Central Iowa
Bart Peterson reports that corn is 100% planted in his area, with seedlings ranging from the V1 to V4 stage of growth. Soybeans are 98% planted, with seedlings ranging from the VE to V1 stage. He hasn’t seen any insect pressure at this time.

Northeast Iowa
Tom Larson says that planting finished last week in the western part of his territory, while planting is just getting underway in the eastern part. Plots went in fast and furious. By the end of the weekend, there were just a few areas that still have beans to plant. A few acres of corn were replanted in areas where the ground was wet to start with and then developed a crust on top. Frost also set back some corn acres. He also has noticed some Pythium in soybean acres where seeds were planted in less than ideal conditions; a seed treatment on those early-planted acres would have helped.

Central Iowa
Bob Collins reports that planting is almost finished in his area. Most of the corn is up and looking good.  A few early planted bean fields are up, too. He’s not aware of any insect problems yet, but some of the corn needs to be sprayed to control the grasses.

Northwest Iowa
Bruce Anderson says planting is 99% complete with corn coming up well with good stand. The soil has a good amount of moisture accumulated, which will help in July.  Spraying will begin soon with as some grass is growing at the end of corn rows.

West Central Iowa
Planting is pretty much complete in Travis Slusher’s territory.  Corn is looking good and he hasn’t yet seen any insect pressure. In the southern part of his territory, fields received about an inch of rain this past week.  Those in the northern part received about three inches of rain.

Eastern Iowa
Corn planting is 99% complete and beans are 95% complete in Brad Beatty’s territory. Emergence has been good for both corn and soybeans. He hasn’t noticed any insect pressure yet, but he says they’re probably a week out from seeing cut worm. He also says it’s time to get out and start scouting for weeds, so you can keep them under control.

East Central Iowa
Wayde McNeil’s territory of Jasper, Poweshiek, Marshall, and Tama counties has received anywhere from one to three inches of rain this past week. Planting is complete, and the corn and beans are growing well. He hasn’t yet noticed any insect pressure.

South Dakota
Bill Eichacker says the southeastern part of the state is pretty much finished with planting while  the northern part is struggling to get seeds in the ground because due to the wet spring and flood waters from North Dakota.  For those farmers who have been able to plant, it’s time to scout for black cut worm and take care of any weed problems.

Minnesota
Jason Obermeyer reports that corn planting is done. He says that emergence is good on most fields, though the fields with high amounts of trash look a little more uneven due to cooler soils. Soybean planting is nearly finished. The cold snap about 10 days ago dinged some soybean fields that were emerged, mostly in areas of lower elevations, so sporadic replants may need to be done. Post emerge spraying on corn will begin in earnest this week.

Nebraska
Brian Banks reports that corn is up to 4 leaf in areas.  Some post herbicide applications are under way. Soybeans are up to unifoliate, but most are just emerging.  There may have to be some replanting of soybeans this year, but definitely not for the reasons we had last year.  Some beans had enough moisture to sprout but then the high temps and 40 mph winds last week dried them out so bad that stands are thin. Rains have continued to be spotty. Isolated areas get some rain but overall eastern Nebraska is well below average for rainfall. Many growers are running pivots to get the beans up and to keep the corn from drying up already.

Here’s the latest planting update excerpted from the May 27 USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (for week ending May 24):

Corn: By week’s end, 82 percent of this year’s corn acreage was planted, 4 points behind last year and 11 points behind the 5-year average. The largest push in progress was made in Illinois, where producers took advantage of warm, sunny conditions and planted 42 percent of their crop during the week. Emergence advanced to 52 percent complete, 4 points ahead of the previous year, but 19 points behind normal. Under favorable growing conditions, the most development was seen in Minnesota and Nebraska, with 31 percent of the crop emerging in both States.

Soybeans: Forty-eight percent of the Nation’s soybean crop was planted by May 24, one point slower than last year and 17 points behind normal. The most rapid progress was made in Iowa and Wisconsin, where producers planted 39 and 32 percent of their acreage during the week, respectively. By week’s end, 17 percent of this year’s crop had emerged, compared with 12 percent a year ago and 31 percent for the 5-year average. The most development was evident in the Delta States of Mississippi and Louisiana, where emergence had reached 73 and 64 percent, respectively.

Hi all. I want to introduce our intern for this summer, Andrew Kilburg. We look forward to Andrew’s weekly reports from the field.  —  Shannon

I am Andrew Kilburg and I just completed my sophomore year at Iowa State. I am majoring in Agronomy and Agriculture Systems Technology, and this summer I will be an intern at Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds. One of my duties will be posting weekly blog updates on planting progress for corn and beans, stages of growth, and any weed or pest issues.

It sounds like central Iowa is pretty close to completing corn planting, and has a good start on getting the beans planted. Travis Slusher says “they need a day or two to finish up with planting corn.” Central Iowa has received rain this past week which has kept farmers from the fields.

