Cloudy Skies and Striped Corn

Chad Lee, Extension Agronomist, University of Kentucky

Cloudy skies and cool weather can make corn appear deficient.

Leaf striping on corn is being reported across the state. The recent cooler, cloudy weather is probably a big factor in many fields. In these cases, the symptoms are temporary or transient. They are cured by ample sunshine and warmer weather.
Other fields have a legitimate deficiency. Soil testing will identify those deficiencies. A tissue test will likely show a deficiency, but won't explain why it is occurring. A soil test will explain why. If the soil is deficient, then apply the appropriate fertilizer if at all possible. If the soil is test is adequate or above, then wait for the sunshine.
While pulling the soil test, dig up a few roots. Sidewall compaction can lead to these symptoms as well. I'm sure no one reading this post "mudded-in" corn. But your neighbors may have! Feel free to pass this along to them to check for sidewall compaction. If they have sidewall compaction, there is not much they can do. Sidewall compaction is a field where they should cut their losses and move on.
Here are some previous articles on corn leaf striping.

Yield Goals Could Cost You This Year

Chad Lee, Extension Professor, Grain Crops, University of Kentucky

Recently, I worked with a small group of farmers who were interested in trimming costs, but not yield, in 2015. They provided their soil test values, historical yields, crop history, and intended production practices for 2015. Those producers reported that were applying $124 per acre more for fertilizer than what was recommended by the University of Kentucky. Even if we factored in enough fertilizer for the following soybean crop, they were spending about $100 per acre more. They were using yield goals to make their fertilizer decisions.

Producers enjoy farming based on yield goals. Yield goals are positive thinking. They are a challenge to the producer to try to reach higher yields. Annual budgets have yield goals. Loans require an estimate of income which requires a projected yield. Yield goals are easy to market and easy to understand. Yield goals also could cost you a lot of money in 2015.