The Purdue Crop Chat podcast with Purdue Extension Corn Specialist Dan Quinn and Soybean Specialist Shaun Casteel is up now at HoosierAgToday.com. They joined me on stage at last week’s Indiana Farm Equipment and Technology Expo.
We discussed a number of things from this past season, including how earlier planted crops took a hit in 2022. With many soybean growers trying to push that planting date sooner, Casteel has some concerns.
“I know guys that have said, ‘The field conditions are fit. I’m going in March.’ You can get hit pretty hard if you think about a spring freeze that comes back and nips you because that growing point is above the ground, right? But I have also been pretty amazed on how that crop can adapt. So, if you’re burning out the terminal, but you’ve got the axillary buds that are there that can branch… I’ve done the March plantings, I’ve compared them to April’s and May’s, and I’m not a fan of going in March. People can do it, I just think you have too much of a risk.”
With all the technology on display at the Indiana Farm Equipment and Technology Expo, Casteel commented on the incredible work they’ve been doing at Purdue Extension with drones. He’s had one for the past 5 years now and has watched their capabilities grow.
“Going from the toys to tools aspect of it. So, I’ve actually got a student that just finished up on work with stand assessment and just imagery and we’ve got beautiful relationships. So, instead of going on counting soybeans now with hula hoops and tape measures, we’ve got a beautiful relationship with the image and canopy cover and that being our threshold. Instead of saying we needed 100,000 plants or 70,000, 80,000 plants, we’ve got it on a canopy coverage basis from VC to V4 and it’s a moving target because that crop’s growing. So, yeah, there is some just awesome things that are going on there so you can cover the field in a fast way.”
The Purdue Crop Chat can be found now below or wherever you listen to podcasts- just search Hoosier Ag Today.
