Hats off to dairy farmers throughout Federated's service area during June, National Dairy Month! We appreciate your hard work and commitment to sustainable agriculture and giving us good dairy products to enjoy!
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Blend AMS with Urea to Maximize Nutrient Application
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For growers who have yet to side dress their corn this year, adding AMS to the urea application is a good bet. Rod Gustafson, Federated agronomist at the Albertville location, noted that sulfur (S), like nitrogen, leaches from the soil, so any S in the starter fertilizer is generally gone by this point in the season.
The highly soluble AMS blends well with urea, making it cost- and time-effective to side dress these nutrients in one application. Sulfur is important for key plant functions, but plants can only take up S in the sulfate form, which AMS provides.
Blending AMS with the urea at a rate of 25 lb./ac. of sulfur (100 lbs. or more of 21-0-0-24S ammonium sulfate) will give corn the S boost it needs – “especially on the coarser textured and sandy soils in our area,” he said. The ideal time to side dress this blend is at the V5 to V6 stage.
Growers who rotate from corn to soybeans may or may not find that last year’s corn crop left behind enough sulfur for this year’s soybeans, but if not, side dressing AMS is recommended at 10-25 lbs./ac. of sulfur (which equates to 40-100 lbs. of 21-0-0-24S AMS), according to Gustafson. (However, he added that Gypsoil – a combination of sulfur and calcium – may be the best recommendation for soybeans. See
Gypsoil fact sheet
.)
If the previous crop ahead this year’s soybeans was
not
fertilized with sulfur, it would be a very good recommendation to fertilize this year’s soybeans with sulfur, such as Gypsoil.
As the window for nutrient application closes for this year, talk to your
Federated Agronomist
to discuss the best options for your corn or soybean crops.
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White Mold on Soybeans: When to Treat, What to Apply
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White mold pressure is on.
The weather in the last few years has produced record levels of white mold, according to John Swanson, Federated agronomist at Ogilvie. “As we are rotating back to soybeans on fields we saw white mold in 2 or 3 years ago, [growers] should consider using a foliar fungicide to reduce white mold incidence in soybeans,” he said, adding that “ it is not a 100% cure for white mold, but is an integral part of the management system.”
As they say, timing is everything.
“Getting the proper timing when applying fungicides is extremely critical,” said Swanson. So, when is the best time to apply fungicides?
Most soybean plant health applications go on at R3, which is the beginning pod or ¼-inch long pod on one of the four uppermost nodes on the main stem with a fully developed leaf. However . . .
With the longest days, and thus the shortest nights, of the year occurring now, indeterminate soybeans can begin to flower. Which means, Swanson said, “if we want to make an effort to control white mold we must change our fungicide timing. As soon as we see a flower we need to be spraying.”
Scout for flowers now. “White mold fungicide applications must be put on at R1 or beginning bloom, which is one open flower at any node on the main stem. White mold spores enter the soybean plant through the senescing flowers,
so it is critical to have the plant protected before the flowers begin senescing,” said Swanson.
Choose an effective fungicide.
Federated recommends Aproach® fungicide for white mold. “We have seen yield increases of 9 bu./ac. or more with well-timed applications of Aproach on fields with heavy white mold pressure (see
Aproach
info).
Swanson said, “There are many products on the market . . . but we have had the most consistent results with Aproach.” Apply 9 oz./ac. at R1 and then follow up 14-21 days later with another 9 oz./ac. if the pressure remains high and conditions are favorable for white mold.
Talk to your
Federated Agronomist about controlling white mold on soybeans
before the application window closes.
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Federated Focus: A Service, A Person
Agronomy Help from a Service-Oriented ‘Local Guy’
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John Swanson – known as ‘Swanny’ to many – has served Federated growers as an agronomist since 1999. He started in the Princeton location, but has been in Ogilvie for well over a decade.
Swanson (pictured) is a “local guy,” growing up in Braham and earning his bachelor’s degree in agriculture and agronomy from the U of MN-St. Paul. He interned as a crop scout with Centrol Crop Consulting while he attended college, and did Soybean research with Asgrow for half a year before joining Federated.
Federated has changed and grown significantly in the 19 years since he came on board. “The buildings that were here [in Ogilvie] when I first started are all gone and have been replaced with improved facilities and much more equipment,” he said. Changes that have improved Federated’s service to customers.
“I am a service-oriented agronomist who likes to help growers solve problems and be profitable,” he said, which is in keeping with Federated’s pledge to be a company with “People who care. Products you trust. Value for life.”
Swanson added, “I am [also] a relationship-oriented person, and enjoy getting to know my customers and their families.” Swanson and his wife Stacie have a young son and daughter who are being raised in the local Braham community as well.
Swanson and the entire team of Federated Agronomists provide a wide range of services to growers, including (but not limited to): soil sampling, fertility management, crop protection/chemical recommendations, crop scouting, weed, disease, and insect management, seed advice, crop pest and disease diagnosis. And, as Swanson said, “help growers be more profitable.”
Talk to Swanson or your local
Federated Agronomist about any crop or farm management concern and let them help
you improve profitability.
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