Harvested wheat acreage in the U.S. will be down this year, again.  That “should” mean pretty good prices for wheat.  In other words, there is a lot of incentive for you to produce as many bushels as you can.  What will you do yet this year to increase your yield?  Here are 4 things many farmers are looking at right now that could help.

PLANT GROWTH HORMONES

Dad always used to call these types of products “foo-foo dust.”  Thirty-five years ago, that’s probably all this category of products was.  Today, the huge global companies including Monsanto, Bayer, BASF, Syngenta and others have heavily invested into the biological and plant growth hormone area.  The way I look at it is if all these big companies will invest billions of dollars into this segment, there’s probably something there.

The other way I look at it is as Darren and I have visited some top farmers around the world, we find most of them using biological and/or plant growth hormone products.  We have learned lessons from them and applied them on our farm, where we have now had success, too.  Look, I’m not suggesting you go crazy and spend $100 an acre with multiple applications of these types of products today, but I would encourage you to try some of these things on your farm because there is yield to be gained and profit to be had.

One product you may consider late in the season for wheat is called HappyGro.  It is contains plant growth hormones, and it’s something we have used with success on our farm.  Talk to your agronomist about this or other choices in this category.

FERTILIZER 

As long as you are careful, this is another area that can really help you.  Nutrients like boron and nitrogen often positively impact wheat late in the season, but make sure you work with a good agronomist so you don’t over-do it.

The number one question I get about fertilizer this late in the season deals with protein in wheat.  Studies have proven that if you have more nitrogen availability late in the season, you will have higher protein levels in wheat.  In order to get that nitrogen into the plant, you can certainly streambar N on; use a nitrogen stabilizer or controlled-release nitrogen earlier in the season; or build up your organic matter levels over time so your soil naturally releases more N late in the season.  The most immediate impact on protein, though, is foliar feeding liquid nitrogen over the top of wheat around flowering. However, it is also the most risky because you want to minimize leaf burn; and you also need rain soon after to get all the nitrogen that falls on the ground into the plant. Two gallons of N-Response per acre is our standard recommendation.  Some farmers are using liquid urea instead because it burns less than 28%.  Since this late nitrogen is often sprayed with a fungicide plus 10 gallons of water, you are diluting the concentration of the nitrogen enough that leaf burn is reduced.

FUNGICIDE

The most important thing you need to know about applying fungicide at heading is which products NOT to use.  Strobilurin fungicides should never be applied at any wheat growth stage past flag leaf, or the odds of DON levels in wheat go up dramatically.  The products we encourage you to use at heading are Prosaro, Caramba and Orius (generic Folicur).  They are all in the triazole family of fungicides.

Orius is excellent on rust, including stripe rust, but is only marginal on head scab (fusarium head blight).  The great thing about Orius is while it used to cost $15 an acre for Folicur (the name brand version), Orius now runs $2 an acre for the full 4 oz. use rate.  If you are considering skipping the fungicide at heading, I would suggest you at least look at Orius, as $2 an acre is a small investment.

Prosaro from Bayer is a combination of Proline and Folicur.  Prosaro is similar in control of rust to Orius, but is far superior on head scab.  The use rate is 6.5 oz. to 8.2 oz., depending on your need for residual and the potential severity of the problem.  Same thing with Caramba and its rate range of 13.5 oz. to 17 oz.  Caramba from BASF is a straight product that is comparable to Prosaro.  Both products will cost $13 to $18 per acre, but rebates and/or financing programs from each company could lower your net costs slightly.

Is it worth it to spray for disease?  The problem with fungicide applications is they must be applied before disease sets in.  You can’t scout, identify the problem, and then spray while still maximizing yield.  That’s why it is always more hit and miss with fungicides compared to insecticide and herbicide treatments.  However, the ratio of the cost of treatment to the wheat price is pretty good right now, making your odds better than normal to get a good ROI.  Keep in mind, too, that diseases need three things before they can ravage your crops: a host, a favorable environment and the presence of the disease.  If you are planting relatively susceptible varieties and conditions turn wetter and/or more humid, you’ve got a far greater risk and far greater chance for a good ROI with a fungicide than if you are planting relatively tolerant varieties in a drought year.

