Digital Corner

When we track planting date and CHU accumulation from that date, we can use that to schedule the next management decision. If you have chosen a post emergent corn herbicide program you can plan the application timing based on CHU accumulation. Especially if the product needs to be applied before corn emerges. Knowing that helps to decide on program changes when wet weather sets in and delays field work.

We officially track seasonal CHU on May 1^st each year. This does not prevent us from track CHU sooner. We started accumulating CHU on April 8^th and by month end we had accumulated 88 CHU. It does little good of corn is not planted. We did have some corn planted on April 26 and by May 5 we had accumulated 171 CHU and the corn was spiking through. We can continue to verify growth stages as it takes roughly 75 to 80 CHU for each new leaf to develop. If we planted April 26 and we are now at 206 CHU we are likely still in the spike stage (206 – 170 = 36) not enough for the first leaf to appear however in 3 more days we will likely see first true leaf after accumulating 50 more CHU. The chart below shows the difference from last year. A much warmer start to the spring this year. Corn planted on May 1^st will likely emerge in 9 to 10 days depending on how warm it gets. Last year it took almost 20 days for corn to emerge. It remains to be seen how fast corn emerges this year with a warmer start I anticipate later planted corn will most likely emerge more quickly than last year. You can find this CHU information on the front page of our website, it is updated every 2 days. 

In the same area you will find a chart of GDD for wheat. We track from Jan 1^st until physiological maturity. Green up occurs after the accumulation of 250 to 300 GDD. That estimate was roughly 2 weeks earlier than last year based on the difference in GDD accumulation. Early planted wheat is in a critical growth stage as nutrient uptake of Nitrogen and Sulphur is peaking. We have tremendous biomass on these wheat fields as a result we are beginning to see areas of marginal nutrient supply show up as yellow chlorotic spots in fields. Nitrogen uptakes peaks at heading with 85% of N taken up and 91% of the Sulphur. We are only a week away from some fields beginning head emergence Zadoks 49.  

The next critical management step is to protect the head after flowering from Fusarium Head Blight. After flowering it takes 660 GDD to make grain. Yield will be function of the number of days it takes to get to 660. The more days it takes the bigger the yields 

Tracking accumulated heat as CHU or GDD by crop can be used to understand critical growth stages and the key management steps associated with each one. We can be proactive and plan ahead for field activities to enhance crop and product performance. View CHU and GDD on our website.

Article by Jordan Sisson

Crop Sales Specialist

AGRIS Co-operative

Muirkirk

Driving around the countryside its hard to find a bad looking wheat crop. We have experienced favorable growing conditions so far in 2024 and are intrigued by the yield potential, although we have some critical stages to get through before we know that for sure. 

There is some concern of some yellowing showing up in fields whether you’ve seen it on social media or even in your own fields. Potential S or Mn deficiency may be occurring in your field, physiological fleck has also been identified in some wheat fields. Scouting and identifying the issue alongside your AGRIS Crop Sales Specialist is key in determining the issue as well as the next course of action. 

The winter wheat crop is in its critical growth phase that has greatest influence on yield which is 30 days before flowering and 10 days after. With the favorable growing conditions, we have experienced so far with warm temps, rain fall etc. our wheat is 2-3 weeks earlier than what we experienced last year. That means most fields are coming into or are at flag leaf now and heading will occur over the next 10 to 13 days. Keeping the plant healthy during this time is critical, environmental factors can play a roll in potential fungal pathogen infections. It is important to scout the field to check on potential presence and severity of foliar fungal pathogens. We should be looking to protect the flag and penultimate leaf during this time (T2) with a fungicide if need be. 

Following this stage in the wheat the next critical time to be scouting is in or around the T3 growth stage. This is when the head is just fully emerged. Fungicide applications at this stage are centered around protecting the head from fusarium head blight which can have an effect on your grade and marketability of the crop at the elevator. Timing of a fungicide application here is critical for the fungicide to do its job. Optimal timing of application is when 75% of heads across the entire field are emerged to when 50% of the heads are in flower.

Following flowering begins the final important and critical time period which is grain fill. This time requires a total of 660 GDD, the length in terms of days for this period comes down to the daily GDD accumulation. 30+ day grain fill period = higher yield, higher daily avg GDD resulting in shorter grain fill period= below average yields.

It is important to Scout, scout, scout. Reach out to your local AGRIS CSS to help identify these key growth and application stages and protect your wheats yield potential! 

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