Blog
Subscribe to RSS FeedChoosing the best crop variety to maximize yield and profitability while still staying within budget is vital to any farm, whether its 100 acres or 100,000. It is also a driving objective for plant breeders that develop these varieties for farmers.
Plant phenotyping is an important part...
Angie Rieck-Hinz
August 20, 2021 8:10 AM
Joshua Michel
August 20, 2021 8:10 AM
Historically, corn silage harvest starts within the next two weeks. However, harvest has started early in some droughty areas with light soils. Corn is a high yielding, high energy, low protein forage that is commonly used for growing and finishing beef cattle, in cow-calf production systems,...
Erin Hodgson
August 19, 2021 7:56 AM
My lab has been driving all over western Iowa looking for soybean gall midge. They stop by 3-6 fields in each county and scout for larvae along field edges. This is part of a larger effort funded by the North Central Soybean Research Program to better understand the current distribution of this...
Daren S Mueller
August 17, 2021 12:40 PM
I have seen yellow patches in Iowa soybean fields this past week. Plants within these patches have foliar symptoms that appear to be caused by sudden death syndrome (Figure 1; SDS). When...
Rebecca Vittetoe
August 10, 2021 12:25 PM
With parts of northern Iowa now being in a D3 or extreme drought and other areas on the drought monitor expanding, the drier conditions are a concern with what impact they are having on the crops as well as forage...
Elizabeth Danielson
August 9, 2021 8:25 AM
A new Aerial Application Manual (CS 26) is now available for individuals planning to take the aerial applicator exam to become certified or renew their certification. This manual will assist aerial applicators and aerial applicator consultants in preparing to take the commercial pesticide...
Daren S Mueller
August 4, 2021 4:44 PM
Ed Zaworski
August 4, 2021 4:44 PM
The “I See Dead Plants” podcast, a new offering from the Iowa State University Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program, is now open to listeners interested in learning how plant science research impacts everyday life.
Crop management experts are interviewed to share findings about plant...
Rebecca Vittetoe
August 4, 2021 10:05 AM
Corn rootworms, spider mites, soybean gall midge, and the hot and dry conditions were common questions or issues received or observed by ISU Extension and Outreach field agronomists this past week. Read on for more specifics about what’s happening around the state.
Northwest Iowa...
Rebecca Vittetoe
July 28, 2021 11:05 AM
The hot and dry conditions this past week resulted in crops showing more signs of stress, especially in the drier parts of the state. Drought stress, spider mites, corn rootworms, and questions regarding fungicide applications were the big questions or issues observed by ISU Extension field...
In October 2020, EPA approved five-year registrations (until 2025) for dicamba products including XtendiMax (Bayer), Engenia (BASF) and Tavium (Syngenta) for over-the-top use in Xtend and XtendFlex soybeans. These new dicamba product registrations included national cutoff dates (June 30 in most...
Alison Robertson
July 21, 2021 4:37 PM
If you listen carefully, you can hear corn tassels rattling in the breeze, and occasionally the hum of a crop sprayer.
This growing season started off exceptionally dry, apart from southeast Iowa. The moisture that arrived in July and hung around for a couple of weeks was welcomed by...
Ashley Dean
July 21, 2021 7:09 AM
Erin Hodgson
July 21, 2021 7:09 AM
Rebecca Vittetoe
July 21, 2021 7:09 AM
Last week, a team of us met up at the Iowa State University Southeast Research Farm (SERF) to evaluate root injury in a small trial for corn rootworm management. The trial had four treatments replicated eight times. The treatments included no management (glyphosate-tolerant only; no Bt traits or...
Rebecca Vittetoe
July 20, 2021 9:52 PM
Corn started pollinating within the last week, and soybeans range from full flowering (R2) to beginning pod (R2). The hot topics this past week across the state included foliar fungicide decisions, corn rootworms, and herbicide injury in soybeans. Read on for more specifics on what ISU Extension...
Mark Licht
July 19, 2021 4:20 PM
Zachary Clemens
July 19, 2021 4:20 PM
Corn pollination is well underway and is one of the most critical times in corn development. Pollination is the biggest factor on the size of yield.
Corn plants have both male and female flowers. The tassel represents the male flower. When tassels emerge, they produce a spikelet, which...
Mark Licht
July 16, 2021 10:53 AM
Zachary Clemens
July 16, 2021 10:53 AM
Now is the time to make plans for cover crop planting if you have not already done so. There are several cover crop species that are often talked about, however, cereal rye,...
Gretchen Paluch
July 16, 2021 10:17 AM
Elizabeth Danielson
July 16, 2021 10:17 AM
If you have experienced a suspected dicamba incident contact the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) at 515-281-8591 to file a report. You may file an “Incident Report” or a “Documentary Report” with the IDALS Pesticide Bureau.
Reporting dicamba incidents helps...
Erin Hodgson
July 14, 2021 2:49 PM
Soybean gall midge detections continue in western Iowa. As of this week, there are ten counties with infested soybean fields. These counties were previously infested with larvae. In some fields where we monitor activity a bit closer, we noticed first-generation adults were produced. These adults...
We’ve had two new members join the ISU Crops Team as field agronomists!
Clarabell Knapp, field agronomist for region 11 in south central and south eastern Iowa, began June 7; and Gentry Sorenson, field agronomist for region two in northwest Iowa, began July 6.
...
Rebecca Vittetoe
July 14, 2021 10:48 AM
The drier parts of the state finally received some much-needed rainfall, and unfortunately parts of southern Iowa that are pretty well saturated also received some more rain this past week. Herbicide injury in soybeans,...
Meaghan Anderson
July 11, 2021 10:33 AM
Antonio Mallarino
July 11, 2021 10:33 AM
A common sight across the state this summer has been yellow or white patches of soybean in otherwise green fields. This ICM Blog will review several possible causes of yellow soybean and provide resources regarding each phenomenon.
Iron Deficiency Chlorosis (IDC)...
Rebecca Vittetoe
July 7, 2021 1:20 PM
Herbicide drift, fungicide decisions, and iron deficiency chlorosis were common questions or issues received and/or observed by ISU Extension and Outreach field agronomists this past week. Read on to see what's happening in different regions across the state.
North Central Iowa...
Soybean research and Extension specialists from land-grant universities across the country welcome you to join the next monthly informal discussion on crop production topics that are timely and relevant. When you join the Notes from the Field webinar series, you will get highlights and current...
Rebecca Vittetoe
June 29, 2021 10:35 PM
While some much-needed rain did come this past week it seems that the drier areas continue to miss out or get minimal rainfall and the wetter parts of the state keep getting wetter. The rain also brought some hail, which caused some pretty significant damage not just to crops but property as...
Alison Robertson
June 29, 2021 2:12 PM
Despite the cooler conditions and precipitation (in some parts of Iowa) last week, the U.S. Drought Monitor categorizes most of Iowa in moderate to severe drought. As we approach tasseling, more and more questions around fungicides are being asked.
All diseases managed by...
Erin Hodgson
June 29, 2021 7:25 AM
I’ve had a lot of questions about soybean gall midge over the winter and in the last few weeks. Most fields have plants with 4-7 trifoliates and I’ve even seen some flowers! If you are connected with the Soybean Gall Midge Alert Network, you know...