Timing is key.  If you decide to treat for scab, rust and other diseases at heading, our recommendation is to spray when you are at 10% to 15% flowering.  I know this is a small window, but it’s traditionally when we’ve seen the most yield response.

INSECTICIDE

Insecticide applications in wheat are rapidly growing for three main reasons: the value of the crop (between yield and price) is worth much more than normal; the cost of insecticides has dropped to record low levels (most cost $2 an acre for the full rate); and there seem to be more bugs present each year.

If you have very low levels of harmful insects, we discourage spraying an insecticide.  Scout your fields prior to spraying, and if you are finding insects like aphids, grasshoppers or certain flies that could cause a problem at any point during the season, spray.  The pyrethroids, such as Silencer and Declare, are highly effective on most wheat insects and can be mixed with almost any fungicide or herbicide product you use.  More care must be used when applying Lorsban, as that product can add more leaf burn than the pyrethroids.  However, Lorsban is definitely better on mites than Silencer and Declare, if mites are present.

While it may be a tough choice to spray or not spray in your area, there are fortunately some very inexpensive alternatives that may make your decision easier.  Again, the full rate of Orius is just $2 an acre, and an additional $2 worth of Silencer or Declare will wipe out most bugs.  If you want better scab control, switch from Orius to Caramba or Prosaro.  HappyGro is around $4 an acre or less, and fertilizer is cheap, right?  Just kidding.  Regardless of cost, the important thing is to focus on ROI.  I don’t care if I invest $2 or $10, I just want that money to pay me back on average at a good rate.

Yes, there is a silver bullet.  You’ve been looking for it all along, and it’s right here.  The silver bullet for getting the biggest yield gain in your soybeans has been right under your nose the whole time.  It’s weed control!  Hold on.  Don’t quit reading just yet.  Universities and private research firms have documented this for decades, and now with Roundup-resistant weeds, it’s happening all over again.  If your weed control isn’t GREAT, your yields won’t be either.  Here are some things to look at on your farm that could improve your weed control in soybeans.

1. Three Pre Strategy – Brian and I have worked hard to promote the use of pre-emerge herbicides for years.  In soybeans, we believe the only way to get GREAT weed control is to use a combination of herbicides totaling three different sites of action.  For example, use Prowl plus Authority MTZ (Authority + metribuzin).   For farmers who do this, weed control is rarely a problem post-emerge.
2. Post-Emerge Residuals – Since weeds like pigweeds and lambsquarters are tough to kill post-emerge, yet they continue to germinate and grow new flushes all through the summer, you may consider adding more residual to your program.  Warrant, Outlook and Dual can all be sprayed post-emerge.  While they have no burndown effect on emerged weeds, they will stop future weeds from germinating for another few weeks, extending your residual control, hopefully until your crop has time to fully reach crop canopy.
3. Scouting and Weed ID – The days of just loading up with Roundup and spraying every field are really over for most soybean farmers.  Even Liberty could use some help on a few weeds, although it’s still awfully good.  The real key to GREAT weed control and GREAT yields is scouting your fields regularly (at least once, if not twice per week) and properly identifying the weeds in your field.  The scouting is up to you, but we have a weed ID tool you can download for your smartphone or iPad called the Ag PhD Field Guide.  There are pictures for a large number of weeds and herbicide recommendations, as well.
4. Picking the Right Tankmix Partner(s) – To get perfect weed control, it will take one or two tankmix partners with Roundup to get the job done.  The question is which products to use.  Here’s a quick list of weeds and the best helpers to add.
   • Flexstar (or Cobra where Flexstar is not labeled) – Pigweed (Waterhemp, Palmer, etc.), Kochia
   • Harass – Lambsquarters
   • FirstRate – Giant/Common Ragweed, Morningglory
   • Pursuit – Wild Buckwheat, Black Nightshade
   • Cadet or Resource – Velvetleaf
   • Select Max – Volunteer Corn, Annual Grasses

Fungicides drive me crazy because I have to spray them before I even see a problem, and there’s no guarantee they are going to pay.  And “plant health”?  What’s plant health?