In northwest Iowa, progress sounds good. Bruce Anderson says“95% of corn is in the ground and 80% of beans are planted.” Growth of corn also looks good in NW Iowa with 75% of the corn up and able to be rowed. Sounds like there isn’t any insect problem yet, but Bruce has heard there is a possibility of cut worms that could hatch around the 22^nd of May. He also says that alfalfa and pastures are growing great. He said the forecast for next week looks to be in the 70’s with a couple days is in the lower 80’s.

Jeff Weier in Western Iowa has reported that planting progress is coming along great. He says “99% of corn is planted with 30-40% of the corn being in the V2 stage of growth”. He also said “the beans are about 50-60% planted, and if the weather holds out this week farmers could begin to finish up with beans.” He hasn’t seen any bug or disease issues yet.

In Wayde McNeil’s territory of Jasper, Poweshiek, Marshall, and Tama counties in Iowa, corn planting is pretty much 100% done with most of the corn in the V1 stage and some in the V2 stage. The beans in his territory are 80% planted. He hasn’t seen any bug or disease problems yet. On Sunday May, 17 he said there was a slight frost, but didn’t cause any damage.

In Eastern Nebraska Brian Banks is saying the bean planting is coming along good with a few spotty rain showers keeping some farmers out of the fields. He says “that some beans are starting to emerge this week, and if things go well most farmers will be finishing up this week. Most of the corn is in the V2 stage.” He hasn’t seen any bug, disease, or weather related issues yet. He did say “they are a little behind average with GDD’s at this time.

In South Dakota Bill Eichacker is reporting that planting is happening earlier than previous years, although the northern part of the state is lagging behind due to flooding and rains.

Bob Colins in Central Iowa reported that corn is pretty much all in the ground and beans will be finishing up in 2-3 days. He hasn’t seen any bug or disease issues at this time.

Brad Beatty around Benton County reported that 95% of corn is planted and 60% of beans are planted. The biggest issue in his territory is the cold soil temperatures. He said “some of the corn is rotting instead of growing, so farmers will have to evaluate to see if they need to replant.” With the cold weekend we just had he thought that most of the corn should be fine, but the few beans that have already emerged will also have to be evaluated to see if replanting is necessary.

Jason Obermeyer in Minnesota reported that all corn planting is done and beans should be finishing up this week. He hasn’t noticed any widespread bug or disease issues. Most of the corn has emerged, and all they need is some warmer temperatures to help with growth.

That time of year has finally arrived when farmers are beginning to take to the fields for planting. Before heading out to the field, make sure you do some checks on soil temperatures and conditions. The right conditions combined with the right hybrid is key to ensuring maximum yield from your field. Here’s a link from the University of Nebraska Lincoln soil temperature guide.  Check this site for other useful resources to help plan your operation this season.

http://citnews.unl.edu/cropWatch/soilTemperature.html

March is the time of year we start getting questions as planting season approaches.  The most common questions are:

• How thick should I plant the new bio-tech seeds?
• How early should I plant?
• Do I need stronger emergence for my soil type?
• Should I use a seed-applied insecticide?
• Should I use fungicide?
• Which technology trait do I need for each farm?

At Latham, we’ve geared up our agronomy testing to help answer these questions. This season we will be conducting new yield trials that should provide some compelling data. These trials will help provide guidance on:

• Optimum corn populations
• Fungicides for early planted corn
• Twin row vs. conventional row spacing
• Seed applied nematicides for corn
• Corn hybrid yield performance for different soil types

There is no shortage of questions when it comes to producing higher yields. The best approach is to work with a knowledgeable seed representative that can help you learn more about the products.  In turn, you will have a positive and more productive experience with your Latham® brand seed.

Do you have a question that comes to mind as planting season approaches?  Want some advice from a Latham Seed2Soil® specialist?  Share it with us in the comment box below!

In the past, optimum plant population was determined by increasing population each year to the point where the ear began to tip back. A corn plant has the ability to sense when it has enough nutrients and moisture to put grain on, so just looking at grain development was a good way to determine if plant populations were over the optimal line. After generations of using roughly the same seed, plant population was pretty nailed down.

To help adjust to the new plant population realities, we’ve ramped up our research to try to give Latham customers a more informed starting point. This growing season we’ll evaluate two triple-stack hybrids: one with more ear flex capability than the other. We’ll also be capturing the yield-ability across different soil types. We know that each soil type has inherent natural fertility and water holding capacity, which are two important components of yield when considering plant population. Many seed technology developers have also launched research into the plant population area, so we plan to also collaborate closely with those studies.

The goal of all this research and investigation is always the same: to help customers realize more profit per acre. That means we’re always considering the math of yield revenue minus input costs. The development of seed technology has made plant population one of the variables in that equation and, as with everything associated with high-tech products, Latham Hybrids will continue to invest in finding ways to use PPA to make our customers more money.