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I suppose the weather is always a hot topic of conversation, but this year has really given us something to talk about. We seemed to have had May temperatures in April, and April temperatures in May. It's the first time that I remember May soil temperatures being warmer than the air temperatures in the middle of the day. I would venture to say that most of the full-season acres have been planted by the time you receive this newsletter. Some frost occurred throughout Virginia on May 22-23. Hopefully, no major damage was done to emerged plants.
The farm bill was finally signed into law. I'll briefly describe some of the benefits to soybean producers in this issue. The American Soybean Association has worked hard to make sure soybean were treated fairly and I believe they were successful.
I'll also discuss some early-season issues we may need to pay attention to when scouting our fields, as well as some pointers for planting soybean into wheat stubble.
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"Let me put it as plainly as I can: we want to be selling our beef and our corn and our beans to people around the world who need to eat." - President George W. Bush at the Farm Bill signing ceremony, May 13, 2001.
The above is a quote from President Bush regarding the farm bill. Hopefully, the new bill will help do just that. Many of our farm commodities depend on a strong export market and increased use of our products throughout the world. While there is much talk regarding the "huge" subsidies that farmers will receive under the bill, I hope that the general public comes to realize that much of the spending can go away with higher prices, which will only come as demand increases.
Below are a few highlights of how the farm bill will directly benefit soybean producers. Details of these provisions can be found at the American Soybean Association's (ASA) website, http://www.soygrowers.com/ , from which I obtains much of the below information. For more details on the entire farm bill, check out the USDA website, http://www.usda.gov/farmbill/.
Soybeans are established for the first time as a program crop. Up until this farm bill, soybeans have never been an official program crop. Therefore, transition payments (1996 farm bill) or the older "set-aside" program benefits were never realized by the soybean producer. Because it was clear that the 1996 FAIR act would be unsuccessful in eliminating income support, ASA lobbied hard and successfully to have soybean treated in the same manner as other program crops. Soybean are now eligible for direct payments and target price income support.
Base and Yield Provisions. Producers will be allowed to include in their program base the average acres planted or considered planted to soybeans in 1998-2001. For those producers who chose to do so, payment yields for both direct and counter-cyclical payments are backdated from 1998-2001 proven yields. This is beneficial since significant yield improvements have occurred since 1985. Soybean yield has averaged 31 bu/A in Virginia over the past four years. This is higher than the general Virginia yield trend and the early 1980's yields, therefore should be beneficial for Virginia growers. Otherwise, producers can chose a 70% partial yield update or 93.5% of 1998-2001 proven yields.
Income Support includes a $0.44/bu direct payment, a $5.80 target price, and a $5.00/bu marketing loan. The effective level of support will be $5.59/bu (based on 85% of eligible base acres and payment yields), compared to $5.26/bu marketing loan (U.S. average) in the old bill.
Payment limitations are $40,000 on direct payments, $65,000 on counter-cyclical payments, and $75,000 for marketing loan benefits. Since spouses will also be eligible, total limitations will be $360,000. The three entity rule remains and the continued authorization for commodity credits effectively eliminates the cap on loan benefits.
Soybean supports are less trade distorting under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. This is because the marketing loan was reduced $0.26, the direct payments are decoupled, and the counter-cyclical payments are decoupled from current year production decisions. Therefore, it will be easier to defend soybean support payments against competitor trade complaints and insist on reductions in trade distorting domestic support provided by the European Union and other countries.
The funding for export promotion is increased. The Foreign Market Development program (ASA is largest recipient of these funds) funding was increased from $27.5 million to $34.5 million and the Market Access Program was increased from $90 million to $200 million. Such increases should allow ASA to maintain and increase foreign markets for U.S. soybeans and soybean products.
Funding for food aid programs is increased. The funding for the Food for Progress program was increased from $150 million to $308 million, with the annual tonnage raised from 165,000 metric tons to 400,000 metric tons. The bill also authorized $100 million to continue a pilot program for the Global Food for Education Initiative in FY-2003.
Conservation program funding is increased to $17 billion. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQUIP) is funded at $9 billion; 40% of the funds will go to crop growers and 60% to livestock producers. Limitations are $450,000 over the 6-year life of the program. The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) was funded at $1.52 billion, with a maximum enrollment of 39.2 million acres. The Wetland Reserve Program (WRP) was funded at $1.5 billion, with a cap of 2.28 million acres. Also, a new program was established to provide funding for farmers who apply conservation practices on working lands.
