CMEG Crop Management Extension Group

Field Crop News

Website Address: http://fcn.agronomy.psu.edu/

March 10, 2009    Vol. 09:03

IN THIS ISSUE:

Weather Outlook — Paul Knight, Pennsylvania State Climatologist

Editor’s note—Paul is away this week; forecast following is as of Friday, March 6.

The large swings in temperature already experienced in the first third of March will continue for the remainder of the month. A cold snap from March 12–17 may be reinforced early next week. Otherwise, warmer air should return for the official beginning of the spring season. The month will likely conclude with another cold snap. On balance, March temperatures are expected to average a bit above normal as the warm spells are likely to be longer and more frequent than the colder times. Precipitation should return to more seasonal levels as moisture-laden fronts cross the Commonwealth regularly. However, parts of eastern Pennsylvania should not receive average precipitation further deepening their dry conditions. April is likely to turn cooler than normal with above average rainfall in the majority of the region. There are still indications that the heart of the summer (July-August) will be wetter and cooler than normal for much of the state.

)2009 Crop Insurance Base Prices Announced for CRC, GRIP and IIP—Greg Roth, Grain Crop Management Specialist

USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) has announced the base prices for 2009 CRC, GRIP and IIP revenue insurance policies. The base prices per bushel are $4.04 for corn, $3.56 for grain sorghum, and $8.80 for soybeans. These prices are used to convert yield coverage guarantees to revenue protection covering yield or price losses. CRC also has some new features that can increase benefits and reduce premium costs for producers.

Enrollment of most crops is required to be eligible for SURE (crop disaster program included in the farm bill)

Producers must enroll for coverage, or make any changes to existing policies by the March 16 deadline. For more information, contact a private crop insurance agent. An agent locator is available at: http://www3.rma.wsda.gov/apps/agents/.

Spring Cover Crop Management — Sjoerd Duiker, Soil Management Specialist

Winter is coming to a close and it’s time to get ready for cover crop termination this spring. As a general principle, the amount of growth of the cover crop determines how much it will contribute to soil quality improvement, mulch cover, and nutrient uptake. However, the larger the cover crop, the more demanding it will be to terminate and plant into. There are clearly trade-offs to be made here — there is no right answer.

If using an herbicide to kill the cover crop, you need to remember that a contact herbicide such as paraquat (Gramoxone) can be used effectively to kill the cover crop when the temperatures are low. The contact herbicide only kills leaf matter, so re-growth may occur if the cover crop has a vigorous root system. Systemic herbicides such as glyphosate (Roundup, Touchdown, etc.) or growth regulators such as 2,4-D and dicamba (Banvel, Clarity) should not be applied until the cover crop is actively growing. Glyphosate is translocated to the root and kills the whole plant. It is therefore active, even on large cover crops. It is very effective in terminating cereal cover crops such as rye, wheat and barley. Annual ryegrass seems a bit less sensitive to being killed by glyphosate. Use the full rate and make sure the cover crop is actively growing. Glyphosate is not 100% effective on legumes such as hairy vetch or clovers, but the growth regulators are highly effective to kill these cover crops. Make sure you follow the label when planting your next crop after growth-regulator application.

If using tillage to kill or incorporate cover crops, keep in mind that large cover crops can be a challenge to manage. The moldboard plow is the most effective to incorporate and kill living cover crops, but it has many disadvantages from the soil quality stand point. Chisel plows are probably the most unsuited to incorporate cover crops and should not be relied upon to kill the cover crop, since a burndown is still needed. Disks can chop up a cover crop before chisel plowing, but even then this is still a challenging proposition. Disks that are common in Pennsylvania usually don’t do a good job incorporating cover crop residue.

The greatest benefit from cover crops will be realized when leaving all of the cover crop residue at the soil surface. This means no-tilling into the residue. Best results are achieved if planting into crisp, fully dried-down cover crop mulch. It may take one or three weeks after burndown to achieve this condition, depending on the weather. Make sure sufficient weight is on the planter and coulters and double disk openers penetrate the soil to desired depth. An alternative is to plant through a green cover crop and spray afterwards. In this case the cover crop stems and leaves can be readily cut through by the planter coulters and disks. The worst case scenario is probably when the cover crop has been sprayed but is not fully dried down. In that case severe hair-pinning of residue in the seed slot is probable.

If nitrogen contributions are desired for the following crop from a leguminous cover crop such as hairy vetch or crimson clover, you want to wait until this cover crop has accumulated significant biomass. This usually means waiting until the first to second week of May in the central and southern parts of the state. Crimson clover can probably be terminated a week or two earlier than hairy vetch. The nitrogen content of hairy vetch is commonly 4%, while that of crimson clover is usually 3% on a dry-matter basis. In the case of red clover that has been established last year in standing wheat or barley, it is not as critical to wait for it to accumulate significant biomass this spring since more of the nitrogen is already contributed to the soil by the tops and roots that died off over the winter.

