The Cropwalker - Volume 7 Issue 30 - Fall Cereal Special
By Jonathan Zettler CPA, CMA, CCA-ON and Patrick Lynch CCA-ON
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General
Crop Conditions - Weather weather below from Farmwest shows CHUs are 6-7 days ahead of long term normal and 8-10 days ahead of last year. If you have your corn silage and edible bean harvest dates from last year you can calculate when you might start this year. Corn the fact that we are ahead of average CHU suggests that we probably will see no advantage from spraying for Tar Spot a second time. Ken Currah from BASF said “some growers who are getting 270-300 bu/ac and have high disease pressure can make a second application pay 4 out of 5 times. For the rest of fields and growers it is “R1 and done” Soybeans are moving along well. Now is when you can start watching for soybean cyst nematodes and Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS). Picture below of SDS is from Syngenta online. The second picture is Soybean Cyst Nematodes. (SCN) The nematodes are similar to small soybean nodules. Soybean nodules are pink on the inside while SCN tends to be more yellow and much smaller.
Things to Do This Week
1. Check your cover crop for emergence, and weeds that can be controlled.
2. Check corn for diseases (especially tar spot) and western bean cutworm, and soybean fields again for diseases. Not much you can do now except understand what may cause a yield loss.
3. Check all soybean fields for spider mites. During this week is when historically they explode.
4. Check your variety/hybrid plots for any differences. If you don’t have your own plots, check those in your area.
5. If you have soil tests back, check to see how the levels have changed and plan your fall broadcast program. Good time to also review any sampling that got missed last year and should be completed after soybeans or corn.
6. Go over preliminary wheat variety trials which are now available for areas 1 and 2 at https://cereals.gocrops.ca/performance-trial-results/
7. Soil sample possible pockets that may contain SCN.
Cereals
Winter Barley vs Winter Wheat (JZ)
Reasons to grow winter barley over winter wheat
1) You like the quality and volume of straw from the winter barley
2) You want to double crop soybeans or another feed crop after the barley is off
3) You want to spread out your workload
4) You have a strong food grade or feed market for the barley
5) You farm water limited soils and want an early flowering cereal crop in the rotation
6) You have been growing spring barley for feed and would like to increase your yields by 1.5 to 2x.
Corn
What do I look for when walking corn this time of year? (JZ)
1. Plant Stand – when walking the field I make note of stalk diameter, how even is it? What size are the cobs attached to the stalk diameter, if there is variation. Is this due to differences in emergence date? (Usually the case). I also look to see how even the spacing is, not as critical when planting lower populations, if you are attempting to push populations, spacing is something to keep in mind when chasing the upper yield targets.
2. Population/Canopy – if checking the field in the middle of the day, there should not be much sunlight hitting the floor of the canopy. If there are basketball sized blocks of sunlight, perhaps you should be pushing your population higher.
3. Corn Leaf Diseases – are northern corn leaf blight or tarspot starting to show up?
4. Insect Feeding – Is Western Bean Cutworm hatched and feeding? Do you have corn rootworm beetles?
5. Nutrient status – are any leaves showing nutrient issues. The main ones that show up this year are how well your nitrogen and potassium program performed.
6. Weed control – were there late season weed escapes? If the field is going to a crop like non-gmo soybeans, or edible beans, what’s the pressure like for Lamb’s Quarters, Pigweed, Ragweed, and nightshade?
7. Yield estimate – at this point in the season you should be able to make a rough yield estimate, and check for pollination. Each silk pollinates one kernel. (next week we will review how to do a yield estimate)
Can I change anything at this point in the season for 2025? No. But now I have a list of longer-term fixes for the next 2-3 growing season.
Cover Crops
Q If I grow a cover crop and spread manure, I am told that the cover crop prevents nitrogen from leaching. Can I reduce my nitrogen rate next year by an amount equal to the nitrogen from the manure plus a credit from the cover crop?