Bioenergy. The Commodity Credit Corporation Bioenergy program for fuel producers who purchase agricultural commodities for the purpose of expanding production of biodiesel and ethanol ($204 million) was extended. The bill also provides for $5 million for a biodiesel education program. The bill requires federal agencies to purchase biobased products whenever practical and provides $6 million for testing and other related activities. These measures coupled with the energy bill should give a boost to soybean-based biodiesel.
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Begin with a clean seedbed when planting. While this statement is too late for full-season plantings (and it probably more important in this case), it can still apply to double-crop plantings following small grains. With Roundup-Ready technology, there has been a tendency among many soybean producers to forgo applying a burndown application to no-tillage systems. Theoretically, this might work if Roundup or another labeled glyphosate-containing herbicide (glyphosate is the active ingredient in Roundup) is applied shortly after. The advantage of this approach is that one may control some additional weeds that emerged shortly after planting in addition to the weeds that were in the field at planting time. Rarely will this result in not having to come back later with a second application, but can widen the window of this application. The real danger in this approach is that weather conditions (rain or wind) can delay the application until after the time that the weeds that were emerged at planting begin to compete with the crop, lowering yield. I saw this scenario occur in several double-crop fields last year; I feel that yield was reduced in these fields. Furthermore, the longer that an application is delayed, the larger the weeds become and the less likely that they will be controlled with economic herbicide rates. Also, if you cannot avoid driving over emerged plants (narrow row spacing), never make an application when the plants are just cracking the ground or are only in the cotyledon (seed leaf) stage because the plants are extremely fragile. Driving over young plants will break the stem and reduce stands. I would only suggest that you try this post-planting approach on limited double-crop acres (remember the risks described above), and never on full-season acres unless an early burndown application had already been made. For full-season no-till soybeans, a burndown application (early pre-plant or at-planting) is absolutely necessary.
Rapid canopy coverage is essential for postemergence herbicides to be effective. Having worked in weed control for numerous crops, I've always recognized the biological weed control that the crop provides. Farmers who have depended on postemergence control solely have also recognized this. However, I don't think most of us realized the benefit of the crop until the large acreage shift to Roundup-Ready soybeans. Even with non-glyphosate control programs, many of the postemergence herbicides had some soil activity; therefore control was extended for certain weeds and the effect of the crop was less important. But a weed management system based on glyphosate or other herbicides with no soil activity (Basagran, Blazer, etc.) changed this. We quickly realized that a total postemergence program would require narrow rows. If wide rows were used, a second application or cultivation is required. Therefore, plant in narrow (20 inches or less) rows and donšt allow anything (such as emerged weeds) to slow crop growth.
Is there a need to add other herbicides to Roundup? There is a period in the early life of the crop that needs to be kept weed-free in order to avoid yield loss, often referred to the "critical weed-free period" in scientific circles. If the crop is planted into a weed-free seedbed, the soybean crop can usually tolerate weeds during the first 2 to 3 weeks after emergence. Little competition or yield loss will occur during this period. However, weeds must be eliminated after this date, or yield loss may occur. The specific number of days that the weeds can remain in the field will vary for different weed species due to their competitive ability, but is generally limited to 3 to 4 weeks after planting. But, eliminating the weeds before this critical date does not mean that weeds emerging after this will not compete and lower yield. Usually the field needs to be kept weed-free until 4 to 6 weeks after planting. This "critical weed-free period" is usually between 3 and 6 weeks after planting (again, this is species dependent). If no weeds emerge during this period, then no yield loss to weed competition will occur. But, how do we insure this?
One method is to apply a preemergence herbicide to extend the application window. In other words, the first application may not be necessary until a later date. This essentially shortens the critical weed-free period. Another method may be to add an herbicide with some residual to control susceptible weeds. A few, such as Backdraft (Scepter + glyphosate) and Extreme (Pursuit + glyphosate), are pre-packaged mixtures. Remember though, such mixtures will only extend control for weeds susceptible to preemergence applications of the products. For more details on approved herbicide combinations, see Virginia Tech's Pest Management Guide or the appropriate herbicide labels.
The only other reason to add another herbicide to glyphosate is to improve control of existing weeds that are less susceptible to Roundup or larger weeds. Although this may improve weed control, bumping up the rate of Roundup may achieve similar results.
