Bl2—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 12,1980 _ . , ,
‘ Includes 208 hu, ear corn yield
State Corn Growers Assn, annoim
BYCURTHARLER
HARRISBURG - A yield
of 207.9 bushels ear corn was
not enougji to take the top
spot in this year’s Master
Corn Growers’ Association
yield contest.
K. Earl Gordon, Mc-
Connelsfaurg, took the top
spot, by a narrow margin,
with a yield of 208.1 bushels
The Fulton County fanner
edged out Raymond J.
Diebold, R 3 Altoona, who
produced the 207.9 bushel
entry.
Third place in the ear com
division went to Sam
Conrad, Wamors Mark. The
Huntingdon County farmer
produced 189.5 bushels.
In the Shelled Gram Class
a yield of 190.7 bushels per
acre was sufficient to gam
top honors for Milton Her
shey School Farms.
The Hershey School
Farms yield was certainly
no fluke. The yield was
measured on a nine acre
field. It seems there wasn’t
tune at harvest to play
around with the stop and go
to measure the required
smaller plot.
Close behind m second
place was Merle Omer, R 2
Dillsburg, York County, with
a production of 188.2 bushels
per acre
Third place went to Harold
Ealy, R 2 Sharpsville,
Mercer County. He produced
173.5 bushels shelled gram
per acre.
In the three year average,
Jeff Pontius, R 3, Sunbury,
Northumberland County,
had the top ear corn yield
with an average over the
past years of 193.8 bushels.
That he should be head and
shoulders above the crowd
was little surprise. Last year
Pontius took the state ear
com title with a record
splitting yield of 239.2
bushels to the acre.
In the shelled gram three
year average class,
Piwowar Farms, R 6
Uruontown, Fayette County,
took top honors with an
average 184.8 bushels.
The Piwowar brothers also
were helped by a big yield m
last year’s contest, a 202.2
bushel production which
gave them a boost over the
second place finisher, Merle
Omer.
Penn State Agronomist
Joseph McGahen, executive
secretary of the Corn
Growers Association, said
there were 253 farmers
who had a yield check
The state average 138.1
bushels per acre, down
seven bushels from last
year.
The state-wide result
reflects trends McGahen
noticed m the state variety
plots, he said.
In the Penn State research
plots, yields were down a
startling 20 bushels per acre
“This is showing up on our
good soils, our heavy soils,”
he said.
Soils that are a bit drouthy
in other years were top this
year
“It proves Mother Nature
still dictates yield,”
McGahen said
He pointed out farmers
who said they had good weed
control m 1979 averaged 140
bushels per acre
Those who said weed
control was average made
128 bushels, those with poor
weed control made 121 6
bushels to the acre
Al Dugan, representing Milton Hershey Farms in Dauphin County, accepted the
1979 trophy for top shelled corn yield in the state, 190.7 bushels. Presenting
trophy is Ag Secretary Penrose Hallowell as Penn State Agronomist Joe McGahen
looks on.
A yield of 208.1 bushels ear corn won K. Earl
Gordon the state yield championship in the 1979
ear corn class. Presenting the trophy is Penrose
Hailowell, State Agriculture Secretary.
Another interesting ob- Com costs are likely to be
servation was farmers who U P some more > McGahen
used both commercial told farmers,
fertilizer and manure While the average cost per
averaged 141.9 bushels com acre com, excluding drying
to the acre. and storing, was $lBO m 1978
Those who used only R rose 5207 in 1979.
commercial fertilizer McGahen said he predicts
realized yields of only 134.4 similar increases in cost m
bushels. the coming season.
How top corn growers
made their yields
HARRISBURG - It was
no mere fluke that won Earl
Gordon and the Hershey
School Farms the top yield
tropheys m the 1979 Master
Com Growers Association
contest
Gordon, of Me-
Connellsburg, Fulton
County, used Pioneer 3184 to
produce a yield of 208 1
bushels shelled corn.
Master Corn Growers
Association elected three
new directors at their
Monday annual meeting
Among them were Joseph
Hartle, Centre County dairy
farmer; John Smith, York
County Extension Director;
and John Swartz, a com
mercial representative with
PAG seed corn.
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Chris and Jim Piwowar, Fayette County, averaged
184.8 bushels over three year’s time to take the
state three year shelled grain championship. Ag
Secretary Penrose Hallowed made the presentation.
Hershey School made its applied a healthy dose of
yield of 190 7 bushels shelled manure on their land, both
corn with the same hybrid were planting their crop in
There were several other Hagerstown Class I soils,
similarities between the two Gordon planted his crop in
farms, although Gordon 38 inch rows, 6.9 inches
grows 100 acres of corn while betwen plants in the row.
the Hershey School had 2300
acres in field corn last year
Both programs were harvest
conventional corn, both kept The field previously had
the soil sweet with lime, both (Turn to Page BI3)
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