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  This year a common question is how to control common insect pests of crops and vegetables, a task that is becoming more difficult. Farmers who use seed treatments and broad-spectrum insecticides to terminate pests generally also terminate the beneficial natural predators. Some common Ohio corn and soybeans pests include soybean cysts nematodes, stink bug, wireworm, seed corn maggot, black cutworm, and true armyworm. Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN) damage soybean roots and has six life stages, 3-4 weeks apart. Soybean damage looks like stunted yellow soybeans, generally in circular or oval areas where SCN egg populations are high. There are numerous predators to SCN including Endo parasitic fungi, predatory nematodes, mites, Collembola (jumping springtails), Enchytraeids (pot worms), rove beetles, and centipedes. Cover crops like cereal rye and annual ryegrass planted early in the fall when soil temperatures are above 500F may reduce SCN levels 60-80%. The invasive brown marmorated stink

  Biologicals may be the next revolution in farming. Biologicals are natural products, either living or chemical by-products, that benefit crop production. Chemical by-products include minerals, organic materials, and plant extracts. Many snake oil type products exist on the market and it is difficult to separate out good products from bad. Dr. Jane Fife, 3 Bar Biologics outlined the use of biologics at the Conservation Tillage Conference. A number of bio-stimulants and bio-fertilizers decrease many environmental stresses like drought, high or low temperatures, and soils with high salts. Many products also improve the plant’s ability to recycle soil nutrients and speed up biological processes. The problem with many biologicals is that they are not highly regulated yet but bioinsecticides are regulated. A common example is Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) which is a registered and regulated bioinsecticide. Other substances can be living or nonliving and have been harder to regulate. Most pro

Farmers use corn starter fertilizer to increase corn yields? True but the 25-36% increased growth at V6 (young corn, six true leaves) may only increase corn yield 2-3%. Weather and soil conditions after planting often have a greater influence on crop yield than starter fertilizer. However, farmers want to get their corn crop off to a great start so they have a chance at achieving those higher corn yields. Where do farmers get a big boost from corn starter fertilizer? Generally, soils that are low in nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) respond the most to N-P-K starter. Corn after corn responds to added N. No-till fields with cover crops respond to early applied N due to a higher carbon: nitrogen (C:N) ratio in the soil. In no-till fields, 40-60# of N is suggested at planting to overcome the N deficient. Soil microbes need the N to break down cover crop roots and possibly higher crop residue. Poorly drained soils that are cold and wet also respond to starter fertilizer becau

  A new study by Purdue University, Dr. Bill Johnson shows the benefits of cover crops for weed control. Cover crops are known to control grasses and marestail, but Dr. Johnson wanted to document other weed control benefits. For example, can you control weeds with out residual herbicides? What other weeds do cover crops control? Dr. Johnson found residual herbicides may not be needed if crop residue is high enough to suppress marestail and annual grasses weeds. For other broadleaf weeds, the cover crop residue was not enough to suppress broadleaf weeds. The cover crops plus residual herbicides were 100% effective at controlling weeds in his trials. Cocklebur was a problem weed which required the full rate of herbicide plus the cover crop residue to control it. Dr. Johnson discovered several other important weed facts about cover crops. Planting green or planting soybeans into cereal rye later had a much higher success rate than terminating the cover crop early. The Purdue research team

General Observations: *The longer the wait to apply any fungicide after mycorrhizal fungi inoculation, the better for the mycorrhizal fungi development. **Most foliar sprays of any fungicide (except systemics such as Bayleton) have little effect on mycorrhizal fungi. This chart is updated periodically, as new products are added, and results of new trials are published. Please visit  www.mycorrhizae.com or contact your Mycorrhizal Applications Representative for the latest version of this chart.

Most farmers have stopped inoculating soybeans but with todays prices, is it worth considering? In most cases, if soybeans have been grown in the last 3-5 years, the soil contains rhizobia (Bradyrhizobium japonicum) bacteria which fix atmospheric nitrogen in their root nodules to produce soybean seed. Although these soils have rhizobia, do you have enough and does it pay to inoculate every year. Dr. Jim Beuerline’s Ohio research (2004) showed farmers gain 1.94 soybean bushels per acre when they inoculated their crops every year. Since inoculant costs $5 to $7 per acre, at $14 per soybean bushel, that’s a return of 4X-6X your investments. For some farms the yield increase is 2-6 bushel ($28-$84)/acre or a return of 4X-16X. In most cases, inoculating soybeans is an investment that is at least worth considering! Here are some cases where it really pays. First, if your soil has been flooded or have standing water for more than 1 week, inoculation can pay off. On the other hand, if you inoc

Farmers seem to either lover or hate cover crops. Cover crops have many benefits, but they may be hard to see immediately. First the bad or difficult things about cover crops will be discussed followed by the benefits. Cover crops cost money for seed, planting, and sometimes termination. It takes more knowledge and experience to plant cover crops and to use it with no-till (school of hard knocks), so its risky at first. The timeliness factor, getting cover crops planted on time and established is difficult. Herbicide carryover can be an issue and sometimes it requires different equipment (no-till, sprayers, spreaders) although less or no tillage equipment if used in a no-till system. Then there are the pests (slugs, voles, cutworms) that love a good feast. Cover crop residue may have an allelopathic or negative growing effect on the grain crop. It can be difficult to plant timely if soils stay cold and wet (sounds like a compaction problem) and sometimes planting is delayed and soil ge

There are an estimated 275,000 different plant species on earth. Each contain thousands of unique chemical compounds, however, each individual plant with its own unique genetic can also produce their own unique variations to these compounds. A plant with one thousand plant chemicals can literally combine them a million different ways. When you add diversity to a plant and soil microbial community, you can get significant changes to both the soil and the plant response with only minute changes. The changes can be dramatic. Many companies are now experimenting with using biologicals (microbes, plant extracts, etc) to stimulate plant growth and yield. At the National No-till on the Plains conference, Wichita Kansas, a researcher (Chris Teachout) described a process he was investigating to promote higher soybean yields. Chris was using a liquid compost worm extract that he applied directly to the soybean seed. This extract is extremely high in beneficial bacteria and some plant nutrients.

