6.9.20 News from Your Federated Agronomists

Between the COVID19 pandemic and the unrest from racial conflict there’s plenty of heartache and difficulty to address in our communities. Federated Co-ops continues to serve growers through these challenging times. We don’t minimize the impact of these serious concerns even as we help you manage the day-to-day issues on your farm. We persist in safeguarding our customers and employees by regularly sanitizing surfaces (door handles, sales counters, computers, etc.), and also through increased security. Thank you for your part in these efforts.  Read on for important information on current agronomy topics. And as always, please contact your  Federated Agronomist  and let us help you in any way.

Fungicides: Not Just Another Sales Pitch “Fungicides are like a vaccine for plants,” said Mike Slater, Federated ag sales rep for the Isanti and Osceola locations. Fungicides keep plants healthy and free of a wide spectrum of diseases – which in turn allows them to put more energy into yield. But, like a human flu vaccine, not everyone thinks plants need vaccinations. “Like almost everything in agronomy, there is no black and white answer,” said Slater. The ROI for fungicides varies. It depends on the disease pressure in a given year, the timing of the application, and the product ... Read more.

Scout and Spray to Fight White Mold “Fighting white mold takes a season-long, multi-step strategy,” said John Swanson, Federated agronomist at the Ogilvie location. White mold (sclerotinia stem rot) pressure has reached record levels in the last few years, and proactive prevention is the best way to combat it. Plant genetics and seed treatments are the gateway to white mold prevention, giving the seed a fighting chance to build defensive abilities as it germinates, but “white mold is a disease of our best soybeans,” said Swanson. And it is “nearly impossible to detect before yields are negatively ... Read more.

Tissue (and Soil) Tests Tell All

Early in the growing season, what you see isn’t always what you get when it comes to plant health. Deficiencies may not be evident but yield loss may have already begun. Tissue sampling/testing is an effective way to determine whether crops have the nutrients needed to yield well. A complete tissue test will check levels of N, P, K, Mg, Ca, S, Na, Fe, Mn, Cu, and Zn. “A plant tissue test ... Read more.

Read the Label. Clean the Sprayer. The success of crop protection applications can often be boiled down to one thing: The cleanliness of the sprayer with which the products were applied. Unusual crop damage, stunted or discolored plants, or no pattern to the crop injury may be indicators of sprayer contamination. So how does a sprayer get contaminated? And how can contamination be minimized ... Read more.