Earlier planting means earlier decision-making

PRINCETON, Ill. — As farmers throughout the Midwest plant soybeans and corn earlier and earlier, the decisions that they make about their next crop have to happen earlier, too.

Those decisions range from seed to seed treatment and even preparing the seedbed in the fall.

“We are seeing a lot of seed going in earlier and earlier,” said Joe Rickard, crop protection product manager for WinField United. “We have to think, if I want to plant earlier next year, what are some things I need to set myself up for success?”

One of the first considerations, as planting dates move earlier, is how to protect the seed for what could possibly be an extended period of time under ground.

“What can you put on that seed to put it in the best suit as you go forward? Talking specifically about soybeans, you want to think about the right seed treatment, not just putting naked seeds in the ground, but putting those seeds in a position to win at the end of the day,” Rickard said.

“With some of the cooler, wetter conditions that growers deal with in that early planting time frame, seed treatments are really key.”

While corn does come with a seed treatment, starter fertilizers can play a vital role in providing nutrients for the first days of corn plants.

“Starter fertilizers, such as a 10-34-0 or a 6-22-6, or the OptiStart Gold product that we have, can make a big difference when growers are shooting for those higher yield benefits by planting earlier,” Rickard said.

Helping the corn plant establish a healthy root system, that will provide both nutrients, water uptake and support for the plant, is key.

“Think about different additives, like a zinc product, that’s going to help with that early season rooting and then our Ascend Pro growth regulator to help establish that prolific rooting and get that corn crop up and out of the ground,” Rickard said.

Once corn and soybeans are up and out of the ground, chances are that weeds are, too.

Rickard said growers should have a plan that knocks down weeds early and gives corn and soybeans a clean field to get established.

“It can be a two-pass or three-pass approach. Tillage kind of gets a bad rap in some areas, so we have to rely on chemistries to keep those weeds, especially those pesky ones, at bay,” Rickard said.

“Think about having a good pre-residual in that mix. When you start planning, that good pre-residual chemistry that you’ve got going will keep that field clean for around 20 to 30 days to get that crop up and out of the ground.”

A thorough herbicide plan relies on more than the herbicide itself.

“When growers are making their herbicide applications, having the right adjuvant package in there, whether that be oil, a drift and deposition component in there, those become key to making the herbicides work correctly and do what they need to do,” Rickard said.

One piece of the plan for 2024 should take place this fall.

“It all starts this fall, here in ‘23 and getting a fall burndown application made. I see a night-and-day difference of how clean some of these fields are when you spray a fall burndown or you get a fall burndown application and you go into the spring and that field is clean,” Rickard said.