The Ag PhD Crop Scouting Reports are supplied by contributors to Hefty Seed Co., based in Baltic, South Dakota. Find more online at www.agphd.com and www.heftyseed.com.
ILLINOIS
Georgetown, IL
Due to our saturated soils, there is not enough air getting into the ground around the plant roots. Increased carbon dioxide that is released from the roots is building up in the soil causing the yellowing. There is also some IDC due to high pH soils. — Evan Zimmerman
Princeton, IL
As the time for fomesafen (Flexstar) application draws near, remember the 10-month plant back restriction to corn that is called for on the label. Maximum use rate is also dependent on where you live. Be sure to read the label. Be safe! — Mike Denton
IOWA
Rockwell, IA
Many have been delayed on corn spraying. Impact at 0.75 -1 oz, AMS at 2.5 lbs/acre, MSO at 1 gal/100 gal of water, 15 GPA ground, and 3 GPA aerial will control most 6-inch tall broadleaves and some escape grass as well. Refer to the label on 1.0 oz rotation restrictions. Stage the corn before you spray. At V7, you won’t want to broadcast over the whorl, so you will need to switch to drop nozzles on crop protection products, especially adjuvants. At VT, we can once again have adjuvants and crop protection chemistries broadcasted. — Paul Helland
KANSAS
Garden City, KS
Tissue sampling can be a useful tool for fertilizer management. Soil tests can show you what nutrients your soil lacks for a particular crop, while tissue sampling can show what nutrients your plant is or is not taking up. Vegetative tissue samples of corn use the most mature leaf (collared leaf) while the leaf opposite and beneath the ear is taken once reproduction begins. Soybean tissue samples use the top mature trifoliate. Multiple samples ought to be taken for best analysis, and it’s a good practice to take them the same time each week. — Chris Lobmeyer
MINNESOTA
Fairmont, MN
Weed pressure is coming fast. Growers need to get back to spraying as soon as possible. It might be a good time to spray road ditches. Be sure and read the label and check height restrictions before spraying. One weed that needs attention soon is volunteer corn and also adjust the rate. Anything closer to a foot tall should get a higher rate applied. — Steve Draper
Hancock, MN
Many farmers are having excellent control of thistles with Milestone and Grazon Next. In more than one case, it has been moving from treated areas into sensitive crops and killing them, but I still recommend those 2 products for permanent pasture and larger areas. In areas with long edges like ditches and grass field borders, it is a much safer choice to use Stinger for thistles. — Adam Gibson
LeRoy, MN
Remember that it’s a 10-month rotational restriction from Flexstar to corn. The next best options are Cobra and Ultra Blazer. — Grant Lunning
Olivia, MN
Remember, when spraying your sugar beets, it is not recommended to spray herbicide with your fungicide. The water volumes that are required are not the same. — John Scheibel
Thief River Falls, MN
If you have some tough-to-control ragweed in your soybean fields, consider adding Flexstar or Cobra in your tankmix with your second application of Roundup. Just remember there is a 10-month rotation restriction on Flexstar if you plan to put corn on that acre next year. — Jordan Swanson
Winthrop, MN
When spraying your Roundup on soybean acres, we have found that adding MegaGro at 2 oz per acre not only safens the Roundup but can reduce stress, increase plant vigor, nutrient uptake, and plant health, all leading to increased yields. — Dean Christiansen
If you’re spraying with Liberty this year, a few things to remember are:
1. You cannot spray over 87 oz/acre total (in-crop).
2. Make sure you’re using 15-20 gal/acre of water.
3. The maximum single application rate is 43 oz/acre. (32 oz/acre is recommended for the first pass, followed by up to 36 oz the second pass).