USDA-NRCS (Natural Resource Conservation Service) is promoting farmers to adapt a soil health management plan for their farms. NRCS defines soil health as “the continued capacity of a soil to function as a vital living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals, and humans.” There are several key concepts. First, soil is alive and teaming with soil microbes and other biological life (earthworms, mites, springtails, etc.). Second, soil has many functions that are critical to our life.  Key essential soil functions include: 1) regulating water, 2) sustaining plant and animal life, 3) filtering and buffering potential pollutants, 4) cycling soil nutrients and 5) providing physical stability and support. Soil microbes mediate about 90% of all soil functions. Microbes process all soil carbon and even breakdown rocks to make plant nutrients available. Also, soil microbes are the end-product of most soil organic matter (SOM). Dead microbes become the long-term SOM Soils help control (regulate) w

  The US Farm Bill talks are now starting and a recent poll by Morning Consult (Walton Family Foundation) shows that voters support sustainable farming practices. Most Americans understand that keeping farming profitable is important for our national security but they also want healthy food and water and they support farming practices that make agriculture sustainable. Key summary points from this poll: “Nearly 90% of Americans believe that it is important to update and encourage sustainable farming practices that support clean water and healthy, productive soil." “Roughly 80% of Americans also support modernizing the Farm Bill to support farmers as they implement more sustainable farming practices.” A key Walton Foundation Conclusion of this poll was: "Supporting farmers to grow food more sustainably is a way to protect people and nature together. This should be a priority in the Farm Bill, and also a call to action to the food industry – people are hungry for sustainable op

  What value do cover crops bring to a farm field? As the old saying goes: There are a 1000 ways to skin a cat! Please do not take that literally. I came across two sources that try to put a value on cover crops for their farms. Rulon farms in Indiana have been doing no-till and cover crops since 2005. They farm 5600 acres, 50-50 corn -soybean, using no-till and about 90% of their acres have cover crops. This is a family farm with one brother being a Purdue Economist. Since they believe the benefits accrue over many years, they do a “whole farm” cost-benefit approach (costs and benefits/acre are additive). The Rulon’s have used 4 different cover crop mixes using mostly spring oats, radish, rape, and crimson clover (after early corn) or simply cereal rye after late corn. Their average cost per acre for seed is around $22/acre. The cost for seeding is another $13 for a total cost per acre of $35 (whole farm).Cover crop benefits are varied and additive. On fertilizer, they figure they sav

From getting a thick stand of cover crops to terminating them at the right time, roller-crimping experts explain the key components for weed control in organic no-till. Rolling and crimping of cover crops is a crucial component to making organic no-tilling work, experts say. Biomass left over from a healthy canopy of cover crops can suppress weeds, while roller-crimpers handle cover crop termination — all without the use of herbicides or tillage. But ensuring that the cover crop grows enough biomass to suppress weeds and is completely killed requires dedicated management. Read Full Article ESSENTIAL TOOL. Roller-crimpers, such as this one originally designed by The Rodale Institute, are perhaps the most important equipment for organic no-tillers to own, as they let growers terminate cover crops without chemicals and lay down thick mulch to smother weeds. (Photo Courtesy of The Rodale Institute)

  Tips for First Time No-tillers Veteran no-tillers know that no-till farming offers several benefits including keeping soil in place, improved nutrient recycling; savings on labor and fuel; and improved water infiltration, water storage, and drought resiliency. No-till means that farmers plant into an undisturbed soil that is teaming with microbes. Beneficial microbes prefer a stable environment to grow, so soil health improves over time. High fuel prices, high inputs costs for chemicals and fertilizer, labor shortages, and weather issues are starting to make no-till farming more appealing. Getting started in no-till can be challenging because it is a different system and it takes time to learn new skills. Here are some tips for getting started. First, it helps to solve some of your existing problems. Make sure you have adequate drainage, take care of the weeds, and soil tests to address fertility issues. Do not forget to check on micronutrient levels. No-till can help with these prob

  The following article was adapted from an article entitled “More than 50 billion tons of topsoil have eroded in the Midwest” (Elizabeth Gamillo). The estimate of annual soil loss is double the rate of erosion USDA considers sustainable. Soil scientist estimates that 57.6 billion tons of topsoil has been lost in the USA in the last 160 years. During the Dust Bowl era (1930’s), over 20 tons of topsoil per acre were lost annually in the Midwest due to wind erosion. Due to soil conservation efforts, erosion rates declined to around 7.4 tons nationwide and new estimates are closer to 5 tons per year. However, these are only estimates and sometimes the way these numbers are calculated differs. In many cases, they are looking at only sheet, rill, and wind erosion; ignoring the gully erosion which is the most severe. Sheet erosion is the thin layer of topsoil that erodes across the whole field and is barely noticeable. Rill erosion occurs when water runs off and forms small channels as it mo