Funded by the Illinois Soybean Checkoff Post Harvest (continued from page 21) of both is to build and protect stable soil aggregates. Providing soil cover is important because the living plants and plant resi- dues are able to deflect the force of a raindrop falling onto bare soil. It may be hard to imagine, but when raindrops fall on bare soil, each impact can dislodge soil particles from the surface that are able to runoff and cause erosion.” Adds Zuber, “As far as weed control, cover crops have prov- en to be effective, especially in providing an additional tool when dealing with herbicide resistant weeds. For this to work, a higher seeding rate and/or later termination of the cover crop is needed to provide enough biomass to cover the soil surface and provide shade that prevents weed seeds from germinating. Because you need a uniform stand of cover crop to effectively provide a mulch layer over the entire soil surface, using a drill to plant the cover crop might be more effective than other planting methods to provide that con- sistent growth.” Yield Maps Look at yield maps not only for field inconsistencies, but to compare varieties, hybrids, planting dates, and trends of fields with different maturities, genetic packages, and input programs (e.g. chemical, fertility, etc.). The amount of information collected can be overwhelming. Work with your field agronomist or Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) to help you best utilize and eval- uate all your data on the farm. Financial Statements One of the most important evaluations farmers should make once the crop is out of the ground is their financial statements. Precision Conser- vation Management (PCM), a program brought to farmers by 22 September 2021 IL Corn and the Illinois Soy- bean Association, combines precision technology and data management with farm busi- ness and financials to help farmers manage, adopt, and adapt conservation practices long-term and improve on-farm decision-making. The program aims to help farmers implement conservation practices and integrate financial data to help them understand how certain management changes can impact both their envi- ronmental impact and their bottom line. PCM Operations Manager Clay Bess suggests that farmers evaluate how their corn responded to the applied nitrogen rates at the end of the season, and to look at pesticide costs, particularly herbicides and fungicides, and consider if the number of trips and prod- ucts were worth the dollars spent. “These are things, fertilizer and pesticides, that farmers and I discuss regularly during PCM report deliveries to contemplate reducing rates of either or both,” says Bess. Grain Marketing Needless to say, grain mar- keting is likely the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about post-harvest priorities. To help make the best deci- sions, consider local supply and demand conditions for grain, assess market prices, be realistic about your storage costs, and determine your appetite for risk. Curt Strubhar, Risk Advisor for Advance Trading, Inc., suggests that there is still a great deal of uncertainty in the grain markets. “While there is never a time when there isn’t market uncer- tainty, today’s level is histori- cally high,” says Strubhar. “For corn and soybeans both, the Northern Plains and Minnesota had severe droughts early in the growing season. Minnesota received some relief in July while the Dakotas largely remained dry. Can good crop yields in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio offset those losses to still produce a trend line crop, or are the price bulls right in suggesting U.S. corn yields will be seven to 10 bushels below trend?” Strubhar adds that in terms of demand, China remains key, and that domestically, ethanol production has rebounded from the 2020 COVID slowdowns but still has some judicial uncertain- ty with several key rulings this summer. “Net of that uncertainty, we advise using commodity options heavily in one’s marketing port- folio. They protect against this uncertainty by letting producers protect against risk of lower prices but allow producers to participate in higher markets should they be realized.” Look at yield maps not only for field inconsistencies, but to compare varieties, hybrids, planting dates, and trends of fields with different maturities, genetic packages, and input programs.
