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Showing posts from October, 2018

2018 U of M SE Minnesota regional soybean yield results available

by Lisa Behnken, Ryan Miller, Liz Stahl and Fritz Breitenbach Soybean variety trials in Rochester, MN Performance comparisons of early (1.1-1.8) and late (1.9-2.4) maturity glyphosate and or dicamba tolerant soybean in southeastern Minnesota are now available. Yields for 23 early-maturity entries ranged from 48.8 to 63.6 bushels per acre and from 55.1 to 64.4 bu/a for the 21 late- maturity entries.

Managing the potential for volunteer corn in 2019

by Dave Nicolai, Liz Stahl and Jeff Gunsolus Severely lodged corn field in Rice County. The 2018 corn growing season was challenging for Minnesota growers. Excessive precipitation in some areas of the state and dry conditions in others, along with wind storms and tornadoes, has taken its toll on consistency in corn yields. The weather, along with disease and the early dying of some corn hybrids, has led to limited stalk strength at harvest. As a result, we expect the occurrence of volunteer corn to be greater in areas of the state in 2019 due to a higher potential for corn ears and kernels to be left in the field this fall.

Nutrient Management Podcast: Tips for Fall Applications

This fall has been wet and now soil temperatures are beginning to cool. What is your plan for fall fertilizer and manure application? Dan Kaiser, Fabian Fernandez, Chryseis Modderman and Melissa Wilson join us this podcast episode to talk through what you need to be thinking about for fall applications right now. Click here to listen to the podcast. Subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode on iTunes or  Stitcher ! For the latest nutrient management information, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management  on Facebook , follow us  on Twitter  or visit  our website . Support for this project was provided in part by the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC).

Tips for Fall Applications

Daniel Kaiser, Fabian Fernandez, Chryseis Modderman and Melissa Wilson talk about current conditions and what you should be thinking about for fall fertilizer and manure applications.

Oct. 4 Sauk Centre Hay Auction

Nathan Drewitz, Extension Educator-Crops, Stearns, Benton, and Morrison Counties Keeping up with current hay prices is important for most livestock farmers. For this purpose, we categorize and organize information from recent hay auctions in Sauk Centre, MN. We then use that information to calculate the average prices and feed quality within those categorized hay lots. We also keep historical price data for selected hay lots and create graphs for the medium square alfalfa bales of four different levels of quality. Listed below are the summary, history, and graphs related to the October 4th, 2018 hay auction in Sauk Centre. Also listed are summaries from the two hay auctions that were held in September. October 4, 2018 Summary September 20, 2018 Summary September 6, 2018 Summary History of Selected Lots Graphs of Alfalfa Lots 2001-2018 All historical graphs have been updated to show all summer hay auctions since the start of summer hay auctions in September 2009. For m

Sample for SCN now to Preserve Future Soybean Yield Potential

Angie Peltier, Jared Goplen and Phillip Glogoza, Extension educators Now is crunch time for row-crop producers: harvesting, hauling and drying the crop, fall tillage and perhaps fall fertilizer applications need to take place before the snow sticks around. With recent rain events leaving fields unfit for heavy machinery traffic now might be a perfect time to collect soil samples to monitor soybean cyst nematode (SCN). SCN is the top yield-limiting soybean pathogen and can cause up to 30% yield loss without obvious symptoms. Recently some SCN populations have shifted to overcome the most commonly available source of varietal resistance (called PI88788) resulting in higher SCN egg counts and yield losses. Knowing your SCN numbers is an essential component of an integrated SCN management strategy.

Wait, Consider Your Options Before Applying Nitrogen This Fall

Photo courtesy of Nebraska Extension Farmers are some of the hardest working people I know. Many highway drivers seeing fields harvested as they travel may think, “farmers are done for the year.” For farmers, the reality is that the work is just beginning for the next cropping season. Among the many decision that farmers need to make, nitrogen decisions are one of the major ones right now. The recent wet conditions, including snow, create certain level of anxiety to get things done before the winter. But before you get into too much of a hurry to apply nitrogen, here are a few things to give serious consideration. When to apply Soil temperature can greatly impact the efficiency of fall nitrogen applications. Although nitrifying bacteria are active until the soils freeze at 32°F, their activity is substantially reduced once soil temperature drop below 50°F. For this reason, you should direct fall nitrogen applications by soil temperature and not by date of year. This guideline

Detecting and Reporting Palmer amaranth in Minnesota – Timeliness is key

Jeff Gunsolus, Extension Agronomist-Weed Science This fall, Palmer amaranth was discovered for the first time in soybean fields in Redwood and Jackson counties. In Redwood County, 1 female and 3 male plants were found and in Jackson County, 1 female plant was found. All plants were destroyed, no seed was discovered and no additional plants were found within a 5 mile radius. The seed source is under investigation but likely routes would include contaminated field equipment and water and manure transport. North Dakota is experiencing a similar situation.

