Road to Spring
Oct 07, 2024
Over a year on the farm, the planting, growing, and harvest seasons are usually the stars of the show and command most of the attention of any casual observer. Less flashy but equally important, though, is the planning and maintenance season — the winter period between harvest and planting. It’s often the decisions and prep work that happens over winter that makes the road to spring that much smoother and a successful crop season more likely.
The following 9 topics — some related to agronomy and others, to livestock production — should be on your short list of areas to address beginning in October and continuing through spring planting.
1. Forage Management
Any proper forage management plan over the fall and winter months begins with soil sampling, which often calls for a lime application over pasture. Applying lime in the late fall allows for the mineral to work into the ground over the wet winter months naturally and helps to balance soil pH. (More on soil sampling later.)
As lime is making its corrections, stockpiling fescue and orchard grass might be a good option for livestock producers who are able to extend their grasses into the winter months. This often allows for cows to be put back onto fescue in January or February, and provides good, clean ground for calving. Also, depending on moisture levels and temperatures, annual grasses, ryegrasses, and cereal grains can be planted as early as the first of September and as late as mid-December.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Range Specialist Zane Troxtel
2. Burndown
In the fall, give special consideration to Italian ryegrass, which must be controlled early, especially in front of corn. Ryegrass has allelopathy effects that are detrimental to corn, meaning that it produces a chemical that will interfere with corn growth. Mississippi State University research shows that ryegrass has negative effects in front of corn even when controlled up to 45 days in advance of planting. Gramoxone plus a residual in the fall is recommended.
Although pigweed and marestail are the usual suspects, we're now seeing more grass issues, due largely to the antagonism of mixing the auxins 2,4-D and dicamba with glyphosate. Moving away from dicamba and 2,4-D products in the burndown is going to greatly increase burndown efficacy. Instead, use products like Sharpen®, Verdict®, Elevore®, or Reviton®.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
3. Soil Sampling
Late fall and winter are the best times for soil sampling, the basic tenant of any proper crop-planning exercise. Without soil-sampling data, lime and fertilizer applications are akin to a “shot in the dark,” but with today’s technology, sampling should be scheduled annually. By sampling annually, producers can determine whether they removed more fertility with the previous year’s crop than the yield goal that was fertilized for. In an annual sampling cycle, farmers often spend the same amount of money on lime as they would every third year but are spreading it out as an annual part of the budget rather than taking a big hit every fourth year.
Depending on the size of your farm and resources at hand, use either composite, grid, or zone sampling. Visit with the agronomist at your local Co-op to determine the best method for you.
Source: Trey Colley, GreenPoint Ag Senior Manager for Innovation and Equipment Technology
4. Tank Additives
When developing next season’s budget over the winter months, row crop producers should factor in tank mixes, with adjuvants and surfactants, based on herbicide and pesticide label recommendations. In most cases, the efficacy of a spray product is decreased dramatically without the addition of an appropriate adjuvant, which will reduce drift-causing fines, improve nozzle flow, and help the product better penetrate the canopy of the crop with uniform droplet size. Winfield United’s InterLock® is considered the industry leader in adjuvant products. According to recent studies, more than a third of the tank mix can drift off target without the addition of Interlock. For fungicide applications, Winfield United’s MasterLock® is prescribed.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
5. Seed Selection
Variety and hybrid selections are always one of the most important considerations for a crop producer following fall harvest. GreenPoint Ag’s on-farm trials are key in making these decisions. This year’s two-year averages will be strong due to contrasting years, high yielding and drought stress conditions. Because cotton data usually isn’t available until late December or early January, some producers may have to wait later than others to make buying decisions for the upcoming season. Prepaying early or on bulk orders may provide producers with discounts on certain varieties.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
6. Wheat Management
As wheat is planted through, roughly, late November, a key consideration is keeping it weed-free. Pay close attention to poa annua (annual bluegrass) and ryegrass — they can be difficult and expensive to control, so consider using a pre-emergent herbicide before planting. Also, keep an eye out for barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV), which can be spread by aphid species. Aphids appear over fall and winter months, and BYDV infections during the fall are worse than in the spring. Scouting for aphids can be challenging — often requiring a muddy, hands-and-knees session in young wheat. In combination with a good insecticide seed treatment, a winter or early spring, proactive application of pyrethroid like WinField® United’s Tundra® is recommended. A 10-year UT study showed a three-to-five bushel advantage at harvest.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
7. Winter Equipment Management
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is the perfect adage for equipment management, because a breakdown during spring planting can derail an entire season. Post harvest, start with winterizing equipment like combines, sprayers, and pumps. Make sure pumps and lines are drained to avoid freezing and bursting and consider refilling with food-grade Propylene Glycol to prevent the freezing of any remaining water. Clean fertilizer applicators thoroughly so that all corrosive materials are removed before leaving the equipment to sit over the winter months.
