Renewable Farming

September 2018

Waves of late rains offer opportunities for faster biological breakdown of stalks

Several new stalk residue digester products are emerging in the marketplace. Your decision may well be not deciding whether to speed residue breakdown, but “which one is best?”  Farmers’ demand is demonstrating their effectiveness. Although a strong cover-crop program also enhances your microbial diversity, the tonnage of cornstalks still presents a challenge. September 27, 2018 — Many fields in the […]

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Prairie Farmer’s Christy Lee takes point on dicamba drift’s widening threat

Advertising-supported farm magazines have long taken a… well, a tactful approach to reporting the damage potential of ag chemicals. But this week, Prairie Farmer courageously focused directly on the huge challenge dicamba herbicides face because of damage to high-value crops and urban environments. Sept. 23, 2018 — Christy Couch Lee’s feature published two days ago, “Orchard growers raise

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Do your fields have a problem with flooding… drought… or just rain infiltration?

Here’s a series of seven photos which farmer Howard Vlieger shot at his farm, and e-mailed us Sept. 17. They show the dramatic difference in soil absorption between his biologically managed and cover-cropped fields, compared with neighboring “conventionally” tilled fields. September 22, 2018 — Howard Vlieger’s e-mail handle is “studentofthesoil.” That’s the way his family has farmed for years. And

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A synergistic way to accelerate recapture of your valuable cornstalk carbon

First, crunch those tough, tire-jabbing cornstalks. Second, spray on a residue-digesting blend of lignin-loving microbes that will chew through cellulose and lignin. This one-two punch converts more raw carbon from stalks to humus. Then over the following weeks, the active humus meters out stored nutrients to your crop.  Sept. 11, 2018 — On this date, Sept. 11,  it’s appropriate

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One foliar spray with Mainstay Si and WakeUP Summer raised sweetcorn brix 5%

Rivers of rainstorms drowned out my second and final foliar spray application in a simple experiment on sweetcorn in late August. But with only one foliar application of Mainstay Si, the data showed a “signal” of silicon at work. That’s what John Kelly of Redox advised in an August 20 seminar.  September 9, 2018 by Jerry Carlson — Bottom line first: Just one

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Now’s the time to capture your “second harvest” of 2018

Five tons of stalk and cob residue recaptured biologically after a 250-bu. corn harvest contain roughly 112 lbs. of N, 40 lbs. of P2O5 and 275 pounds of K2O. Growers who’ve learned how to unleash biological life in their soils can earn even greater values with water absorption and storage capacity, crop health and resilience against weather stress. September 5, 2018   by

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Farm Progress Show visitors ask consultant Bob Streit: What hit Iowa corn?

Here’s an early-September fall field report by Boone, Iowa crop consultant Bob Streit. There were many out of state and out of country visitors at the recent Farm Progress show. A common question from them was: “What has happened to your corn crop?” Sept. 3, 2018  By Bob Streit Early Dying Corn The non-Iowa visitors were expecting green

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