Minnesota Crop News

In this episode, CropCast hosts Dave Nicolai and Seth Naeve visit with Tom Hoverstad, Researcher at the Southern Research and Outreach Center, Waseca, MN. Tom is one of the authors and researchers of the 2023 Corn Grain Field Crops Trial Results. The Minnesota Corn Evaluation Program is conducted by the University of Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station to provide unbiased information for corn growers when they choose which brand of corn to purchase and grow. The program is financed in part by entry fees from private seed companies that choose to enter their hybrids and varieties for testing. Tom reviewed the 2023 growing season, corn yields and corn variety selection criteria that he has followed over the years.  In addition, Seth Nave, University of Minnesota Extension soybean agronomist discussed the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station performance testing of appropriately adapted public and private soybean entries. Seth reviewed the 2023 soybean growing season as the yiel

By: Dan Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist Can elemental sulfur (S) supply available S to crops for a longer period of time compared to sulfate sources? An ongoing study is looking at how different sources of sulfur fertilizer behave over time. The sources we are looking at are potassium (K) sulfate, K-MST (Micronized Sulfur Technology), and Tiger 90. Data from 2023 shows some interesting results. Background Sulfur (S) is contained in many forms in the soil but mostly in organic forms that are not plant available. Only sulfate forms of sulfur can be taken up by plants. Similar to nitrate, the sulfate anion is negatively charged, and many consider sulfur to be highly leachable. While movement of sulfur can be rapid in some soils, studies have shown that sulfate can be taken up by a crop one or more years after application. Elemental sulfur has to be oxidized, a process by which microorganisms in the soil convert elemental sulfur to sulfate. Since this process is controlled

Photo: Liz Stahl Pull up a chair and join in or bring the conversation with you as you go about your day. Whatever works best for you, join us this winter to discuss some of the key issues and questions around commodity crop production facing Minnesota farmers today through the “Strategic Farming: Let’s Talk Crops” webinar series. This live, online program will provide up-to-date, research-based information to help optimize your crop management strategies for 2024. Sessions will be held over Zoom, which can be accessed via your computer, phone or other mobile device, and run from 9:00 to 10:00 am Wednesdays, January 10 through March 27, 2024. Sessions will be very informal and open to all interested. Each session will start with a brief presentation by the discussion leaders for the day, followed by discussion framed around farmer/participant questions on the topic. Topics and speakers: January 10: Grain prices and marketing strategies given current geopolitics & soybean crush cap

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) have published the 2023 Minnesota Field Crop Trials. Visit varietytrials.umn.edu/2023 to see variety trials for 8 different Minnesota crops. Crops included in this year’s trial include barley , canola , corn grain , oat , soybean , spring wheat , winter rye , and winter wheat . About the Crop Variety Trials When farmers are ready to make seed choices, the University of Minnesota field crop trials offer unbiased and trustworthy information. The annual Field Crop Trials are one of the key ways MAES works to bring valuable research into the hands of farmers and ultimately help improve farm profitability, improve the economy and overall quality of life in Minnesota. Since the late 1880s, MAES has published reports of crop variety trials but it wasn’t until 1948 that the trials were combined into a single annual publication. Today, the annual field crop trials

Former CFANS graduate students Aaron Frankl (left) and Kyle Sherbine soil sampling “Minnesota’s Coolest Drainage Plots” at the Northwest Research & Outreach Center in Crookston. By: Lindsay Pease, Extension nutrient management specialist It is well known that installing a subsurface drainage system can help to remove excess water from farm fields. Installing a subsurface drainage system is a long-term decision that provides long-term benefits. That is why back in October 2019, I initiated a new subsurface drainage project at the Northwest Research & Outreach Center in Crookston. The overall goal of “Minnesota’s Coolest* Drainage Plots” (*by annual average temperature) is to explore the short- and long-term impacts of subsurface drainage systems in northwest Minnesota. This project has served as a jumping off point for other research questions about subsurface drainage systems. One such question was initiated by Aaron Frankl while he was pursuing a graduate degree in Land and A

