The early, warm spring has put weeds off to quicker start than in the past. Winter annual weeds, like chickweed, henbit and marestail are larger than expected, according to Helen Flanigan, product development manager for corn and soybean herbicides with DuPont Crop Protection. In addition, Flanigan cites the appearance of summer annual weeds, such as ragweed, lambsquarter and pigweed. Flanigan spoke with Brownfield Ag News about treatment options.
SFP products improve fertilizer efficiency
April 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
What steps can growers take to get maximum value out of their nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer applications?
Jeff Thompson, regional account manager for SFP in Iowa, says his company has a couple of products that can help.
He also talks about a relatively new product from SFP called More Than Manure.
AUDIO: Jeff Thompson (8:00 MP3)
Early season calls for multiple modes of weed control
April 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The early warm weather has resulted in the premature appearance of winter annual weeds, such as chick weed, henbit and mares tail, and they’re larger than they normally would be at this time of the year. There are also more summer annuals emerging, according to Helen Flanigan, product development manager for DuPont Crop Protection.
“So you’re going to start seeing some of your rag weeds out there; lambs quarters or pigweeds, things of that nature are also starting to germinate since we’ve had these warm temperatures this spring,” Flanigan told Brownfield.
Echoing what many experts are advising lately, Flanigan recommends multiple modes of action, including burn down with Canopy or Envive in combination with glyphosate and 2,4D.
“You will also get control of the winter annual weeds and the small summer annual weeds that are coming,” said Flanigan, “and that also gives you residual [control] so that you have a clean seedbed to plant your soybeans into.”
AUDIO: Helen Flanigan (5 min.)
New N and P protection from SFP
April 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment
SFP has developed new products to stabilize nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers, keeping the volatile nutrients in the soil until the plants need them. NutriSphere-N reduces nitrogen leaching while Avail minimizes phosphorus fixation in the soil.
Along with that, SFP has a new product called “More Than Manure” which keeps nitrogen in manure in pits, reducing odor problems and preserving more N and P for the field. Dave Kaltenberg is SFP regional account manager in Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota; he says the list of satisfied customers using the products is growing rapidly.
Channel agronomist discusses early planting
April 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment
For some farmers, the temptation to plant corn in early April has been very strong. But, as Channel Seeds agronomist Rich Peters of Elkhorn, Nebraska points out, planting corn this early in the western Corn Belt is like sailing into “uncharted waters”.
Peters also shares his thoughts on the importance of healthy roots and ways to combat possible rootworm resistance.
FCSAmerica distributes $130M in cash-back dividends
April 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment
As part of its 2011 patronage program, Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica) has distributed cash-back dividend checks totaling $130 million to its customer-owners in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.
FCSAmerica senior vice president Jim Knuth tells Brownfield that the $130 million cash-back dividend for 2011 is the largest in FCSAmerica’s history—and brings the total cash distributions since 2004 to more than $555 million.
For more information on the 2011 cash-back dividend distribution, including every county in the states of Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming, visit powerofownership.com.
Not all straw blankets created equal
March 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment
For Mark Hall of Hall Farms at Sunman, Indiana, an interest in conservation at an early age became part of the family farm about 8 years ago when they started making and selling straw blankets to add value to the farming operation. Hall Farms main product is the double sided straw blanket. Hall tells Brownfield they pride themselves on quality and service.
The importance of spring deworming
March 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Dr. Joe Dedrickson, veterinary services manager with Merial, says parasite control is critical to a cattle producer’s profitability and is the most economically important practice in beef production. In this interview with Brownfield’s Ken Anderson, Dr. Dedrickson talks about why spring deworming is such an important part of an overall health care program and offers tips on how to increase the effectiveness of a deworming protocol.
AUDIO: Dr. Joe Dedrickson (5:36 MP3)
Lely opens its first U.S. dairy production facility
March 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Lely, one of the leading companies in the production of automated milking systems, has opened a new production facility in Pella, Iowa.
The Pella facility is Lely’s first dairy production facility outside of their headquarters and production facilities in the Netherlands.
Chad Huyser, director of operations for Lely USA, fills us in on the company’s immediate plans and talks about what the future holds for robotic milking systems.
How soil testing can increase the bottom line
March 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Soil testing is one of many things farmers can do to enhance their profit potential. Farm Clinic agronomist Scott Batts says in a time when input cost are increasing soil testing can help farmers make sure the right nutrients are placed where they are needed. He says applying the right rates of nutrients helps producers maximize production while keeping fertilizer costs at a minimum.
Batts tells Brownfield, The Farm Clinic pulls soil samples across 2 ½ acre grids and tests for P, K and pH levels in the soil. From there, he says staff agronomist assess the report’s findings and provide unbiased opinions based on the test results with the ultimate goal of saving the farmer time and money.
AUDIO: Scott Batts, Farm Clinic (5:44mp3)
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