Winter is also the time to check hydraulic hoses and pinch points where the lines run across the frame of the equipment. Look for any spots of heavy wear and replace those sections.
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
8. Ag Tech
Fall and winter are great times to consult with the trusted advisors at your local Co-op regarding your current ag tech, both hardware and software. Although it’s often tempting to purchase cutting-edge equipment, the latest and greatest hardware or software package might not always be the wisest investment depending on the individual needs of a farmer. Vast amounts of data can be generated by high-dollar equipment, all of which must be analyzed correctly for a good return on investment. Start by evaluating your current equipment, cleaning and inspecting hardware carefully, installing software updates, and asking yourself, “Will this equipment serve my needs over the upcoming season or should it be retired in favor of something else?”
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
9. Cleaning Up Field Boundaries
Field boundaries are geospatial maps within agricultural software packages like My John Deere Operations Center, Climate FieldView, and GreenPoint Ag’s AccuField®. The winter months are the perfect time to prepare for the upcoming season by updating field boundaries in your software to reflect cropland additions, removals, or even slight adjustments to individual field sizes. This will ensure the accuracy of the data that drives precision ag equipment. Be sure to consult with the professionals at your local Co-op so that field boundaries are correct across all data management systems. Soil sampling with a GPS-driven side-by-side or four-wheeler can also produce more accurate field boundaries.
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
Click here to find a Co-op near you.
The following 9 topics — some related to agronomy and others, to livestock production — should be on your short list of areas to address beginning in October and continuing through spring planting.
1. Forage Management
Any proper forage management plan over the fall and winter months begins with soil sampling, which often calls for a lime application over pasture. Applying lime in the late fall allows for the mineral to work into the ground over the wet winter months naturally and helps to balance soil pH. (More on soil sampling later.)
As lime is making its corrections, stockpiling fescue and orchard grass might be a good option for livestock producers who are able to extend their grasses into the winter months. This often allows for cows to be put back onto fescue in January or February, and provides good, clean ground for calving. Also, depending on moisture levels and temperatures, annual grasses, ryegrasses, and cereal grains can be planted as early as the first of September and as late as mid-December.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Range Specialist Zane Troxtel
2. Burndown
In the fall, give special consideration to Italian ryegrass, which must be controlled early, especially in front of corn. Ryegrass has allelopathy effects that are detrimental to corn, meaning that it produces a chemical that will interfere with corn growth. Mississippi State University research shows that ryegrass has negative effects in front of corn even when controlled up to 45 days in advance of planting. Gramoxone plus a residual in the fall is recommended.
Although pigweed and marestail are the usual suspects, we're now seeing more grass issues, due largely to the antagonism of mixing the auxins 2,4-D and dicamba with glyphosate. Moving away from dicamba and 2,4-D products in the burndown is going to greatly increase burndown efficacy. Instead, use products like Sharpen®, Verdict®, Elevore®, or Reviton®.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
3. Soil Sampling
Late fall and winter are the best times for soil sampling, the basic tenant of any proper crop-planning exercise. Without soil-sampling data, lime and fertilizer applications are akin to a “shot in the dark,” but with today’s technology, sampling should be scheduled annually. By sampling annually, producers can determine whether they removed more fertility with the previous year’s crop than the yield goal that was fertilized for. In an annual sampling cycle, farmers often spend the same amount of money on lime as they would every third year but are spreading it out as an annual part of the budget rather than taking a big hit every fourth year.
