Author Archives: Mark Ellis (Kansas)

About Mark Ellis (Kansas)

Mark takes pleasure in all things outdoors but especially hunting, biking and boating.

2011 Corn Earworm Trapping in Kansas

Trapping Corn Earworm in Kansas Offers Keys to 2011 Disease Issues In 2011, Syngenta cooperated with Kansas State University to collect data on Corn Earworm (CEW) moth activity throughout eastern Kansas. The CEW moth trapping project utilized the KSU protocol. Trapping started in June with 11 CEW traps placed across eastern Kansas at the following locations: Marysville, Centralia, Winchester, Atchison, Wamego, Girard, Yates Center, Ottawa, Thayer, Coffeyville and White City. Each CEW team member checked the trap weekly, replacing the … Continue reading

Posted in Corn Earworm, Infestations, Insects, Kansas, Pests, Syngenta | View Comments

The Invasion of the Corn Earworm!

As we go through the corn crop growing season, we see a multitude of insects. We generally start with black cutworm and end the season with corn earworm. This insect is tough to scout for and to control because the actual damage is done inside the husk to the corn ear kernels during and after tassel stage. Unless you get out in your fields, you may never see the damage until the corn is harvested and in the truck. Even … Continue reading

Posted in Agrisure Corn Traits, Agrisure Viptera, Corn, Corn Earworm, Disease, Infestations, Insects, Kansas, Minnesota, Mycotoxin, Ohio, Pests, Profitability, Scouting, State, Syngenta, Texas | View Comments

Be Aware of Black Cutworm This Spring

Black cutworm (BCW) is typically the most damaging species of cutworm to infest corn fields in Kansas. Black cutworm infestations are often characterized as random and unpredictable. Light infestations of black cutworm are common, but often go unnoticed without scouting. Heavy infestations can devastate a corn stand, and generally the problem is not identified until the major damage has already occurred. These untimely infestations may result in stand reductions of greater than 70 percent in some areas of the field. … Continue reading

Posted in Black Cutworm, Corn, Emergence, High Plains, Infestations, Insects, Kansas, Multi-Pest Complex, Pests, Planting, Profitability, Syngenta, Uncategorized | View Comments

How Late Can I Plant Corn?

Weather conditions have a lot of growers scratching their heads about planting. Wanting to plant but doing it too soon or being afraid of waiting too late is like being caught between a rock and a hard place. The table below shows how late you can plan on planting your corn, as well as what the effects of waiting would be. What corn maturities should be used when planting late? Growers should stick with their planned seed corn choices until … Continue reading

Posted in Corn, High Plains, Kansas, Planting | View Comments

Cool Conditions Mean Slow Corn Emergence

Many growers in Kansas are concerned about corn that was planted about two weeks ago but has yet to emerge. Besides the cool temperatures, many locations have experienced a heavy, pounding rain that has caused a crust to form on the soil. Because of this situation many people are thinking about using a rotary hoe to help the corn emerge. Do I need to hoe my corn fields? Perhaps. While there is truly a crust on many fields, the actual … Continue reading

Posted in Corn, Kansas, Planting | View Comments

Soil Temperature and Crop Emergence

When should we expect to see the first corn emergence this spring?  The answer to that question will come from watching soil temperatures.  Generally, corn will germinate and begin to grow at a soil temperature of 50 degrees Fahrenheit, but at this minimal temperature point, the progress will be very slow. With a seed bed at 50 degrees Fahrenheit, it will typically take almost three weeks before we can expect to see plants emerge. Fortunately, weather changes and soil warms … Continue reading

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Agriculture: The Backbone of the World

Like most Kansans, I grew up around agriculture my entire life.  Agriculture is the “backbone of Kansas” and Kansas is the “backbone of global agriculture,” having always been a strong contributor of wheat, alfalfa, sorghum, soybeans, and most recently corn production. I grew up in the Kansas River Valley bottoms of Rossville, Kansas.  My mother’s parents were farmers near Blue Rapids, Kansas, and I remember many summers spending time on the farm helping my grandpa check fields and work cattle. … Continue reading

Posted in Agrisure Corn Traits, Alfalfa, Corn, High Plains, Kansas, National Ag Week, Soybeans | View Comments

Distressed Winter Wheat: What Should Kansan Growers Do?

As we slowly get into spring, we will start addressing many agronomic crop concerns in the field. One of the most important crops in Kansas is the wheat crop.  Growers are concerned about potential damage to the wheat crop from the severe winter storms that crossed the state,  There will be many decisions regarding the wheat crop concerning poor stands, germination and quality issues – with one of the biggest factors this year being commodity prices of corn and soybeans. … Continue reading

Posted in Kansas, NK Soybeans, Planting, Profitability | View Comments

Which is King: Yield or Test Weight?

As I traveled the state of Kansas, the one question that seemed to be on everyone’s mind was the quality of corn test weight.  Test weight is expressed as pounds per volumetric bushel. Corn test weights can range from 45 to over 60 lbs. per bushel.  The market standard is 54 lbs. per bushel, the grade limit for No. 2 yellow corn. Kernel size, shape and density all affect test weight. Higher test weights mean better filled kernels with a … Continue reading

Posted in Harvest, High Plains, Kansas, Profitability, Yield | View Comments

Watch Out, Kansas!

In Kansas, there is a lot of discussion about what we need to keep an eye out for next year…..Gray Leaf Spot, Eyespot, Goss’s Wilt, Anthracnose Stalk Rot, Common Rust, Northern Corn Leaf Blight, or do we want to talk about soybeans….. Cyst Nematodes, Iron Deficiency Chlorosis, Brown Stem Rot, Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS), Frogeye Leaf Spot??? We need to be aware of ALL of them!  In eastern Nebraska they had a bad breakout of Goss’s Wilt, which is typically … Continue reading

Posted in Colorado, Disease, Genetic diversity, High Plains, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, Soybeans | View Comments