South Dakota
Bill Eichacker says the added heat and precipitation prompted lots of crop changes. Last week he reported two weeks without rain, but this week parts of South Dakota received more than 3 inches. Silage cutters are getting into fields; third cutting alfalfa is good quality and yielding well. GenuityTM Roundup Ready 2 YieldTM (RR2Y) soybeans look to have an advantage with more 3- and a few 4-beans per pod. Latham Hi-Tech Seeds has a great lineup of early to late RR2Y soybean seed. Don’t wait until harvest to book your seed; talk with your dealer or sales manager now while there are still quantities available.
Eastern Iowa
Brad Beatty reports that much of the same as last week. Many producers are chopping corn silage. Total plant moisture is 72-65% at this time, depending on planting date and maturity. Corn is maturing very quickly. The soybean crop is either maturing fast or dying from Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) or white mold. Latham soybeans L2120RX, L2348R, L2560R, L2740R and L2875R seem to be taking disease pressure the best. It’s been 14 days since our last rainfall, but it’s great to see the sun shine.
Wisconsin
Steve Bailie reports that a large number of farmers in the southern part of the state are taking their corn silage off for the year. Yields have been very satisfying, even with some of the hail that we had a few months ago. Bean fields are really starting to turn, which is making the farmers think more about getting their combines ready. There are a few fields that will be a challenge this fall due to white mold or SDS. The excitement is high in the country to get into the RR2Y fields that were planted this fall. Many of the RR2Y beans are producing 4-bean pods and a more consistent number of solid 3-bean pods. Many corn fields are starting to fire, and I would say that 80-90% of the corn is dented. The soil has had adequate moisture, so it will be very fun to get rolling into some of these fields. With the new genetics and varieties in our lineup, we will still see some good yields even in a tough year like 2009. Many dairy farmers have finished their last crop of alfalfa. Fields that are going to be rotated into corn, beans, or any other crop are already getting close to being sprayed with glyphosphate and some form of 2-4D for next year.
Northwest Iowa
Bruce Anderson reports that things continue to look good for both beans and corn. Beans have really turned that fall color the past week. Before that time, it looked like they were not ever going to start turning. I have seen great looking beans and corn at the plot tours. Look for a record yield on corn and an average one on soybeans. The RR2Y soybeans continue to look great. The L2485R2 is loaded with pods and should top most plots it is in. See you at the Clay County Fair, Sept. 12-20!
West Central Iowa
Travis Slusher reports that corn is beginning to black layer in his area, with numerous field yield estimates in the 200+ bushel range. Mid-group 2 soybeans are turning quickly and the RR2Y are showing impressive yield potential from the field yield estimates that have been done. The story will be told when the combines run and the final yields are determined. We didn’t receive any rain in the area this week, just heavy fog in the mornings, which created some challenges for curing and making hay.
North and Northeast Iowa
Tom Larson reports that he’s been attending as many field days as he can because it’s a great opportunity to talk about all of the technology that Latham has to offer, ranging from single-stack hybrids all the way up to the new SmartStax event in corn and RoundUp Ready 2 Yield soybeans.
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