All you should care about is, “Does fungicide give me a good return on investment?”  Here are the 7 most likely situations where fungicide should pay off well for you on your farm.  Let me preface that by saying that if you can double your money or at least get a 50% ROI, that’s really good.  In yield, though, that may only mean a 2 bushel yield gain in soybeans or a 5 bushel gain in corn.  That won’t even show up on your yield map unless you look really closely.  I’m just trying to say that while the yield gain may not be high, that’s not the important thing.  Keep your focus on net dollars returned to your operation.  With that, here’s my list of when fungicides are most likely to pay.

1. BUGS.  If you have bugs, you’ll get a greater ROI.  Every time an insect (like soybean aphids, corn borers, bean leaf beetles, corn leaf aphids, grasshoppers, cutworms, rootworms, etc.) feeds on your plant, it opens it up for diseases to get in.  It’s the same thing when damage occurs from hail, wind, nematodes, or equipment.  Think about it like you would for human beings.  If you get a few cuts on your arm, what’s the first thing you do?  You sterilize the wound (at least I hope you do), so infection doesn’t get in.  The way you sterilize all those wounds in your soybean crop, in effect, is by spraying a fungicide.
2. SUSCEPTIBLE VARIETIES.  If you have susceptible varieties, fungicide is more likely to pay.  Everyone always wants the racehorse hybrids or varieties.  That’s fine, but what you gain in yield potential, you often give up in defensive traits.  Talk to your seed provider about this, but keep in mind that when new seed lines come on the market each year, we don’t have the benefit of experience like we used to.  If a corn or soybean that you really like is only a year or two old, how much does your local seed dealer or even the seed company really know about it?  My point is simply to be a little on the conservative side and assume company disease tolerance ratings are usually too favorable.
3. WET WEATHER.  Fungicides are more likely to pay when the temperature is moderate and the weather is damp.  You don’t need lots of rain, but clouds, mist, and wet soils typically allow diseases to thrive.  Sunlight and heat are the enemies of most diseases.  In a year like last year, when drought was common in many areas, diseases were not nearly as big an issue as normal.
4. DISEASE HISTORY.  If you have a history of disease, you are more likely to have a problem this year.  Many of the diseases that ravage corn and soybean fields stay in the ground for years.  The longer you rotate away from a particular crop, the less likely that same old disease will show up again in the same field.  If you are raising the same crop year after year, your chance for disease issues goes up.
5. NARROW ROWS.  For years farmers have discussed planting wider rows to allow more air to move through, reducing disease pressure.  The problem is wider rows could lead to lower yields.  If you don’t want to give up your narrow rows, consider using a fungicide.
6. WEEDS.  I’ve never seen any studies on this, so this is just based on my experience as an agronomist.  When a crop is struggling hard to compete against weeds, it is under stress; and we all know that plants under stress are more likely to get hit by disease than plants that have no stress.  If you had issues keeping your field weed-free this year, I personally believe fungicide is more likely to pay for you.
7. HIGH YIELD.  If you are hoping to gain 5% in yield with fungicide use, it only makes sense that 5% on a high yield makes you more money than 5% on a low yield.  The more appropriate way to look at this, in my opinion, is if you have removed the yield-limiting factors to get you up to a high yield, odds are greater that the next limiting factor could be a disease.

Real quickly, here’s what I would suggest you at least try on your farm this year:

• CORN – Spray at V6-V7 and again at full tassel, especially if you have at least 3 or 4 of the above conditions.
• SOYBEANS – Spray at R2 (full flower) to R3 (first pod).