Now Is the Time to Assess Small Grain Stands—Del Voight, Interim Grain Crop Management Specialist and John Rowehl, Extension Educator, York County

Now is the time to assess small grain stands; determine whether an early topdress is required and to assess the status of some early season pests. This article will detail some points to consider that may help with management decisions.

Tillering Assessment: Spring tillering assessment is the first item to check in the field. The method can be the same as described in last month’s article for assessing plant numbers. To do this you will need a 3 foot measuring stick. Walk the field in numerous locations and drop the stick on the ground near the base of the plants and count the total number of tillers. Average the sites you check to arrive at an average tillers per three feet. The goal is to have 70–100 tillers per square foot (25–35 plants per square foot). To determine the number of tillers per square foot, calculate the average number of tillers found in the all the 3 foot measurements made, multiply by 4 and then divided by the row width in inches. This number represents tillers per square foot. For example if you checked 5 areas in a field and the average tiller count/ 3ft is 60 tillers, then you would take 60 times 4 (240) then divided by the row width(ex.7inches) to arrive at a total of 35 tillers per square foot. Since the goal is to have 70–100 tillers, this is far below the minimum. Nitrogen will be needed to stimulate more tillering and fields in this condition should be top-dressed first. If you would like more detail there is a video at http://cmeg.psu.edu/video/wheat_stand/wheat_stand_assessment.cfm.

Topdress Decisions: Except to stimulate tillering, from the standpoint of crop need there is no need to top-dress N before green up. But top-dressing should be completed by the time the first node on the stem can be seen or N demand may not be met. Most wheat in our area provides straw and with the removal of straw comes the removal of phosphorus and potassium. Wheat removes 1.0 lb of P205 and 1.8 lbs of K20 per bushel of harvest. Last year, in some fields that double crop soybean crop were planted after wheat, potash deficiency showed up in the soybeans due to low levels in the soil. The point here is that unless the soil test is above optimum, compensate for P and K removal through fertilizer or manure sources.

weeds that encroach

Pest Considerations: This time of year, most pests like insects and disease are not active. However, weeds may be of concern depending on the number of weeds and there growth relative to the wheat. Weeds that encroach can hamper tillering and compete for nutrients. As you scout the wheat stands and determine the need to apply a herbicide for control, be sure to check the plants crown location. If roots are exposed from heaving or from improper planting depth, the herbicide may cause injury to the plants which will limit tillering. If this is the case then do not apply any herbicide unless absolutely necessary.

There is a Small Grain Field Walk planned for Wednesday April 8th starting at 10am-12pm at the Landisville Research Farm to discuss options and view the small grain variety trials. Please call 717-270-4391 with your plans to attend.

Input Management—Del Voight, Interim Grain Crop Management Specialist

Farmers are a difficult crowd to pin down as to planting intentions. Industry needs some leads as to how much of each input to order in and have “on hand” when a producer pushes the order button. I watch the U.S Farm report each week and each week they debate about what the trends are in planting. Truth is to be known once the planters begin rolling in a month. You would think industry seed purchases could tell the tale however this year many growers are still awaiting some magical moment that tells them to begin purchasing and take delivery of pesticide, fertilizer and seed inputs. I gathered this over numerous talks with industry representatives. We avoided a bullet last season when a large amount of Cruiser treated beans were ordered late and coincidently the Midwest delayed planting and we were able to get that seed. That might not occur this year, and as with all inputs, if it is not delivered to the farm it just might not be available this spring on a timely basis. Maybe it’s “cry wolf” time but I would recommend getting supplies in place before the planter begins to roll. In fact I would rather one use a budget and align inputs to lock prices in according to a workable budget.

Across the state grain budgets were presented by educators and many reported most if not the majority of producers do not budget for crop inputs. The new Agronomy Guide has sample budgets that Dr. Jay Harper spent some time gathering for your use. Perhaps it’s time to pencil these costs out see what returns the most and get moving in that direction. I also developed online Excel spreadsheets that one can input various costs and see what return might come in depending on the crop. Both are available at the CMEG.PSU.EDU Web site. After discussing budgets with growers, the key hold up in many budgets is land rental. I would be surprised to hear of too many $500/acre land rents with the current market reports. Sure, custom farming prices have inched higher and seed prices jumped, but land rent can easily take off top returns.