What about the addition of additives to Roundup or other glyphosate products? Roundup Ultra Max as well as other glyphosate-containing herbicides already contains a surfactant. The type of surfactant included is not always known and product labels vary on this issue. Therefore, I would suggest following the label when it comes to additional surfactant.
Ammonium sulfate (AMS) can improve control of glyphosate, especially under hard water conditions. Elements such as calcium and magnesium, which make water hard, tend to bind to the glyphosate molecule and reduce its effectiveness. The sulfate part of AMS ties up the calcium and magnesium so it does not bind to the glyphosate. Although we do not typically think of our water as being hard in Virginia (relative to western states), there are instances where AMS can be beneficial.
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In past years, we haven't had to be too concerned about early season insect problems in Virginia soybeans. In fact, corn earworm has traditionally been the single most troublesome insect pest. We hope that doesn't change, as we have a good program for managing earworm and for making sound economic decisions.
Early season insect problems, if they occur at all, will more likely be due to outbreaks of spider mites, bean leaf beetles, thrips, potato leafhoppers - or potentially, aphids. Taken in that order, here is an update.
Spider mite outbreaks have already occurred in some crops such as in strawberry fields in the southeastern counties, and in many ornamental shrubs and perennials. Mites have overwintered well, so populations seem to be high in the environment. This would be a good year to stay alert to this pest, especially in those areas where soybeans have a history of mite infestations - and especially, if dry weather sets in and persists.
Bean leaf beetles have always been present in soybean fields in Virginia, but mostly at low enough numbers not to present a threat to bean yields or seed quality. They can be early season pests as first generation adult beetles feed on the leaves of seedlings. We have not considered this to be a problem unless damage is so severe that seedlings are being destroyed. As the season progresses, beetles will go through more generations and continue to feed on leaves - even scarring the outer walls of pods in extreme outbreak cases. However, it has been very unusual to have enough leaf damage or leaf area loss to beetles to warrant an insecticide treatment. A rather extensive field survey last season, that covered 24 soybean-producing counties, revealed that although present in most fields, beetles were never in large enough numbers to be of much concern. There were a few exceptions, such at the Eastern Shore AREC in Painter where populations were larger. Bean leaf beetle is presenting a major challenge in mid-western states where it is the primary vector of bean pod mottle virus. They are experiencing losses to this disease and have implemented some very low economic thresholds. During our survey last summer we also sampled for bean pod mottle virus. It was found in only three of the 90 fields sampled, and only at one site, the soybean research trials at Painter, was the virus even noticeable. Keep a watch out for bean leaf beetle, but it has seldom reached economically damaging levels.
Thrips are another potential early season insect pest. We have a lot of information and data that shows that early season thrips damage can reduce yields in both peanuts and cotton. It has been much more difficult to verify that for soybean. Several species of thrips do attack soybean seedlings causing a characteristic 'striping' or 'frosting' of leaves, but this early season damage has not proven to be economically important. In three years of replicated field-testing on growers' fields, we have not been able to demonstrate a significant yield reduction where thrips were not controlled with insecticide sprays compared with where they were. Thrips may slow seedling growth somewhat, but with the long growing season, plants fully recover. Soybean Entomologists across all soybean states are in agreement that thrips damage has to be both severe and combined with prolonged dry weather conditions to result in significant yield loss. We are continuing to pursue this problem in hopes of developing better management guidelines.
Potato leafhopper populations can cause seedling damage if populations are large enough. This pest is typically worse in dry years, and is especially worse in soybean varieties that have few or sparse hairs on the leaves and stems. As with thrips damage, early season leafhopper damage may slow seedling maturity somewhat, but plants have a long season to recover, and yield loss to hopper is rare across all soybean states.
Aphids have never been a problem on soybeans in the U.S. until the discovery in 2000 of a new species, the soybean aphid (Aphis glycines) that was introduced from China. This aphid is causing trouble for growers in mid-western / north central states and was found as close to us as western-most West Virginia in 2000. Last summer, we surveyed our major soybean-growing counties in July, August and September. The aphid was detected in 24 counties, but not until September. We believe it migrated in from large infestations in the mid-west. By arriving late, it did not develop into large populations and did not damage fields. Has it overwintered in Virginia? Will it cause problems for us in the future? We are going to continue our surveillance of this potentially troublesome pest and get any news out to you, good or bad.
