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.
ARKANSAS
Augusta, AR
Some local growers beat the rain and got Ricestar HT and Facet L out on BIG barnyardgrass yesterday in a few rice fields. We still have some rice battling through salt issues from all the rain. V8 corn looks really good; it has been a couple of years since I think I have seen quite as good a start on corn. All of these rain showers are bringing the soybeans to a perfect stand, with pre-emerges activated to boot! — Joey York
IDAHO
Buhl, ID
I’ve been walking corn fields over the past few days. The fields where the grower didn’t apply pre-emergent herbicides are showing a lot of weed pressure. Armezon Pro is a good residual weed control option. — Van Wiebe
ILLINOIS
Georgetown, IL
With the forecast for June calling for cooler and wetter than normal weather, now is a great time to sit down with an agronomist and discuss options for fungicide. Fungicide and insecticide in soybeans is something we have seen a great response from on our farm. I would recommend every farmer to at least try it a little bit on their farm in a side-by-side trial to see the results. — Tyler Smith
Princeton, IL
Keep an eye on your weeds during this rainy spell. Marestail could begin to enter the bolt stage which requires quick action, once it dries, for application. Marestail is much harder to kill in this stage and requires a higher rate of herbicide. — Mike Denton
Looking at emerging soybean fields, the use of a good seed treatment is paying huge dividends. The cool, damp conditions are very conducive to seedling diseases. — John Becker
If you run row cleaners on the planter as we do, be sure to scout your fields even if you have a good dose of pre-plant applied. In some cases of softer ground, the row cleaners will “furrow” and move the chemical out of the row. This leads to weeds in the row which are hard to see from the road. — Mike Denton
IOWA
Rockwell, IA
With the weather we have had, you might want to consider MegaGro at 2 oz/acre when spraying your Roundup. It is labeled as a Roundup safener and will allow your corn and beans to continue growing after a slow start due to stressful conditions. — Tim Nuehring
Sheldon, IA
With first cutting of hay and alfalfa just around the corner, now is a good time to get the sweep nets out and check for any insects. Insects to be on the lookout for are alfalfa weevil larvae, bean leaf beetles, and others. When you determine that you are at an economic threshold for the insect you found, you have two options. The first one is to spray an insecticide, and wait for the pre-harvest of three days or longer depending on product choice. The other option is to harvest your crop slightly earlier than planned, but you risk having slow re-growth on your next cutting. — Nathan Kloft
MINNESOTA
Breckenridge, MN
For broadleaf weeds in wheat, most often Huskie works well. Be sure to scout, though, because if you have grass weeds, you’ll want to pick something with a grass killer in it such as Huskie Complete. — Tia Johnson
When spraying before a rain, be aware of the rainfast time for the chemicals you are using. Some products need to be applied at least an hour or more before rain comes. — Tia Johnson
Hancock, MN
If you planted sugar beets on last year’s soybean ground and you are starting to see volunteer Roundup Ready soybeans, one option is to add 3-4 oz/acre of Stinger with your first herbicide pass to knock them out. — Nathan DuHoux
Now is a great time to do some stand counts and find out if everything went as planned this planting season. The standard for 30-inch rows is to measure a distance of 17 feet, 5 inches, and then count how many plants there are in that distance. That number multiplied by 1,000 is an estimated stand for your field. The process is the same in 22-inch rows, but you’ll need to measure a distance of 23 feet, 9 inches. — Aaron Giese
Janesville, MN
Marestail is starting to show up in unplanted bean fields. One option is Sharpen at 1 oz/acre along with 1 gal/100 MSO as a burndown. Gramoxone can be added for more burndown power on larger weeds. — Josh Bruns
LeRoy, MN
I’m finding quite a few farmers in the area are looking for some burndown and residual for early post soybeans. Anthem Maxx is a popular choice as it has good activity on waterhemp and great activity on lambsquarters and velvetleaf. The other options at this time are products that include Flexstar which most farmers would prefer to save until a little later in the season. — Grant Lunning
Marshall, MN
A lot of the corn that has emerged looks pale yellow. A few warmer days with some sunshine will get those plants greened up. One thing to do to see where your fertility levels are at with the corn is to take some tissue samples. When the corn is smaller than 1 foot tall you need to collect the whole plant. Take every part of the corn plant that is above the soil surface on about 12-15 plants. — Dave Timmerman
Black cutworm flights were fairly heavy 2 weeks ago in Rock County. With the slower accumulation of growing degree units (GDUs), the larvae may not start feeding until approximately June 1, but now would be a good time to start watching your small grains and newly emerged corn for damage. — Mike Homandberg
Olivia, MN