Ans No. Research shows that while cover crops reduce N from leaching you cannot reduce your N rate next year more than what the manure will add. This is because of a couple of reasons. First is the quantity of nitrogen “not leached” i.e., tied up. You may by tying up 30-40 lbs of N per acre. Normally there is 1-2000 lbs of N per % organic matter. (It is interesting that there is this big of a variation. As I researched the topic of amount of N in an acre of topsoil, the researchers had a wide range. This is part of the mystery of nitrogen) If you have a 3.5% organic matter soil you have somewhere around 4,000 lbs of nitrogen. You add another 40 pounds so now you have 4040 pounds of nitrogen. Nitrogen is slowly released from this organic matter. The small amount you add and available for release is too small to be considered. The good thing is this non-leached nitrogen is gradually building up your organic matter.
The second thing is that adding organic matter will tie up nitrogen. In some research trials it has been shown that when you add certain cover crops you need extra nitrogen to overcome the high C:N ratio.
Q. - Anything I can plant this fall as far as broadleaves go to increase soil nitrogen levels?
A. – Not really unless you plan on letting it grow fairly big in the spring. Some have done Hairy Vetch as a nitrogen source, but you would need to let it grow until almost June to get a respectable nitrogen credit. The other option is Austrian Winter peas, but personal experience suggests that winter survival can be an issue when there is no March snow cover and it’s -20 C.
Forages
Q. How late can I plant timothy?
Ans. We like to have alfalfa seeded by August 10-15th. A bit later in longer growing areas. Grasses do not have to be seeded that early. You could seed grasses up to 4 weeks after optimum time for seeding alfalfa. This means you can seed alfalfa ,spray to control volunteer wheat with a product that would also control grasses, and then seed grass after you spray the volunteer wheat.
Fall 2024 Winter Cereal Selection
Thank you to those that have put time and effort into Ontario cereals, it has paid big dividends for the 2024 crop. A summary of top genetics and a few suggestions on management practices in one place.
Largest Self-Induced Yield Limiting Factors in Winter Wheat
In no particular order.
1. Seeding Date. Check OCC website at bottom of page for Optimum Planting date in your area.
2. Lack of starter phosphorus fertilizer. Soil testing is an imperfect science and cannot account for all weather conditions or soil fertility scenarios. Starter phosphorus puts a floor under your yield potential. It is 4x more efficient vs broadcast on a per pound of P basis when it comes to yield response. Use a minimum of 30 lbs./ac P2O5.
3. Uneven spreading of previous crop (soybean) residue when trying to no-till wheat.
4. Improper drill maintenance, leading to an open seed trench and hair pinning and, in some situations, uneven depth control (i.e. loose JD seed boots).
5. Shallow planting leads to heaving, open seed trench. (I like to see 1.5" inches, when this occurs on the soils I work with, I see less winterkill/heaving in the spring).
6. Lack of awareness on thousand kernel weight (TKW) to set the drill to seeds per acre, rather than pounds per acre.
7. Use of improper seed rate for the time of year/yield potential. The plant will put out less tillers if you have adequate seed. Tiller heads contribute less to yield than main heads in winter wheat, out of everything you do to maximize yield potential in wheat, getting the right seeding rate is mission critical (adjust based on planting date!).
8. Fall weed control – winter barley/wheat should start with a clean, weed free seed bed in the fall.
9. Tillage before planting can increase yields. But if you bury white mould sclerotia expect worse white mould in the future.
Winter Barley
SeCan
LCS Calypso - is a 2-row winter barley with strong yields, malting quality, and excellent winter survival. Based on earlier harvest maturity than winter wheat, winter barley varieties including LCS Calypso allow for more crop rotation choice and are a flexible double crop option for grain or forage. Certified seed is available from SeCan retailers across Ontario.
SU Ruzena - is a 2-row winter feed barley available from SeCan. Similar to LCS Calypso, another SeCan winter barley variety, SU Ruzena has improved winter hardiness and grain yield relative to previously marketed winter barley varieties in the province. It has a slightly shorter plant height and better standability compared to LCS Calypso and is well suited to intensive management.
