plant Populations

Plant Populations have been steadily going up and last year’s conditions allowed good early stand establishment.

Our observations of many fields indicated more ears per acre may have been harvested last year than in previous years.

Tile drainage use has been steadily increasing which is helping improve corn yields. Corn likes sufficient moisture but it does not like wet feet.

Cover Crops

Leaf Disease Absence

Lack of Leaf diseases like Gray Leaf Spot which started early but did not spread because this pathogen requires hot and humid conditions to develop and spread.

If we keep on using sound management practices, we have a greater chance of replicating and exceeding the yields obtained in 2013!

Nutrient Abundance

There was an abundance of nutrients in the soil since many of the nutrients which were not fully utilized in 2012 due to low yields and most farmers did not cut back. The favorable weather allowed the full potential of hybrid genetics to be expressed.

By Dave Nanda, Ph.D. Director of Genetics and Technology Phone: 317-910-9876 nanda@seedconsultants.com

Weed Resistance: A Cause for Concern in 2014

By Bill Mullen SCI Director of Agronomic Services Phone:740-505-2022 bmullen@seedconsultants.com

When Roundy Ready® tolerant crops first emerged in the early 1990’s, agriculture embraced this technology as a means for cutting back on the amount of herbicides applied on crops. Weeds, if not controlled, reduced crop yields and added a higher cost per acre, affecting farmer’s income. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, and glyphosate resistant seed made the farmer’s and the retail chemical industry job easier; one herbicide to control weeds and less inventory.

In the last 15 years university weed scientists, the ag retail industry, and farmer’s themselves started to see a shift in weed control from glyphosate and ALS product applications, in crop and post crop, due to weed resistance of both of these chemical compounds.

No longer can we depend upon one herbicide to control weeds but need a system’s approach with pre and post applications having different modes of action to control the resistant weeds that exist in our crops today. From the last count, at least 10 different weed species exist with one or more forms of resistance from different herbicides including glyphosate.

A study done in 2011 showed close to 20 million acres of US farmland with resistant weeds costing growers almost 2 billion dollars in lost income. No longer can farmers depend upon one herbicide, 1 mode of action, to control weeds. What we have learned is that glyphosate can still be an effective part of your weed management program as long as multiple products with different modes of action are part of the program as well. This problem of weed resistance is not going away soon, we need to re-think and react with a systems approach to weed management.

Waterhemp, horseweed and Palmer amaranth, three of the most troublesome herbicide-resistant weeds, line up left to right.

Photo courtesy of Bryan Young, Ph.D.

The Worst of the Worst

Recent articles on Weed Resistance have noted the 5 worst weeds, with certain herbicide resistance.

Palmer Amaranth

Part of the pigweed family that germinates in warmer conditions and grows fast. This weed has multiple seed heads per plant producing close to a million seeds. Late weed presence in fields, need to consider hand weeding prior to seed production.

Tall Waterhemp

Another member of the pigweed family with a longer germination period and rapid growth. Has a narrow, waxy leaf that slows down herbicide uptake in post applications. Per plant can produce over 250,000 seeds, moving seed over long distances. In an area of the US, this weed has shown resistance to multiple herbicide compounds.

Marestail

Located throughout eastern and central parts of the US. Adapts well to no-till crop production and can be found in roadsides and border areas. Per plant can produce over 200,000 seeds, spreading by air over land with a high percentage of the seed germinating immediately.

Giant Ragweed

Annual weed with an average height of 5 feet, has been known to reach heights of 15 to 17 feet. This weed can cause corn yield reductions up to 37% and soybean yield reductions up to 50%. With no competition, this weed can produce over 10,000 seeds per plant.

Common Lambsquarter

Per plant, can produce 150,000 seeds which can germinate over years. Hard to kill in post applications due to the waxy leaf surface restricting herbicide uptake.

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2013 SCI Foliar Studies

In 2013 Seed Consultants’ research staff put together foliar studies for both corn and soybeans using a variety of products such as sugar, fungicides, growth regulators, herbicides, etc. What was the purpose of these studies? Achieving higher yields! Seed Consultants’ agronomists put these foliar experiments together based on current grower strategies for chasing high yields. Below is a short overview of three of the foliar tests included in Seed Consultants’ 2013 testing:

Application of Sugar to Corn

A foliar application of dextrose sugar was applied to corn at the V5 to V6 stages of growth. For this experiment sugar was applied at two different rates: 4 lb/ac and 7 lb/ac. An untreated control where no sugar was applied was used for comparison. The 4 lb/ac rate of sugar showed a 4.3 bu yield advantage over the untreated control. The 7 lb/ac rate of sugar showed a 6.6 bu advantage over the untreated control. At an estimated cost of $.55/lb, these initial yield results suggest that applying sugar to corn may be an economical method for driving yields. However, this is only one year of data and continued testing will be required.

