Will Corn Still Be King In NE Indiana in 2013?
It was a tough year for corn yields across the state last year, but growers in NE Indiana are still likely to plant more corn in 2013. On average, corn yields last year in North Central and North East Indiana counties was off 25%. But Bob Purlee, District Sales Manager with Brodbeck Seeds, says a few outstanding corn hybrids surprised everyone, “The Refuge Advance, 5% product did extremely well, and I have been very pleased with some of the new genetics we have added to the Brodbeck lineup in the past year.” He added that some of these hybrids did very well in some of the toughest drought conditions last year and, where the rains did come, they did outstanding.
As a result, he sees a lot of Brodbeck customers in Northern Indiana planting corn this year, “If we have a good spring and if we get some good moisture recharge in some of our very dry areas, we are going to plant a lot of corn.” Even with the pullback in corn prices, he told HAT growers in Northern Indiana like to plant corn. Corn acreage will remain strong across the country, according to USDA forecasters. At the Outlook Forum last week, the USDA estimated planted corn acreage could top 97 million acres. The first official estimate will come at the end of March with the USDA Planting Intentions Report.
Purlee says what they saw out of some of the Brodbeck genetics will help them better position those hybrids for their customers. He said, when the conditions got very bad last year, there were a few hybrids that preformed very well, “We had a couple of hybrids that really stood up well. I learned few things about a couple of our hybrids that really impressed me.” He said this will help him position these hybrids better for his customers.
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