Winter Wheat
A summary of current market offerings for fall 2024. The focus is on new genetics. Typically, suppliers report strong demand for some of these products, so if you have not firmed up your wheat seed needs, now is the time.
For most wheat classes, you can essentially divide what most suppliers have into two, maybe three categories.
The first two are what I would call wheat for typical management and are subdivided for winter survival purposes into genetics for poorly drained or well drained soils, which impacts winter survival. From my experience, the poorly drained wheat genetics tends to tiller more in the spring, to make up for plant stand mortality. Under normal conditions where higher levels of stand mortality are not a concern, these tillers tend to be a hinderance, and lead to increased lodging.
A third category would be those looking for a wheat that responds to high levels of management.
Soft Red Winter
Brevant
Brevant varieties are now exclusively out licensed.
C&M Seeds
Blaze (awned) – Excellent yields with great winter survival. FHB1 gene (prevents secondary infection) for excellent fusarium tolerance. Strong stripe rust. Small seeded for seed cost savings. Medium-tall plant height with decent standability and lots of straw. If you are an organic grower, look for this one (due to strong fusarium tolerance). Well suited to all soil types and regions. Responds well to PGR.
Hilliard (awned) – C&M is recommending this racehorse on high fertility and intensive management farms. It has very fast emergence with an excellent disease package. Medium plant height. Lots of bright straw, expected to respond to intensive management. Position on loam and clay loam soils in early part of seeding window. Responds well to PGR.
Fuze (awned) – Registration pending. First year for sale. Very strong yields across many plots through the region. Medium height and stands quite well. Nice even canopy. Excellent yield, and also has the FHB-1 gene to assist in protecting against fusarium spread. Early maturity, with excellent thresh ability reports. Limited seed available this year but looking to try Fuze all over Ontario.
Swoop (awnless) – Second year for sale. Rising to the upper part of the pack in many plots. Seems durable in more challenging soil conditions. Bigger plant, lush canopy, responds well to intensive management. Use lighter seeding rate, and a PGR in high fertility soil to resist lodging. Will provide big straw volumes as well.
Cruze (awned) – Final year for sale, try some Fuze.
Pioneer
Our commercial lineup for Fall 2024 consists of three soft red winter and one soft white winter variety:
New 25R29 (Awned) - Limited launch quantity in Fall 2023 – increased commercial quantity for Fall 2024. Full maturity variety heading later than 25R40. High yield potential, with well-balanced agronomics. Strong Fusarium Head Blight performance (FHB genetics), excellent standability, winterhardiness, and test weight. Stripe rust performance is average warranting fungicide control. The tallest of current commercial varieties, showing height comparable to 25R61.
25R64 (Awned) – Full maturity variety with later heading date but similar physiological maturity to 25R40. Suitable for high management acres. Yield leader continuing to show significant yield advantage over 25R40 and all other commercial varieties over multiyear field testing. Excellent standability and well-balanced agronomic disease protection including good fusarium head blight (FHB genetics), and good winterhardiness. Stripe rust performance is average appearing better than 25R29 in the field but may still require fungicide management under higher pressure. Plant height is taller than 25R40 but typically shorter than 25R29. Test weight is average but should be a consideration in stressful environments where grain fill tends to be cut short.
New 25R65 (Awned) – New limited launch quantity in Fall 2024. Mid maturity variety with heading date and physiological maturity similar to 25R40. Initial field scale plots from harvest 2024 indicate yield performance similar to and ahead of 25R64 in SW Ontario. Excellent standability and winterhardiness. Strong disease package including in-field performance on fusarium head blight. Stripe rust is above average showing better performance than 25R29 and 25R64 in 2024 but may still warrant control. Plant height is similar to slightly taller than 25R64.
Note: Limited quantities of 25R40, 25R61, and 25R74 are available as they are phased out of commercial availability this year.
