A winning football team understands its strengths and weaknesses and also scouts their opponent to understand their tendencies, strengths and weaknesses. Winning coaches put their
At Advanced Agrilytics, we seek to understand the environment first and isolate the underlying mechanism that influences potential productivity. We’ve spent months walking side-by-side with
As we turn the calendar into the heart of summer, the growing season can feel similar to reading a book, each chapter building more excitement
Traditionally, Nitrogen fertilizer (N) rates have been linked primarily to expected yield goals. However, with recent high N fertilizer costs, above average commodity prices, and
In 2021, Illinois farmers saw an early uptick in tar spot outbreaks in corn across the state, says Erika Parker, precision agronomist at Advanced Agrilytics. In fact, she spotted the disease on July 22 in northern Illinois — one month earlier than typically experienced.
Why? A susceptible host, favorable environment and the pathogen occurred at the same time, and it just so happened to be one month ahead of previous years, which resulted in more people experiencing significant damage. The “disease pyramid” worked against crops and farmers last year.
Pull the planter out of the shed, fill the planter boxes and start putting seed in the ground. That’s all there is to it, right? No, and especially not this year with so many variables at play, says Aaron Gault, lead agronomist for Advanced Agrilytics.
Not only has a wet, cool spring presented challenging field conditions, but also input availability, cost, and wild swings in commodity prices have given growers a lot more to think about.
“Even before we dive into the prescriptive side of managing the crop it’s going to be about the planter and planter maintenance that we need to focus on,” Gault says. “A key part of that is making sure we have even emergence. And when you think of everything that affects that emerging seedling it goes back to how it is set into the trench. Are all the seeds planted at a consistent depth and are they all planted into moisture?”
You sit down at your desk and reflect on the last crop season. Then you decide which hybrids worked for each field and whether to try something new. Through discussion with an agronomist, you choose which hybrid to plant, and then you decide on variable rate.
This is how many farmers and agronomists work through corn hybrid selection, says Seth Logan, Advanced Agrilytics precision agronomist in southern Illinois. But at Advanced Agrilytics, hybrid decisions are made based on a unique approach.
It’s April 1. You have a recommended corn planting date of April 15 circled on the calendar. And if you’re not putting seeds in the ground on that day, then you feel like you’re already behind on the year’s crop. Don’t pretend you’re not guilty of this scenario — you’re a farmer; it’s just a natural instinct. And the planting date guideline is what you’ve heard from agronomists before. But you can relax, because the date on the calendar isn’t everything, says Erika Parker, Advanced Agrilytics precision agronomist in northern Illinois. You also need to consider soil conditions before planting corn and make those a priority.
Corn fields across the Midwest felt the impact of changing conditions this summer, according to Advanced Agrilytics Precision Agronomist Erika Parker.
The questions are flowing through your head as you plan your fungicide program for the new crop year. What worked in 2021? Will fungicide fit in the budget against other input costs? Seth Logan, Advanced Agrilytics precision agronomist in southern Illinois, reminds farmers of the importance of fungicide in 2022.
Changing weather conditions and plant disease challenges were just a small part of the impacts felt by many Midwestern corn and soybean growers throughout the 2021 growing season.
Wet year? Dry year? What’s coming in 2022? We know you can’t control or predict the weather, but we can mitigate its impact.
