As you begin planting this year’s crop, you’re literally laying the groundwork for the following year. With tighter margins and high fertilizer costs, the need for better placement and utilization of fertilizer is greater than ever. Spring grid sampling can help you get a jump on planning your fertilizer for the season and 2015 seed needs.

Spring Grid Sampling is offered as a component of Latham’s Seed-2-Soil program This program is designed to bring added value to each farmer customer by providing field by field prescriptions using information about: soil types within the field, hybrid variety selection, tillage practices, fertility levels and more, with special consideration for the seed technology and equipment you are using.

For those farmers utilizing variable rate technology, soil test values can help set the stage for  implementing variable rate planting, fertilizer and nitrogen; all tools available in our Seed-2-Soil Nutrient Management program.  Learning blocks are assigned throughout the field based on the management zones that were uncovered by the sample data (high, medium and low).  These zones provide the foundation for writing variable rate planting, fertilizer and nitrogen prescriptions accounting for the variability in each field.

ROI is something we can measure. During the past five years, Seed-2-Soil Nutrient Management clients have seen great results from the specialized Nitrogen program.  Many have been able to reduce their nitrogen rates by 25 to 30 pounds per acre while maintaining, and in some cases, increasing yields.

Taking soil samples post-planting can be an important step in your planning process. Contact a Latham representative to learn how Latham’s hallmark Seed-2-Soil® Program, can help you lay the grid work for the coming season.

No-till isn’t a common practice in the northern Corn Belt where rich, black soils lying in flat farm fields tend to receive and hold adequate moisture. Yet, the practice of conservation tillage is on the rise here. Not only do these practices help protect against erosion and preserve water quality, but conservation tillage can also help farmers save time and money.

“The market doesn’t reward us for higher costs, so we’ve found a way to do more with less,” says Carl Roberts, one of 63 Iowa farm families presented with the Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Awardduring a ceremony at the 2013 Iowa State Fair. “All of my acres are no till and half of my total acres are corn on corn. Corn on corn requires better management and is less forgiving than either no till soybeans or strip till corn into soybean stubble.”

Roberts grew up on a farm near Kanawaha, Iowa, and moved to Belmond in 1986 when he had an opportunity to buy his own ground. While he’s conservation minded, he says his number of no-till acres increased as a matter of necessity. He had planned to plant no-till soybeans in 1991 and ended up planting no-till corn that year, too, as wet weather prevented him from finishing planting corn before June 1.

“That year my no-till soybeans yielded more than other soybeans. Yield didn’t take a hit on my corn acres either. Why cut stalks and chisel if the yields aren’t any better?” asks Roberts.

Although tillage doesn’t seem to affect his yields, Roberts says he has learned the hard way that he must pay closer attention to seed selection. “If a plant doesn’t come out of the ground from the seed you planted, it doesn’t matter what its yield potential was,” he says. “I look for strong emergence ratings and excellent early vigor in both corn and soybeans.”

Roberts plants a four-year crop rotation of three years corn, one year soybeans. In year one, he plants only Roundup Ready corn. Second year corn is only Liberty, and third year corn is either RR or RR/LL. Fourth year is conventional soybeans. This rotation helps with both weed control and potential resistance, explains Roberts, plus allows for control of volunteer corn in every crop. He also tries not to use the same BT technology in the following year.  Half of his acres are corn-on-corn and the other half are no-tilled on flat, black ground.

“I’ve strip-tilled for 23 years and I’ve never been hurt in regard to yield from it,” adds Roberts. “Tillage takes more fuel, more time and creates more expenses and I wasn’t seeing the benefit.”

Benefits of conservation tillage include:

• Reducing fuel, labor, and equipment costs. Fewer passes across the field means less fuel and fewer man hours are needed. Tractor hours are fewer, so there’s more value at trade-in time and less wear on tillage tools.
• Reducing soil compaction.  Soil gets compacted when equipment drives over the surface.  Compaction restricts the movement of water, as well as the development of crop roots.
• Reducing erosion. More residue on the soil surface reduces the threat of erosion, especially during those months when no crops are growing. Residue allows for rainwater and snow melt to infiltrate the soil rather than causing surface run off that will carry away topsoil and nutrients. Studies show no-till can cut runoff in half, and reduce erosion by 85% to 95%.

