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.

Corn Seeding Rates in Kentucky

Chad Lee, Extension Professor, University of Kentucky

Corn yields have steadily increased over time in part to increasing the seeding rates. Identifying the proper seeding rate is a balance between having enough plants to maximize yields with having too many plants to hurt yield in stressful conditions.

The following is the University of Kentucky guidelines for corn populations on various soils in Kentucky.

Kentucky Intensive Soybean Management Workshops Approaching

Chad Lee, Extension Professor and Agronomist, University of Kentucky

Anyone looking at the 2015 growing season knows that the budgets will be tight. But, anyone who enjoys growing a crop still wants to maximize yield. How do we maximize yields and make a profit in 2015? We have two workshops scheduled to help you answer that question ... and others.

The Kentucky Intensive Soybean Management Workshops are scheduled for February 4, 2015 in Hopkinsville and February 5, 2015 in Elizabethtown. Contact the Kentucky Soybean Board at (800) BEAN-SOY or (800) 232-6769 to reserve your spot.

Your Kentucky Soybean Board is bringing in two national experts, and adding one more from home.

Shawn Conley is a Soybean Agronomist and he will identify what we absolutely need for yield in 2015 and an agronomic approach to making a profit.  He has been working with a group of scientists across the United States on high yield soybeans. In addition, he was one of the leaders on soybean seed treatment and inoculant research.

Kentucky Yield Contest Winners to be Honored

Chad Lee, Extension Agronomist, University of Kentucky

The 2014 Kentucky Extension Yield Contest Winners will receive their plaques and trophies at the 2015 Kentucky Commodity Conference on Friday, January 16, 2015 in Bowling Green, KY.

Farmers, supervisors and fans of the yield contest will attend the banquet starting at 6:30 pm. But, most farmers will arrive much earlier in the day to attend the full agenda.The Commodity Conference is organized by your commodity organizations: Kentucky Corn Growers Association, Kentucky Soybean Association and the Kentucky Small Grains Growers' Association. Numerous agricultural businesses help fund the conference. The Kentucky Extension Yield Contests are sponsored by these groups and businesses as well as the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service. 

2014 Soybean Yield Contest Winners

Carrie Knott, Grain Crops Extension Agronomist

The 2014 University of Kentucky Extension Soybean Yield Contest winners are in (Table 1)!  There are 13 awards: State Champion (highest yield entry regardless of production practices), 1^st and 2^nd place for Full-Season soybeans (Division I), 1^st and 2^nd place for Double-Crop soybeans (Division II), highest yield for 4 Areas, 1^st and 2^nd place for highest Oil content and 1^st and 2^nd place for highest Protein content.

Hands On Digital Data Managment Demonstration at Winter Wheat Workshop

Doug Johnson. Extension Entomologist, University of Kentucky

Grain Production Colleagues:

You are probably aware that the UK Wheat Science working group will be holding its annual Winter Wheat Workshop on January 6, 2015 at the Christian County Cooperative Extension Office.

(Note: this is a change of location from the original announcement.)

This year a part of the program will include two out-of-state guests, Dr. Brian McCornack and Dr. Wendy Johnson, from Kansas State University. They will be presenting a true workshop, with hands-on activities of interest to not only small grain growers but also corn and soybean growers. After all, many of Kentucky's grain farmers produce two and some, all three of these crops. In any case, at this Wheat workshop, the techniques Brian and Wendy will discuss have application to all our grain crops.

Fall armyworm Resistant to B.t. Corn found in North Carolina: is your field next?

Doug Johnson, Extension Entomologist, University of Kentucky.

  Mr. Cam Kenimer, who runs our corn variety trials, sent me a link to an interesting article “Armyworms develop resistance to Bt corn.” The article which is actually about fall armyworm (FAW) reports that this pest carries a gene that makes it resistant to the B.t. trait Cry1F. This trait