Page 4—Com Talk, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 17,1993
RESEARCH
UPDATE
(Continued from Page 1)
levels at sidedressing ranged
from 10 to 43 ppm nitrate-N
and at 11 of the 24 sites the
PSNT level was less than 21
ppm, indicating that the field
would be responsive to N fertil
izer. In Pennsylvania, we use
25 ppm as a critical level to
decide whether fields would be
responsive.
Com yields did not respond
to N at any of the sites in the
study, however, so the PSNT
overestimated the N require
ment at nearly one half of the
sites. The authors believe that
Compete To
ST. LOUIS, Mo. This
year, it may be your turn to
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National Com Yield Contest.
Toss away the rabbit’s foot,
let the four-leaf clover wilt on
the vine...but keep your first
edition copy of “Indian Rain
Dance Steps,” just in case
Mother Nature needs prodding.
The NCGA informally
surveyed past winners of the
National Com Yield Contest to
find out their trade secrets.
Here’s the Top 10 List To Suc
cess (you’ll understand if our
sources remain confidential).
1. Flatter your earthworms
with personal attention.
2. Garnish your fields with
buffalo manure.
3. Take a close look at your
leaves.
4. Plant seeds snugger than
friendly sardines in a tight can.
5. Flip a coin. “Heads” or
‘Tails,” plan to irrigate.
6. Avoid fields wet enough
for Noah.
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the failure of the test was
caused by slow mineralization
of residual N from the alfalfa at
some of the sites, probably due
to the lower soil temperatures
that are often encountered in
the spring in Wisconsin.
Most studies indicate that
com following alfalfa rarely
responds to more than 30 to SO
pounds of additional N. The
authors suggest that a small N
application of SO pounds per
acre or less could be applied on
those fields following alfalfa
where the PSNT is below the
critical level. They believe the
Win: An Insider’s Guide
7. Consult Love Connec
tion’s Chuck Woolery for a
perfectly matched hybrid.
8. Spoonfeed your foliage
whatever nutrients it craves.
9. Ask neighbors for advice.
They’ll give it to you anyway.
10. Experiment. If at first
you don’t succeed, there’s
always next year.
Seriously folks, each and
every past winner of the
National Com Yield Contest
interviewed said that the “little
things" gave them an edge over
the competition.
Our past winners pick their
hybrids carefully—often test
ing them for several years
before entering them in the
contest. They work hard to
maintain adequate fertility—
regular soil tests, foliage
analysis to pinpoint nutrient
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agri
systems
ii
PS NT is a good tool to convin
ce growers on the need to take a
credit for the alfalfa in their N
fertility program, since often jt
will indicate that no additional
N is necessary.
Pennsylvania research has
revealed very similar results.
We have documented a number
of cases where PSNT levels
were relatively low following a
legume sod, resulting in a high
er than expected N
recommendation.
Dr. Dick Fox and his col
leagues at Penn State have
found that, to date, the PSNT
overestimated N requirements
on 12 of 41 sites, or 29 percent
of the time when following a
legume sod that has not
received manure. Fox also attri
butes this to inadequate miner
alization of nitrate by the time
the sample is taken. In all but
one of the other sites the PSNT
needs and a prescription
approach to nutrient
applications.
They also pay close atten
tion to factors such as earth
worm populations and soil
tilth, especially under reduced
tillage conditions. It’s essential
not to get into the field too ear
ly, they stress, particularly if
the soil is too wet or cold.
Winners also scout their
fields for insect pressure. They
survey their neighbors and
other contest winners to pick
up tips to improve yields. And
they also experiment to find the
perfect mix of production prac
tices, including plant popula
tions and row spacings, for
their particular situation.
As for luck? It comes in
timely rains. 'And that, they
say, is where the Good Lord
fits in.
jm
IpSE
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correctly predicted that there
would be no response to addi
tional N.
Thus a high PSNT level in a
field following a forage legume
is a reliable indicator of adequ
ate N for the com crop. Howev
er, a low level following a for
age legume can be misleading
and often indicates the need for
more N than is really required.
Our recommendation has
been not to use the PSNT on
fields where com is following a
The Corn
(Continued from Page 1)
Higher carryover stocks will
offset some of the production
loss for 1993.
Domestic demand for com
should continue at a near record
pace. A recovering economy
and expanding numbers of
livestock will help move com
to the domestic livestock feed
ing industries. The BTU tax
appears to be dead, which is
viewed as a positive factor for
com. Trade agreements such as
NAFTA (North American Free
Trade Agreement) will help
com markets in the long run.
Com is the most protected
crop in Mexico and its use as
livestock feed is discouraged.
Sorghum is currently the most
widely used livestock feed
there. If NAFTA is eventually
approved, com could be the
biggest benefitter. Due to its
highly protected status in Mex
ico, it would receive the longest
phaseout period of any com
modity in the NAFTA 15
years. To begin, the U.S. could
ship 2.5 million metric tons of
com annually to the Mexican
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legume that has not been man
ured. On these fields, we sug
gest using the standard recom
mendations for com following
a legume of 20 to 50 pounds of
N/acre, depending on the
expected com yield and the per
cent legume in the old stand.
PSNT sampling should be
concentrated on fields that have
received manure where the test
has been found to do a reliable
job of indicating whether addi
tional sidedress N is required.
Industry
market, duty free. It would also
grow 3 percent per year for the
duration of the 15-year transi
tion period.
One of the really bright
growing markets for com has
been the food, alcohol, and
industrial uses. Twenty years
ago less than 400 million
bushels were needed for these
uses. In the 1993-1994 market
ing year, about I.S billion
bushels of com will be used for
these uses. This is a fourfold
increase from 20 years ago.
During this period the soft
drink industry has moved from
using sugar to the use of high
fructose sugars made from com
in the manufacture of soft
drinks.
There is much optimism
about the potential growth of
the ethanol industry using com
as a base for fuel for vehicles.
To date, this industry has-been
very dependent on government
subsidies. Can this industry sur
vive if government support
declines and can the end pro
duct compete with gasoline at
low current prices?
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