Compared to corn fungicide use, we have seen the soybean applications pay off more consistently in our area (Dakotas/Minnesota).  The yield gains have been modest, but the ROI has been good.  In areas where gray leaf spot is present (Iowa, southern MN, etc.), the corn treatments have been big yield-gainers.

Finally, when it comes to selecting the right fungicide, you have a lot of choices, so it’s probably best to talk to your agronomist.  We are switching some of our straight Headline work to Priaxor (pre-mix of Headline & Xemium) to get more broad-spectrum control and help reduce potential resistance issues.  Domark is a good one for white mold.  Evito is a good strobilurin.  Stratego YLD and Quilt Xcel each have 2 modes of action.  More important than the product you use is often the timing of when you spray and the spray coverage.  Fungicides move poorly in the plant, and fungicides can’t recover yield you’ve already lost if you spray too late, so do your best to properly manage your fungicide treatments this year.

Why does corn get all the love?  Wherever I travel and talk to farmers, they always have a favorite crop to raise.  What’s yours?  For me, I want to give every crop I produce my full attention because I’ve only got 20 years left to make those decisions before I leave them to the next generation.  I’ve got 20 more shots to get it right.

However, with alfalfa, you get multiple crops per year, allowing you to learn from mistakes and get it right three or four weeks later.  There are so many things you may try to improve your tonnage and/or quality of your alfalfa.  Here’s my Top 11 list for this year.

1. Sure-K and Pro-Germinator liquid fertilizer products after each cutting.  For each ton of alfalfa, it’s estimated that 50 pounds of K2O potassium and 10 to 15 pounds of phosphate has been removed from the soil.  As you’re taking nutrients away, you can easily put nutrients back between cuttings with these highly available liquid products.  Use rate will likely be 1 to 3 gallons per acre per application of each product, depending on soil fertility levels.
2. TJ Micromix Alfalfa at 1 quart per acre after each cutting as new growth begins.  While many operations are doing a decent job on N, P, and K, we find more fields lacking in one or more micronutrients than any other essential elements.  Micros are key to high production and to putting the most nutrition into the hay.
3. Headline fungicide at 6 oz. after each cutting at 6 to 8 inches of re-growth.  Spraying for disease control is much different than spraying for insects or weeds.  With disease, you must spray BEFORE there is a problem.  Scheduling such applications for between cuttings lends itself perfectly for the best use of a fungicide like Headline.  Here’s the key: Protecting the lower leaves from disease has led to more tonnage and improved feed value for growers across the country.  You can make up to 3 applications of Headline per season, which is great.  The only caution is that there’s a 14-day pre-harvest interval, so time your applications accordingly.
4. Silencer at 3.2 oz. when insects are present.  Don’t wait for the high end of thresholds.  Spray early.  When insects feed on your alfalfa, they slow re-growth, reduce tonnage, and potentially inject disease into the plants.  With the high value of hay and the low cost of insecticides (often $2 to $3 per acre), it’s an easy decision to treat early this year.
5. Raptor at 4 oz. to stop most annual weeds.  The old adage in grass pastures is that a pound of weed growth takes away a pound or more of grass growth.  If the same held true in alfalfa that would be bad enough, but we’re talking about an important feed source where weeds could impact the smell and taste of milk.  We’re also concerned about the appearance of your hay if you’re selling it on auction.  Weeds look bad in your field and may look even worse in your hay bales to a potential buyer.  Kill the weeds.  Get more tonnage.  Get more for your hay.
6. Bio-Forge.  Classified as an anti-oxidant, Bio-Forge has been shown to increase plant performance in a number of areas including root growth, drought tolerance, and more.  Apply ½ pint of Bio-Forge per acre 2 to 4 times per season.
7. Plant tissue test to assess nutrient needs. Sample prior to harvest when the plants show re-growth shoots.  I always say a plant tissue test is the report card for the farmer.  How are your grades this year?
8. Buy a sweep net.  This should probably be #1.  If you don’t have a sweep net and you raise ANY CROPS, you need to get a sweep net today.  They’re cheap.  They’re fun.  Used properly, they’re a great indicator of pest levels.  It’s a great learning tool, as well.  Once you see about 20 different bugs in the net from one of your fields, you get better at insect identification right away.
9. Cut on an actual schedule.  Try cutting by a schedule on the calendar rather than just when you think you should.  Let’s face it.  Most people think they can time it right and then end up being 3 to 10 days too late.  Obviously, you have to tweak this a little bit based on weather, but cutting alfalfa late costs a lot of money in both lost feed quality and delaying the next cutting.
10. Soil Test.  Don’t be scared to test your soils.  Since alfalfa is not an annual crop, it often gets neglected not only in the fertilizer department, but also in the soil testing department.  Check your soils, and be honest.  Almost everyone could do a better job in this area.  Once you get your soil tests back, LOOK AT pH FIRST!  If your soil has a pH of less than 6.3, you are giving up tonnage.  If your soil pH is less than 5.5, you are giving up an incredible amount of tonnage!  This problem can be addressed by adding lime.
11. Sulfur.  If you’re seeing yellow, stunted alfalfa, check for sulfur deficiency.  At pre-bud, take a tissue sample of the top 6 inches of the plant for a good indication.  Sulfur can be applied between cuttings and will take effect right away on the next cutting.

