Planting Opportunities to Start on the Right Foot
Eyeing opportunities with the planter pass, FMC is offering a way to get the most out of each acre.
Called “At-Plant,” FMC’s product platform aims to ensure farmers have the tools they need to implement a plan at planting that includes seed, planter equipment, crop nutrition and crop protection.
“While the traits and treatments you get on seed today have been great innovations, they do have gaps,” says David Wheeler, U.S. commercial director at FMC. “What we’re trying to provide is a way to fill those gaps and help the crop reach its full potential.”
A Successful Start
According to Dan Quinn, an assistant professor and Extension specialist at Purdue, systems such as At-Plant are important to developing a healthy root system.
“We see time and time again when we have a poor nodal root system, a corn plant doesn’t look as healthy,” Quinn says. “Having close proximity of some of these products is important to help with that transition from the seminal to the nodal root system.”
The benefits of a successful start are echoed by western Illinois farmer Matt Swanson.
“The At-Plant process for us is all about setting yield potential,” he says. “The decision purely revolves around setting the plant up for good conditions.”
Delivery System Layers Additional Opportunity
Along with the At-Plant products, FMC has developed a crop protection delivery platform called the 3RIVE (pronounced “thrive”) 3D application system.
3RIVE 3D can mount to most of the major planter brands. It combines liquid product and water —minimizing operator exposure.
“You basically have a chemical and a water tank together on a system that keeps the product separate and then mixes it in line. Ninety percent of the carrier is air, so now you get the efficiency of not carrying all that liquid,” says Gail Stratman, regional technical service manager at FMC. “It allows growers to get across a lot of acres without carrying a lot of weight on the machine.”
Having less weight on his planter was a big incentive for eastern Iowa farmer Jeff Samuelson.
“I can fill it and get about 300 acres per fill using 60 ounces of water, and I don’t have to carry a lot on my planter,” he says. “For the most part, once we get rolling with it, it pretty much takes care of itself.”
When it comes to trying different products such as At-Plant on the farm, Swanson believes it’s a necessary part of staying ahead of the curve.
“The most limiting factor quite often on any farm is the guy that’s running it. It’s the idea that ‘This is the way we’ve always done it’ or that ‘We can’t afford to try this,’” Swanson explains. “It’s just a matter of getting out and talking to people and saying, ‘OK, what’s possible? What do I need to achieve these things?’”
