News

Concerns with crop quality

As harvest delays continue, should farmers be worried about the quality of the grain that is still in the field?

Purdue Extension corn specialist Bob Nielsen says in certain conditions crop quality should be okay.  “As long as the ears are not on or near the ground – than within reason the grain quality is going to remain okay,” he says.

But, he says, there are some instances where ear rots are becoming an issue.  “Clearly the longer those ears stay out in the field the more opportunity there is for these molds to develop,” he says.  “For those hopefully few fields around the state with significant levels of ear rot the concern with delayed harvest would be simply more opportunity for these ear rots, molds, and possibly mycotoxins to continue developing before they’re harvested.”

Nielsen tells Brownfield that may mean scouting fields again to prioritize which fields need to be harvested first to prevent further damage to the crop.