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September 29th, 2017

Josh Sullivan - Morrisonville,IL     Rainfall: Have not had any rain in several weeks.    Corn:Finally got started with harvest on September 23. Corn yields are much better than expected we have shelled 370 acres so far running about 20 percent to 16 on moisture.   Soybeans:Started to cut beans on September 26 have only cut 80 acres have 300 acres ready to cut this

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September 27th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: We got a little over 2 inches locally last week. It was a nice rain that should help get the cover crops started.   Corn:The corn is getting close to ready, I have heard of a couple guys starting and the corn is anywhere from 20-25%. Yields seem to be better than expected so hopefully that trend continues throughout the fall. It appears

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September 18th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: We have received no rainfall this week, but a very heavy dew and fog on thursday morning.   Corn: Most of the corn is starting to fire up and die down, most places still have a couple weeks before they get going full speed harvesting.    Soybeans: The beans are starting to turn and some earlier varieties are starting to drop leaves, some guys

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September 11th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: We have received no rainfall this past week in the Ashkum or surrounding areas.   Corn:The corn is still coming along nicely, but we do still need quite a bit of heat to help the later season hybrids finish out. From what I have seen so far, the early season corn seems to have the upper hand this year due to the weather that we have been having.

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September 6th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: We have received a few showers this week, none seemed to be more than a tenth or two.     Corn:Corn is starting to dent and guys are starting to be able to tell kernel depth and other key yield factors. Corn is still very green and we are about 250 GDUs behind normal.   Soybeans: The beans are loving the nice rains we have been

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August 28th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: This past week we had anywhere from 1-4 inches of rain, however it was a steady rain that soaked in. It was very welcomed.   Corn: The corn is still coming along nicely, there are fields every once in a while that are starting to turn but for the most part it's all pretty green. Everything I have heard from people who have tested corn, is that it is somewhere around 40-45% moisture yet.   Soybeans:

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August 21st, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall:  We have gotten a 1-4 tenths of rain over the past two days, it was welcomed and we would welcome more.     Corn: The ears continue to fill out nicely and look very good, however the stand counts are just too low to have much over an average crop. Getting some rainfall and working on kernel depth the next month will be key to higher yields.   Soybeans: It is hard to tell what

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August 11th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Rainfall: We have not gotten any rainfall this week but some nice showers last week and some very heavy dews have left us in really good shape.   Corn: The corn is filling ears and doing so nicely, most of the ears that I have looked at are 16-18 around and pretty long, seems like kernel depth will be the biggest yield factor this year.  There continues

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August 4th, 2017

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Corn-: With some of the rain this last week the corn is continuing to even up, the replant corn is about the same height as the first planted, a lot of corn is brown silked now and the pollination appears to have gone well.  The ears are pretty good sized, but there are still a lot of wet holes so that will hurt the overall yield, but all in all it seems to

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July 31st, 2017

Josh Sullivan - Morrisonville, IL   Rainfall: we received .2 tenths of rain on the farm, Wednesday night sure was a nice soaker. We had 5.7inches at our main farm shop and I got 2.5 inches at my home at the southern edge of christian country.   Corn: Overall the corn crop did not show much heat stress; however the the lighter color soil stressed the

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July 21st, 2017

Josh Sullivan - Morrisonville, IL   Rainfall:We received 8 tenths of rain on Sunday night on the farm.   Corn:Corn pollination has been very good and has the potential for a high yield. However some of the corn is showing some firing of the lower leaves.   Soybeans:Soybeans are still growing but have not started to set any pods.   Other:The heat will be very hot this week reaching close to 98 on

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July 17th, 2017

• corn seed
• soybeans

Jake Wilken - Ashkum, IL   Corn- The replant corn continues to catch up to the first planted corn, so the corn fields are evening up and making the fields look a little bit better.  Stand counts are in the 29-32,000 range for the most part.  Within 4 or 5 miles you can see corn all the way from v5 or v6 to tassel so it varies greatly.   Soybeans- With the rain and heat this last

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June 19th, 2017

• cover crops

Residual Herbicides and Cover Crop Establishment

By Sean Jordal

For all the benefits corn and soybean growers are seeing associated with Cover Crop applications, the number of acres being planted to Cover Crops continues to rise.

At the same time, with more persistent weeds showing tolerance to glyphosate herbicide programs in recent years, another rising trend involves growers adding tank mix partners and other modes of action that provide some residual weed control for their Cash Crops.

When these two trends converge, it can be problematic, leaving growers wondering about the effect that any

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November 3rd, 2016

Apart from having productivity goals that extend beyond a single season, 365-day yield strategies to increase APH are also characterized by multiple, sometimes subtle, decisions that collectively, expand yield potential.

