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Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

MidSeason Corn Scouting Report

No matter how sophisticated and Hi‑Tech farming becomes, nothing can replace a little “low tech” hands-on scouting. A little time spent observing plant characteristics, insect pressure and field conditions can actually help you increase yield results next season.

Two or three weeks after pollination is a critical period for kernel set. After pollination, when the silks turn brown and dry up, carefully unwrap the husk leaves and gently shake the ear. Silks from the pollinated ovules will readily drop off. Silks that don’t drop off have not been fertilized. You may also notice “fresh” long silks, which is a symptom of unsuccessful pollination. If corn did not pollinate, it’s important to determine if it is from insect problems or weather related.

This season, there was notable unevenness in pollination due to spring weather conditions and wet soils. Inspecting fields today to evaluate ear development in relation to conditions can help determine the cause of the problem and help plan on which tech traits to consider using next season. Matching traits to know growing conditions can maximize the yield potential of ever acre you plant.

John Latham, President

July 13, 2008

Agronomics, Insects, Weed Control
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Addressing weed resistance
Some farmers have asked us whether Roundup®-resistant weeds could develop in their fields. While there is a potential for weed resistance to develop, it can be greatly minimized through best management practices.

A pre-emptive strategy to minimize the problem in corn can be accomplished by integrating tillage, crop rotation, rotation with herbicides with different modes of action (preferably soil applied herbicides) and tank mixes of different herbicides.

Roundup Ready technology can be used effectively, year after year, while minimizing the risks of developing weed resistance. One of the biggest pluses for corn growers in meeting the resistance challenge is the fact that they can learn from the experience gained from other Roundup Ready crops introduced over the past two decades.

In Summary:
- Know your weed pressure in each field and understand weed emergence patterns to ensure timely post-emergence applications.
- Use a residual herbicide to manage early-season weed flushes.
- Be sure fields are weed-free when planting starts. Corn is especially sensitive to weed competition early in the season.
- Remove weeds before they get 4 or 5 inches tall or there can be a dramatic decline in yield.
- Apply a full rate of Roundup herbicide when weeds are the right size.
For hard-to-control weeds, consider using a diversified weed control strategy, such as cultivation and herbicide with a different mode of action.
John Latham, President

July 3, 2008

Agronomics, Weed Control
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Western Bean Cutworm: A threat to Iowa's fields this summer
ABOVE: Western Bean Cutworm Larva (Iowa State University)

The Western Bean Cutworm (WBC) has moved into Iowa — and the rest of the Midwest — and it’s making itself at home. The insect first appeared in Iowa in 2000, and has been confirmed in all 99 counties, according to Ag extension experts. Not only are the insects in Iowa, they’re marching east with confirmed cases in Michigan and Ohio.

It is possible to control the pests, but it will take careful scouting and well timed insecticide application. There is no doubt that Western Bean Cutworm is here, and we are going to have to deal with it long-term.

While scouting your fields this season, follow these tips for dealing with Western Bean Cutworm:
- Plants are most vulnerable to cutworm damage just prior to pollination.
- These cutworms feed on silks, tassels, and ears depending on the time of emergence.
- Cutworm feedings cause direct effects on yield, but it also allows other pests to invade wounded plants. Yield losses can reach up to 30-40 percent.
- WBC’s over-winter in the larval stage and emerge in the pupil stage in May and June.
- In mid-July, the pest will be fully developed as an adult. During this time, farmers should scout for moths both in the air and lying in the upper third of the plant.
- Adults will invade during the late whorl stage to begin laying their eggs.
- Scout for clusters of eggs on the upper-third of the plant. Eggs may also be found on the underside of leaves.
- Eggs hatch five days later and WBC larvae begin to feed for the following 3 to 5 weeks.
- In September, the pests return to the soil and begin to prepare for the wintering stage.
- Farmers should follow these general rules of thumb when scouting and determining WBC thresholds in their fields this season. Treat if…
  - Eight percent of plants show presence of egg masses or larvae, and 90-95% of tassels has emerged.
  - If tassels are already emerged at the time of diagnosis, 70-90% of the eggs should be hatched before application of insecticide.
- Timing of insecticide application is critical for control of the WBC. Once the insect tunnels into the silk channel, treatment by insecticide is almost-impossible.
ABOVE: Western Bean Cutworm Moth (Iowa State University)