Another longer-term benefit of no-till farming is improved soil structure by building organic matter. Soil organic matter is derived from living organisms, such as plants. Organic matter breaks down and eventually forms humus, which is the central building block of healthy soil.

The Roberts’ love of farming and appreciation for conservation is shared by his wife, Carol, who helps him with the farming operation. Carol grew up on a dairy farm near Lakota. Her family also raised a variety of animals including hogs, rabbits, chickens and ducks. She worked off farm for eight years in the registrar’s office at Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge before she met and married Carl. While she enjoyed that job, Carol says she feels fortunate to be able to once again farm with her family.

“One of the advantages of raising your children in the country is they have more freedoms,” says Carol. “They learn to take on responsibility. They get to explore and discover their own interests.”

The Roberts’ love of agriculture is being passed down to their two children, 16-year-old Joe and 14-year old Jane. This winter, as a freshman, Jane advanced to State Speech Competition with an original oratory on cover crops. Active in both 4-H and FFA, she enjoys exhibiting turkeys. At the 2013 Wright County Fair, she won Champion and Reserve Champion with her turkeys.

Like his sister, Joe is an active member of the Iowa Hawkeyes 4-H Club and the Belmond-Klemme FFA Chapter. Last year he showed chickens at the Wright County Fair, earning Reserve Champion with his pen of three broilers. He enjoys his poultry project but his favorite project area is foods. Joe’s “surprise inside” cake advanced to the Iowa State Fair. He also received a blue ribbon at the state fair with an apple pie, and today he’s sharing that recipe with us on TheFieldPosition.

Post-harvest is the perfect time to take soil samples.  As part of his summer internship, Iowa State University student Kellen Sunkten prepared the following article to explain what a soil test is and why it’s so important.

What a soil test is:  A soil test is a process of testing soil to see how available nutrients are to a plant.  Nutrients are chemically removed from the soil and measured.  The information retained from soil tests is then used to determine how much fertilizer needs to be applied to a field and what nutrient deficiencies must be addressed.  Soil pH, humic matter and exchangeable acidity are also measured to determine how much, if any, lime needs to be applied.

Why soil tests are important: Soil tests are important to determine the right amount of fertilizer.  If too little fertilizer is applied, it can cause growth deficiencies in crops.  If too much fertilizer applied, it’s a financial waste for farmers and runoff becomes an issue.  Soil samples can help farmers develop a plan for maximum crop growth and efficiency.

When sampling should be done:  Soil samples should not be taken within 8 weeks of previous fertilizer application.  Soil sampling should be done as early as possible before planting season to provide for enough time to make fertilizer decisions and have them take effect once applied.  It’s important to apply lime early, if needed, so it has enough time to alter the pH of the soil before planting takes place.

How to take a soil sample:  Use a soil probe and a spade or a hand trowel to dig a V–shaped hole that is 6 to 8 inches below the soilsurface.  Then take a 1-inch slab off of the side of the hole and put it in a clean plastic bucket or bag.  Take 15 to 20 surface samples per 40 acres.  As you take these samples, put them into the same bucket or bag.  When you are finished collecting your samples, mix them all together very well.  Then pull one sample from the mixture for the soil testing lab.  When collecting samples, it’s very important not to use brass, bronze or galvanized tools because they will contaminate your samples with copper and zinc.  Deliver samples to the testing lab within 48 hours of when they are pulled, otherwise bacterial movement will skew the results.

Collecting soil samples now also can (1) help determine whether soybean cyst nematodes (SCN) are present and (2) buy time to develop management strategies, controlling nematode numbers in infested fields.

Fall grid samples are also useful for those farmers who wish to enroll in Latham’s hallmark Seed-2-Soil® program.  Seed-2-Soil helps simplify the crop planning and seed selection processes plus maximize overall yield potential.  It begins with a discussion with a farmer and his Latham® seed rep about all the variables that go into your farming practices each year. Then a scientific computer program helps fit the right seed to the field.  Research has shown that correct product placement leads to a 3-7% yield improvement.

Contact Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds today and harness the power of Seed-2-Soil and fall soil sampling!