by Lyle Marcus, Corn Product Manager

Each December and January Latham’s Corn Product Team reviews all the yield data from the current year plots and from previous years for products that are currently in our lineup, as well as for experimental products that we are considering adding to our lineup.

We fine-tune positioning information for each product and then incorporate that into our company’s product guide and tech sheets. In addition to yield results, we review field notes about product characteristics that we took throughout the growing season.

Our RSMs provide valuable insight that comes from their experiences working directly with you, our customers. We also ask the Latham Sales Team to submit a “Needs Assessment,” so we can match our product offering to customers’ needs. Feedback from Latham® dealers also provides valuable insight.

In addition to RSM and dealer input, Latham’s MiniStrip™ and SuperStrip™ plots help identify hybrids that fit identified needs. Plots planted across our marketing footprint allow us to look for hybrids that can outperform our key hybrids, so our customers can have confidence that we are continually advancing our corn lineup.

SuperStrip plots test the same group of corn hybrids on several farms during the same year. Our MiniStrip plot program allows us to contract with independent third parties to test both existing products, potential new products and experimental products in multiple locations across our footprint. Through our plot programs, we collect data on how hybrids perform by soil type and under various environmental conditions. Hybrids also are evaluated throughout the growing season for their overall characteristics and then taken to yield at harvest as a final comparison.

Research data provides us with building blocks for our crop plan. Keep in mind, what we plant in 2021 becomes the seed we will offer for farmers to plant in 2022.

Winter is really an exciting and busy time of the year for the product team!

Tune in for discussion on choosing planting population by hybrid. Take time this winter to make a game plan for spring! #AsktheAgronomist

Ask the Agronomist: Managing Stress & Ear Flex: https://www.lathamseeds.com/2020/10/ask-the-agronomist-managing-stress-ear-flex/

Single-year data from corn test plots or even whole-field results can cause a farmer to question what hybrids to plant next spring. Because yields were especially variable across the Upper Midwest in 2020, I want to remind you how important it is to look at more than one year’s worth and more than one location’s worth of data.

Here are two ways you can use multi-year yield data effectively:

1. Select individual hybrids that are consistently top performers.
2. Look for groups of hybrids that, when planted together, provide top yield averages over time. In my experience, planting top-performing packages provides farmers with more uniform success. Planting packages of hybrids with top performance lessens variability.

Our 2020 plot data from F.I.R.S.T. Trials, on-farm SuperStrips with cooperating Latham® dealers, as well as our replicated MiniStrips proves again that Latham brand hybrids are top-yielding hybrids. Our wide area of testing shows very strong performance of Latham hybrids across various environments, soil types and management practices.

As I was preparing multi-year data to share during last month’s Post-Harvest Huddle meetings with Latham dealers, these top performers captured my attention. Be sure to take a closer look at these Latham brand hybrids as you finalize your 2021 crop plans:

• LH 3937 VT2 PRO RIB: This 89-day hybrid has quickly become a favorite of our early-season customers in North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. It is the anchor in packages in the 85- to 92-day group. This hybrid earned four Top 5 finishes in 2020 F.I.R.S.T. Trials and won in the 2019 F.I.R.S.T. Trials. It also earned 1st place in 2020 Latham SuperStrips plus finished 1st and 2nd in 2019 SuperStrips. Our customers have made consistent yields over time by packaging this hybrid with LH 3695 VT2 PRO RIB, LH 4097 VT2 PRO RIB and LH 4242 VT2 PRO RIB.
• LH 4937 VT2 PRO RIB: This top yielding, 99-day hybrid performs across a wide area for adaptability. We have seen great yields across Latham Country. Its accolades include 1st place and Top 5 finishes in the 2018, 2019 and 2020 F.I.R.S.T. Trials. It also topped SuperStrip plots from 2018 to 2020. Package this hybrid with LH 4454 VT2 PRO RIB, LH 4657 VT2 PRO RIB and LH 5047 VT2 PRO RIB for an outstanding group of hybrids to fit 94- to 100-day maturity.
• LH 5245 VT2 PRO RIB: Latham customers are raving about the yields they saw this year from LH 5245 VT2 PRO RIB. This hybrid’s performance during the past three seasons has made it one of the top 102-day performers across Latham Country against competitors. Package this hybrid with LH 4937 VT2 PRO RIB and LH 5047 VT2 PRO RIB for a 99- to 102-day package. In fuller season areas, pair it with LH 5377 VT2 PRO RIB and LH 5487 VT2 PRO RIB.
• LH 5725 VT2 PRO RIB: This 107-day product has the ability to move north as a full-season product. It performed well across the Southern Minnesota F.I.R.S.T. Trials locations. It has several multi-year F.I.R.S.T. Trial wins and top finishes from Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin. Plant this hybrid with LH 5245 VT2 PRO RIB, LH 5487 VT2 PRO RIB, LH 5635 VT2 PRO RIB, LH 5847 VT2 PRO RIB and LH 6285 VT2 PRO RIB for outstanding yield averages in different maturities.

Click here to find more yield data.