I know this article may be a little shocking when you add up what I suggest you invest in your alfalfa crop.  Like we always say, at least run some strip trials or split fields to prove it to yourself.  Not everything you can do to help your crop this year will help every year, but the important thing to focus on is how does any crop investment do over time?  If for 2 years it pays big and for 2 years it hardly pays, does the average return make it worth your while?  Wall Street investors today are hoping to get 5% to 10% APR returns.  There are often many things you can do on the farm that provide 50% to 300% APR returns, and those are the things you have to keep looking for, experimenting with, and implementing once you see they pay.

On Thursday, July 25 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. we are hosting a free Ag PhD Summer Field Day on our farm near Baltic, SD, and we invite you to join us!

Even if you have attended our field day in the past, you will want to join us this year.  We have a number of new technologies you will get the chance to see, several new guest speakers, new demonstrations, and a couple of surprise guests I think you’ll enjoy.  As always, Darren and I will give you our take on our plots and many of the new traits and herbicides that you’ll see on our farm.  We will also have all the equipment we farm with on display this year.

One new section of our field day will feature a Brian vs. Darren showcase.  Which brother can produce higher yielding crops in the same soil side-by-side?  We’ll go through what I’m doing vs. what Darren is doing, as well as some of the things we can both agree on.  It should be pretty fun.

Kids are welcome, as we will once again have inflatables, games, and other entertainment for children.  We will also have many activities and speakers we feel farm wives will enjoy.  Our farm is just 10 miles outside of Sioux Falls, the largest city in the Dakotas, so there are plenty of things to do there that the rest of the family will enjoy, too.

If you are concerned about the weather on July 25, we are taking all possible measures so we are prepared whether it is hot or cold, wet or dry.  We will have several air conditioned tents and one new air conditioned building.  All our educational sessions will be under roof or tent.  We will again have golf carts or 4-wheelers available for those who need that service, and trams will be running between our parking lot and main field day area all day.

Lunch, supper, snacks, and drinks will be served throughout the day.  Discount lodging is available at several hotels; just check here for options or give us a call at 605-529-5413 for more details.

We believe our Ag PhD Field Day will again be the largest private farm field day in the Midwest in 2013; but more importantly, we hope it will be the most educational and entertaining for you.  Last year, we had farmers from 24 different U.S. states and 2 Canadian provinces, so if nothing else, if you just talk to farmers all day you ought to get a pretty good idea what the crop is like everywhere else, and you’ll learn more about what other successful farmers are doing in their operations to get ahead.

Check www.agphd.com to learn more about this year’s field day.  It is a day you won’t want to miss!