Fertilizer really has come down recently however it seems that those with manure, even if you pay to haul it, are still returning more to the bottom line than those dependent upon fertilizer sources. I was awakened this winter by asking growers how many soil tested with the last three years, I venture a guess that of the farmers I surveyed less than 3 out of 10 growers are up to date on soil tests. There is some real money to be saved this season by gathering soil samples. Be sure to separate fields and follow the guidelines of no more than 15 acres per sample. I once had a grower come in for one sample bag for the whole 150 acre farm! The method that Dr. Doug Beegle uses to figure a return on fertilizer investment is based on yield enhancement. Remember if a field is below optimum for a nutrient, a subsequent yield increase is highly likely with the addition of that nutrient. Likewise as soil test levels enter the above optimum to excessive range little return is likely in the form of yield. How do you know what the levels are? SOIL TEST! You would not make a trip in your vehicle without checking the gas tank before leaving now would you? Perhaps by penciling some costs out, seeing where some savings on fertilizer (be sure not to deprive the crop as well) and other inputs, growers can still remain profitable this season. Have a great planting season and be safe around the equipment especially when you start working around the clock.

Effect of CruiserMaxx Soybean Seed Treatment on Soybean Stand Establishment and Yield in 2008—Ron Hoover, On-Farm Research Coordinator, Greg Roth, Grain Crop Management Specialist, and David Johnson, former Penn State SE Research Center Manager

Early planting was compared to late planting and six seeding rates between 75,000 and 200,000 seeds per acre were evaluated in replicated studies at the Penn State Research Centers. At the Landisville farm, stand differences were negligible regardless of planting date, and CruiserMaxx had no effect on soybean grain yield. At Rock Springs, CruiserMaxx gave approximately 22,000 more plants per acre than untreated soybeans at the early planting, when averaged over the seeding rate, and grain yield was about 8 bu/acre higher when CruiserMaxx was used. CruiserMaxx did not affect stand or yield at the late planting. Optimum soybean grain yield occurred for planting rates of about125,000 seeds/acre, and was not affected by CruiserMaxx treatment. Soybean yields were higher for early planted than late-planted soybeans at Landisville, but the opposite was true at Rock Springs.

A large multi-location trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of CruiserMaxx on early, mid, and late season soybean stands. CruiserMaxx—treated and non-treated soybeans were planted into large plots at seven locations across PA. Along with studies conducted at the Rock Springs and Landisville research centers, educators Andrew Frankenfield (Montgomery), Kevin Fry (Indiana), Mena Hautau (Berks), John Rowehl (Cumberland), and Del Voight (Lebanon) oversaw large on-farm trials comparing treated and non-treated soy seed. Planters or drills were calibrated for each seed lot to determine planting rate in each field. Plants from marked areas were at V1/2, R1/2, and R7 growth stages. Percent loss of stand at each growth stage was determined based on the known seed drop for each site.

For the on-farm trials, stand loss was approximately 43, 44, and 48% at V1/2, R1/2, and R7, respectively, for non-treated soybeans. This was compared to losses of 38, 38, and 41% for the same growth stages, respectively, for CruiserMaxx soybeans. This shows that most of the plant stand loss occurs during emergence and seedling establishment. For the plant counts taken during the seedling stage, stand loss ranged from 25 to 64% for untreated seed and 24 to 66% for treated seed. These same studies were conducted during 2007. The 2008 losses are 1.5 to 2 times higher than the same treatments done in 2007. While cool, wet conditions may have been prevalent in some areas during 2008 when compared to 2007, seed quality across the industry tended to be lower in 2008 than in 2007. While stands were slightly improved for soybeans treated with CruiserMaxx, the differences were small.

In general, the early spring of 2008 was cool and wet, and CruiserMaxx seed treatment lead to increased stand and yield at the early planting in Rock Springs. CruiserMaxx did not influence stand or yield at Landisville. In the on-farm studies, plant loss during seedling emergence was slightly reduced for CruiserMaxx-treated seed. These results show that CruiserMaxx seed treatment can help soybean stand establishment and growth, but in many cases the differences were small or non-existent.

Spring Weed Control in Alfalfa — Bill Curran and Dwight Lingenfelter, Penn State Weed Science

Alfalfa is coming to life! It’s time to check the need for weed control. Here are a few guidelines about available products:

Gramoxone Inteon 2 (paraquat) — May be applied at 2 to 3 pt/A to established “dormant” stands before 2 inches of spring regrowth. The weeds must be actively growing at the time of application. Gramoxone is also labeled at 1 to 2 pt/A for dormant application on new fall seeded stands. Gramoxone will desiccate any green tissue including actively growing alfalfa. Be especially cautious with new fall seedings. Gramoxone is effective on low to moderate infestations of winter annuals including chickweed, henbit, deadnettle, and mustard species. If winter annual weed infestations are severe, consider one of the soil active alternatives. Do not use on mixed stands.