Fields are starting to dry out enough to get some scouting done. Some of my observations include waterhemp that is starting to emerge in the sugar beet fields. Many fields will need the cover crop sprayed off when conditions allow. It would be a good idea to tankmix something to make sure you kill off the waterhemp in addition to a layby herbicide. Betamix or Betanex, or even some Upbeet may be needed. — John Scheibel
There have already been waterhemp weeds spotted in the fields. This would be a good year to stop the planter for a bit to spray some pre-emerge herbicide on your soybeans. Make sure that none of your soybeans are breaking through the soil when you are spraying certain pre-emerge herbicides. — Aaron Spronk
Corn fields are looking good, sugar beet cover crops are getting sprayed, and the beans are starting to crack. If you still have beans to plant, consider pre-treating your beans with inoculant and QuickRoots or simply add them to your planter box. University and private trial data suggests above average gains when using these treatments on later planted soybeans. — Tony Hagen
Are you planning on using Xtendimax or Engenia on your Xtend soybeans this year? Most growers planting into last year’s corn stalks are finding some volunteer corn and will need to treat for that as well. If you are planning to tankmix a volunteer corn killer in the tank, make sure to check www.xtendimaxapplicationrequirements.com and www.engeniatankmix.com. There are only a few products that are currently approved for tank mixing. — John Scheibel
Thief River Falls, MN
A number of growers are taking advantage of unfavorable weather and using their time to plan their crop protection programs and start picking up the products needed this season. This will save time when the weather improves. One thing I’ve heard from several of them was to remind everyone to remember to grab the proper surfactants and tank cleaners as well. — Rachel Klein
Take a little extra time when scouting your spring wheat fields to see if you have any wild oats. Spotting even a smaller number of plants can pay dividends later on in the season. There are plenty of grass-killing products you can add with your broadleaf chemical to control your wild oats without making an extra trip. One example would be Rimfire Max at 3 oz/acre. — Jordan Swanson
Winthrop, MN
Due to wet weather in our area, many corn fields have not yet been sprayed with a pre-emerge herbicide. We can still spray products such as TripleFLEX, Harness, Halex GT, and Resicore up to 11-inch tall corn. All are good options, just talk over your weed spectrum with your agronomist to see what would be best on your farm. — Dean Christiansen
With the wet soils and cool temperatures, the crops are at a stand-still, but the weeds seem to keep growing. If giant ragweed is a problem in your corn fields, one option is to add in 4 oz of Stinger. — Tyler Gasow
Tissue testing is a great way to make sure your crop is taking in the nutrients that it needs to fulfill its potential. For the most consistent results, start your tissue testing at V2 in corn and continue taking samples once a week from the same spots in the field at about the same time of day. This will give you a good read on what your plant may need a boost of in order to succeed. — Matt Vogel
Fields in our area are now starting to dry out. When you can, scout your fields for a stand count to see if replanting is needed in any areas. Contact your seed agronomist to make sure you can get varieties of corn or soybeans needed. — Dean Christiansen
MISSOURI
Bertrand, MO
Several farmers will make the switch to dicamba soybeans this season. After years of testing, research, and development, we are able to use products like Xtendimax and Engenia to help manage tough resistant broadleaf weeds. Both products, when used properly, can be an effective tool in this war on weeds. — Albert Duenne
A few farmers are still applying a burndown for their soybeans. There are a ton of different combinations they are spraying. Some are using Afforia at 2.5 oz/acre, Powermax at 32 oz/acre, and Gateway Plus at 1 gal/100gal of water. — Albert Duenne
MONTANA
I am receiving reports on cutworms in pulse crop fields and Spartan Charge injury to field peas. Please be out scouting fields for damage and injury. Insecticides are available for cutworm injury. Chemical injury needs to be reported so you can figure out what was the exact problem that lead to the injury and steps can be taken in the future to avoid it from happening again. — Chester Hill
Some producers are getting ready to order their crop protection for spraying peas. A popular combination is Varisto at 1 pt/acre, Clethodim at 6 oz/acre, and MSO at 1 gal/100 gal water. — Chester Hill
NEBRASKA
Laurel, NE
Please take some time over the next few days to look over corn and soybean stands. In 30-inch rows, 1/1000 of an acre equals 17 feet 5 inches, so count the number of plants in that length of row and multiply times 1,000 for a good stand count. — Kody Urwiler
West Point, NE
Some corn fields that haven’t gotten a corn pre on yet consider using a product with multiple modes of action. Growers like a product like Resicore because it can be used up to 11-inch tall corn. — Jared Steffensmeier
If you haven’t planted your beans yet, have no pre on, and can’t have any planting restrictions, don’t forget about Liberty for a burndown option. It would be one of your best choices on marestail and giant ragweed. — Jacob Gubbels
NORTH DAKOTA
Lisbon, ND
When spraying spring wheat right now many farmers are adding in a cheap fungicide like Tilt, Bumper, or a generic propiconazole to get extra protection against diseases and rust. This can be tankmixed with most herbicides, so an additional pass with the sprayer is not needed. — Spencer Schultz