Secan - these are available from Secan retail members
OAC Constellation - Well-rounded, awned SRW wheat that provides winter survival, standability, straw, yield, test weight and grade retention. This variety has a strong defense against leaf and stripe rusts. In addition to having high test weights, it also has excellent grade retention with minimized pre-harvest sprouting damage. Over the past few years in seed and commercial production, it has held high falling numbers during challenging harvest conditions.
OAC Moon - New, awned soft red winter wheat with short plant height and great thresh ability. This ‘racehorse’ variety will push yield and reward growers who intensively manage their wheat production. Small seed size translates to lower seed costs per acre. Very limited Certified seed available for fall 2024.
OAC Virgo - Another new soft red winter wheat variety developed by the University of Guelph and marketed by SeCan retailers. OAC Virgo is broadly adapted for every winter wheat acre across the province. Its well-rounded disease package is suited for growers who are using less intensive management or following organic production practices. While not truly awnless, this variety has very short awns called awnlets and is ideal for growers who want a variety with minimal awn volumes.
Snobelen Farms (Selected soft red varieties)
Snobelen Farms has an exceptional winter wheat line up for fall of 2024. With 8 soft red winter wheats and 1 soft white winter wheat, we have a variety that will fit your needs.
OAC Constellation - Offering exceptional disease tolerance to Leaf and strip rust and powdery mildew. Medium plant height with lots of straw and very good lodging scores. Above average test weight and excellent yield with a 104 Yield index over a 5-year period in area 2 provincial trials
GRO-08SRW- NEW for 2024. Above average test weight. Very good winter survival and lodging scores. Medium- Short plant height. Excellent yield. Good disease scores for rust and mildew.
OAC Virgo – NEW for 2024. Above average test weight. Excellent disease scores for Rust and mildew with great stay green. Medium tall plant height with very good lodging scores. Good winter survival scores. 103 Yield index over 2-year period for area 2.
Marker (awnless) – Performs best on tougher soil types, Good disease package. Medium plant height.
Hard Red Winter
C&M Seeds
Hard Red Winter Wheat is in BIG demand in Ontario for coming years. Ontario mills need more. Ask your grain buyers about premium pricing opportunities. C&M Seeds positions both Adrianus and Pro81 as having yields close to soft red wheats, while maintaining a stronger protein profile when grown with intensive management.
Adrianus (awned) – It is medium-tall, with awns, and excellent plant health. It is a later maturing variety and gives a nice plump clean grain sample. Very high-quality grain sample maintained right through duration of harvest. MAXIMUM straw volumes. Superb natural standability. Only consider low-rate PGR if grown in ultra-aggressive fertility. Suitable for all soil types.
PRO 81 (awned) – It has a strong natural leaf disease package, and tall plant height. Small seed size makes it easier to plant high populations. PRO 81 will tiller aggressively and create an impressive and dense canopy. Rated as suitable for all soil types and regions. Plan to use a PGR. Very large straw volume. Strong protein and functionality.
Redford (awnless) – Brand new this year. Only for sale in plots. Very big canopy with aggressive vigour and growth. HUGE flag leaf. Very “handsome” looking crop. Deep lush canopy colour that catches the eye from start to finish. Elongated seed head. Expecting big straw volumes. Mid to late maturity. Keep an eye for this one!
Soft White Winter
Nothing new for the 2024 fall season in the soft white category.
Hybrid Rye
C&M continues to offer Brasetto Hybrid Rye. This hybrid is suitable for sandy or lighter soil textures where having adequate moisture is a concern for winter wheat. End users like the consistency and high-quality grain while providing strong tillering and plant health for those growing it.
Winter Wheat – Unsure on your area or optimal planting date?
Ontario Cereals Crop Committee Test Area Map below.
https://cereals.gocrops.ca/performance-trial-results/#winter-wheat
Optimal Winter Wheat Planting Date Map by Area below.
“Perfection is a disease. Procrastination is a disease. ACTION is the cure.”
-Richie Norton