Golden Acres Priorities Newsletter - March 2013

Golden Acres exists to preserve the values, traditions, and independence of family farmers. In January we participated in the Independent Professional Seed Association’s 24th Annual Conference. While attending a “Washington Update” breakout session, I was reminded of just how much is at stake. Rural America makes up 19.38% of our nation’s population, and is dropping. With long-term uncertainty surrounding the Farm Bill and consumer confusion about who farmers are and what they really do, “Agvocacy,” or advocating for agriculture, is more important than ever. We need to make sure farmers have a seat at the table. Otherwise, we’ll find ourselves on the menu.That’s why Golden Acres works with organizations like IPSA, as well as the Texas Seed Trade and American Seed Trade Associations. These groups labor to bring the voice of the American farmer to the attention of government officials. They meet with representatives to make sure the concerns of agriculture are heard.This year, we’re also inviting local office holders to join us at Golden Acres events like GATE Plots, Field Days, and Grower Meetings. We want these elected officials to really know the constituents they represent in rural America, and vice versa. It’s important that we spend time looking each other in the eye. We hope you’ll join us for events in your area and take the opportunity to practice your “Agvocacy” skills. ♦

Drought Resistant Corn: Fact or Fiction?There’s a lot of buzz about new corn hybrids that can maximize yields with less water. Whether they call it “drought tolerance” or “water optimization” or even “hydroefficiency,” farmers contending with the hot, dry conditions across the South and High Plains just want to know one thing - how well do they really work? As these new technologies hit the market we’re doing our best to answer that question, and to help growers find the trait and genetic combination that works best for their operation.

Advances Beginning to ShowIn a January news article, research was shared by Dr. Qingwu Xue, a Texas A&M AgriLife Research crop stress physiologist based in Amarillo. Xue and his team have been evaluating drought-tolerant corn technologies such as AquaMax by Pioneer, AgriSure Artesian by Syngenta and DroughtGard by Monsanto at the North Plains Research Field in the Texas Panhandle for the past two years. To conduct the tests the hybrids were grown at three populations and at three irrigation levels: 100 percent evapotranspiration, 75 percent and 50 percent. Evapotranspiration is the amount of water lost from plant transpiration and soil evaporation. The purpose of irrigation is to apply water to meet a plant’s evapotranspiration demand.

“With less than 6 inches of effective rainfall during the 2012 corn season, the irrigation for 100 percent, 75 percent and 50 percent evapotranspiration was 24 inches, 18 inches and 13 inches, respectively,” Xue said. Under these conditions, the corn yields were 180-220 bushels per acre for 100 percent level, 160-180 bushels per acre for the 75 percent level and 100-120 bushels per acre for the 50 percent level (see table below).

Texas AgriLife Research FindingsEvapotranspiration 100% 75% 50%

Irrigation (in) 24 18 13

Yield Range (bu/a) 180-220 160-180 100-120

“At the full irrigation level, drought-tolerant hybrids hardly showed any yield gain as compared to the check hybrids,” Xue said. “However, the drought-tolerant hybrids showed yield increases of up to 20 bushels per acre at 75 percent and 50 percent evapotranspiration levels over the check, depending on hybrid and population.”

One of the most significant things observed during the trials was better kernel set among the drought tolerant corn compared to check hybrids. This could be, in part, due to the hybrids reaching moisture deep in the soil and

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Lou BuicePresident

March 2013Seed Solutions for Family Farmers

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Brad Littlefield Takes on Role of Product Manager

We’re pleased to announce that our own Brad Littlefield has transitioned into the role of Product Manager. Brad has served as Golden Acres Operations Manager since he came on board in February of 2011.

In his new role Brad will work directly with Lou and Doc to help direct and manage the Golden Acres product portfolio and to provide agronomic support for Golden Acres products in the field. Brad’s background, including a Master of Science degree in Agronomy & Soils from Auburn University, and his seed industry knowledge gained working with Golden Acres make him an excellent fit to fill the role of Product Manager.

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Seed Solutions for Family Farmers

The Scouting Report with Product Manager Brad LittlefieldPlanting season has just begun. Your seed may not even be in the ground yet, but your mind has probably moved on to the next big concern. Now that I’ve invested in the right seed for my farm, what steps do I need to take to protect that investment, by ensuring my crop stays as healthy as possible? Here are a few things to keep on your radar as the season continues.

Evaluating Corn StandsAfter corn has emerged, it is important that final stands are assessed. Corn plant populations are a critical component of achieving good yields. Erratic plant populations can cause unwanted variability within the field, eventually having a negative impact on the entire crop. Poor weather, planter malfunctions, or insect damage can all contribute to poor plant stands. Just as a refresher, here are the stand count formulas based on row width.

Row Width 1/1,000th of an acre40” 13’1”38” 13’8”36” 14’5”30” 17’4”

Count the number of plants in the corresponding length (based on the row width - see chart above). Multiply that figure by 1,000 to determine the final stand count (plants/acre). It is recommended that counts be done in at least 4-5 locations in the field to get an adequate sample size.

Example: Plants were counted at 5 different locations. The average of the counts from the 5 locations in a field with 40-inch rows was 24 plants per sample. Based on these samples, it was determined that the plant population is 24,000 plants per acre.

