Agronomy Blog Archive

Sidedress Nitrogen

4 Quarters to the Game! If you’re playing a game of basketball, you know you’ll need to bring hydration with you so you can replenish your body throughout the game to keep you going.  The crop in our field is no different. We can lay down nutrients at the beginning of the season and hope…
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IDC in Soybeans

Yellowing and Dark Green Spots in Soybean Fields If you are driving through north central Iowa on an early June day, you may notice soybeans yellowing in interesting patterns. You may also notice dark green “tire tracks” that run up and down soybean fields due to previous sprayer field passes.   These are often the…
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How Much Do I Need to Spend on Starter Fertilizer?

  When deciding on what phosphorus source is best for your crop, companies may refer to the type of acid used in their phosphorus  starter.  You’ll likely hear one of these terms:  Black Acid – it’s black because there is carbon in it. Green Acid – which is green or sometimes translucent, has  some carbon…
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The Best Option to Kill Cereal Rye Cover Crops in the Spring

  There isn’t a better control option than glyphosate, at really, any cereal rye stage (size). Some research suggests 0.75 lb of acid equivalent/ac is enough to control even large cereal rye, other recommendations suggest it took as much as 1.5 lb of acid equivalent/ac of glyphosate to terminate cereal rye.  Why this difference?  The…
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You Keep Hearing the Word Biologicals in Agriculture

  You keep hearing the word BIOLOGICALS in Agriculture.  But what do biologicals mean on your farm? Here are: whys, types & timings for you when thinking about biologicals without having to make big changes in your management strategies.   First off, why do we hear so much about biologicals?    We know technology builds on…
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Sulfur on Soybeans

Free atmospheric sulfur is almost non-existent these days. So much like corn – farmers need to add sulfur to their fertilizer blend for our soybean crop. Responses to sulfur applications seem to vary – but soil is soil – and we see a more consistent result to the addition of sulfur in sandier soils with…
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ExactStrip Fertilizer – Placement and Tillage

Think about it – you’re hungry? You go to the fridge, cupboard or even just the table. But plants can’t just go to the food. Their roots can expand out, but like most of us they fall with gravity and go down. In 2024 we have the ability to bring the food to the plants….
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