ABOVE: Western Bean Cutworm eggs (Iowa State University)
Larry Sailer, Musings of a Pig Farmer

June 30, 2008

Agronomics, Insects
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Start Looking for Mid-Season Corn Disease Now
With late plantings and a wet spring, this year has created disease conditions in areas with:
- Wet, humid soils combined with recent high temperatures
- Fields with high residue
- Reduced or no-till ground
Anthracnose is among the diseases that thrive in these conditions. It’s caused by a fungus and can affect the plant at any stage of growth. Look for these symptoms: leaf blight, stalk rot, top-kill of the stalk, and kernel rot. The disease causes the most problems at the leaf blight and stalk rot stages.

ABOVE: Anthracnose leaf blight (Ohio State University)

ABOVE: Anthracnose stalk rot (Ohio State University)

Grey Leaf Spot can be easily confused with other types of disease in its first stages of development. The tell-tale sign for this disease is small lesions surrounded by yellow rings or halos. The fungus will begin in the lower leaves and move to the top of the plant. Lesions travel through the tissues in the leaf, elongating and eventually merging together. The plants then become much more susceptible to other disease such as stalk rot.

ABOVE: Gray Leaf Spot

Northern Leaf Spot is a fungal disease that, like Grey Leaf Spot (GLS), is identifiable by its narrow elongated shaped lesions surrounded by a pigmented border. The disease will spread to all parts of the plant including leaves, sheaths, husks, and ears. Spores are released and are capable of traveling and infecting neighboring fields.

ABOVE: Northern leaf spot (Ohio State University)

For each of these specific diseases, I recommend control methods of fungicides or resistant/tolerant hybrids. For more information on these and other mid-season corn diseases, Purdue University’s Desktop Reference link is a great resource.
Larry Sailer, Musings of a Pig Farmer

June 30, 2008

Agronomics, Corn, Crop, Disease
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

2008 Western Bean Cutworm Reassurance Program

For those of you who made the investment in YieldGard-stacked-trait products this year, this information is good news for you! With rising concerns about Western Bean Cutworm problems in fields this year, Monsanto has come out with a Western Bean Cutworm Reassurance Program that will provide financial support in the event of an infestation.

Here’s how the program works.

Farmers must have purchased, and planted, YieldGardVT Triple, YieldGard Corn Borer with Roundup Ready Corn 2, YieldGard Plus or YieldGard Plus with Roundup Ready Corn 2 products between September 1, 2007 and May 31, 2008. At any time in the growing season, if a producer believes an infestation is present and is above the economic threshold, that infestation must be verified. A Crop Scout Log Sheet must be completed by one of the qualified crop scouts including Seed Dealers, Extension Agents, Crop Consultants or Ag-Chem Retailers.

If treatment for the Western Bean Cutworm is necessary, Monsanto will support growers with up to $7 per acre reimbursement to defray the cost of treatment with an approved insecticide. Qualifying insecticides include: Asana, Baythroid, Fury, Capture, Lorsban, Mustang, Mustang Mex, Pounce, ProAxis, Respect, and Warrior. To make a claim, contact your local Latham Dealer to have your claim verified and log sheets completed.

John Latham, President

June 28, 2008

Agronomics, Crop, Insects, Soybeans
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Seed Treatments Prove to be Good Investment in Cold, Wet Spring

Latham Hi‑Tech Hybrids’ practice of treating all of its triple-stack seeds with combination of Trilex™ fungicide and Poncho® insecticide proved its value during the recent cold, wet spring.

The cold, wet soil that dominated most of the Cornbelt meant the seed laid in the soil longer before germinating. That made for ideal conditions for a host of fungus and insects.

