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Odds favor staying with the planting plans you put together this winter.

Tom Bechman 1, Editor, Indiana Prairie Farm

May 7, 2013

2 Min Read

If weather issues pop up again before planting, you will still be better off staying with your chosen seed varieties, plus populations, until Memorial Day for corn and mid-June for soybeans. That's the advice of Justin Petrosino, an agronomist with Stewart Seeds, Greensburg.

While it may self-serving, since making a lot of switches on hybrids and varieties would mean scrambling for seed companies, the agronomist insists it's the best thing to do for your bottom line.

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"The first part of having a successful planting season in May is to stick to your plan," he says. "Each hybrid and variety have strengths and weaknesses. When you built your plan with your seed dealer or rep, you matched these strengths and weaknesses with your individual fields.

"Taking a few extra days to plant may cause minor yield penalty, but planting the wrong product in a field can carry a major yield penalty," he adds.

That could happen if you panic and chuck your plan, he says. Most hybrids planted in Indiana that were recommended for your farm by a reputable dealer should be able to mature if planted in May through the 10% frost day. That's when the chance of a killing frost in the fall reaches 10%.

There could be a few exceptions. If you were planning on planting a 114-day hybrid, for example, which would work in your area planted May 1, it may not work so well planted May 25. That's because the odds of it maturing before the risk of a killing frost reaches 10% increases.

However, not many people plant such full-season hybrids, except in southern counties, where the first killing frost, or a 10% risk of it, are much later anyway. The bottom line is there is no need to panic and start switching to earlier hybrids at this point.

About the Author(s)

Tom Bechman 1

Editor, Indiana Prairie Farm

Tom Bechman is an important cog in the Farm Progress machinery. In addition to serving as editor of Indiana Prairie Farmer, Tom is nationally known for his coverage of Midwest agronomy, conservation, no-till farming, farm management, farm safety, high-tech farming and personal property tax relief. His byline appears monthly in many of the 18 state and regional farm magazines published by Farm Progress.

"I consider it my responsibility and opportunity as a farm magazine editor to supply useful information that will help today's farm families survive and thrive," the veteran editor says.

Tom graduated from Whiteland (Ind.) High School, earned his B.S. in animal science and agricultural education from Purdue University in 1975 and an M.S. in dairy nutrition two years later. He first joined the magazine as a field editor in 1981 after four years as a vocational agriculture teacher.

Tom enjoys interacting with farm families, university specialists and industry leaders, gathering and sifting through loads of information available in agriculture today. "Whenever I find a new idea or a new thought that could either improve someone's life or their income, I consider it a personal challenge to discover how to present it in the most useful form, " he says.

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