Whether it’s yield or protein content or both that you’re after, fertility is a key to top production in wheat.  Here’s where to start:

PRE-PLANT

A complete soil test will let you know what you have to begin with.  We send our samples to Midwest Labs in Omaha and the cost is roughly $25-$30/each for the S3C test.  Then use the free Ag PhD Fertilizer Removal app for your smartphone or iPad. 

Simply type in your yield goal, and the app will show you how many nutrients the crop will remove from the soil with the grain and for the stover.  Make sure you supply your crop with adequate fertility at some point throughout the season.  In most cases, split-applying the fertilizer will be a benefit to you, as you’ll see below. With early season nitrogen applications, using a nitrogen stabilizer like NutriSphere-N has helped keep the nitrogen in the ammonium form longer, leading to less leaching and better plant uptake.

EARLY-SEASON

You must look at your fertility program for wheat as a total program.  If you put quite a bit of the fertility out pre-plant, then your needs will be much less at the later stages.  However, if you didn’t put much down, here’s your chance to make up for it.  It’s critical for wheat plants to get adequate fertility in the first 6 weeks of growth.  Just look at the research that IPNI (the International Plant Nutrition Institute) and others have done on phosphorus.

Phosphorus is critical to early-season root development and tillering.  A deficiency of phosphorus in the first 6 weeks can lead to season-long underperformance.

In winter wheat, trials comparing fall-applied nitrogen to spring applications have shown better performance with spring applications.  Nitrogen stabilizers have shown positive responses in both situations.  Any liquid nitrogen applications in an actively growing wheat crop should be done with a steam bar to minimize potential leaf burn issues.

Micronutrients are also important throughout the life of a wheat plant.  If you didn’t put a good blend of micros down at planting time, they can be used foliar or with stream-barred applications.

IN-SEASON

Late-season nitrogen applications have been a great way to boost protein levels in wheat.  The key is to use highly available nitrogen and to avoid leaf burn.  Stream bar applications can be made fairly late in the season.  Some will do it right up to heading.

I know we’ve talked a lot about tiling over the last few years, but we continue to talk about it because it helps farmers make so much extra money while improving the soil, filtering the water, reducing flooding, and allowing earlier planting.

The other reason why I wanted to talk to you about this today is because the day after planting gets done is usually the best day to start tiling.  Here are five reasons why in-crop tiling is better than waiting until this fall:

1. You will get lots more tile in the ground each day right now.  Days are longer.  Temps are warmer.  Topsoil is, hopefully, relatively dry.  Tiling is fun in late spring and summer, but not so fun when it is 20 degrees out in the late fall.
2. You know exactly where you need tile right now.  This was the first thing my dad told me about tiling in the spring.  “You had issues with excess moisture in certain spots when you were planting,” he said, “so you know exactly where tile is most needed.”
3. Tile prices are typically less expensive now compared to fall.
4. The sooner you get tile in, the sooner you start reaping the benefits.  Tiling increases yield 15% to 25% on average.  Even tiling right after planting can really help this year’s crop.  Most people worry about driving over a little crop, but when it’s small you don’t hurt much; and the benefits of good drainage almost always outweigh the tiny amount of crop you ruin.  We have done most of our tiling in-crop over the last 6 years.  It hasn’t shown up negatively on the yield monitor yet.
5. Fall is already too busy, so why not get this $500 per hour job done now?  Doing tiling yourself saves hundreds of dollars per hour; and if you get the job done now, you don’t have to worry about hoping to get it done in the fall.  Farmers often ask me how they can get their kids involved in their operation because they are concerned there isn’t enough money to go around.  My advice is have the kids start working on some of the $100+ per hour jobs like tiling, field scouting, spraying, spreading fertilizer, etc.

Which seed treatments are worth the investment?
How and when should you apply them? 

FUNGICIDE

Whether you use Syngenta, Bayer, Monsanto, Valent, BASF, or some other company’s seed treatment fungicides, we expect them all to perform adequately.  Are there some slight differences?  Sure.  Here’s the problem.  No one can tell you if seed/seedling diseases will be a big problem from one year to the next.  They certainly can’t guarantee which particular disease will be the issue.  One year, you will gain 5 bushels using a fungicide.  The next year, it’s only a half bushel.  The important thing is to look at the average, which is usually pretty good on most farms.