While the technology within the corn protects it from multiple threats once the plant is growing, the seeds are still vulnerable in their very early stages of development. Trilex offers a unique combination of two systemic fungicides to protect against a wide spectrum of threats including pythium, rhizoctonia, and early season phytophthora. Poncho delivers early season protection against wireworm, white grub, seed corn maggot, flea beetle, grape colaspis, chinch bug and black cutworm.

Poncho’s protection against wireworms, seed corn maggots and grubs especially proved invaluable this season when those pests were out in force. Poncho offers two-stage protection by putting a barrier around the seed to kill approaching insects, and also imbedding insecticide into the seed to kill any pests that manage to take a bite.

This year, when conditions really slowed down the growth of corn plants, Poncho’s two-pronged protection was incredibly important. By offering protection around the seed, and within the seedling itself, the seed-applied insecticide was really critical to give uniform, healthy stands.

Latham Hybrids has adopted the practice of using seed-applied fungicide and insecticide to help customers protect their high-tech seed investments. The treatments also make it possible to plant corn earlier in the spring, when it’s usually cooler and wetter, to capitalize on the yield potential of a longer growing season.

President John Latham makes a priority for our business to do everything we can to give farmers the best payback for the investment they’re making. Given market conditions and the value of the technology being built into seeds, the price of seed corn is going to continue to increase. Latham is determined to provide maximum protection for seeds to make sure those higher seed investments generate higher return.

Larry Sailer, Musings of a Pig Farmer

June 28, 2008

Agronomics, Disease, Season, Seed Treatment, Spring
Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Scouting Alfalfa for Potato Leafhoppers: When and How
Mid-summer means potato leafhopper season is upon us. Many farmers question how to judge when leafhoppers have reached threshold and when spraying an insecticide is a wise choice. Here are some tips to help you in scouting your fields and arriving at a decision.

Scouting should begin five to seven days after the first cutting is taken from the field and should continue on a weekly basis (or bi-weekly if population counts reach close to threshold on a particular day). Check for stunting in the plants, yellowing of the leaves in a v-shaped pattern beginning at the leaf tip, as well as a “hopper burn” or red edge found on the leaf. This red burn can be easily confused with a Boron deficiency. However, finding the insect can confirm the cause.

The easiest way to scout for these insects is to use a small sweep net. Walk a W-shaped pattern in the field, and take sweep samples at five randomly selected areas. Leafhopper infestations generally begin on the edges of the field so be sure to include these areas in your checks.

To correctly sweep, test each of your five areas following these steps:
- Swing the sweep net in a 180-degree arc so the net rim strikes the top 6 to 8 inches of growth. Each 180-degree arc is one “sweep.”
- Take a sweep from right to left, walk a step, take another sweep from left to right, and so on.
- After taking five sweeps, quickly close the net and count the number of leafhoppers.
- Divide this number by five to get the average, and record these averages for each of the five areas in the field.
- If alfalfa is two or more weeks from harvest, consider applying treatments when leafhopper counts reach five leafhoppers/ sweep (adults and nymphs).
- For fields scheduled to be harvested in 10 days to 2 weeks, consider treating if hopper counts reach 10 leafhoppers/ sweep.
If you’re looking for another solution to help boost yields in your alfalfa fields, ask your Latham representative about the company’s new hybrid alfalfa lineup. Latham Hi‑Tech Forage hybrid alfalfa is shown to outperform conventional varieties by 10-15%. More information about hybrid alfalfa is also available on our website.
Webspec Admin

June 28, 2008

Agronomics, Alfalfa, Crop, Weed Control

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

MidSeason Corn Scouting Report

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Addressing weed resistance

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Western Bean Cutworm: A threat to Iowa's fields this summer

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Start Looking for Mid-Season Corn Disease Now

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

2008 Western Bean Cutworm Reassurance Program

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Seed Treatments Prove to be Good Investment in Cold, Wet Spring

Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds

Scouting Alfalfa for Potato Leafhoppers: When and How