Storing, Drying, and Handling Wet Soybeans

By Lizabeth Stahl, Extension Educator - Crops and Seth Naeve, Extension Soybean Agronomist While almost impossible to accomplish in most years, harvesting soybeans at a moisture content between 13 to 15% helps maximize yields while minimizing harvest losses. Cool, cloudy, and rainy conditions this fall, however, have led to large increases in soybean moisture content. With cool conditions in the forecast, soybeans may be harvested at much higher moisture levels this fall than usual.  Photo Credit:  Liz Stahl, U of MN Extension

Reducing Risks of Manure Application During Wet Weather

It’s been cold and wet so far this October, delaying crop harvest. This makes it challenging to get manure applied in a timely fashion and for liquid manures there is a risk of overflow from storage basins. The following is a list of possible things you can do to limit the environmental impact of manure application during wet conditions. Instead of land applying: Consider temporary stockpiling for solid manures until field conditions are better. MPCA rules on stockpiling can be found here. For liquid manure, you may want to pump the basin partially to avoid overflow, land applying only what is necessary (see tips below) or finding a different storage space (make sure it is permitted!). Then apply the remaining manure later in the fall under better conditions, or in the spring. Try to avoid winter application (on frozen or snow-covered soils) if possible. Tips for land application in wet conditions: Start first in the parts of the fields that have adequately dried, like h

Soybean drying and storage

Seth Naeve, Extension soybean agronomist With continued cold, cloudy, and rainy conditions across Minnesota, farmers are beginning to question when they will be able to get into the field to harvest their soybeans. Excessive rains have left fields at 100 percent field capacity. With low evaporation and no transpiration to remove the water, fields will be very slow to dry. It is possible that the crop itself will be fairly dry by the time the soils will support combines, but certainly, soybeans will come off wetter than in most years.

Tips for Pasture Fertility Management

As we approach mid-October, the question is: is there a benefit in fertilizing my pasture? Nutrient management in pasture situations can be tricky because you’re fertilizing on top of actively growing plants. While the plants continue to grow, we do not suggest a full rate of nitrogen be applied. However, if you are considering re-seeding a pasture and will till up the ground then you may want to consider application of P and K prior to tillage to incorporate the nutrients. Here are a few more tips to make your pasture fertilization more successful. 1. Adjust rates based on expected yield and species grown Application of nitrogen should vary based on whether the pasture contains 100% grasses or a grass/legume mixture. If only grass is grown then apply N at a rate of 30 lbs per ton of dry matter expected. Typically 90-120 lbs of N per acre is enough annual N application for a grass pasture to maintain adequate growth. For grass-legume mixtures N rate is not suggested to exceed 60

Free farm financial counseling available

One-to-one financial counseling for Minnesota farmers experiencing serious financial distress is available from University of Minnesota Extension. A team of farm financial analysts has been pulled together to provide free and confidential counseling sessions to help farmers explore options in this difficult agricultural climate. Call the Farm Information Line to set up an appointment or learn more about service: 1-800-232-9077 (8:30 am -12:30 pm M-F, or leave a voicemail after hours)  Email fil@umn.edu . Visit our websites: Farm financial counseling  (see the  brochure ) Resources for difficult times Farmer-Lender mediation

Is It Feasible to Lower My Soil pH?

There are a lot of ideas out there on how to manage pH of soil to optimize plant growth. One major issue with high pH soils is iron deficiency chlorosis (IDC) in soybean. Soybean growers have been looking for the magic bullet for managing IDC and while there are options out there, nothing is long term. Some wonder if soil acidification to lower pH would help solve IDC. In most Minnesota soils, which are poorly buffered, adding nitrogen fertilizers over time will acidify soils. Of the nitrogen sources, ammonium sulfate has the greatest potential for acidification but is mostly applied for sulfur and rarely used as the sole nitrogen source. Elemental sulfur has been used in horticultural crops, but it’s required in high amounts and might not be effective if oxidation is slow. Buffering capacity is an important process to understand when it comes to liming. The buffering capacity is a measure of the reserve acidity or alkalinity in the soil. This dictates how easy it is to change t

Nitrogen Credits for 2019

With a wet growing season in some areas of the Midwest, we’ve received a lot of questions about nitrogen credits in 2019. Here’s a look at how soybean and cover crops will affect nitrogen crediting for next season. The amount of available nitrogen in a field depends on several key processes in the nitrogen cycle. Precipitation and moisture influence most of that variability. The processes of immobilization, mineralization, nitrification and denitrification will influence nitrogen availability through the remainder of the fall and continue into next spring. For these reasons, if you suspect more than normal N carryover, we recommend doing a pre-plant nitrate test or a pre-sidedress nitrate test in the spring to check availability. Guide your fertilizer rate decisions on those numbers. Soybean The question of whether you need a nitrogen credit in a corn-soybean rotation comes down to the environmental factors that affect soybean residue and soil nitrogen leading into corn. The

Nutrient Management Podcast: What You Need to Know About Cation Exchange Capacity

We've heard a lot of questions about cation exchange capacity, base saturation and what that means for N and K applications. Dan Kaiser, Carl Rosen, Brad Carlson and Fabian Fernandez talk about what they're hearing on this episode of the podcast. We cover: What cation exchange capacity (CEC) is How it's measured Why it's important The link between CEC and the amount of nitrogen or potassium a soil can hold The link between base saturation and CEC Click here to listen to the podcast. Subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode on iTunes or  Stitcher ! For the latest nutrient management information, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management  on Facebook , follow us  on Twitter  or visit  our website . Support for this project was provided in part by the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC).