Boots In The Field Report

Ken covers the major things to consider when trying to figure out when to start planting in Central Illinois and other topics you need to be thinking about for the start of the 2016 growing season.

Ken gives his last Boots in the Field Report of 2015. He recaps the hand shelling day and gives advice for those that have fields that missed the tillage window. Look out in December/January for the return of Technology Tuesday and Agronomy Thursday.

Patience is key in making sure you aren’t pulling tillage tools out of the ground to get traction and not jumping the gun on getting your anhydrous on. Ken also talks about thresholds for fall burndown in this week’s Boots in the Field report. We are looking for volunteers on Thursday, Nov 12th. to help with the hand harvesting plot.

In this week’s Boots In The Field Report, Isaac covers a few timely reminders as we finish the harvest. Including weather, tillage, inhibitors, and weed management.

Ken gives a teaser on some data that came out of the plots this week as well as advice on getting tillage done in dry soil.

Ken reminds us about the importance of full shatter in this week’s Boots in the Field report. While the nice weather is allowing us to get our tillage done, it is calling for more horsepower in our tillage to get complete shatter in the dry ground. Ken also reminds us to make sure we aren’t letting the wear and tear of harvest lead to preventable accidents.

This week Ken talks about doing seedbed preparations while the weather is cooperating. He discusses perfect fall weather and shares strip-till and vertical tillage tips. Ken also gives an update on what he is seeing in the fungicide and nitrogen plots in Il.

Ken gives advice on how to finish 2015 strong. He wants to make sure farmers aren't leaving money in the field with high harvest loss and to be on the lookout for strong presence of diseases such as Tar Spot in corn and Rust in soybeans. He also talks options for tracks left from a wet growing season.

Ken talks about not throwing the baby out with the bathwater when making decisions for next year based on harvest 2015. Due to wild swings in rainfall and temperature it is important to look at all factors when evaluating a particular practice, product, or hybrid.

Ken gives a yield report as people call in yield averages, indicating the crop is bigger than he expected. Ken also covers things to think about when making your harvest plan and what to do about the weed escapes this fall.

Ken reports on yields coming in and gives some advice on creating a harvesting plan. He also stresses the importance of calibrating your yield monitor to make sure we are getting all the information we can use to improve the farming operation moving forward.

In this week's Boots in the Field Report Ken covers crops from Illinois to Iowa with a focus on how to deal with these bean fields. With harvest getting a start Ken talks about what farmers might have to do to get this bean crop harvested and the need to do push tests in corn fields to make sure you are harvesting fields in the right order.

The nice weather predicted for central Illinois next week means big changes ahead for crop conditions. Listen to this week’s Boots in the Field Report as Ken describes what to expect in the coming weeks and does a crop report of Ohio and Indiana.

In this week’s episode of Boots In The Field Report, Ken gives a crop report on his travels from New York to Alabama. Ken also discusses what he thinks that farmers need to be on the lookout for, which includes the real threat of aphids, warning everyone to be vigilant when scouting soybean fields.

In Central Illinois we have managed to get back to back weeks of good growing weather. In this week's Boots in the Field Report Ken discusses what factors are holding this crop back. Some of the factors playing a big role in keeping us from reaching last year's record breaking yields include ear length and girth, ear count, and tip abortion for corn and clover worms, white mold, and sudden death for soybeans.

While the wether was good this week, Ken talks about some of the issues we are facing in our corn and bean crops in Central Illinois. This week’s Boots In The Field Report will cover white mold, SDS, frog eye, and insect damage in our soybeans. In the corn fields Ken covers dealing with poor pollination, stronger disease pressure, and something making a big impact, Nitrogen levels.

This week’s Boots In The Field Report is packed with information on timely topics for the 2015 crop in Central Illinois. Some of the hot topics Ken covers includes: the current pollination state, pollination issues with insects and hybrids, corn disease showing in area fields, white mold issues, a sudden death update, a breakdown of the pros and cons of late application, and a warning about weeds.

It is too soon to give up on this year's crop. Listen as Ken goes through what we need to do to keep this crop afloat.

This week Isaac Ferrie tackles the topic of adjusting Nitrogen programs after all the rain. He stresses the importance of oxygen in the root zone and the key role nitrates play in making sure you have enough Nitrogen in the tank to finish out the crop. Isaac also walks through things to consider when deciding on aerial application.

The week’s Boots in the Field Report covers: hatching and scouting of Rootworms and Corn Borer, pushing soybean planting populations due to the rain delays, and the importance of keeping on top of nitrate levels!