Nearly all the seed that Midwest farmers will plant next spring will be purchased by the end of December. It’s a busy time of year as we balance time spent attending commodity meetings and finalizing seed orders. Those not used to the practice may be surprised to learn how much time goes into selecting the seed we plant.

One of my nephews, who wasn’t raised on a farm, recently asked me how I choose what type of corn to plant. While there are thousands of variables to consider, I developed a “Top Ten List.” Last week I shared part of my list and today I’m sharing the rest. As always, feel free to comment or send me a message with any questions!

Number 5 – tillage equipment
To protect against soil loss, many farmers are practicing no-till. This means they plant next year’s crop into the old crop residue. Since the soil isn’t tilled, the crop residue helps protect against erosion and preserve water quality. Crop residue causes soils to remain wetter and colder in the spring, so farmers need to take this into consideration at planting time.

According to Purdue University, these 3 steps are key for selecting seed in no-till situations: (1) List hybrids that yield well in more than one trial, in more than one year. (2) From that list, identify those hybrids with traits that are important to no-till corn production: cold tolerance, or ability to germinate and emerge in cool soils; seedling vigor, or the ability for strong root development in cool and dense soils; and tolerance to diseases like Gray Leaf Spot. (3) Buy only high quality seed. The best hybrid in the world may fall “fail” in no-till if seed quality is poor! Indicators of seed quality include warm germination ratings, cold germination ratings, and the seed company’s reputation for quality assurance.

Number 4 – end use of the corn
Farmers who plan to feed their crop to dairy, beef or hogs look for different characteristics than farmers who haul their corn to town. Corn kernel attributes can vary greatly, seed traits can affect the qualities of the end product. Starch, protein and digestible fiber are just as important to animal diets as they as to human diets.

Latham Forage Products Manager Corey Catt says the availability of kernel starch and how it is digested is important for ethanol and livestock feed, however, a softer starch kernel is not preferable for export. When selecting corn hybrids for snaplage, Corey says it’s important to look for excellent fall plant intactness (or corn hybrids that strong stalk late in the season) plus a large ear and flared husk to facilitate a cleaner ear snap. Some hybrids have better fiber digestibility than others, but farmers must make sure those particular hybrids will work on their soils or have the desired trait package needed in a corn-on-corn situation.

Number 3 – combinations of seed traits
Crop rotation also impacts what type of traits farmers need to plant on my ground. I might be able to get by planting a hybrid with fewer traits (and thus is costs less) if I’m planting a field to corn in 2017 that was planted to soybeans in 2016. Fields that are planted to corn year after year, however, tend to experience heavier insect pressure. Yield is often lost in continuous corn scenarios due to increased pressure from insects and disease. That’s why Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds recommends its Gladiator^TM corn hybrids for these acres.

It’s important to note that yield comes from genetics and traits help protect the plant against the presence of stress or pests.  Without that pressure, however, non-traited varieties can also perform well especially in favorable weather. Since you can’t predict the weather, planting corn hybrids with a corn rootworm trait protect the corn plant’s root system, particularly in a dry year.  It’s like having an extra insurance policy in place.

Number 2 – value
There is a huge difference in the price of a bag of seed corn, depending on brand name and the trait package (Genuity® SmartStax® verses double stack). I’ve learned that cheaper seed doesn’t guarantee more profit at the end of the year. In fact, more than one Latham Seeds’ customer has said that the most expensive hybrid he ever planted was free seed from a competitor. Why? It all comes down to yield!

Farmers get paid based on the number of bushels of grain they sell. The average corn yield in Iowa is 192 bushels per acre, but it’s not uncommon to see hybrids yield 200 bu/A or more. Sometimes we’ll experience 50-bushel difference in yield between hybrids, and that’s a big difference in income opportunity. Take 50 bushels times a $3.50/bu market prices and that’s a difference of $175/acre in additional revenue. (Markets are low now, so this could be even more.) Now take the average Iowa farm size of 345 acres times $175, which equals $60,375. See what I mean? More yield mean more income opportunity. The higher priced seed offers a better “value” because of the return on investment.

Number 1 – brand loyalty
Just as consumers choose brand name hotels and restaurant chains because of consistency and value, the same holds true for farmers and their seed brands. Family-owned Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds has a reputation for producing among the highest quality seed in the industry. It also has a history of performance. (Latham brand seeds earned 199 Top 10 corn placings in the 2016 F.I.R.S.T. 2016 with 17 first place finishes in corn.)

Latham’s performance on each farm and in yield trials shows the breadth and depth of its product lineup. It also shows the strength of its product team. I enjoy knowing the people who pick the genetics I plant. Unlike larger companies that recognize economies of scale by selecting hybrids that are widely adapted throughout many regions across the Corn Belt, I know Latham chooses corn hybrids that are bred to perform in the specific conditions where I farm. That makes a world of difference to me. Not only are the products suited for my farm, but I appreciate doing business with a company that shares my values.

If you’re interested in the other factors I consider when selecting seed, please click on the links below:

• How I Choose Corn Hybrids, Part I
• How I Choose Corn Hybrids, Part II

One of my city-dwelling nephews recently asked how I choose what type of corn to plant. While there are thousands of variables to consider, I’m going to stick with a “Top Ten List.” Experience and gut feeling, as I mentioned in last week’s blog post about the number of options farmers have for seed, cover thousands of variables. I also think they’re “givens,” so my top 10 will be more based on science and the black and white factors I need to consider.