Poast Plus 1E (sethoxydim) — Poast Plus controls annual grasses and suppresses perennial grasses in seedling and established alfalfa. Apply Poast Plus at 1.5 to 2.5 pt/A to actively growing grassy weeds. Poast Plus should be applied to small grasses and performance improves with warmer temperatures. Do not use on mixed stands.

Prowl H2O 3.8CS — has a supplemental label for use in established alfalfa (i.e., alfalfa that has gone through a summer season of cutting/mowing). Apply Prowl H2O at 2–8 pt/A prior to weed emergence. Applications can be made in the fall after the last cutting, during winter dormancy, or in the spring before alfalfa reaches 6 inches of regrowth and weeds have germinated. Prowl H2O will control many annual grasses and broadleaves including crabgrass, panicums, foxtails, lambsquarters, pigweed at the 1 to 4 pt rate. Other weeds such as annual bluegrass, common chickweed, dodder, henbit, prostrate knotweed, smartweed, and velvetleaf can be controlled with the 4 to 8 pt rate. Some stunting and yellowing to the alfalfa may occur after application. Do not apply less than 50 days prior to alfalfa harvest for forage or hay. Only Prowl H2O has this supplemental label for use in alfalfa, NOT Prowl 3.3EC.

Pursuit 70DG (imazethapyr) — Pursuit may be used for weed control in seedling (2 trifoliates or larger) or established alfalfa. Apply Pursuit at 1.08 to 2.16 oz/A plus adjuvants to actively growing weeds 1 to 3 inches in height. Pursuit performance improves with warmer temperatures. If spraying during extended cold periods, expect weeds to respond slower or the herbicide can have reduced activity. Pursuit is effective on many winter annual broadleaves including small chickweed. Pursuit may be used on established alfalfa-grass mixtures.

Raptor 1AS (imazamox) — Raptor may be used for weed control in seedling or established alfalfa. Apply Raptor at 4 to 6 fl oz/A plus adjuvants to small, actively growing weeds and to established alfalfa in the fall or in the spring. Any application should be made before significant alfalfa growth or regrowth (3 inches) to allow Raptor to reach the target weeds. Like Pursuit, Raptor performance is influenced by temperature. Therefore, try to apply the herbicide on warmer days and when weeds are actively growing. Raptor has a similar spectrum of winter annual weed control as Pursuit. Do not use on mixed stands.

Select 2EC (clethodim) — Apply Select at 6 to 8 fl oz to actively growing grasses that are less than 6 inches tall. Rates up to 16 fl oz may be used to control larger grasses, annual bluegrass or perennials such as quackgrass. Include a crop oil concentrate in the spray mixture. May be tank-mixed with Pursuit, Buctril, or 2,4-DB for broadleaf weed control. Do not use on mixed stands.

Sinbar 80W (terbacil) — May be applied to established alfalfa at up to 1.5 lb/A or to a new fall seeding at 0.33 to 0.5 lb/A. The reduced rate seedling year application is specifically aimed at chickweed. Sinbar is effective on a number of annual broadleaves and some grasses at the higher rates. Apply to ‘dormant’ alfalfa before 2 inches of spring regrowth. Do not use on mixed stands.

Sencor 75DF (metribuzin) — May be used on established alfalfa. Apply 0.5 to 1 lb/A before spring regrowth. Impregnation on dry fertilizer can improve crop safety and allow for slightly later applications (up to 3 inches spring regrowth). Sencor controls winter annual broadleaves and grasses (higher rates for grass control). May be used on mixed alfalfa-grass stands.

Velpar 2L (hexazinone) — Apply Velpar to established alfalfa at 2 to 6 pt/A during the dormant period before 2 inches of spring regrowth. Velpar is effective on annual broadleaves and grasses. Velpar is the most effective dormant season treatment for suppression of dandelion and dock species (higher rates for grasses and perennial suppression). Do not use on mixed stands.

Your best bet when controlling…

Upcoming Events

Contributors: County Extension Educators: Andrew Frankenfield (Montgomery), Jeff Graybill (Lancaster), Mena Hautau (Berks), Joel Hunter (Crawford) Jonathan Rotz (Cumberland). University Park: Ron Hoover, Sjoerd Duiker, Greg Roth, John Tooker, Del Voight.

Editor: John Rowehl (York)

Upcoming Events

Real time pest and heat unit activity: http://agsci.psu.edu/news/spotlight/pa-pipe

Calendar of Events: http://www.events.psu.edu/cgi-bin/cal/webevent.cgi?cmd=opencal&cal=cal209&

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