The corn is planted. Now what?

There are a series of questions to ask as the corn moves through to season right now this article will deal with the here and now.

With the speed of the planting season some of the ground could not get the fertilizer down so if that is the case what is the plan and how much time is there to get the plan done but also remember that the beans, sunflowers, millet and other crops are still not planted and also will take time. With the fertilizer what type of product will be used and does it need to be incorporated. With dry D at needs to incorporate to be effective also the N if not incorporated it needs rain to incorporate it or it will evaporate into the atmosphere. Legend also can be used but again how it will be supplied and if over the top after the crop is up what will be done to avoid injury. How much time do you have before the corn yield will be hurt due to lack of nutrients is it two weeks or two months. It is all dependent upon what is left in the soil from last year.

Weed control did you get a pre down or did it rain too much. A pre down will help with resistance management now and into the future by getting more than one chemistry down. If the pre did not get down what is the plan. Weed pressure as soon as two weeks everyone can reduce your harvest yield. SDSW shaved this back in the nineties as a problem. Second what are the weed problems that need attention are there resistance weeds.

Other pests concerns to be aware of at this time. With insects as soil temperatures starting to rise there will be a raise of insect activity. The first concern is usually the cutworm that may attack the corn seedlings as it is emerging as up to about V4 stage. If you see cut plants to see which type of insect is present check soil at moisture line in soil. Cutworms only come out at night and go into the soil during the day. Diseases to watch early in grain are several but usually get referred to as downing off which can be several different diseases however the common symptom of all is seedling wilts and dies off. Again is it random or is it in an area. All these things can happen but may not every year and are more likely on unusual years than normal years.