The extremely hot and dry weather experienced during the 2022 season, coupled with the effect of reduced fertiliser inputs on some farms have resulted in lower forage yields than would normally be expected.. Weed control in established grassland and in young grass leys should therefore be a top priority for producers in spring, to maximise forage potential.
The effect of regional weather patterns is clearly visible again this season. In areas that experienced low rainfall and high temperatures during the critical establishment and early development phase, the crop has clearly suffered. Contrast this with other parts of the country where periods of hot weather were interspersed with regular rainfall, and well-established maize crops have high yield potential. Given the variability, I advise growers to monitor their crops as we progress through September to ensure the crop is harvested at the optimum maturity.
Small mistakes with harvest management can lead to costly results. Getting the details right at this stage will help to ensure all the resource that has been invested in growing the crop, doesn't go to waste!
To achieve the maximum potential yield, crops need to be provided with the correct balance of essential nutrients throughout the growing season.
High yields come from achieving the correct leaf and shoot numbers, maintaining a green leaf canopy that intercepts 90% of the light and through achieving an increased number of grain ears and large grain sizes.
That's easier said than done when dealing with a crop exposed to the elements and other factors that may limit potential. However, a significant factor is a balanced crop nutrition programme, including the right levels of nitrogen, potassium, phosphate, and sulphur.
When your maize is ensiled at the recommended DM of 32 to 35% there is still enough sugar present for fermentation to achieve a stable low pH.
Maize has a low buffering capacity so the pH falls fast, often to a pH as low as 3.5. Natural fermentation can often result in much higher proportions of acetic acid and ethanol, an indication of a less efficient fermentation which could b
Remember to maintain your focus on getting the best returns from forage maize crops even after the growing season is over. All too often, it is easy to think that the majority of the attention to detail with maize needs to go into growing the crop, but that's only half the story.
When it comes to producing good quality, nutritious silage small things can make a big difference. This is especially true of mistakes. A shortcut or a small oversight can ultimately result in silage that is unusable due to insufficient dry matter content or worse, silage that is dangerous to herd health because of mould growth and the likely presence of mycotoxins or Listeria.
Many farmers have come to accept some issues, particularly with mould, as inevitable and as a necessary evil. The reality is however, it's all too often caused by someone committing one of a number of silage "sins".
For cost-effective weed control in root crops the emphasis must be placed on pre-emergence application of herbicides. Every year we receive a large number of calls from concerned growers who have applied no herbicide at all and who are concerned that their root crop is disappearing under a sea of weeds. By this point, it is usually too late to save the crop!
The timing of nutritional inputs to the maize crop is usually early in the season, either applied to the seedbed pre-drilling, or early post-emergence up to the 4- 6 leaf stage.
KORIT®PRO is a new unique seed treatment combination for maize being offered by Limagrain. The treatment has three modes of action, and unlike the standard Korit, which only offers a measure of bird repellency, the new Korit Pro also includes additional fungicide protection, it boosts root development and improves crop emergence.