4. For tank additives, only use an AMS (Preferably 3 lbs/acre).
Make sure it is hot and not very cloudy on the days you spray. — Tyler Gasow
MISSOURI
Bertrand, MO
Some fungicides have grower rebates available this year. It might be a good idea to check with your friendly local crop protection retailer to see which products may qualify on corn and soybean fungicides. — Albert Duenne
Hayti, MO
With soybeans maturing quickly, we are not far away from fungicide applications. It would be a great time to do tissue tests in your soybeans to see if there are any issues. You can address these by tankmixing foliar feeds with your fungicide. — Ryan Wilson
MONTANA
Sidney, MT
Conditions are still favorable for chickpeas as well as peas and lentils to have disease problems. Be scouting! I have been sending samples off to the lab at MSU-Bozeman for verification. Make sure to rotate the modes of actions with the fungicides! Most fungicides will work better also with Non Ionic Surfactant (NIS) at 1 pint per 100 gal of water. — Chet Hill
NEBRASKA
Seward, NE
This year has given us lots of moisture and humidity. This gives white mold an ideal set of conditions for high pressure and infection rates in our soybeans. Planning to put a variety of beans out in the infected areas that has strong tolerance to white mold is key. Also, consider widening row spacing, allowing for the soybeans to dry out under its canopy and in the row. Another good management practice is using a fungicide to help prevent infection and keep the soybeans healthy from the white mold. — Brad Meusch
West Point, NE
Fungicide application season for corn is right around the corner for a number of the acres in the area. Now is a good time to review the genetics that your corn hybrids have and make sure that any numbers with a lower disease rating are watched closely. With the amount of moisture we have had this year, we are set up for a potential heavy disease pressure event to happen. — Mike Wiese
NORTH DAKOTA
Mohall, ND
Corn that has kochia escapes can be sprayed with Status, but the maximum height is 36 inches. DiFlexx is only 24 inches This year, the pre worked excellent in both corn and beans and are holding weed pressure to a minimum. — Ron Hefta
SOUTH DAKOTA
Baltic, SD
We are coming up to the end of Flexstar applications because of the rotational restriction back to corn which is 10 months. You can still use products like Ultra Blazer and Cobra that will work similarly to Flexstar. Make sure you are running at least 15 GPA with products like these. — Tyler Koenig
Centerville, SD
Farmers in the area have experienced a lot of rain in the past few weeks. With some spots being drowned out, look at putting cover crops in those spots to control weed pressure and to keep something growing in those spots. Those cover crops will keep your biological activity alive, pull in nutrients, fix nitrogen, and help with compaction and hard pans. — Travis Petty
Freeman, SD
With the excess amount of moisture we are having, adding a fungicide with your herbicide can give the plants protection from disease. Adding Equation (generic Quadris) at 3 oz/acre in either corn or soybeans is a great, cost-effective way to keep the plants healthy. Fungicides are preventative only; once the plant has a disease, all you can do is keep it from spreading. Low rates are okay when the plants are small, but the larger the plant, the higher the rate required. — Lee Dockendorf
Gettysburg, SD
If you have conventional soybeans and are fighting 1-3” kochia, you can put down a 3 oz rate of generic Pursuit to aid in residual control of kochia, pigweeds, and grasses. If you have already used Pursuit, your best bet is to use a full rate of Cadet at 0.9 oz with crop oil at 1 gal/100 or generic Cobra at 10-12.5 oz/acre. If you use Cadet or Cobra, know that they are contact herbicides and will not give residual control. Also, be aware that they will produce leaf burn on your soybeans, but the leaf burn is often only cosmetic and likely won’t affect yields. Keep your water at a minimum of 10 gallons per acre and your PSI up. — Eric Butz
Watertown, SD
Don’t forget about the additives when using Roundup and Callisto. I talked to a farmer the other day who forgot the additives and didn’t like his results. Add AMS at 1.7 lbs/acre and 1 qt of NIS/100 gallons of water. — Russ Werning
WASHINGTON
Quincy, WA
Timothy is coming off early this year which leaves a lot of time for double crops like buckwheat. Watering the Timothy back and no-tilling has been very popular in the past. Make sure you have good moisture at planting. Most growers come in 3-5 days after planting with a shot of Roundup Powermax at 32-48 oz. This is often followed by a full rate of generic clethodim approximately 10-14 days later. Make sure your contract allows for herbicide after planting because at least one company doesn’t. — Sam Krautscheid