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No-till planters and drills must be able to cut and handle residue, penetrate the soil to the proper seeding depth, and establish good seed-to-soil contact. Many different soil conditions can be present at the time of double-crop soybean planting in Virginia. Wheat and barley straw has not had very much time to decay and is usually somewhat tough to cut through. Hard and dry conditions may also prevail. Although, cutting residue is easier during dry conditions, it is more difficult to penetrate the hard, dry soils. Proper timing, equipment selection and adjustments, and management can overcome these difficult issues.
Condition of the Field and Residue. Two of the keys for success with no-till equipment are proper handling of the previous crop residue and weed control. The residue has to be uniformly spread behind the combine if the opening devices are going to cut through the material. It is very difficult for the planter/drill to cut the residue if the combine has left a narrow swath of thick residue and chaff. Ensure that the combine is equipped with a straw chopper and chaff spreader to distribute residue and chaff over the entire cut area. Cut the residue as high as possible or use a stripper header to minimize the amount of straw on the ground. The other key is weed control. If standing weeds exist, you are asking the planter/drill to cut and move this extra material through the system, plus the crop has lost valuable resources of nutrients and water.
Coulters and Seed Furrow Openers. Probably the primary difference between conventional planter/drill systems and those designed for conservation tillage systems is weight. Since the openers and soil engaging devices must penetrate much firmer soils and cut the residue, the conservation planter/drill systems are built heavier and have the ability to carry much more weight than conventional systems. For adequate coulter and/or seed furrow opener penetration, weight may have to be added to the planter or coulter carrier. Some planter/drills use a weight transfer linkage to transfer some of the tractor weight to the coulters to ensure penetration. Because coulters are usually mounted several feet in front of the seed opening/placement device (in the case of a coulter caddies even further), many use wide-fluted coulters, a pivoting hitch or a steering mechanism to keep the seed openers tracking in the coulter slots.
Most no-till planters/drill are equipped with independent seeding units that should allow at least 6 inches of vertical movement. This will allow transit over non-uniform surfaces and adjust for root stubs and other obstacles. These units are sometimes staggered which helps with the unit function (more side-to-side space) as well as more space for the residue to flow through the system. These units should be equipped with heavy down-pressure springs and sufficient weight to ensure penetration of both the coulters and seed furrow openers into untilled soil. Usually these springs are adjustable and multiple springs can be added if insufficient pressure is achieved.
As the double disk openers wear, check the gap between them. If a gap opens between the double disks they will push residue into the furrow and have less ability to cut the residue. Adjustment washers are found in the double disk opener assembly, which allow some adjustment to compensate for wear.
More on Weight and Down Pressure. Individual openers should have sufficient down pressure and independent depth control so as to allow enough movement up and down to ensure that all rows are operating at the same depth. Depending on coulter width, opener design and field conditions, up to 500 pounds per row may be necessary for adequate penetration. Down-pressure springs on independent row units must transfer enough weight from the drill frame so that all meter wheels, seed openers, and all depth control devices and seed pressure wheels are making firm contact with the soil. Drills, depending on the opener spacing, can have up to four times the number of row units for a given width of operation compared to similar width of a row-crop planter (15 to 30-inch spacing). Thus, the total weight of a no-till drill or narrow-row planter needs almost 2-4 times the weight of a conventional planter. In some cases, when insufficient drill weight is lacking, the springs may physically lift the meter drive mechanism off the ground. Some manufacturers use a spring-loaded drive mechanism to keep the drive firmly in contact with the soil, but this still requires adequate total drill weight for proper operation.
Finally, sufficient weight must remain on the press wheels to ensure firming of the seed into the soil. Wet soil is easily compacted and care must be taken not to over pack the soil, making it difficult for seedling roots to penetrate the soil. In dry soil conditions, extra closing force may be needed. The key is to evaluate seed-to-soil contact, not the top of the seed-vee. As long as the contact is there, something as simple as a harrow that acts to close the top of the vee and pull light residue cover back over the vee may be all that is needed. This is a common practice on drills that use a narrow press wheel.
