Fall work | Growers interested in corn may have to invest in tillage and grain drying equipment
TABER, Alta. — Sitting across from a dealer while examining a brochure on a winter’s day is not the time to invest in tillage equipment, says Lloyd Van Eeden Petersman of Taber Home and Farm Centre.
It’s much better to see tillage tools in action and talk to representatives who know the nitty gritty.
That was his thinking when he organized a late October tillage field day in a corn field near Taber, where interest in grain corn has been steadily increasing among producers.
Read Also
AI expected to make itself felt in food systems
Artificial intelligence is already transforming the food we eat, how farmers produce it and how it reaches the consumer, experts say
Fall field work can contribute significantly to a successful crop in the following year, said Van Eeden Petersman, who is also an independent representative for DuPont Pioneer.
“Corn stover, corn stubble, if not managed properly, can be a refuge for large quantities of snow,” he said.
“As the wind blows, it tends to stop in the corn and you’re dealing with your snow plus the neighbour’s snow. It could make for a cold wet spring. It’s tough for any seed to come out of that.”
On the other hand, farmers don’t want to lose their corn residue and its value when it blows away in the high winds common to southern Alberta.
Preventing that might require some method of fall incorporation.
“There’s all kinds of (tillage tools) out there and they’re a significant dollar investment, so you want to make an educated decision.”
DuPont Pioneer agronomist Nicole Rasmussen told growers to do their homework when choosing a grain corn variety.
“The higher yield with a higher moisture doesn’t always mean more money in your pocket,” she said.
“We know that the average drying cost is about five cents per bushel per percent, so those extra yields may come at a pretty significant cost if the moistures are considerably higher.”
Growers who have grain dryers should consider yields adjusted for moisture because quality can suffer through drying and a higher yielding variety won’t necessarily pay off.
“It’s important for growers not just to see the yield but they’ve got to make sure it’s a product that dries down to fit in their area. Each hybrid is different, and it’s important to know what it does in your local environment.”
Half the grain corn growers in this region do not have grain dryers, so they rely on field dry-down to about 15 percent before combining.
That can be risky, and Rasmussen recommended a B.t. hybrid so that corn borers don’t weaken the stalks, cause crops to blow over and complicate harvest pickup.
She said all corn hybrids are rated for stalk strength, which growers should take into account when choosing a variety. There aren’t many options for B.t., but producers should check those that are available for early maturity.
Rasmussen has noticed greater interest in grain corn in southern Alberta. Three consecutive years of good harvests have definitely helped.
So does familiarity with other row crops in the region, including potatoes and sugar beets. Many farmers have row crop planters already, so grain corn doesn’t require a big initial equipment investment.
“Hybrids have gotten to a point where guys can consistently get a good harvest off them,” he said.
“Every year, newer higher yielding earlier hybrids come out and I think that’s part of it.”
