Good evening,
It seems as time is just flying by as I have been out of the office the past three days at the Manure Science Review, vegetable crop training, and the Ohio State Fair. Last week I took ear leaf samples from the Nitrogen Rate corn fertility plot near Alger. These samples were pulled while the corn was in the R1 or silking stage to be sent to the lab and analyzed for nutrients. I seemed to get lucky this time and did not do the sampling while the pollen was dropping, but a pollen anther did plug up the charging jack in my phone as it took the help of 4-H Educator Mark Light to determine why my phone wasn’t charging. The good thing to point out was that I avoided the pollen spread in the early morning and late afternoon or early evening. The bad thing was that I collected the samples in the heat of the afternoon. Either way, the job is done and the lab in Wooster can now work with the ear leaves to get the data they need.
Dr. Steve Culman addressed the audience at the program Tuesday evening at Mid-Ohio Energy Cooperative about the compaction issues in the county. See the attached article for related information on this topic. His take home message included a combination of using a v-ripper or deep tillage, adding organic matter, and planting small grains and cover crops to help break up compaction layers and build back soil structure. Much more research needs to be done on this topic, which is why he is leading a study to address this issue around pipelines in other areas of the state. Soil disturbance is taking place but the amount of compaction and the impact on crop production is largely unknown. The Hardin County Precision Ag Field Day is creeping up on us with the date of August 23. Registration is now open for this field day so make sure you read the article below and register at go.osu.edu/hardinprecisionagday or by calling the Hardin County Extension office at 419-674-2297 by August 16 in order that we can plan for meals and other arrangements for this free field day near Forest. Remember that you can earn fertilizer credit by attending this field day if you have not yet received your yellow fertilizer card from the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
Soil Compaction Issues – Part One
2017 Champaign Precision Ag Day Flyer
Another Precision Ag Field Day is coming up August 17 in Champaign County. I have attached a flyer for this event if you are interested in making the trip to Urbana. Topics presented at this Champaign County field day include: Economics of Precision Soil Sampling, Nitrogen Placement, Sulfur Requirements in Corn, Soil Fertility Limitations in Soybeans, and a Water Quality Update. There will also be an option for fertilizer certification at this event so check the flyer for registration information if interested. Local events coming up soon include Ag Council tomorrow morning (8/4) starting at 7:00 am at Henry’s Restaurant; Fairboard meeting Saturday (8/5) starting at 7:30 pm in the Arts & Crafts Building at the fairgrounds; and a Food Safety Training being taught by our Family and Consumer Sciences Educator Jami Dellifield on Wednesday (8/9) starting at 7:00 pm for volunteers in charge of serving food at the fair and other events. This training is scheduled to happen at the Extension office. Enjoy your weekend and see the articles below for more information about ag crops.
Mark
Precision Ag Field Day August 23 – Mark Badertscher
Mark your calendar now for the Hardin County Precision Ag Field Day to be held August 23 at Kellogg Farms, 17392 Township Road 50 near Forest. Bill and Shane Kellogg have committed 305 acres to the Blanchard River Demonstration Farms Network in cooperation with Ohio Farm Bureau and USDA. Existing edge of field research shows that placing nutrients below ground dramatically decreases potential for nutrient losses. This farm utilizes subsurface placement of nutrients using strip tillage techniques. Cost savings and yield benefits that can be achieved by improving nutrient efficiencies by subsurface nutrient placement are being measured. In addition, various crop rotations are being compared while testing how to best implement cover crops and reduce tillage in those rotations. This farm is testing technologies that will help improve crop input efficiency, lower cost of production, while protecting our water quality. Read more about this upcoming field day at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2017-21/precision-ag-field-day-august-23.
Pollination Underway in April Planted Corn – Peter Thomison
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service for the week ending 7-9-17, 10% of the state’s corn was silking compared to 16% for the 5-year average. Given the wide range in corn planting dates this year, some late planted (corn planted in mid-June corn) may not achieve tasselling and silking until early August. The pollination period, the flowering stage in corn, is the most critical period in the development of a corn plant from the standpoint of grain yield determination. Stress conditions (such as hail damage and drought) have the greatest impact on yield potential during the reproductive stage. The following are some key steps in the corn pollination process. Most corn hybrids tassel and silk about the same time although some variability exists among hybrids and environments. On a typical midsummer day, peak pollen shed occurs in the morning between 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. followed by a second round of pollen shed late in the afternoon. To read more about the pollination process in corn, go to https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2017-21/pollination-underway-april-planted-corn.
First Report of Frogeye Leaf Spot in Ohio – is it Sensitive? – Ethan Smatnik, Linda Weber, Anne Dorrance
Northern Ohio and North Central Ohio farmers need to focus on Sclerotinia as we move into flowering. Southern Ohio producers also have something to focus on, scouting for frogeye leaf spot. There are still a few very high yielding but very susceptible cultivars planted in Ohio and it is the susceptible ones that we are most concerned about. Losses of 35% have been reported when the disease starts early and we have consistent, weekly rains. Another complication in the frogeye story, Ohio has a mixed population, some strains are still susceptible to the strobilurin class of fungicides while other strains are resistant, and some fields have both. We do have funding this year from Ohio Soybean Council to evaluate the strains for sensitivity to strobilurin fungicides. So if you have some samples, please mail them to us and we will test for sensitivity to strobilurin fungicides. Click on https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2017-21/first-report-frogeye-leaf-spot-ohio-%E2%80%93-it-sensitive to read more about Frogeye Leaf Spot in soybean.
Southern Rust and Common Rust on Hybrid Corn: How to Tell Them Apart – Pierce Paul
Ohio corn producers are reporting more rust on corn this year, and are concerned that it might be southern rust, the rarer but more damaging of the two major rust diseases that affect corn in state. Based on the fact that they both produce rusty looking pustules on the leaves, producers may actually be confusing common rust with southern rust, especially when they are not occurring side-by-side on the same leaf. Fungicides do equally well against both diseases, but are rarely ever needed for common rust on hybrid corn. Scout fields and observe the weather before making an application. As it becomes warm and dry, typical of summers in Ohio, the development and spread of common rust slow down considerably or stop. For southern rust, however, fungicides may be warranted and economically beneficial if timed correctly (as soon as the first few pustules are observed). To find out more about rust in corn, go to https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2017-22/southern-rust-and-common-rust-hybrid-corn-how-tell-them-apart.
Western Bean Cutworm Monitoring Update for Week Ending July 21, 2017 – with assistance from Mark Badertscher, Lee Beers, JD Bethel, Bruce Clevenger, Sam Custer, Thomas Dehaas, Allen Gahler, Mike Gastier, Ed Lentz, Rory Lewandowski, David Marrison, Cecelia Lokai-Minnich, Sarah Noggle, Les Ober, Adrian Pekarcik, Eric Richer, Garth Ruff, John Schoenhals, Jeff Stachler, Alan Sundermeier, Chris Zoller
Western bean cutworm (WBCW) populations have decreased across monitoring counties in Ohio. A total of 68 traps were monitored in 19 counties. Overall, 3451 WBCW adults were captured. The average number of WBCW per trap decreased from 68.71 last week, to 50.75 this week. Go to https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2017-23/western-bean-cutworm-monitoring-update-week-ending-july-21-2017 to check out the state WBC map and graph for this week.
Mark A. Badertscher
Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator
OSU Extension Hardin County
1021 W. Lima Street, Suite 103, Kenton, OH 43326
419-674-2297 Office
hardin.osu.edu