Flint\u27s field crops newsletter about the year\u27s forecast for cotton, corn, and soybean production and how to prepare for each crop.https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/ext-ua-flintreports/1203/thumbnail.jp

Flint, Ernest Ernie, Jr.

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Mississippi State University Scholars Junction Ernie Flint - Mississippi State Extension Reports Extension Agent Reports 1-1-2000 Field Crops Newsletter - January 2000 Ernest Ernie Flint Jr. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/ext-ua-flintreports Recommended Citation Ernest "Ernie" Hilmon Flint, Jr. collection, Special Collections Department, Mississippi State University Libraries This Document is brought to you for free and open access by the Extension Agent Reports at Scholars Junction. It has been accepted for inclusion in Ernie Flint - Mississippi State Extension Reports by an authorized administrator of Scholars Junction. For more information, please contact scholcomm@msstate.libanswers.com.       Field Crops Newsletter:                                                                                                                                                January 1, 2000  In General:  I just could not resist dating this edition the first day of the new millennium even though I am writing it on Dec. 28, 1999.  To be perfectly honest, I am taking a break from too much food and holiday activity to work without distractions for a while.  All of you other workaholics will understand.   As you are reading this, the big day will have passed, and we will be facing whatever the new age has for us.  Personally, I don’t expect to see our local situation surprise us, but if there are challenges beyond the normal level, we will face them as well.  The only real concerns I have are for things that may occur in other parts of the world which may impact our lives in the future, but we certainly do not need to create problems by reacting before the fact.   The year 2000 will undoubtedly present some of the greatest challenges we have seen, but along with these challenges I hope there will be opportunities.  Our primary challenge will be to recognize these opportunities when they arrive and take advantage of them.  Our very survival in agriculture dictates that we stay well informed about the issues which drive our industry.  Cotton:  Every year the subject of cotton production seems to become more and more complex.  Recently, our administrative staff asked for suggestions from many of us regarding our thoughts on things you folks need to be doing to weather this tough period.  I responded obediently to this, sending a list of several things that came to mine, but frankly none of them were original.  You have heard all of them before.  They are planning to offer seminars you will be hearing about to present some of these ideas to you.  I encourage you to take the time to attend at least one of these sessions if for no other reason than to offer your own ideas for what we in Extension may do to help you.  When they hear these needs directly from you, they are much more likely to provide us with the assets to deliver more appropriate information and programs to you.  In years past, several subjects have been spotlighted as critical issues for cotton production.  Insect control has historically been a key subject, and weed management has at times come to the forefront.  Soil fertility and soil management have been eternal subjects of interest and will continue to be as long as we continue to farm.  This year however, variety selection will likely be the hottest topic for discussion as we make plans for the new crop.  Recent occurrences in the seed industry have sparked a lot of discussion.  I am certain that these subjects will be covered extensively at all of the spring meetings, beginning with the Beltwide in San Antonio starting January 4th.  Hopefully, some kind of consensus will take shape very soon so that you will be able to take advantage of it by planting time.   Reality dictates that you make some basic decisions early in the season, and many of you have already made seed bookings based on whatever information you could get.  If I may speculate, I would say that the bulk of seed bookings so far have been made on the basis of  some personal experience you have had with varieties you have planted yourself or have seen being grown by your neighbors.  We all know this is the very best way to decide which varieties to plant because it minimizes the unknown factors.  Along with the varieties you know and trust, I encourage you to try small quantities of other varieties as a way of preparing yourself for this time next year when you will hopefully be faced with the same decision on variety selection.  There are several standouts in this year’s tests that I would like to see you try.  Among these are SG125BR, PM1218BR, SG501BR, DP448B, PSC355, SG747, PSC952, SG105, ASCI EXP 0222(soon to be named).  These are just some of my picks for you to evaluate; you might get suggestions from others also because no two people see things the same way.  I know you can’t try all of these, but two or three of them might be interesting to watch.  Some of these varieties are not really “new” but have not been widely grown.   A new term has been thrown in to discussions lately.  “Varietal stability” is something you will recognize since it refers to the ability of a variety to do well in a wide range of conditions rather than being suited to some specific set of conditions.  1999 has taught us that this is a primary consideration, even above that of achieving the maximum yield under ideal conditions.   