C.O.R.N. Newsletter: 2022-11
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CFAES Ag Weather System 2022 Near-Surface Air and Soil Temperatures/Moisture (Update 4)
Figure 1: Daily average air temperature (dashed red), two-inch (green) and four-inch (blue) soil temperatures for spring 2022. Current daily average soil temperatures are noted for each location. Soil type and location of measurements (under sod or bare soil) are provided in the lower right corner of each panel. A map of all locations is in the bottom right. Data provided by the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) Agricultural Research Stations located throughout the state.
After starting out last week with cold temperatures and accumulating snowfall across some parts of the state, air temperatures soared into the 80s for much of Ohio over the weekend. In fact, Toledo hit a record high on 88°F on Saturday, topping its previous record for the date of 86°F. Soil temperatures responded well, with daily average two- and four-inch soil temperatures starting this week out in the mid-50s to low-60s (Fig. 1). A strong cold front moving through on Monday ushered in a cooler week ahead, and soil temperatures will likely cool off a few degrees.
Figure 2 shows that precipitation through April 24th ran below average for much of the state, with pockets of above average precipitation for north central, northeastern, and eastern counties. The driest areas have been across west central and northwest Ohio. Overall, this has allowed soils to dry out some from early-season surplus conditions (Fig. 2- right). At the time of writing this article however, heavier showers are moving through the state with isolated amounts of 0.5-1.0”. The Weather Prediction Center is calling for an additional 0.10-0.50” for the week beginning April 26, 2022.
For more complete weather records for CFAES research stations, including temperature, precipitation, growing degree days, and other useful weather observations, please visit https://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/weather1/.
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Harvest Timing Affects Winter Annual Forage Yield and Quality
The greatest challenge with winter annual cereal forages for many producers is managing harvest timing to maximize quality with spring rain fall events that not only delay custom harvesters but also cause your perfectly timed harvest to come to a halt. One goal should be to harvest at least some of your winter annuals at the highest quality possible unless your operation only needs low quality forage.
Diversifying to multiple species is one of the best risk management practices. Planted on the same day, four species we have been comparing flowered over a 3 week period. These trials were conducted at the Ohio State University agricultural research stations in Fremont and Jackson Ohio, allowing us to capture two very different growing conditions each year. We are evaluating cereal rye, triticale, barley, and wheat forage yield and quality of at an ideal harvest timing of Feekes 10 (flowering head in the boot and a delayed harvest at Feekes 10.5 (flowering stage). Figure one shows the growth stages of small grains.
We have found not only differences in rate of maturation but also in tonnage between species harvested at the same maturity stage. On average, most species put on half a ton more dry matter as they mature from Feekes 10 to 10.5, but triticale added over a ton of dry matter (Figure 2). Cereal rye and triticale had a similar yield of 1.25 tons average across all locations but had a low of .75 ton to over 3 tons per acre as location averages. The lowest yielding location had lower tillers experiencing excessive winter and spring rainfall. At Feekes 10.5, triticale had the highest yield averaging 2.75 tons across all locations and a high of 5 tons at one location one year.
While forage yield is critical, another important part of the risk management decision is how quality declines as the species matures. There was a similar decline in crude protein of about 2 percent with no significant difference in crude protein percentage between species, only between harvest dates. Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) and Total Digestible Nutrients (TDN) were a different story (Figure 3). These two nutrients moved inverse of each other with TDN declining and NDF increasing from the early to later harvest timings, representing a decline in quality. TDN which is one measure of energy was the highest for wheat at both harvest timings. Harvesting at Feekes 10 had the highest TDN and all species declined in TDN when harvest was delayed to Feekes 10.5. Barley had the least quality decline of all species. Wheat stands out as having the greatest TDN. This is followed by triticale and cereal rye at Feekes 10 with NDF increasing about 10 points as both matured.
The optimal maturity stage to harvest winter annual cereals will vary by class and stage of the livestock to be fed, with dairy and growing animals needing forage with higher nutritional value like Feekes 10 in this experiment. Even when higher quality forage may not be the goal, do plan to harvest some at prime quality and then accept the lower quality when the weather forces a delayed harvest. Otherwise, you may plan for medium quality and end up with all low quality “straw-like” forage. For more detailed individual trial information check out the 2019, 2020, and 2021 eFeilds at https://digitalag.osu.edu/efields
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Will Upcoming Cool Temperatures Hurt Winter Wheat?
The short answer, probably not.
