Cluster Corn? Kansas Farmer Grows Triple-Row, Staggered Crop

Three-row cluster corn: “There are so many unknowns, but this is my first time to try this and I’m charged up to see what happens,” says John Smith.

Three rows of corn planted in a 19” cluster, with 9.5” separating the outer rows from the center, and an additional 41” between each trio. The configuration sounds outlandish to many farmers, but producer John Smith is growing 137 acres of cluster corn—planted directly on his water source. Essentially, he is taking his corn to the well.

“The details are the difference in this setup and the concept is solid,” he says. “I’m getting cranked by what I’m learning.”

Mutt and Jeff

Across gently undulating acreage in central Kansas, Smith, 63, grows corn, grain sorghum, soybeans, and wheat on predominantly sandy ground.

“Smith” is a pseudonym; he prefers his name and likeness out of the public square. “Farmers find out what I’m doing and they’re either genuinely interested or mock it. It’s either one or the other. I don’t have time for the criticism, but maybe what I’m doing can help somebody else learn too.”

The majority of Smith’s farmland is pivot-irrigated, but in 2017, he installed drip—a 25-year minimum lifespan system—on 137 acres, with lines 16” deep on 60” centers. Along each drip line, an emitter is positioned every 24”.

Young Cluster Corn in Kansas — “I was shooting for 30,000 plants and only got 27,000. It was a poor job of planting by me, but the uniformity of spacing is decent,” says Smith. (Photo by John Smith)

The drip setup triggered Smith to question seed placement: “An idea came to me by observing the movement of water. In a drought our water moves straight up. I know it’s hard to fathom, but our water moves up, not down, in the water column, and it will not move laterally in our sand. It either hits the surface and evaporates, or it contacts a root.”

Smith’s response? Plant corn directly above the emitters.

On May 9, Smith rolled in with a Monosem triple row planter. “I was shooting for 30,000 plants and only got 27,000. It was a poor job of planting by me, but the uniformity of spacing is decent. I really wish I’d have started better, but that was my fault.”

Planted above a drip line, every cluster has three rows—left, right, and center—9.5” apart, for a total distance of 19”, with 41” between each cluster for a total 60” block. The row heights are staggered. “For the left and right rows, I chose a variety a little shorter in height and a leaf that grows more horizontal to help shade the 41”. Each center row is planted in a variety that is taller and grows upright leaves,” Smith describes.

“I don’t think I’ll be calling a patent attorney, but I’m trying,” he adds with a grin.

Uncharted

Weed pressure, according to Smith, hasn’t been a factor in the 41” empty spacing. He initially intended to plant corn into a cover a crop mat of forage collards, but the cover never came out of the ground. “I planted collards Feb. 28, but they didn’t come up because we were in exceptional drought. I was wanting to establish the cover and then go in with a banded spray rig and kill the growth in a 30” strip above the drip tape. The cluster was supposed to be planted into the killed cover strip.”

As of early July, the cluster corn is faring well and tasseling, Smith says. “It looks very good, but I expect diminished yields due to my planting mistakes.”

Harvest and yield will be a trip into uncharted waters. “How will three rows fit into a conventional corn head? I don’t know. I’ll probably use an extra combine and experiment on some strips. Maybe I’ll end up chopping the whole thing for silage and put it in the silo. There are so many unknowns, but this is my first time to try this and I’m charged up to see what happens.”

The Maverick

What about next year on the same 137-acre field? “I’m not going with triple-row soybeans because the gap is too big, but I’ve got some ideas in my pocket,” Smith says.

Cluster Corn Closeup in Kansas — “The details are the difference in this setup and the concept is solid,” Smith says. “I’m getting cranked by what I’m learning.” (Photo by John Smith)

He estimates 1% of growers in his immediate area utilize drip irrigation. “It works so well and saves on water, and I apply nitrogen right through the lines. It’s about efficiency and I believe it’ll keep spreading.”

As a genuine maverick, always expect Smith to color outside the lines: “My grandfather used to always say, ‘If it ain’t broke, fix it anyway.’ That’s how I learn on my farm and maybe that’s what I’m doing.”

For more from Chris Bennett (cbennett@farmjournal.com 662-592-1106) see:

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