Growing conditions are almost never “ideal”, so we must seek out those varieties which produce well under adverse as well as “ideal” conditions.  The performance of varieties in 1999 will likely stand as a fairly good indicator or varietal stability for several years to come.    Corn:  Unless you are one of the very few corn growers in the area who plant corn for silage, you probably would not consider growing the crop if not for the rotation benefit it provides.  We have had just enough years of good corn prices to teach us that a year of corn can dramatically improve cotton yields the following season, and I don’t think we can ignore this as a very real justification for growing corn.    We have continued to grow corn at prices well below the levels I once thought would be prohibitive for our area, and I think we all know that the yields we saw this last season were probably an anomaly.  We simply cannot set up production budgets that assume the kind of yields we saw in 1999; the way to justify corn is to take into consideration the yield increases you will likely see in cotton and/or soybeans following corn, and this is very difficult to do.  The official results of the 1999 corn variety trials are not available yet, but based on what I have heard there will be few significant changes in proven varieties for this area.  The statement I made above in the cotton section applies here as well, to stay with those varieties that have been proven in your area.    The one idea that I continue to promote is that of using reduced or no-tillage in corn.  I really feel this is one of the factors which contributed to the high yields we saw in many parts of the state this past season, and it allows you to do the one thing that is most important for corn production; early planting.  Planting corn during the last two weeks of March and no later than the first week of April has proven to be the most important practice in corn production.  This principal ranks well above variety selection, irrigation, insect control, disease control, or anything else, because it sets in place an advantage against all these other factors.  I think most of us would agree that if you can’t plant corn on time you probably shouldn’t plant it at all.  There are exceptions to this, as with anything, but over the long term this is true.  Soybeans:  The single most important idea we must accept about the production of soybeans is that they deserve our best efforts in management, just like cotton and corn.  It’s difficult to prioritize the things that have been proven beneficial to good soybean yields, but I feel there are three items that should get your attention:  Variety selection – Match the variety to the locality, soil type, weed pressure, and rotation program; and plant as early a variety as you can in the month of April.  Maturity Group 6 is as late as I would suggest, and I would only use these when planting can’t be completed in the month of April.  My choice is a portion in Group 4 and the balance in Group 5.  Later selections leave you more vulnerable to drought and insect damage.  Early planting – This is a proven means of avoiding drought stress and the “major” insect pests like worms and stinkbugs.  You may still have to deal with these problems, but their likelihood is greatly reduced.  As mentioned above, April is my choice for planting beans, but you may back up into the last of March with Group 4 varieties, and you may go over into the first of May with Group 5 and 6. Soil management and fertility – Reduced and no-tillage works well for beans, particularly following corn and cotton.  The “ideal” rotation in my opinion is Corn>Cotton>Soybeans>Corn.  Liming and fertilization should be done prior to the corn and cotton years since soybeans tend to do best on “carried-over” fertility, but if lime is needed do it anytime you can.  Base all lime and fertilizer applications on good soil test results.   Other proven methods include the 2 oz. rate of Dimilin when small pods are first seen, as a way of suppressing loopers, green clover worms, and velvetbean caterpillars; scouting and spraying for early populations of three cornered alfalfa hoppers, leaf beetles, and pod-feeding worms.  The Roundup-Ready varieties have come a long way, and some of them can yield with or above the conventional varieties in situations where weed pressure suggests their use to be appropriate.  Personally, I believe a low rate of a good residual herbicide is also needed in most fields.  Roundup alone can be tricky in some cases, especially when morninglory and sicklepod populations are high.  With continued low cotton and corn prices, soybeans may be a good crop for this year, but they cannot be expected to produce without good management.  In Summary:  The one thing I did not mention anywhere above is marketing, and this has become a very difficult thing indeed.  About the best practice, if there is one, is to research the historical annual price patterns for each crop you grow and try to tie down as much as you can during the “normal” high period. By doing this, you will be near the top much of the time, but there are years when some unforeseen factor will cause you to regret it.   If there is a consolation it may be that this year will be starting off on a low note, and hopefully it will end better.  It seems that most of the recent years that have started off well have ended badly.  How’s that for a good ending?  I’m trying not to depress you before we start.   Happy New Year!  Sincerely,     Ernest H. Flint, Ph.D. Area Agent/Agriculture             

Field Crops Newsletter - January 2000

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Field Crops Newsletter - January 2000

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