As many growers are aware. planting has been delayed this spring here in Ohio.  When the planters are delayed and there aren’t any good days for field work growers begin to evaluate the situation as they should. Many growers look at the calendar and start to think about postponing field work till fall, switching fertilizer plans, and switching the seed plan up.

"So where are we compared to years past?" many may ask. The table below is from the USDA crop progress report, and the maps are generated from that report by the National Corn Growers Association. To summarize where we stand: Ohio is 2% Planted on corn compared to 20% last year and the 5-year average is 27%. When it comes to Soybeans. Ohio is 1% Planted compared to 7% last year and the 5-year average is 9%. So yes, we are behind both last year and the 5-year average but remember each year is different, and it is still early. We have had many good corn and soybean crops that

haven’t been planted until June.

Now that we know where we stand many growers are wondering what to do. There have been many growers ask if switching seed hybrids is the right thing to do. Growers are worried that if they don’t get products like LG5643 – 114 day and LG5650 -115 day in the ground very soon they will need to switch to shorter season hybrids. Questions come up such as:  will it ever reach black layer? and if it does. it will be late with no time to dry down? These are good concerns to take into consideration and hopefully the examples I have will help answer those questions.

Advantage Acre®, our Digital Ag Platform, partners with WeatherTrends 360® using 11-month forecasting to help with management decisions such as these.

I have created 3 test fields in different parts of Ohio. Field 1 is located outside of Washington Courthouse, Ohio. Field 2 is located just north of Delaware, Ohio. Field 3 Is located just north of Bellevue, Ohio.

Using AdvantageAcre, I created seed plans for each of these 3 fields, and projected harvest dates for each field. The projected harvest date uses WeatherTrends 360 long term forecast to estimate when your corn will reach R6 physical maturity. On average grain moisture at R6 is between 33% and 37% and the corn will dry .6% per day after reaching R6. Using this data Advantage Acre calculates when you can harvest based on what planned harvest moisture % you enter. For all 3 fields I used the same planting date of 5/27/19 – Memorial Day, and a planned harvest moisture of 20%.

Field 1 – Washington Courthouse, Ohio.

As you can see on the timeline above the field. Advantage Acre shows you different growth stages based on GDU data from WeatherTrends 360. The first picture shows the seed plan and the Timeline of this field planted to LG5650VT2RIB – 115 Day. If planted on May 27^th this field will reach R6 on October 5^th. The second picture of this field the corn should reach 20% moisture around October 30^th.

Field 2 – Delaware, Ohio

As you can see on the timeline above the field, Advantage Acre shows you different growth stages based on GDU data from WeatherTrends 360. The first picture shows the seed plan and the timeline of this field planted to LG5643VT2RIB – 114 Day. If planted on May 27^th this field will reach R6 on October 1^st. The second picture of this field shows the corn should reach 20% moisture around October 26^th.

Field 3 – Bellevue, Ohio.

As you can see on the timeline above the field. Advantage Acre shows you different growth stages based on GDU data from WeatherTrends. The first picture shows the seed plan and the timeline of this field planted to LG5590VT2RIB – 110 Day. If planted on May 27^th this field will reach R6 on September 26^th. As The second picture of this field the corn should reach 20% moisture around October 26^th.

As you can see with all 3 of these examples, each field should be 20% around the end of October. That may seem late, or later than what you are used to, but here are a few things to consider. The first thing is the planting date used is 3 weeks away from now, so when hybrids reach maturity could be moved forward if planting is moved up. Each of these products are on the upper end of maturity for their fields they are planted in, and they are also some of the highest yielding hybrids in their respected areas. By switching to a shorter season hybrid, you very likely will be sacrificing yield.  I know not everyone can dry corn but if you can dry your own corn, or if you are willing to finish drying at the elevator, there is no reason to switch hybrids at this point in the game. I have seen full season hybrids out yield short season hybrids by as much 40 bushel an acre when planted in the same field on the same day.

With all that being said - here are a few things to remember. These are just a few old sayings or practices that seem to hold true every year.

• Plant in the dust and your bins will bust, plant in the mud and your crops a dud.
• Get out and look. The best thing to see in you field is your shadow.
• Better to be a week late than a day early.
• Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should
• Don’t plant by the calendar, plant by the conditions.

With the way the weather conditions have been and looking at the planter, I know it is easy to question every decision you haven’t yet made. Stick to the plan and plant the hybrids that are in your shed. Yield all starts with the seed and its genetic potential, don’t limit your yields by deciding too early in the season on switching seed hybrids.

I encourage growers to look at Advantage Acre and enter your own fields, so you can see for yourself. Your area may be different from the examples I used, as weather conditions vary across the state. Reach out to your Sales Account Manager (SAM or your Technical Team Agronomist (TTA) and they will assist you with any questions, or concerns. Thank you for your support, be safe and as hard as it can be, be patient.

Download a copy of this technical bulletin here: Planting Delays - Ohio