Early Season Insect InterventionAs you are conducting your plant stand counts and checking emergence, it is also important to watch for early season insect pressure. Gaps in the expected number of seedlings per foot of row, and/or the presence of wilting, stunted or cut plants may indicate an insect problem. Where gaps are present, carefully excavate the area to determine the presence and condition of seeds. Some seedling feeding insects include the wireworm, chinch bug and cutworm. Most damage is reported on these insects from emergence to the 5th leaf stage.

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“All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.” -Colossians 1:6

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Brad Littlefield, Product Manager, continued...Brad will be sharing timely agronomic information with customers and resellers through his scouting reports, featured here in our Priorities Newsletters and on our website GoldenAcres.com.

Most of all, Brad is looking forward to spending more time out in the field getting face to face with our customers to learn more about their agronomic challenges and identify new ways Golden Acres can help to meet their needs. ♦

Wireworms- Wireworms are slick, shiny, reddish-brown to brown colored 1 to 1.5” long larvae. Wireworms are among the most difficult insects to control and can be very destructive by feeding both on the seed and seedlings. Neonicotinoid insecticide seed treatments used in corn (Poncho, Acceleron, Cruiser) and grain sorghum (NipsIT, Cruiser) are systemic within the plant and can protect both the seed and seedling from injury. The wireworm M.O. is to eat the germ of the seed or hollow them out completely. As a beetle (adult form) they are known as ‘click’ beetles because of the noise they make when they flip over from their backs to their feet. The fields that are most susceptible are first-year or second-year fields following grasses, small grains (i.e. wheat, oats, grain sorghum) or alfalfa.

Chinch Bugs- The Chinch bug is a black-bodied, flying insect with frosty-white wings and a distinctive triangular black patch on its outer margins. Chinch bug nymphs, however, are orange-red with a pale-whitish band across their abdomens (Texas A&M field guide). Both the nymphs and adults can feed on all parts of the host plant. In corn and sorghum, injury is most severe in young and drought-stressed plants. Nymphs are normally located behind leaf sheaths. The false chinch bug, similar in resemblance to the before mentioned ‘common’ chinch bug, will feed primarily on the seed heads of sorghum. Systemic seed applied insecticides (Acceleron, Cruiser, NipsIT) can protect the seeds in the soil from newly-hatched (nymph stage) chinch bug damage. In the V1-V5 stage, the chinch bug can use their ‘sucking’ mouthparts to damage the stalk of the corn or sorghum plant. Interesting to note, a female chinch bug can lay up to 200 eggs per month.

Cutworms- There are several species of cutworms and they all can have different times of infestation, depending on the specific species and weather conditions (black, claybacked, dingy, sandhill, and glassy). Not all of these species are located in the same geographic region, but it is important to identify the species

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Drought Resistance, continued from page 1...developing root systems that go down deeper than the traditional hybrids. Another possibility is that the drought-tolerant hybrids may be able to conserve water by rolling the leaves during dry and hot periods.

“We clearly saw some yield benefits of the drought tolerant hybrids at reduced irrigation levels as the drought tolerant hybrids really did well exerting silks, even during very harsh conditions – dry and hot – at the same time tassels were shedding pollen,” Xue said.

Differences in the TechnologyThe emerging technologies are based on different scientific principles. They don’t all work the same way. For example, DroughtGard is a biotech trait (similar to Roundup Ready or Triple PRO), while Agrisure Artesian and AquaMax are native traits. One comes from genetic modification and insertion while the other comes from selective breeding. One big difference is that biotech traits are highly regulated by the EPA, while native traits are not.

“We’re convinced the technologies have value,” said Golden Acres Director of Product Development Dr. James Allison. “Now it becomes a matter of pairing the technology with the right genetic packages for the geographies that we serve.” This summer Golden Acres is planning cooperative strip trials in six locations across the High Plains to compare AquaMax, Artesian, and DroughtGard hybrids against hybrids in our existing lineup. "We also have plans to grow at least one Agrisure Artesian hybrid this year that will be available for sale as part of our 2014 hybrid lineup," Allison added, "and we expect DroughtGard hybrids to be part of our lineup as early as 2015.” Watch for news and updates in future newsletter and at www.GoldenAcres.com. ♦

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Scouting Report, continued from page 3...if an infestation or severe damage is observed. The clay backed cutworm can be most detrimental to corn plants in the VE-V5 stage. The clay backed and black cutworms are easily confused with one another. Generally, the clay backed cutworm is an ‘earlier season’ insect vs. it’s later-season black cousin. So, how do you look for clay backed cutworm damage? They’ll cut off a small stem seedling and bore a hole near the ground level. At this point, the caterpillar will attempt to ‘pull’ the plant into the soil before fully consuming it. Granular or spray insecticide formulations can be useful against cutworm damage.

All of the pests I’ve mentioned above are ‘common’ early season insects. Of course, there are several environmental conditions and previous crop rotation situations where you may see other insects that we’ve not discussed.

And, don’t forget that crops treated with systemic seed-applied insecticides will help maintain your desired plant populations. As every farmer knows, it is important to continue to walk fields and inspect for insect and disease pressure, at every point in the plant life cycle.

Here’s to a successful season! ♦