Many guys are busy spraying soybean pre-emerge herbicides, but they say they’ll have to turn right around and spray their corn fields as soon as they’re done. Some corn fields are already starting to dirty and will require a herbicide application in the next few days. When spraying this early, farmers prefer to use a residual product such as Resicore along with Atrazine that will get them through to crop canopy. Without the residual, the weed control has not been good enough. — Spencer Schultz
Mohall, ND
If your previous crop was Express tolerant sunflowers and you have planted a cereal grain to this ground, you will have volunteer sunflowers. Using a product like Express will be ineffective in killing these flowers, so in small crop, a Bronate-type product mixed with a lower rate of WideMatch will clean this up very well. Example: 12.8 oz/acre Bronate mixed with 12.8 oz/acre WideMatch — Ron Hefta
SOUTH DAKOTA
Aberdeen, SD
Now is a great time to be out checking your corn emergence. In order to do this, you measure out 17 feet, 5 inches if you are in 30-inch rows or 26 feet, 2 inches if you are in 20-inch rows. Then, count the number of corn plants that are emerged and multiply that number by 1,000. — Tanner Johnson
I was recently out in a corn field that had some patches of hairy vetch growing. The field was sprayed with Verdict as a pre-emerge, but Verdict has no activity on vetch. A product that is a growth regulator, such as Stinger or Banvel, will more than likely have to be used to control this weed. — Tanner Johnson
Baltic, SD
There are still a lot of acres of soybeans to get planted yet. Growers are wondering about their soybeans maturities and when they need to start changing. It is still too early to be changing out for earlier maturing soybeans. I would stick with your normal plan until at least June 10th. After that point, consider walking down the maturities slowly until we can get the field planted. — Tyler Koenig
We are seeing soybeans emerge this week with PPO damage from sitting in the pre-emerge herbicide layer for too long while the weather was cold and wet. This should be just cosmetic at this stage but continue to keep an eye on any fields you have that may have this problem occurring. — Wes Jepsen
Centerville, SD
I have had a few questions come in from farmers about pre-emerge products on soybeans and how late you can go with them for rotation to corn. Most of the Authority brand products are 10 months to corn. Other options that have shorter rotational restrictions are Valor SX, Valor EZ, and Fierce. You can also add Sencor to these products for added residual and still be safe for rotation to corn. — Travis Petty
Freeman, SD
Alfalfa is being cut around the countryside with reports of alfalfa weevil larvae being present. After the first cutting, throw in one of the cheap insecticides like Kendo so we can take care of that simple problem. — Matt Zilverberg
Gettysburg, SD
If you are spraying Milestone for thistles, make sure you are at the full rate for residual and add NIS to the tank. — Kyle Hawkinson
Huron, SD
There are a few beans left to be planted in the area. Just a reminder to check your planting depth since moisture came through, which has changed ground conditions. — Norland Hofer
Kimball, SD
Heading is starting on winter wheat fields in the area. The optimum timing for head scab prevention is early flowering. Prosaro or Caramba are the very best options. Generic Folicur is not as good on head scab prevention, but it’s very good on rust and very inexpensive. — Mike Erickson
Watertown, SD
If you have an alfalfa field that you plowed up this spring and you plan on planting soybeans on that ground, don’t forget to use a good soybean inoculant. What farmers in this area have had good success doing is using a liquid inoculant on the seed and then adding a dry inoculant at the planter as well. — Russ Werning
With the rain we have been getting, there have been a few growers that didn’t get their pre down on soybeans. Warrant is a popular choice since it also has residual. The rate on Warrant is 3 pts/acre. — Beau Wensing
If you have switched over to the new Xtend system for your soybeans, remember that you are able to spray Xtendimax at 22 oz/acre or Engenia 12.8 oz/acre over the top of your soybeans, but do not use generic Banvel, generic Clarity or Status. Also never add AMS to these products. — Jack Beutler
WASHINGTON
Farmington, WA
Talinor is new product out this year from Syngenta that is similar to Huskie. Growers have seen good control on dog fennel, bed straw, and others. It is a little weak on Canadian thistle but has control on Russian thistle at the high rate. Application rates for wheat vary from 13.7-18.2 fl oz/acre. Plant back restrictions – garbanzos: 9 months, peas: 10 months, and lentils: 15 months. — Jamie Rovey
Quincy, WA
With the low wheat prices and what look like good wheat yields, do you have enough nitrogen left to make HRW protein? There is going to be a glut of low protein wheat on the market, and do you want to have another $0.50-$1.00 off of market price? Spraying on liquid urea after flowering is a good option that has shown to boost protein levels up to 0.5%. This may not sound like much, but it could be the difference between making grade and/or getting a premium for your wheat. — Devin Moon