Depending on the size of your farm and resources at hand, use either composite, grid, or zone sampling. Visit with the agronomist at your local Co-op to determine the best method for you.
Source: Trey Colley, GreenPoint Ag Senior Manager for Innovation and Equipment Technology
4. Tank Additives
When developing next season’s budget over the winter months, row crop producers should factor in tank mixes, with adjuvants and surfactants, based on herbicide and pesticide label recommendations. In most cases, the efficacy of a spray product is decreased dramatically without the addition of an appropriate adjuvant, which will reduce drift-causing fines, improve nozzle flow, and help the product better penetrate the canopy of the crop with uniform droplet size. Winfield United’s InterLock® is considered the industry leader in adjuvant products. According to recent studies, more than a third of the tank mix can drift off target without the addition of Interlock. For fungicide applications, Winfield United’s MasterLock® is prescribed.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
5. Seed Selection
Variety and hybrid selections are always one of the most important considerations for a crop producer following fall harvest. GreenPoint Ag’s on-farm trials are key in making these decisions. This year’s two-year averages will be strong due to contrasting years, high yielding and drought stress conditions. Because cotton data usually isn’t available until late December or early January, some producers may have to wait later than others to make buying decisions for the upcoming season. Prepaying early or on bulk orders may provide producers with discounts on certain varieties.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
6. Wheat Management
As wheat is planted through, roughly, late November, a key consideration is keeping it weed-free. Pay close attention to poa annua (annual bluegrass) and ryegrass — they can be difficult and expensive to control, so consider using a pre-emergent herbicide before planting. Also, keep an eye out for barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV), which can be spread by aphid species. Aphids appear over fall and winter months, and BYDV infections during the fall are worse than in the spring. Scouting for aphids can be challenging — often requiring a muddy, hands-and-knees session in young wheat. In combination with a good insecticide seed treatment, a winter or early spring, proactive application of pyrethroid like WinField® United’s Tundra® is recommended. A 10-year UT study showed a three-to-five bushel advantage at harvest.
Source: GreenPoint Ag Agronomist Taylor Dill
7. Winter Equipment Management
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is the perfect adage for equipment management, because a breakdown during spring planting can derail an entire season. Post harvest, start with winterizing equipment like combines, sprayers, and pumps. Make sure pumps and lines are drained to avoid freezing and bursting and consider refilling with food-grade Propylene Glycol to prevent the freezing of any remaining water. Clean fertilizer applicators thoroughly so that all corrosive materials are removed before leaving the equipment to sit over the winter months.
Winter is also the time to check hydraulic hoses and pinch points where the lines run across the frame of the equipment. Look for any spots of heavy wear and replace those sections.
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
8. Ag Tech
Fall and winter are great times to consult with the trusted advisors at your local Co-op regarding your current ag tech, both hardware and software. Although it’s often tempting to purchase cutting-edge equipment, the latest and greatest hardware or software package might not always be the wisest investment depending on the individual needs of a farmer. Vast amounts of data can be generated by high-dollar equipment, all of which must be analyzed correctly for a good return on investment. Start by evaluating your current equipment, cleaning and inspecting hardware carefully, installing software updates, and asking yourself, “Will this equipment serve my needs over the upcoming season or should it be retired in favor of something else?”
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
9. Cleaning Up Field Boundaries
Field boundaries are geospatial maps within agricultural software packages like My John Deere Operations Center, Climate FieldView, and GreenPoint Ag’s AccuField®. The winter months are the perfect time to prepare for the upcoming season by updating field boundaries in your software to reflect cropland additions, removals, or even slight adjustments to individual field sizes. This will ensure the accuracy of the data that drives precision ag equipment. Be sure to consult with the professionals at your local Co-op so that field boundaries are correct across all data management systems. Soil sampling with a GPS-driven side-by-side or four-wheeler can also produce more accurate field boundaries.
Source: Ben White, Senior Manager, Advanced Services and Operations, GreenPoint Ag
Click here to find a Co-op near you.