INSECTICIDE

All the major seed treatments use an insecticide from the neonicotinoid family: Poncho, Gaucho, Cruiser.  They all work pretty well on early season bugs, such as bean leaf beetles.  They’re also all pretty good on seed-attacking insects.  The difference between the products is what the re-spray programs are.  Some companies offer up to two free re-sprays if necessary for almost any insect other than spider mites.  Others offer no re-spray or only one.  While bugs aren’t always a problem, the added investment in an insecticide isn’t much, and the gains are often very good.

BIOLOGICAL

Let’s face it.  A bunch of biological products in the past were nothing more than snake oil.  Times have changed.  Oh, there are still some snake oils out there.  However, the major chemical manufacturers have invested tens of millions of dollars in biological companies because they see it as a promising industry going forward with a number of good and proven products today.  We’ll use two or more of these products again this year and will experiment with a couple more.  Inoculants have gotten better and better.  Use a good quality inoculant like ROOTastic.  QuickRoots is a combination of beneficial bacteria and fungi that we use in soybeans and other crops.  We also get many questions about Bio-Forge every year.  If you’re not set up for in-furrow application, another good way to use Bio-Forge is the ST (seed treatment) version.  We expect to gain 3 bushels or more by adding biologicals to our soybean seed.

QUESTIONS

When’s the best time to apply seed treatments?  While the fungicide and insecticide products can be applied early with no loss of their power, the same cannot be said of inoculant.  You’ll get the most bang for your buck applying inoculants like ROOTastic just before planting regardless of labels that will tell you 30 or even 45 days pre-plant is fine.

Will seed get too sticky if I use fungicide, insecticide, inoculant, and a biological product?  Depending on weather conditions, chances are seed could get pretty sticky when using multiple seed treatments.  Seed facilities can add drying agents to the seed treatment to help reduce the problem.  One thing we do on our farm is apply the Inovate or Acceleron treatment as a liquid and put the biological like ROOTastic on as a dry in the planter box.  If you use liquid treatments, the best practice is to give them time to dry and run them through a bristle auger to help break up any clumps.

What kind of Return on Investment do you expect from seed treatments?  If soybeans were $12 per bushel and your total seed  treatment investment was $15 per acre, it would only take a gain of 1.25 bushels per acre to be in the black.  We would expect to average an increase of at least 3 to 5 bushels per acre doing this on our farm, which would equate to a 140% to 300% Net ROI.  Check out www.rootastic.com for more calculations of ROI.

How much stuff can you put in the furrow?  More importantly, what can you put in the furrow that will give you a positive Return on Investment (ROI) when you’re planting corn?  Finally, is there more of an advantage putting some things in-furrow rather than spraying them early post-emerge?

If you aren’t set up to apply liquids in-furrow, you may want to get set up to do it.  I realize it’s probably a little late to do it now, but how many new crop inputs have you had to say no to this year that you thought might have had some promise?  Here are the categories I’d recommend considering now, but there may be even more things available in the near future.

FERTILIZER

If you have the capability of applying liquid in-furrow, chances are you want to do some pop-up fertilizer.  The key here is to keep the salt level of the fertilizer low.  For example, in 30-inch row corn, you should put no more than 5 pounds of salt on per acre.  That equates to just 3 gallons of 10-34-0.   For this reason, the market is shifting to more low-salt products like Pro-Germinator and Sure-K.  Don’t forget about micronutrients at planting time, as well.  A 2 x 2 placement is also great, but you can certainly put things like Micro 500 and TJ Micromix right in the furrow.  I prefer the micros in-furrow for a slightly more consistent yield impact and because fertilizer plus Banvel or Status early-post can be pretty hot on the corn.

