Mid-Season: Prime Time to Conduct On-Farm Experiments

ALTHOUGH WE’RE DEEP INTO THE GROWING SEASON, THERE’S STILL TIME TO MAKE CHANGES THAT LEAD TO IMPROVED FORAGE YIELD AND QUALITY. MY ADVICE IS TO EXPERIMENT, EVEN ON A SMALL SCALE, TO SEE WHAT CAN MOVE THE NEEDLE.

Here are a few ideas for your consideration:

• Continuous tissue testing. A foliar application of deficient nutrients could be a game changer.
• Late-season nitrogen application. Every season is unique, so it’s beneficial to detect levels and then develop an in-season nutrient plan. Because most nitrogen uptake occurs during the reproduction phase, it’s important to ensure corn plants have sufficient levels available.
• Foliar fungicide application. Multi-year research has shown that applying fungicide leads to 3 or more tons of corn silage. This added tonnage can potentially add another $120 value/acre!

Every operation is different, and each operator has access to different equipment. Regardless of the hurdles, try something new. Invest in an experiment. Select s field or two to experiment, and develop a plan to lower risk, improve quality and gain tonnage. Need more ideas? I’d be happy to help! Feel free to contact me at the Latham office.