As growers refine their hybrid packages for 2017, one of the understated factors worth considering involves the process of selecting ear type and leaf orientation based on soil characteristics.

Low-Productivity Acres = Flex Ear + Open Architecture Leaf

Ground historically known for lower productivity, due to the likes of drought stress or poor organic matter, is often best

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August 11th, 2016

The 2016 corn crop for most areas of Illinois is setting up to be one of the largest in history.  High yielding crops cause a lot of nutrient strain on the plant as it attempts to fill ears to their maximum potential.  When plants run short of available nutrients from the soil, translocation starts to take place leaving the lower portions of the plant open for late season integrity issues either from cannibalization, stalk diseases or both.

Stalk rots are common in the Midwest and are in every field to some extent. Identifying the specific type of stalk rot is easier during early

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June 10th, 2016

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June 9th, 2016

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June 8th, 2016

As seen in Illinois AgriNews

Because of the benefits corn and soybean growers are seeing associated with Cover Crop applications, the number of acres being planted to Cover Crops continues to rise.

At the same time, with more persistent weeds showing tolerance to glyphosate herbicide programs in recent years, another rising trend involves growers adding tank mix partners and other modes of action that provide some residual weed control for their Cash Crops.

When these two trends converge, it can be problematic, leaving growers wondering about the effect that any related herbicide residue

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May 10th, 2016

Some may feel the 2016 crop is off and running at a slower than desirable pace with just 66% of the state's corn crop planted.  When compared to recent history, we are well beyond the five year average of 38%.  This would mimic what I have been hearing across our sales territories from our Seed Specialists.  The recent rains and cool weather have slowed recent progress on those numbers but we are in very good shape nonetheless.  Our current GDU accumulation is running a little behind schedule, with 440 GDU's accumulated (Normal, IL.).  Based on an April

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April 20th, 2016

As seen in Illinois AgriNews - http://www.agrinews-pubs.com/Content/News/Rural-Voices/Article/Check-soils-for-micronutrients-/8/15/15133

When accounting for the broad range of factors that can affect yield potential, it’s extremely important to evaluate the soil’s micronutrient profile—that mix of seven essential minerals growers can often overlook while making more conventional NPK fertility decisions.

Why Micronutrients Are Important

Crop production involves 16 basic elements, seven of which are micronutrients—boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum and zinc—that all serve

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April 14th, 2016

Killing Annual Ryegrass

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March 24th, 2016

As seen in Illinois AgriNews - http://www.agrinews-pubs.com/Content/News/Rural-Voices/Article/Consider-residue-breakdown-and-mineralization-/8/15/15132

To optimize corn production, producers should today pay close attention to carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and mineralization, as they manage soil nutrients in the spring and fall. The fall harvest date and the spring’s temperature and moisture levels have a significant impact on the breakdown of crop residue and mineralization, the release of nutrients into the soil.

Breakdown of Crop Residue

We know that the higher the carbon–nitrogen ratio

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March 24th, 2016

As seen in Illinois AgriNews on February 9th 2016

When is innovation just high-tech hoopla, and when does it have a real place on the farm? That’s the question many growers are pondering with the rise of the agricultural drone—a device that, while intriguing, leaves many wondering how they could really put one to productive use in an ag operation.

But, before dismissing the notion, growers ought to consider the data. In one study, for example, conducted by Informa Economics and Measure (Des Moines Register, July 21, 2015), researchers projected that, through the use of drones, corn,

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February 12th, 2016

Matching Soils to Ear Type when Selecting Hybrids

As seen in January 14th Agrinews

Apart from having productivity goals that extend beyond a single season, 365-day yield strategies to increase APH are also characterized by multiple, sometimes subtle, decisions that, collectively, expand yield potential.

As growers refine their hybrid packages for 2016, one of the understated factors worth considering involves the process of selecting ear type and leaf orientation based on soil characteristics. 

Low-Productivity Acres = Flex Ear + Open-Architecture Leaf

Ground

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January 12th, 2016

ProHarvest President, Randy Wilken, addresses members at the 27th annual Independent Professional Seed

Association (IPSA) conference in St. Louis, Missouri. After serving as the Association’s first Vice President in

2015, Randy is stepping into the role of IPSA President for 2016.

The opportunities before independent seed companies in today’s market are tremendous. Since its formation in 1989, the Independent Professional SeedAssociation (IPSA) has served as an advocate for growers and customers, now representing nearly 100 seed companies in 25 states, as well as Canada and Mexico.