The last week of September is upon us and the days are getting shorter. Already several bursts of cooler air have moved into the northwestern states, giving those people warnings about the eventual movement into winter. For us though the weather has generally been dry and warm, just what we wish for at this time of year. Nature and moisture fronts need to start replenishing the deep moisture profile to ensure that we are sitting with a two inch deficit when the 2022 cropping season arrives. Expecting to have good looking and decent crop yields two years in a row good with one fourth or one third of normal rainfall is not something we can count on.
Harvest got going in earnest across the entire state this past week. When fields of beans begin to yellow their harvest typically starts about twenty days later. Farmers with larger acreage and those hoping to capture early market premiums have been planning a certain percentage of their acres to shorter maturity hybrids to take advantage of those premiums plus get an earlier start if that is needed. This year followed that to a T and it seemed to pay. The very cold temperatures present in the Midwest for several weeks in May negated the normal effect as plant growth was slowed in May but sped up by the hot temps after Memorial Day.
Harvest Time
Just as getting into the fields in the spring to prepare and plant the seeds in the ground is something that everyone looks forward to and works toward. The air is clear, the soil smells very earthy and we can’t wait to shake off the winter’s rust. All of the fall and winter’s preparation work and planning comes to fruition. Except for being hectic with long hours and having either machinery or weather delays, is a time we look forward to.
Harvest time is the bookend to the planting season when we get to see how well the products and management plans drawn up over the fall and winter interacted with the environment to produce yields above, below or inline with what we expected. The days and work can be long and tiring. Not all fields will be standing perfect and diseases and insects can negatively affect each variety’s standability.
The entire process of harvesting has been affected by electronics, namely yield monitors that give real time yield information, computerized drying systems to monitor drying progress, and navigation equipment that lines up for the next swath perfectly.
The Growing Season
After surviving the 2020 first part of the growing season where two thirds of the state had a substantial drought, then following it with the Aug 19th Derecho led many of us quite apprehensive about what 2021 might bring. Would our moisture profile be filled with April rains; would sunshine be close to normal; how about GDU accumulation; and might strong Derechos blasting thru major crop growing areas become the norm? That leaves us questioning the ability and accuracy of the meteorologists we listen to each day when we listen to their forecasts.
My view of the weather and what gets thrown at our crops was polluted by reading a few articles from James Franklin Lee and his column entitled China’s Mind Blowing Weather Modification. His web page gives the details and shows pictures of what the three major countries have developed in the arena of modification and management of weather on a regional and global scale. Each person has their own one or two climate forecaster who provide predictions and expected weather swings. Throw in any such manipulation and a person has to ask what is normal and which is not. One perspective not often mentioned is the effect of energy and solar eruptions on the surface of the sun. These influence what is going on the earth’s surface. Two good examples were ‘The Carrington Event from 1859’ and ‘Larger than the Carrington Event in 2011’. Those were twin and triplet flares which occurred in the 19th and 21st century. The first lit up the skies for 72 straight hours with enough electricity flowing across telegraph offices setting a number of them on fire. #2 was a triple flare jumping 135,000 miles off the sun’s surface and would have fried the grid if we had been one week further in our rotation.
Yields So Far – Soybeans
Most farmers are further ahead with bean harvest than with corn and have a better handle on yields. What most operators are seeing is yields are much better than anticipated in a summer that was hotter and drier than normal. Many fields never had rain clouds pass that dropped more than 1”. The lack of moisture stymied the development of fungal lesions to until late August or early September. The same dryness caused stress hormones to be produced, causing pod abortion while poor K uptake during seed fill tempered yields Commonly heard yield levels are in the mid 50s to high 60Bu/A range, and up to mid 70s, where rains fell. Much better than expected.
The beans that were highly managed for optimum bean size and health stayed green and filled longer and most of those have not been harvested yet. Looking at pod retention and seed size, the gamblers appear to have won their bet.
Yields So Far – Corn
Given the fact that many fields never had a general rain front or cloud pass over their location, getting any decent corn yields over 100 and even 150 Bu/A is totally amazing. The July 5th situation in central Iowa found many corn fields had their leaves rolled tight by 10 AM, had taken on the grayish color, and never seemed to get any moisture relief until August. The yields seen so far are very surprising. There are still fields that died very early due to root feeding or lighter soils and will be producing sub 100 Bu/A yields. Fields on more biologically active with higher OMs, and with adequate mineral supplies will be significantly. Some will be in the 220+ range.
What is surprising is that corn growers in states to our east received much more rain, but are now disappointed in how their corn yields have been much lower than predicted by the ProFarmer tour participants. It appears that our dry climate lessened the chance of fungal diseases increasing in incidence and severity. Some are speculating that one cold rain during the early V stages allowed crown rot pathogens to invade the crowns. Might they be able to plate crown tissue to see which if any root rots were present. They should also have growers and agronomist look at tissue test levels to see if any nutrient levels were low and see if any deficit in minerals can be correlated with higher incidence of foliar diseases.
One commodity advisor and analyst did a phone survey of growers and Ag people who actually get into the fields. The horror stories of major disease issues becoming big yield reducers was too often true. They still have to develop the answers as to what happened. Were Mn-Bo-Cu-An-Fe- S, or Mo levels too low or not available if they gained entry into the plant? Was coverage lacking if applied by air? Were applications made during a time period of rising thermals? Were applications made too early or too late? Should two applications have been made? Are certain actives losing their long residual compared to a few years ago?
Tar Spot
Our eastern neighbors are mentioning Tar Spot, GLS, Goss’s Wilt, Anthracnose and NCLB as being problems. Either one of those, if unchecked, can weaken plants to make them more susceptible to another disease. Right now guidance from an experienced pathologist may lead to her recommending two applications of Veltyma spaced three weeks apart.
I will have to travel to Wisc. soon to check out 600 acres sprayed with mixes of two systemic products that have very long residuals. They looked great when I was out there last.
Post Harvest Plans
Now that harvest is here you may want to consider a disease control plan that begins with applying a microbial mix, like Meltdown, to aid in the biological degradation of corn residue this fall. Besides minimizing the amount of inoculum being carried into the 2022 crop, it will produce more rapid release of minerals held in those stalks and increasing water infiltration into the soil rather than washing off the field. Recognize that a number of these mixes have been or will include soil dwelling nitrogen fixers that turn atmospheric nitrogen into plant available N. At the ISU Feel Lab Farm they have plats where Envita was applied to seed, in-furrow, or post emerge following a 120 or 140 lb. application at planting. As of late August those plots were all very dark green and looking great. This was the exception in that there were no heavy rains to cause leaching. But it is relevant in a year where the N prices are extremely high and extra nitrogen may not be available. Tackling this paradox become a surer science if you have at your disposal a SPAD meter to use in monitoring N levels in the plants at select times.
Bob Streit is an independent crop consultant and columnist for Farm News. He can be reached at (515) 709-0143 or www.CentralIowaAg.com.