In this week’s CropCast, David Nicolai and Seth Naeve welcome Dr. Candice (Candy) Hirsch. Dr. Hirsch is a Corn Geneticist in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics at the University of Minnesota. She is truly a superstar in a department long known for preeminence in the areas of maize breeding and genetics and has recently been awarded the University of Minnesota McKnight Presidential Professorship in Plant Genomics. While her work is extremely sophisticated and cutting-edge, Candy is focused on helping corn farmers in Minnesota and beyond. In this podcast Candy discusses some of her research projects including studies of kernel integrity and factors affecting food quality that will be highly relatable to listeners. Dr. Hirsch discusses how a big data approach that integrates environmental, genetic, and plant phenotypic data can be used to help solve important problems for producers, exporters, and food manufactures. Candy discusses teaching and graduate education with Seth

Photo credit: Laura Christianson In this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast, we’re talking about edge of field N and P reduction strategies. What is an edge of field practice and why are they used? What specific practices do our panelists have experience with, and which have the most potential for use in Minnesota? Are these practices a farmer can pursue alone, or do they require local government to be involved? What assistance is available for farmers who are interested in one of these practices? TRANSCRIPT   Guests Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Laura Christianson, researcher, U of M Department of Soil, Water, and Climate (St. Paul) Jeff Strock, Extension soil scientist (Lamberton) Additional resources: Minnesota Nutrient Reduction Strategy NRCS Minnesota Minnesota SWCDs on the web SWROC Soil & Agricultural Water Management Video: A Holistic Approach to Managing Agricultural Drainage Water Bioreactors: Reducing water pollution with microbes and wood chips Po

Aaron Lorenz, UMN Soybean breeder, Senyu Chen, UMN plant pathologist, Seth Naeve, Extension soybean agronomist, and Bruce Potter, IPM specialist Photo: Lisa Behnken The most common source of SCN resistance in commercial soybean varieties adapted to Minnesota is PI 88788. Over 90% of the varieties entered into the 2022 UMN Variety trials carried this single source of SCN resistance. The PI 88788 resistance source provides good resistance to some races of SCN. Over time, however, the overuse of this resistance source has led to shifts in SCN populations to those able to overcome PI88788 resistance. There has been increased interest in alternative sources of SCN resistance such as Peking and PI 89772. The commercial availability of these varieties adapted to Minnesota has gradually increased in recent years. However, little independent information is available on their actual resistance to SCN races known to overcome the PI 88788 source. Study methods Starting in the spring of 2021, we ha

In this special cross-over episode, CropCast hosts Dave Nicolai and Seth Naeve visit with three talented graduate students who work on Soybean Research Center related projects. Mary Jane (Mjay) Espina is a PhD student with Aaron Lorenz and Bob Stupar. Mjay is focused on Iron Deficiency Chlorosis (IDC). She is primarily interested in identifying the source(s) of resistance to IDC within soybean’s genome. She hopes that understanding the genetics behind IDC will help her and us learn more about the physiology driving this disorder.   Alina Smolskaya is an MS student who is also advised by Drs. Stupar and Lorenz. She is working on the genetics of very interesting soybean traits related to leaf shape and seed number per pod. Leaf shape can play a role in whole plant photosynthesis and therefore productivity, and seeds per pod is an important yield component.  Master’s student Carlos Sanchez also joined the discussion. Carlos is advised by Seth Naeve and his work has been conducte

In today’s CropCast, Seth Naeve welcomes Kelsey Andersen Onofre, an Assistant Professor and Wheat and Forage Extension Specialist in the Department of Plant Pathology at Kansas State University.  Kelsey is joining us through a collaboration with the US Wheat and Barley Scab Initiative, a national multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional research consortium whose goal is to develop effective control measures that minimize the threat of Fusarium Head Blight (scab) for producers, processors and consumers of wheat and barley. USWBSI funds over 150 research projects in 30 American states. You can learn more at scabusa.org .  Kelsey discusses the 2023 wheat crop in Kansas and highlights the drought impacts on production. Seth and Kelsey chat about the impact of wheat scab and its presence in years like the current one. They discuss the impact of Fusarium Head Blight and the economic impacts. Management through variety selection and fungicide application is possible, but it can be especiall