Application of RyzUp Smartgrass to Corn

A foliar application of RyzUp Smartgrass was applied to corn at the V5 stage of growth. RyzUp Smartgrass is a growth regulator, the active ingredient in this product is gibberellic acid. RyzUp Smartgrass was applied at a rate of .5oz/acre. An untreated control was also used for this experiment. Where RyzUp Smartgrass was applied, the corn showed a 5.7 bu yield advantage over the untreated check.

At an estimated cost of $6/acre, these initial yield results suggest that applying RyzUp Smartgrass to corn may be an economical method for driving yields. However, this is only one year of data and continued testing will be required.

Foliar Application of Sugar On Corn EXP

Rate

Test Weight

Planting Population

% Moisture

Yield (bu/ac)

All Hybrids

Control

0

60.4

32000

23.6%

200.9

All Hybrids

Sugar

4 lb

60.6

32000

23.3%

205.2

All Hybrids

Sugar

7 lb

60.6

32000

23.5%

207.5

Foliar Application of RyzUp Smartgrass On Corn EXP

Test Weight

% Moisture

Yield (bu/ac)

All Hybrids

Untreated

61.2

23.8%

211.1

All Hybrids

RyzUp V5-.5 oz.

61.5

23.5%

216.8

Application of Foliar Fungicides to Corn

Combinations of foliar applications of fungicides were made to corn at different growth stages. Two different fungicide programs were used for this experiment. The first program was an application of Headline at R1 (silking). The second program was an application of Priaxor at V5 followed by an application of Headline at R1. An untreated control where no fungicides were applied was also used for comparison.

The single application of Headline at R1 showed a 5.6 bu yield advantage over the untreated check. The combination of Priaxor at V5 and Headline at R1 showed a 5.8 bu yield advantage over the untreated check, but only a .2 bu advantage over the single application of Headline at R1.

This initial data suggests that the best advantage to applying a fungicide on corn is at R1, however, this is only one year of data and will require future testing.

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By Matt Hutcheson, CCA, Product Manager Phone: 937-414-6784 • matt@seedconsultants.com

Foliar Application of Fungicides on Corn EXP

Growth Stage

% Moisture

Yield (bu/ac)

All Hybrids

Control

n/a

24.0%

184.2

All Hybrids

Headline

R1

24.3%

189.8

All Hybrids

Priaxor/Headline

24.6%

190.0

V5 Priaxor/

R1 Headline

Congratulations to SCI’s 5 State Winners in the 2013 NCGA Yield Contest JENNIFER MILLESS SCS 11HQ31™* brand 258.0638 Bu/Ac 2nd Place Ohio Irrigated

MATT MILLESS

SCS 11HR21™* brand 234.0547 Bu/Ac 3rd Place Ohio No-Till/Strip-Till Irrigated

CHARLES HINKEBEIN SCS 11HR38™* brand 297.6472 Bu/Ac 3rd Place Missouri No-Till/Strip-Till Irrigated

MICHAEL DAHLKE SCS 11HQ31™* brand 247.8345 Bu/Ac 1st Place Alabama No-Till/Strip-Till Non-Irrigated

PRO-FARM SERVICES SCS 1131AM-R™* brand 266.4787 Bu/Ac 2nd Place Maryland No-Till/Strip-Till Non-Irrigated

Since 2008, SCI is the only eastern Corn Belt based seed company with 4 National and 25 State Winners in the NCGA Yield Contest.

SEED CONSULTANTS, INC. Call Today! 800-708-2676

www.seedconsultants.com

®,™ trademarks of Seed Consultants, Inc. © 2013 Seed Consultants, Inc. *Supreme EX is a registered trademark of Pioneer Hi-Bred.

Supreme EX® brand seed is distributed by Seed Consultants.

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Successfully Producing NON-GMO Corn Premiums With the quickly declining commodity price for corn, we are receiving a lot of inquiries about NON-GMO hybrids. Some growers in our marketing area are even attempting to capture an additional premium for growing NON-GMO corn. With that in mind, here are a couple items to remember if you are considering raising NON-GMO corn for a premium.

Congratulations to SCI’s 2013

Ohio Soybean Yield Contest Winners

• Depending upon the contracting elevator, standard GMO contamination allowances are typically from 0% - 1%.

• Planting a NON-GMO hybrid does not necessarily mean the harvested shelled corn will be free from GMO’s.

