Blog

Farmers in Iowa are faced with some new challenges this harvest season after the derecho swept through the state in early August. In this video, Ben Covington and Dr. Matt Darr with ISU Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering share their tips for harvesting downed corn this fall,...

Many producers in central and east-central Iowa are facing severely damaged corn fields from the recent August 10^th derecho. With poor quality grain not suitable for the general grain market or storage, and fields that are not mechanically harvestable, a producer might consider...

August's derecho left many Iowans with unharvestable corn. For operations that left their corn in the field, decisions should be made to reduce the problem of volunteer corn next planting season. 

In this video, Field Agronomist Meaghan Anderson and Weed Specialist Bob...

Kathleen Delate, ISU, takes viewers on an organic field day visiting the ISU Neely-Kinyon Farm Organic Field Day 2020. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_PplV5EmT4&feature=...

In addition to preparing the soil for planting, tillage can be an effective strategy for weed management. During a field trial, blue chalk was applied to the soil surface in areas where a tillage pass was made with a vertical tillage (VT) tool at a 3 degree, 5 degree and 9 degree gang angle...

While drought is still widespread, rainfall blanketed most of the state last week, providing some welcome relief to pastures, hay fields, newly-seeded cover crops, and later maturing soybeans. The rainfall caused some standability concerns with corn. Other issues noted by field agronomists ...

After the derecho passed through Iowa in early August, many farmers have been left with unharvestable fields. These fields may require additional management to prepare the soil for another crop next season. In this video, Dr. Matt Darr reviews the results of four tillage options five days after...

Safety should be a major concern for all farmers during harvest, but as the season goes on, it can be easy to miss details or neglect safe practices that can put you or others at risk. Here are six simple safety tips to maintain throughout the season to keep yourself and your crew out of harm’s...

Fall nitrogen (N) application for corn continues to be popular for several reasons, including lower product cost, time for application, equipment availability, suitable soil conditions, and competing springtime field activities. Success, relative to spring or sidedress timing, can be enhanced by...

Harrison County: Ground zero for Palmer amaranth in Iowa is a 25 acre field that had a severe Palmer amaranth infestation when the weed was first identified in 2013.  Since then populations have consistently declined - this year I was unable to find any Palmer in the field,...

Drought continues to expand across the state, and August 2020 came in as one of the driest Augusts since 1893 across the state. Crops appear to be racing toward maturity, with several reports of both corn and soybean very near harvest-ready. While...

Following the derecho event on August 10, millions of acres in Iowa face challenging conditions. In many cases the corn may be unharvestable. These unharvestable fields require some level of fall management to ensure the future crop can achieve even emergence and normal early plant growth.