Every planting season the goal is the same.
“Keep the corn plants happy and growing the way they need to,” says Michael Vittetoe, a farmer in Iowa preparing to hit the field this planting season.
Keeping those plants happy means getting them off to a good start.
“You know, today there are still lots of planters with no nutrition on them,” says Farm Journal Field Agronomist Missy Bauer.
She doesn’t just mean nitrogen. From micronutrients to phosphorus, zinc, biologicals and even fungicides, the goal is to improve plant health.
“There are different products that try to get more nutrients into the plant sooner,” Bauer says. “Just like we’re trying to do by putting pop-up in-furrow, the goal is getting that same kind of response from the additive itself.”
That includes new things such as in-furrow fungicides.
“The active ingredient is expressed in the foliage from emergence to black layer, which offers the opportunity for growers to protect that plant as the ear size is being determined in addition to the grain fill period,” said Nick Hustedde, technical service manager with FMC.
There are also micronutrients that can be added in-furrow.
“Whether your zinc is going to go on in-furrow or in the 2x2 band, having that zinc out there is very beneficial,” Bauer says. “We’re also starting to see sulfur deficiencies, but sulfur is very hot and it can burn or injure the seed. Sulfur has to be further away, so we keep that in the 2x2 band for the safety of it.”
Biologicials or biostimulants are also fighting for room in the tank.
“We’re evaluating mycorrhiza-type or fungi-type products that go in-furrow and stimulate the soil itself,” Bauer says. “It’s creating more symbiotic relationships and really having an improvement in early root growth.”
For Brian Hora, a farmer in Washington County, Iowa, his starter fertilizer system is also helping deliver the biological stimulants to the furrow.
“We rigged our system up a couple of years ago, not so much because we thought we needed the starter but what I was really interested in was all the additives and new products hitting the market,” Hora explains. “We’re interested in the biologicals, the nitrogen fixation products and some of those things we thought would really enhance our yields and our profitability.”
The goal is to enhance profitability through better plant health.
“What we’re trying to accomplish is a better plant early so that can translate to yields later on throughout the season,” Bauer says. “It’s trying to get that plant off to a better start.”
