The derecho left many Iowa farmers with significant volunteer corn this growing season, and unfortunately some may be facing a similar situation for 2022 after late August storms flattened fields.
With the recent storms rolling through northern Iowa, many growers are experiencing field conditions similar to those seen across the state after the 2020 derecho. To help ensure a safe and productive harvest, we’ve rounded up some tips and information that were developed after the derecho last fall for harvesting lodged and downed corn. While the damage from recent storms is not as widespread as last August’s derecho, some of the impacts to crops are very similar.
Volunteer corn remains high on many minds this spring and one of the biggest questions is how much of those corn seed will germinate this spring. In an effort to learn more about the challenge we’re facing, Bob Hartzler collected soil and corn ears from the same fields he collected from last fall. To remind the reader, soil was collected and sifted from several 12” by 12” by 6” depth areas in mid-October to determine how many ungerminated corn kernels were left in the soil in a field that was disked under in late August and early September.
Due to extensive damage to corn fields last year from the derecho, volunteer corn is a looming threat for many fields this spring. Farmers intending to plant corn in these derecho-affected fields have limited options for managing volunteer corn, thus thoughtful planning is critical. I asked a collective of weed scientists their thoughts on best management practices for controlling volunteer corn prior to planting corn. I received responses from University colleagues in 8 states and Canada. The following is a summary of their thoughts and some resources that you may find helpful.
The 2020 derecho left large amounts of downed corn as it swept across Iowa. Farmers faced the challenge of determining the best way to deal with this corn, which in some cases is being left in the field. Most of these fields will be planted to soybean in 2021, which brings up an interesting question – how will all the corn residue, including corn kernels, affect soybean diseases next season?
Farmers should always be mindful of the respiratory hazards and associated health concerns with exposure to dusts and molds during grain harvest and handling. This becomes especially important in a year like 2020 with the derecho windstorm, drought stress, and harvesting overly dry grain creating a higher potential for damaged and broken grain that could have more fines, dust and mold.
Grain damage from the August 10 derecho storm and drought is widespread in the state and highly variable. The following is a list of five tips or good practices that farmers should consider this fall for good grain management, especially when working with suboptimal quality grain. At the end of the article, you'll find a video that addresses these five tips as well!
Know your grain quality.
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, including ways to stay safe as you harvest a difficult crop.
Links:
Iowa Concern Hotline - 1-800-447-1985
Many producers in central and east-central Iowa are facing severely damaged corn fields from the recent August 10th 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 salvaging some value through livestock feed and forage options.
Many producers in central and east-central Iowa are facing severely damaged corn fields from the recent August 10th 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 salvaging some value through livestock feed and forage options.
