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Use the Field Guide to find answers for your crop problems

Field GuideJudging from the calls I have been getting over the past week, we have some issues out there. One good source of information – with pictures and often accompanied by a remedy is the OSU/PSU Corn, Soybean, Wheat, and Forages Field Guide. We have two versions – the bound copy, which I love, and a pdf version that is digital and can be downloaded now. The hard copy will have to be mailed to you because Extension offices are still closed or offering limited services.

For the calls I received last week that I referred folks to the Guide:

  • My corn seed is rotting in the field – how do I know if I need to replant? – see page 8 & 9.
  • My crop went underwater last weekend, will the plant survive? See page 11 for corn; for soybean, see page 91.
  • My corn is purple, can I put on a foliar to get it through? See page 73 for a photo, and no, usually, it will grow out of it with warmer weather and as the root system outgrows the compaction or waterlogging problem.
  • I see beetles in my soybeans, are they a problem? See page 99 for a picture of the Bean leaf beetle and suggestions on management.
  • Sprayer set up? Yes, that’s in here too. Page 227.
  • Need help with sorting out pigweeds? Or just need help to identify a weed? Again see the field guide, page 198 to 226.

The newly revised Corn, Soybean, Wheat, and Forages Field Guide is a compilation of the latest research by Extension specialists from The Ohio State University in partnership with Pennsylvania State University.

Designed as a guide for scouts, crop advisors, and farmers, this handy spiral-bound book contains updated information and images to aid with insect, disease, and weed identification. Significant revisions to the text include the latest fertilizer recommendations, broadleaf weed ID keys, and a manure sampling and manure applicator calibration section. Tar spot, a new disease to Ohio, is now included in the Corn Disease section.

The Guide is divided into six sections: Corn Management, Soybean Management, Wheat Management, Forage Management, Weed Identification, and General Crop Management, which includes updated sampling information. The index at the back of the book can be used to quickly locate page numbers for your topic of interest while in the field.

The Field Guide is 5.5 inches wide by 8 inches tall, spiral bound. I’m getting old, so those old guides with the small pictures or tables just don’t cut it anymore – for this one, I made sure my old eyes can still see all the details. And with the spiral binding, the Guide can be opened to a page, and it stays there while I drive a little farther down the field to check another spot.

The Guide is available from the OSU Extension publications store:

Crop Observation and Recommendation Network

C.O.R.N. Newsletter is a summary of crop observations, related information, and appropriate recommendations for Ohio crop producers and industry. C.O.R.N. Newsletter is produced by the Ohio State University Extension Agronomy Team, state specialists at The Ohio State University and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC). C.O.R.N. Newsletter questions are directed to Extension and OARDC state specialists and associates at Ohio State.

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