• Test’s used by elevators to determine if GMO’s are present are not 100% accurate, but they are the determining factor as to whether your load is acceptable to them.

• With the immense amount of crop land planted to genetically modified corn, it is a tremendous undertaking for a farmer to grow 100% pure NON-GMO corn.

We have witnessed situations where a grower had a bin completely full of NON-GMO corn. One load within that bin failed to pass the NONGMO test at the elevator, yet the balance of the corn delivered from that bin passed GMO testing.

GMO contamination can come from a significant number of possible culprits.

• Contaminated planting equipment.

• Contaminated harvesting equipment.

• Contaminated bins, augers, grain carts and trucks.

• Adventitious GMO-pollen from neighboring fields. This problem is even more prevalent in years when we have dry weather and/or stress at pollination time.

• Contaminated seed.

• Mistakes made by the farmer during record keeping where GMO hybrids were not correctly identified at planting or harvest, thus contaminating NON-GMO corn.

The key is to take extra precautions throughout your production of NON-GMO corn to ensure you have minimized your chance of contamination. Even some of the most detailed oriented growers have found it hard to maintain NON-GMO purity with the large amount of GMO corn grown by their neighbors. SCI does not warrantee or guarantee 100% purity at the grain elevator of our NON-GMO hybrids.

SCI works diligently to provide our customers with the purest seed possible. We take every precaution in seed production we can to ensure the purest and highest quality of NON-GMO hybrids for our customers.

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John and Jeff Shawhan South Charleston, Ohio 1st Place – Non-Gmo/No-Till SC 3FG72™ • 72.53 Bu/Ac 2nd Place – Non-Gmo/No-Till SC 3FG72™ • 67.17 Bu/Ac 2nd Place Highest Percentage Protein Content SC 3FG72™ • 36.8% Protein

Don Jackson Camden, Ohio 2nd Place • Conventional Tillage SCS 9363RR™ • 75.25 Bu/Ac

SCI’s Grower Seed Treater BuyBack Program Potential for a 400% return on your investment!

Soybean inoculation research conducted at Michigan State University by Kurt Thelen showed that inoculation increased soybean yields on average by 1.3 bushels per acre in fields having a history of previous inoculation use. Similar results have been documented in longterm soybean inoculation trials conducted in Ohio (two bushels per acre), and Indiana (one bushel per acre). So, why doesn’t Seed Consultants offer commercially applied inoculants?

After inoculants are applied, their viability starts to diminish (depending on temperatures, humidity, etc.); of all the inoculants offered in the industry, six months is the longest shelf life offered. SCI starts delivering beans in November, December, January, etc.; if we were to have a wet spring, delayed planting; there would be no guarantee as to the necessary bacteria counts for yield response.

SCI’s Solution is the Grower Seed Treater BuyBack Program

• Grower purchases Seed Treater (through SCI or another retailer, must submit copy of invoice to SCI) • SCI treater options:

#1 GST

#2 CST

• 2.5 gallon container • mounts on seed tender • conveyance system applies to beans ($675)

• 10 Gallon • complete slurry treater • mounts on seed tender • conveyance system applies to beans ($1,325)

#3 CST

• 30 Gallon • complete slurry treater • stationary • conveyance system applies to beans ($1,950)

Based on yearly purchases of inoculants and/or biologicals from SCI; grower can earn up to 10% per year over a five-year period towards the seed treater purchase price. Accounts will be credited in November based on inoculate and biological purchased from SCI. GROWER CASE RETAIL PRICE AFTER 2/15/2014

Units Treated

PRICE WITH 10% DISCOUNT if ordered by 2/15/14

NO RETURN ON ALL INOCULANTS & BIOLOGICALS Graph-EX soybean inoculant Graph-EX SA soybean inoculant w/T22

6x50 uts.

300

Graphite Carrier

$787.50

$2.63

$708.75

$2.36

6x50 uts.

300

Graphite Carrier

$1,192.50

$3.98

$1,073.25

$3.58

ABM Sterile Peat

5x75 oz.pkt.

250

Dry Peat

$573.00

$2.29

$515.70

$2.06

ABM non-sterile Peat

8x75 oz.pkt.

320

Dry Peat

$320.85

$1.00

$288.77

$0.90

Vault NP

1x200 uts.

200

Liquid

$312.00

$1.56

$280.80

$1.40

Vault NP

4x50 uts.

200

Liquid

$352.50

$1.76

$317.25

$1.59

RhizoStick

20x6 uts.

120

Peat

$297.00

$2.48

$267.30

$2.23

Vault SP

10x20 uts.

