Contrary to some studies, dry matter losses after blacklayer are not overwhelming. Still, growers should carefully manage their corn harvest timing to minimize loss altogether.

Grain corn ear molds can lead to yield loss at harvest. If mycotoxins are present, grain may be toxic to animals and ultimately unusable. It’s important to understand environmental conditions that lead to diseases and how those diseases affect grain.

Factors that stress corn throughout the growing season can lead to stalk rots, which can lead to yield loss due to premature plant death or lodging. Understanding stalk rots risk factors and management practices are critical.

As corn’s fifth micronutrient, boron is often an afterthought. Boron’s impact is most felt when it’s not available. Deficiencies or a complete absence of boron can cause stalks to become barren, ears to twist and yield to suffer. Monitor your crop for these symptoms and take action if a deficiency is determined to be present.

It is a common belief that high heat and humidity are ideal for corn growth. In reality, high temperatures, especially high nighttime temperatures, can reduce corn yield potential by increasing respiration.

Utilizing winter cover crops for hay and corn production allows you to realize soil conservation benefits while increasing dry matter production per acre. Proper cover crop management in the spring can ensure the subsequent corn crop is successful, as well.

Stand establishment depends not only on the success or failure of germination but also on early season stresses. If you notice early stand problems, carefully examine damaged seedlings to discover clues to the likely causes.

Many farmers feel it is a greater agronomic benefit to apply nitrogen (N) in the spring rather than in the fall, because it coincides with the nitrogen needs of the corn crop. With this thought, a key question of many growers is, “Is a spring nitrogen stabilizer application still needed?”

Maximizing yield starts with correct planting, and correct planting starts with adjusting the planter to the proper settings. Carefully check planting equipment before you hit the field this spring.

Early season seedling damage can significantly reduce yield. Scout cornfields regularly and diagnose problems before economic losses occur.

Sunflower maturity must be determined to accurately time desiccation and harvest. Applying a desiccant to sunflowers at physiological maturity can help flowers dry down faster, enabling earlier harvest. Desiccating also can help avoid rot issues and reduce the time the crop is vulnerable to birds.

An important part of corn silage production is proper and timely harvest management. Follow these guidelines when harvesting Mycogen^® brand Silage-Specific™ hybrids to be rewarded with corn silage that can help add profit to the bottom line.

Wet and/or humid conditions can lead to black, sooty molds in cornfields at harvest. Sooty molds are species of secondary saprophytic fungi — microorganisms that feed on dead plant material. The presence of these molds can create excessive amounts of black dust when harvesting affected cornfields.

Early frost at harvest can lead to high or uneven moisture, low test weights and increased foreign material. Careful planning and management of drying and storage can help maintain yield.

Planting corn at the proper depth helps to ensure proper germination and development, allows for optimum seed-to-soil contact, leads to more uniform emergence and helps achieve top yield potential.

When corn planting is delayed due to inclement weather and poor field conditions, you can still take advantage of the compressed growing season and achieve reasonable yield results by adjusting your hybrid selection and managing cropping activities with later planting dates.

When corn planting is delayed due to inclement weather and poor field conditions, you can still take advantage of the compressed growing season and achieve reasonable yield results by adjusting your hybrid selection and managing cropping activities with later planting dates.

When a spring alfalfa seeding has failed due to wet soils, weather, disease problems or unexpected herbicide carryovers, or when an older stand is deemed unproductive, late summer planting allows a grower to establish alfalfa fields with a good chance for success, sometimes with better odds than spring seeding.

In areas of the Corn Belt, frost and variable soil temperatures can place corn under significant stress after planting.

If your cornfields have been damaged by heavy rain, hail, pests or poor emergence, you may consider replanting.

Sunflowers are grown in many parts of the country and planting dates vary considerably from region to region. Both early and late planting dates have associated benefits and risks.

Demand for higher grain yields are helping to reinforce the importance of healthy, robust corn crops. Using a starter fertilizer can increase early plant growth, nutrient uptake and yield potential, as well as improve overall plant health. What is the best approach to applying a starter fertilizer?

Since the adoption of corn hybrids with biotechnology traits, growers have continued to see more consistent 200-bushel-plus corn crops in past seasons. However, increased yields have created the challenge of dealing with increased levels of residue when planting next year’s crop.

Each year, alfalfa stands risk being injured or killed by cold temperatures, ice sheets or heaving. Evaluating alfalfa stands for winter injury is crucial to crop rotation decisions.

Slug damage in corn and soybeans has increased with the adoption of no-till and minimum-till practices. Because rescue treatment options are limited, growers should take steps to prevent slug damage.

Increased use of reduced tillage and no-till production practices has increased gray leaf spot occurrence. Caused by a fungus, the disease leads to leaf tissue loss, resulting in a decrease in plant sugars and decreased grain production. Potential yield losses range from 5 percent to 40 percent.

Strip-till is a conservation system that uses minimum tillage. It combines the soil-drying and warming benefits of conventional tillage with the soil-protection advantages of no-till by disturbing only the soil that will contain the seed row. Strip-till rows are usually about 8 to 10 inches wide. Because special equipment is required for this type of tillage, understanding what is needed for a strip-till system can help you determine if it’s the right practice for your fields.

Proper canola harvesting techniques are the final steps to a profitable production season. Timely swathing and combining will produce the highest quality crop with the best yield. If used correctly, straight-cutting canola also can be an option under certain environmental conditions.

Grain sorghum is an attractive crop because of its water-use and nutrient efficiency. Before planting grain sorghum, consider the various environmental aspects and agronomic factors essential for high yield potential.

Applying a portion of your crop’s nitrogen (N) requirement with irrigation water is a best management practice to reduce nitrate leaching in coarse soils. New irrigation technology systems have made the process of chemigating easier.