Category: Crop Schools

One of the keys to a high-yielding corn crop is even, uniform emergence. Growers can achieve this management goal in early-planted April crops when soil conditions are fit, but what happens when the weather turns bad and soil conditions take a turn for the worst at planting? On this episode of Corn School, Ken Currah,... Read More

What role do seeding rates and seeding dates play in producing top-quality, high-yielding edible bean crops? On this first episode of RealAgriculture's new Edible Bean School we connect with two industry experts to gather insight on how to fine-tune rates and dates to optimize bean production. For an Eastern Canada perspective, we kick things off... Read More

Seed testing is a simple, proactive way to minimize the risk of fusarium infection in a cereal crop, and reduce fusarium head blight (FHB) in future years. Indirectly, it's also a surefire way to help protect the marketability of your crop after harvest. In this Wheat School episode, Kara Oosterhuis is joined by Jeremy Boychyn,... Read More

First off, predictive soil mapping takes the information from the soil surveys in the 80s and 90s that were limited by technology, and improves the resolution of the generated maps and overlays polygons digitally, that contain more soil information. "Instead of knowing each polygon has three or four different soil types, you actually have an... Read More

If you're crunching numbers and figuring out ways to tighten up margins, one overlooked option could ensuring you're getting the full value of the pesticides you apply. One way to measure this is by evaluating the amount of pesticide leftover after spraying. Tom Wolf of AgriMetrix and Sprayers 101 joins Kara Oosterhuis for this episode... Read More

Every conversation on soil health these days eventually comes around to the topic of organic matter. Does it really matter? What percentage should farmers have in their soil? How do you conserve organic matter? How do you build it? On this episode of Soil School, Bernard Tobin and University of Minnesota soil extension specialist Jodi... Read More

We know that phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) are needed in soybeans to achieve those high yields. But what's the right soil test level of each of these macronutrients, what happens when there's too much or too little, and how does that level affect soybean yield? To answer these questions, RealAg's Bernard Tobin is joined... Read More

What's the secret to growing those gigantic corn yields that turn a select few U.S. farmers into corn yield contest kings? Purdue University corn guru Dr. Bob Nielsen has been pouring over National Corn Yield Contest data and crop input and management summaries from winners for almost two decades. What has he learned? After all... Read More

The topic of soil health has gained a tremendous amount of followers over the last ten years. There's a large, dynamic community devoted to the topic, too — from farmers and researchers, to consultants and extension specialists. Dr. Abbey Wick, extension soil health specialist and associate professor at North Dakota State University (NDSU), recently presented... Read More

Tillage destroys soil structure, cuts organic matter and decreases soil water infiltration. If that's the case, reducing tillage makes sense, right? But the decision is not that simple, says Jodi DeJong-Hughes, University of Minnesota soil and tillage extension specialist. In her presentation at the virtual Ontario Agricultural Conference, DeJong-Hughes notes that there's no hard and... Read More