200

Sterile-Peat

$573.00

$2.87

$515.70

$2.58

N-Dure (economy dry)

6x30 uts.

180

OMRI Peat

$226.50

$1.26

$203.85

$1.13

N-Dure (economy dry)

35x6 uts.

210

OMRI Peat

$304.50

$1.45

$274.05

$1.31

Optimize

4x2x50 uts.

400

Liquid + LCO

$1,380.00

$3.45

$1,242.00

$3.11

Cell-Tech

4x50 uts.

200

Liquid

$412.50

$2.06

$371.25

$1.86

Cell-Tech

4x30 uts.

120

Peat

$187.50

$1.56

$168.75

$1.41

NO RETURN ON ALL INOCULANTS & BIOLOGICALS 7

Seed Consultants Inc. P.O. Box 370 648 Miami Trace Rd. S.W. Washington Court House, OH 43160 USA

Editorial Board Stuart Yensel, director of sales and marketing 740-505-0889 - Mobile stuartyensel@seedconsultants.com Bill Mullen, CCA director of agronomic services 740-505-2022 - Mobile bmullen@seedconsultants.com Chris Jeffries, general manager 740-505-0073 - Mobile seedconsultants@seedconsultants.com Matt Hutcheson, CCA product manager 937-414-6784 - Mobile matt@seedconsultants.com Dave Nanda, Ph.D. director of genetics and technology 317-910-9876 - Mobile nanda@seedconsultants.com

Clearfield® is a registered trademark of BASF. Herculex® Insect Protection technology by Dow AgroSciences and Pioneer Hi-Bred. ® Herculex and the HX logo are registered trademarks of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Liberty®, LibertyLink® and the Water Droplet Design are trademarks of Bayer. YieldGard VT Triple®, Roundup Ready®, YieldGard Plus®, and YieldGard® are registered trademarks used under license from Monsanto Company. Cruiser® and Dynasty™ are registered trademarks of a Syngenta Company.

The Rapid Inbreeding® Advantage is a registered trademark of PSR Global Research. Agrisure™ is a trademark of a Syngenta Group Company. ® Supreme EX is a registered trademark of Pioneer. Supreme EX® brand seed is distributed by Seed Consultants, Inc. Roundup WeatherMAX®1 and Roundup PowerMAX™ are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. Optimum® and AcreMax® are registered trademarks of Pioneer Hi-Bred. Optimum® AcreMax® system available through the Supreme EX® brand. The information provided within this newsletter is not a substitute for advice concerning your specific situation. The information contained herein is general and educational in nature. Because each situation is different and each recommendation is specifically tailored for each customer, the information contained herein should never be used to determine your course of action. All products are trademarks of their manufacturers. © 2014, Seed Consultants, Inc.

Between the Rows Our agronomy staff has completed 19 Winter Agronomy Meetings in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio. Even with the adverse weather, attendance has been outstanding. Bill, Dave, Matt, and Mike covered issues from herbicide resistance to a summary of SCI’s testing. In addition to corn and soybean yield testing, studies on corn (RyzUp Smartgrass, Fungicide, and Sugar) and on beans (Cobra, Foliar Fertilizer, Fungicide, and Sugar) were presented.

Recently, the SCI research staff, PROaccess® Genetics’ product development staff,

Updates from Chris Jeffries, general manager Daniel Call (SCI Operations Manager), and myself participated in product advancement meetings. After evaluating SCI and PROaccess® research data, we are advancing the strongest genetic class in our history—7 new hybrids (95 to 113 CRM); 5 new Liberty Link® bean varieties (2.9 to 3.9 RM); five new RR1 bean varieties (2.9 to 3.9 RM); and one new R2 (4.3 RM). We believe many of these new releases will be game changers with significant yield advantages. Our 2014 production plan will be heavy in these new lines, exhibiting our confidence in them.

Don’t Miss Our Weekly Email Newsletter!

The SCI free e-newsletter comes via e-mail every Monday. The newsletter is packed full of current agronomic topics. Subscribe by sending your e-mail address to matt@seedconsultants.com or by signing up on our website at www.seedconsultants.com.

The SCI Direct Sales model (everyone receives seed at dealer cost) continues to work and allow SCI to grow. Our marketing programs, including Bulk Bin Program, Bulk BuyBack and now, Treater BuyBack (see page 7), are all producer focused.

SCI continues to offer a unique perspective to its customers and is still on a mission to be “Simply, the Best Value in the Seed Industry™.”

Thank you for allowing Seed Consultants, Inc. to be your seed supplier.

Chris