Minnesota Crop News

Dr. Fei Yang – Extension Corn Entomologist, University of Minnesota Department of Entomology, and Bruce Potter – Potter Bros., LLC Figure 1. Black cutworm moth captures May 3 – 9, 2025. Color shading represents the maximum two-night captures for trap(s) in the county. It was a much quieter week for black cutworm (BCW) moth migration. Nevertheless, significant captures occurred May 6-9 into Rock County and May 7-8 into Renville County (Figure 1). Warm temperatures should push faster development of black cutworm larvae. Scouting for leaf feeding and possible cutting should be underway in high risk fields. Larvae from the earliest mid-April moth arrivals could reach the 4th instar stage and able to cut small corn as soon as May 20. These larvae should cease feeding and being to pupate in mid-June. Several trap sites across southern Minnesota also reported armyworm moth captures, but these numbers continue to be low. Report #6 includes BCW leaf feeding and cutting projections, economic th...

Angie Peltier and Ryan Miller, UMN Extension crops educators and Debalin Sarangi, UMN Extension weed specialist Early season weed flush. Photo: Dave Nicolai The following information was provided during a 2025 Strategic Farming: Field Notes session. Use your preferred podcasting platform or listen online to a podcast of this Field Notes session hosted by UMN Extension crops educator Dave Nicolai. Crops and weeds are emerging According to the USDA National Ag Statistics Service’s planting progress and crop condition report, as of this past weekend corn planting was 75% complete; this was 6 days ahead of 2024 and also ahead of the 5-year average. Thirty percent of the corn crop has emerged, about 5 percentage points ahead of average. Soybeans were 52% planted, 8 and 6 days ahead of both 2024 and the 5-year average, respectively. Fourteen percent of soybeans had emerged, running about a week ahead of the 5-year average. In southeast Minnesota, field work and planting progress have been d...

How is precision agriculture changing in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics? That’s the theme of the 2025 Minnesota Conference of Precision Agriculture, happening Thursday, June 5 in Saint Paul. The conference will also be available online. Register now! Registration Registration is now available for the 2025 Minnesota Conference on Precision Agriculture (2025 MCPA). The early bird registration fee is $30 (deadline extended to May 25). The regular fee is $50 (after May 25). Student registration fee is $20. It will also be available online, and the registration fee to attend the virtual conference is $20. A light breakfast and buffet lunch are included if you attend in-person. The deadline for registration is June 2, 2025. Register at: z.umn.edu/MCPA2025-register Location The conference will take place on Thursday, June 5, 2025 at the St. Paul Student Center on the U of M St. Paul Campus (2017 Buford Ave, St Paul, MN 55108; Google Maps ). More information The theme of...

On this episode of  Advancing Nitrogen Smart  podcast we discuss methods and tools to account for soil and weather conditions as you execute your nitrogen management strategy. Which tissue and nitrate testing options are the most beneficial, and when should you test? How does understanding the nitrogen cycle help you interpret these results? How do drought and /or saturated conditions affect available nitrogen? What can be reasonably achieved with rescue treatments? Why is it important to end your season with the right amount of residual nitrogen in the field? Brad and Dan discuss this and much more on today's show. TRANSCRIPT Guests: Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Dan Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Additional resources: Corn supplemental N rate calculator Soil Testing Laboratory: Farm / Field and Commercial Horticulture Crops Research Analytical Laboratory  - tissue testing The nitrogen cycle  - YouTube video Why understandi...

Jackie Estrem, UMN Extension Educator- Sustainable Agriculture, Stearns, Benton, Morrison, & Sherburne Counties, and Taylor Herbert, UMN Extension Educator- Crops, Wright, McLeod, & Meeker Counties The Alfalfa Harvest Alert Project, also called Scissor Cut, continued this week with samples taken on May 12th. Over the weekend, alfalfa grew quickly thanks to warm weather. There was no alfalfa weevil feeding or plant disease reported. Farms with high forage quality goals may be cutting soon. The goal of the Alfalfa Harvest Alert program is to alert growers to start the first cut of alfalfa when the crop is at a level of quality and yield potential that meets their specific needs. As a reminder, the goal is not to try and name the exact day of harvest. Rather the goal is to encourage growers who are busy with management of other crops to be more strategic with hay crop harvest as it relates to their needs. How to get harvest alert data The May 13th  Alfalfa Harvest Alert ...

The Field School for Ag Professionals will be held July 29 and 30 at the University of Minnesota Agriculture Experiment Station in St. Paul. This event is the premier summer training opportunity that combines hands-on, interactive training with real-world field scenarios to help you enhance your troubleshooting and crop management skills. Features A two-day program taught primarily in the field with real world scenarios. Hands-on activities examining current crop management, insect and diseases issues. Each subject is led by experienced instructors offering personalized instruction and small group activities. Certified Crop Advisor CEUs offered. Join us for a group outing at Target Field for a MN Twins game vs Red Sox on Tuesday, July 29. Ticket(s) available for purchase during online registration. Curriculum Detailed session descriptions and lists of instructors can be found on the event page . The first-day program focuses on core principles to build a strong foundation of skills and...