Press Wheels and Depth Control. Depth control of most no-till planter/drill systems comes in two methods: 1) gauging the depth from a gauge wheel adjacent to the seed furrow device, or 2) press wheel behind the seed furrow openers. In either case, keep adequate pressure on the gauge or press wheel to force the openers into the soil to the proper depth. A harrow behind a drill ensures seed coverage and redistributes residue for effective conservation measures. Regardless of the depth control, wide-flat press wheels are unacceptable for no-till since they will ride on the firm soil adjacent to the seed furrow and do not firm the seed into soil. A wide press wheel equipped with a rib that runs on the sides of the seed furrow or a rib that runs directly over the furrow to press the seed is adequate for good seed-to-soil contact. Another option is to use a pair of angled press wheels behind the opener to gauge planting depth and close the seed furrow at the same time. When using angled press wheels, ensure that pressure is not placed on the seed furrow to the point that a ribbon of soil moves the seed up. Adjust the angle such that the angle of the press wheels meet at the seed depth. The disadvantage of any system using the press wheel for depth control is its distance from the seed opener. As the distance increases there is a greater possibility that irregular terrain will influence both depth control and the press wheel's ability to provide good seed-to-soil contact.
Setting planters and drills for the season. When the weather and time is right for planting, producers should be in the field planting, not getting equipment ready and making last minute repairs. Any repairs should have been made at the end of planting season last year when problems were fresh in their minds.
In the shop... Read the owner's manual for suggested maintenance and lubricate as directed. Check the operation of the seed metering devices and replace worn parts. Adjust the seed metering devices using this year's seed to match seed size and shape. Check, adjust, and lubricate chains, sprockets, bearings, and fittings. Replace worn ones. Adjust or replace the seed-furrow opener disks and other ground engaging components. Properly inflate all tires, including those on the tractor.
In the field before planting season... Set the toolbar and the hitch point at the proper height to match soil conditions. Level the planter from front-to-rear, slightly tail down to help with seed-to-soil contact. Blind plant a short distance to check operation: check residue cutting and handling, check penetration to desired seeding depth, evaluate seed-to-soil contact, and evaluate closing the seed-vee. Adjust downpressure springs to improve residue cutting and seedbed penetration. Add weight as needed for the downpressure springs to work against and to keep the drive wheels in firm contact with the ground to avoid slippage.
General Operation
Since the planter/drill system must handle and cut the residue, allow the residue to dry and become crisp before planting. These conditions aid in the cutting and handling of the residue. The weight of the drill and pressure from the down-pressure springs are essential for cutting residue, penetrating the soil and preventing seed openers from bouncing over residue. Most manufacturers suggest operating speeds of 6 to 10 mph. While this hinders accurate metering from fluted-meter devices, a higher operating speed assists in residue flow, especially for planter/drill equipped with a coulter caddie and/or a harrow.
In the field during planting season, especially when changing fields... Check residue cutting and handling. Leave more residues over the row as the weather warms up to reduce seedbed drying. Check planting depth and seed-to-soil contact. Back off on pressure in wet soils that are easily compacted. Slow down to improve seed placement uniformity. Check seed spacing for proper population. Adjust harrows on drills to redistribute residue and help close the seed-vee.
Check seed depth... Drill depth control surveys from the mid-west indicated a strong tendency to plant much deeper than intended. Only 20% of the producers were at or near the intended depth, and 68% of the fields were planted too deep. Excessive depth delayed germination and reduced stands. These same surveys found that producers are much more accurate with population rate than with planting depth.
Check for seeds on the ground... The closure and seed-to-soil contact device should be adjusted if seeds are found on the soil surface.
Varying soil and residue conditions across the field... If depth control is insufficient due to soft soil conditions (sandy soils) or residue amounts are changing, check to see of the manufacturer offers some additional down-pressure spring kits that activate more spring pressure as conditions dictate and less when the down pressure is not needed.
Check for hairpinning... When operating a planter/drill system in heavy residue, straw may be pushed in the seed furrow (hairpinning), reducing seed-to-soil contact, and slowing or reducing germination. Make sure the cutting angle on the coulter is correct and the cutting edge is sharp. Depending on the conditions, a smooth coulter may provide more needed cutting of residue than the tillage from a fluted coulter. The hairpin effect is minimized when seeding units operate on a firm soil, and when residue is dry and crisp. Simply waiting a little later in the day, when residue is drier, may greatly improve the operation of the planter/drill system.
Successful planting/drilling with no-till equipment depends on specially designed systems that can uniformly place seed through heavy residue and into firm, moist soil. No-till equipment is available to achieve these results for good yields
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Growing demand for biodiesel will help move surplus soybean oil into the market creating an opportunity to improve prices for soybeans. Increased biodiesel use will also reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, improve air quality, and stimulate the U.S. economy, especially in rural areas. As ASA President, Bart Ruth says, "Biodiesel is good for the country, good for the environment, and good for the farmer!"
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Sincerely,
David L. Holshouser
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