I am pleased to bring you another independent plot inspection, this time from Austin Plogger, Division Crop Consultant representing Nutrien Ag Solutions. Nutrien is now the corporate owner of Crop Production Services which became effective July 1, 2018. Austin inspected the plot this morning July 18th.
I walked the plot today on behalf of Larry Hanna and Nutrien Ag Solutions in Pittsfield. I must say the genetics in today’s corn is out of this world. Overall the plot was set up quite well and I was glad to see so many participants. I had the luxury to check all the different hybrids out there. What I saw was a lot of great corn. I was glad to see the fungicide and insecticide applications were applied on the plot because the most concerning things was the amount of Gray Leaf Spot and Japanese Beetles present. It was probably a little late due to fact that there was so much Gray Leaf already present and some of the lesions were at or past the ear leaf.
As of today, July 18th, the corn was at late R3 or early R4 (depending on hybrid). Overall, it is going to be a great corn crop and hopefully we will have the yield results to prove that to us. In addition to the Gray Leaf Spot and Japanese Beetles present, I also saw a few hybrids with some Northern Corn Leaf Blight as well as a few cases of smut. Some hybrids showed more susceptibility to the Gray Leaf and other fungi than others. Other than that, the pest pressure was okay. Vey clean fields with hardly any weeds, so that is a plus. There were a couple numbers that concerned me with their tips not fully filling out on a consistent basis, based on hybrid. Other than that, most numbers looked extremely well and should yield phenomenally.
Of the hybrids we mainly sell, including Dyna-Gro and DeKalb numbers, I was very impressed. The DeKalb number at three population levels was consistently 18 kernels around with long, dense ears that were completely filled out. The Dyna-Gro number was consistently 16 kernels around with big kernels that were filled out to the tip. The 16-around does not bother me due to the weight of the bigger kernels and the ear as a whole. Our Dyna-Gro also showed great tolerance to the Gray Leaf Spot. Though it was present, it was minimal compared to many of the other hybrids. There were only two hybrids out of the whole plot that concerned me with the amount of disease or small ears.
Thank you, Joe, for putting this all together and I will be excited to see the report with everyone else’s agronomic opinions, as well as the final yield results for the plot. Good luck and thanks for the opportunity to participate.
Austin Plogger
Division Crop Consultant / Sales Trainee
West Central Illinois / Missouri Division
6468 Interstate Court
Hannibal, MO 63401
Phone: 217-248-4624
austin.plogger@nutrien.com
www.nutrienagsolutions.com