Start crop off right from get-go

CHATHAM, Ill. — It’s best to have a plan before the planters roll out of the shed.

“It’s always important for us to think about strategy before we find ourselves knee-deep in the middle of planting,” said Matt Montgomery, Pioneer field agronomist.

“We want to start this crop off right from get-go. All those things we should usually do, all the best practices that we should always be engaged in, sometimes we fudge on them. We should be doing right from the get-go this time around.”

Montgomery, part of Pioneer’s central and west-central Illinois agronomic team, recommends a seed treatment for soybeans.

‘It’s important to use treated seed just to minimize your risk, increase the chances that you start off right and keep it right,” he said. “I think that’s more important this time around because I want to make sure we minimize the need for replant.”

Right Seed

Another piece of the road toward success is being diligent in selecting the right hybrid or variety for the right acre.

“I’ve heard people talk before, and I understand exactly what they’re talking about, that you get in the heat of battle and you just grab something off of the shelf and make sure you get it in the ground,” Montgomery said.

“But this is a little bit like math homework, just getting it done doesn’t count. You have to get it done right. We can’t afford those kinds of missteps.

“Talk to your trusted seed adviser. They know how those products should be put in the ground, where they should be positioned, what seeding rates we should be talking about, and make sure that you follow their directives on that.

“It will lead you toward more success, and make sure, especially on the corn side, that we’re talking about the right seeding rate.

“There’s not a one-size-fits-all seeding rate for all products out there. Each product varies. There is a nice little spot where that product performs the best. Make sure you’re planting that preferred seeding rate, setting yourself up for success.”

Soil Conditions

Planting into poor soil conditions can impact the crop throughout the growing season.

“Are the conditions that we’re dropping that crop into setting it up for compaction? If it is, you and I both know that has the same kind of impact as a multi-week planting delay. We want to steer away from that as much as possible,” Montgomery said.

“When possible, we want to think about planting into a warm trend. We can’t do that all the time, but the more often that we can do that, the better we set ourselves up for uniform emergence, uniform stand, a lot more positive points on that crop.”

Clean Start

Weed management was an issue last growing season for a variety of reasons, including herbicide resistance, herbicide inaction in drought conditions and skipping a pass to cut costs.

“Make sure you are starting that field off clean. We want make sure we’re putting residual products down to begin with. We want to make sure when we’re doing our post-application that we’ve dropped a residual with that,” Montgomery said.

“It is important that we maintain a field that is weed free as long as possible. Remember, weeds have some of the most devastating impact of yield of any of the pests that we deal with.”

After Emergence

Once the plants are out of the ground, have a plan to maintain corn and soybean canopy health.

“We need to make sure we’re maintaining the health of that upper part of the plant. If conditions look conducive for diseases, make sure you’re thinking about what feeds need to be managed for that,” Montgomery said.

“Make sure you’re watching out during the ear establishment period, that you’re protecting it, that you’re watching for anything that might impede ear development. Watch the soybean canopy health to make sure you’re maintaining all those little solar panels that help establish yield.”

All Season

Montgomery recommends scouting fields weekly throughout the growing season.

“Some may say that’s absolutely impossible, but it’s not. We have plenty of digital tools available to us now that help us watch crop health, that can help us triage fields that need a visit. We can use those tools to our advantage,” he said.

“During the first month of growth and development, scout even more intensely.”