This language may seem foreign to some of you, so I’ll try to explain it for the non-farmers in my audience. Farmers, feel free to click on this link for tips on selecting corn hybrids from one of Latham Seeds’ product team members.

As always, feel free to comment or send me a message if there’s a term you don’t understand. I’ll share half of my list with you this week, and the last half next week:

Number 10 – length of growing season Depending on where a farm is located, the growing season varies. Farmers in North Dakota, for example, have a shorter growing season than farmers in Iowa. Farmers in Louisiana plant much different maturities than we plant in the Upper Midwest. The number of days it takes for a seed to grow into a plant that produces grain can even vary by state. Those of us who raise crops in northern Iowa plant different maturities than farmers in southern Iowa. Sometimes we even switch maturities or switch from planting corn to planting soybeans if we’re not able to get our seed planted as early as needed due to weather conditions.

Number 9 – soil types Different genetics are better suited for different types of soil. To understand this, you need to know that every farm has different “dirt.” There can be several different soil types within a field, but I’m going to simply things here. There are three main categories: (1) sandy has the biggest soil particles; (2) loam has medium-size particles; and (3) clay has very fine particles. Each category has different characteristics, such as how much water it can hold. Farms in western Iowa and into Nebraska, for example, tend to receive less rainfall than we do. Farmers there need drought-tolerant or drought-resistant corn hybrids.

Number 8 – weed pressure This is another complex decision, and it’s becoming even more complex as some weeds are developing resistant to particular herbicides. Herbicides are used to kill weeds because too much weed pressure can drastically reduce yield. (NOTE: We don’t douse our crops with glyphosate. Click here to learn more about how much glyphosate is sprayed on our crops.) Farmers need high yields to provide return on their investment in seed, plant foods and herbicide. Rotating between herbicide traits is very important when fighting weed resistance.

Number 7 – insects and disease Seed companies rate each product for how well they control s and disease. Different seed corn products are recommended for fields where corn is planted year after year verses on fields on which a corn-soybean rotation is practiced, and this is why independently owned Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds only awards the Gladiator^TM designation to its most defensive corn products. Rotation means that a farmer plants soybeans one year and corn the next year. Rotation can help break insect and disease cycles; seed selection is also crucial to fighting insects and disease.

Number 6 – climate There are so many variables that fall under climate! Soil temperatures and moisture affect how quickly a seed germinates, as well as how quickly a seedling emerges from the ground. Rainfall varies year by year and even from farm to farm. Obviously, the amount of rainfall affects how well a plant grows. Variable weather is more critical during certain periods of the plant reproduction process. Air temperatures are especially critical during pollination.

In research conducted by Dr. Fred Below, Professor of Plant Physiology at the University of Illinois, weather ranks as the most important factor affecting corn yield. Weather accounts for 70 bushels per acre, or 27 percent, of total yield!

Weather is one of the variables a farmer cannot control. However, seed selection is one way farmers can reduce risk. Be sure to tune in next week for Part III in my series on how farmers choose which seeds they plant.

Mother Nature threw us some real challenges during the 2016 growing season. Some areas of South Dakota were extremely dry from June until late August. North Dakota was hit by strong winds and hail. Much of Iowa received higher than average rainfalls.

While the conditions vary by state — and even within a region — there is one thing we all have in common and that’s “risk management.” We can spread our risk by planting three different Latham® hybrids of different maturities. Planting 1/3 of our acres to an early hybrid, 1/3 to your typical relative maturity (RM) and 1/3 to a little later maturity will help us improve overall yield!

The value in working with a financial planner comes from diversifying one’s portfolio and reducing financial risk while maximizing returns. For the same reasons, it’s advantageous for corn growers to work with a knowledgeable seed representative to create a diversified hybrid seed corn portfolio.

No financial planner worth his weight is going to advise clients to invest solely in mutual funds or high-risk stocks. That’s also why farmers shouldn’t choose their seed portfolio based only on top-yielding varieties in F.I.R.S.T. Trials. Choosing seed based on growing conditions in one location during one year is like picking your stocks based on only last year’s performance without considering factors that might cause market shifts.

The stakes are too high to not manage risk. Latham Seeds’ Seed-2-Soil® program helps corn growers determine which hybrids will help minimize risk while maximizing returns.

PLANTING A “PORTFOLIO” OF CORN HYBRIDS HAS MULTIPLE BENEFITS:

1. HEDGE RISK WITH DIFFERENT GENETICS. As an independent seed supplier, Latham provides you with more seed product choices — more genetic options — than companies that rely on a single supplier for their genetics.
2. PLANT HYBRIDS WITH VARYING MATURITIES. Different flowering dates help reduce yield loss due to heat during pollination. Some years hybrids don’t want to dry down and the earlier products can really pay off while the exact opposite happens in other years.
3. BALANCING OFFENSIVE AND DEFENSIVE CHARACTERISTICS. Each year presents its own set of challenges: weed pressure, insect pressure, heat stress, moisture stress, emergence issues, disease pressure, overall yield. That’s why planting both “offensive” and “defensive” products is advantageous.