INSECTICIDE

In recent years, there have been a lot of corn acres.  One of the problems with a high amount of corn acres is an increase in corn rootworm numbers.  Add to that the growing problem of corn rootworms resistant to the single trait Bts, and it’s easy to see you probably need to be applying some corn rootworm insecticide at planting time.  Capture LFR is the best choice to apply as a liquid in-furrow; and if you need help buying a system for your planter, they have programs to help you do just that.  Capture LFR mixes fairly well with many liquid fertilizers, but we’d recommend doing a jar test first to be sure it mixes with your specific blend.  Adding water to the tank first often helps improve mixing characteristics.

BIOLOGICAL OR PLANT GROWTH HORMONES

Many of the biological products on the market today need to be applied where they can quickly attach to the root system.  In-furrow may be your best chance for that to happen.  Last year, we tried a product called Challenge 2050, and we’re going to use it in-furrow on quite a few acres this year.  Check with your agronomist to make sure these products are compatible with the other things you’re putting in-furrow.  For example, Challenge 2050 should not be used with micronutrients in the furrow.  You may also consider Bio-Forge, MegaGro, or a host of other options.

FUNGICIDE

Last year, we tried Headline in-furrow and saw a 6.5 bushel response.  If it was just one strip in the field, it would be impressive enough; but we did replicated trials to take out the variability.  This is something we’re going to try on more acres this year.  The caution here is that Headline doesn’t mix well with many fertilizers, so you must jar test first.  Also, we had better luck putting water in the tank first before adding the fertilizer and the Headline.  The old Headline formulation, not the new SC version, must be used unless you are mixing with water only.

We commonly see a strong, positive ROI from all these categories on our farm and many others.  Try something new on your farm this year.  In many cases, it could be added right in with what you’re already doing; so, it doesn’t take a whole lot of extra work.  Just be careful to ask someone about tankmix compatibility before you mix up a big batch.  Always do a jar test.

On Thursday, July 25 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., we are hosting a free Ag PhD Summer Field Day on our farm near Baltic, SD, and we invite you to join us!

Even if you have attended our field day in the past, you will want to join us this year.  We have a number of new technologies you will get the chance to see, several new guest speakers, new demonstrations, and a couple of surprise guests I think you’ll enjoy.  As always, Darren and I will give you our take on our plots and many of the new traits and herbicides that you’ll see on our farm.  We will also have all the equipment we farm with on display this year.

One new section of our field day will feature a Brian vs. Darren showcase.  Which brother can produce higher yielding crops in the same soil side-by-side?  We’ll go through what I’m doing vs. what Darren is doing, as well as some of the things we can both agree on.  It should be pretty fun.

Kids are welcome, as we will once again have inflatables, games, and other entertainment for children.  If your wife isn’t too interested in spending the entire day on our farm, we will for the first time this year have a couple of speakers we believe farm wives will really enjoy.  Of course, the largest city in the Dakotas, Sioux Falls, is just 10 minutes from our farm, so that’s always an option, too, although probably a more expensive option than just spending the day on our farm.

If you are concerned about the weather that day, we are taking all possible measures so we are prepared whether it is hot or cold, wet or dry.  We will have several air conditioned tents and one new air conditioned building.  All our educational sessions will be under roof or tent.  We will again have golf carts or 4-wheelers available for those who need that service, and trams will be running between our parking lot and main field day area all day.

Lunch, supper, snacks, and drinks will be served throughout the day.  Discount lodging is available at several hotels.  Just check www.agphd.com for options, or give us a call at 605-529-5413 for more details.

We believe our Ag PhD Field Day will again be the largest private farm field day in the Midwest in 2013; but more importantly, we hope it will be the most educational and entertaining for you.  Last year, we had farmers from 24 different U.S. states and 2 Canadian provinces; so, if nothing else, if you just talk to farmers all day, you ought to get a pretty good idea what the crop is like everywhere else, and you’ll learn more about what other successful farmers are doing in their operations to get ahead.

Check www.agphd.com if you would like to learn more about this year’s field day.  It is a day you won’t want to miss!