Low temperatures may dip to low 30s/high 20s in northern Ohio over the next few days. However, these temperatures should not harm winter wheat at the Feekes 6 to 7 growth stage. [As a side note, I wrote this exact article last year at this time. Temperatures in Ohio were in the low 30s to upper 20s in northern Ohio, but wheat yield ended up being record-high for many famers due to the long grain fill period. Last year, there was even snow on some fields.]
The magnitude of freeze damage depends on: 1) temperature, 2) duration of temperature, and 3) wheat growth stage. A few years ago, we conducted a freeze chamber experiment to examine the effect of low temperature on winter wheat at several growth stages (Table 1). Keep in mind, actual yield reductions in the field can be quite variable depending on the weather for the remainder of the growing season. At Feekes 6 growth stage, temperatures >20°F caused no damage. However, by Feekes 8 growth stage, temperatures of 25°F to 28°F caused a 10 to 25% reduction in wheat yield. These temperatures were from the crown of the wheat plant, not air temperature.
Table 1. Temperature (15-minute duration) at which wheat yield was reduced by 5%, 10%, 25%, and 50% at Feekes 6, 8, and 10.5.1 growth stages. (Data from Alt, Lindsey, Sulc, & Lindsey, 2020).
Feekes growth stage
5% reduction
10% reduction
25% reduction
50% reduction
Temperature (°F)
6
20.1
17.9
14.8
11.9
8
30.7
27.6
24.6
21.9
10.5.1
28.7
27.8
26.3
24.1
For more information, see our new ‘Freeze Symptoms and Associated Yield Loss in Soft Red Winter Wheat’ FactSheet: https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/anr-93
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Imbibitional Chilling – Is it a concern?
Warmer temperatures combined with the excitement (and need) to get crops in the ground triggered planting around the state last week (April 18 to April 24) or even before. With some warm days without much precipitation forecasted this week (April 25 to May 1), planting will continue. However, cold temperatures and precipitation after planting can cause imbibitional chilling, and this is something that we should certainly be aware of (watch for!).
Imbibitional chilling may occur in corn and soybean seeds if the soil temperature is below 50°F when the seed imbibes (rapidly takes up water from the soil, usually within 24 hours after planting). Imbibitional chilling can cause reductions in stand and seedling vigor. If seeds were planted into soil with at least 50°F of temperature and adequate moisture (at least 40-50% plant available water) for at least one day, the drop in temperature is not likely to lead to imbibitional chilling issues. Cold injury to seedings during emergence may still be a possibility, but until we know how cold the soil gets its unclear how severe that issue may be (if evident at all).
Past work in soybeans suggest the temperature in the first 8-12 hours post-planting is critical to prevent imbibitional chilling. When seeds were planted in temperatures between 75-80°F and kept there for 8-12 hours, reducing temperatures to 40-45°F afterward did not result in severe crop injury. For corn, 24 hours imbibing at warm temperatures prior to cold (40°F) did not result in imbibitional chilling injury. Despite warmer air temperatures over the last few days soil temperatures may have been still cold (<50°F) at recommended planting depths. Given these conditions, there may be some risk for crop injury.
It is best to assess damage to seeds 48 to 96 hours after the drop in temperatures, as symptoms may take a few days to appear. Additionally, cold temperatures slow growing-degree-day (GDD) accumulation and may further delay crop emergence and establishment. Recent work in the literature suggests that 50% emergence can be expected following accumulation of 130-170 soil GDDs (using soil temperature to calculate GDD rather than air temperatures) from the time of planting, which may take 5-7 days to accumulate under normal weather conditions. Depending on the damage assessed during the field assessments, replanting options may need to be considered. Stay tuned to the CORN newsletter for replanting recommendations (if we need replanting recommendations this year, hopefully not!).
References:
Cal, J.P, and Obendorf, R.L. 1972. Imbibitional chilling injury in Zea mays L. altered by initial kernel moisture and maternal parent. Crop Science 12:369-373.
Nemergut, K.T., Thomison, P.R., Carter, P.R., and Lindsey, A.J. 2021. Planting depth affects corn emergence, growth and development, and yield. Agronomy Journal 113:3351-3360.
Obendorf, R.L. and Hobbs, P.R. 1970. Effect of seed moisture on temperature sensitivity during imbibition of soybean. Crop Science 10:563-566.
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Participate in a Study to Identify Major Barriers to Precision Agriculture Technology Adoption
The Ohio State University Department of Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering (FABE) is looking for farmers, consultants, and other individuals who work alongside farmers to participate in a survey aimed at identifying major barriers that row crop farmers, consultants, and other personnel involved in crop production face when adopting precision agriculture technologies. Eligible participants must have row cropping operations in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Texas or preform consulting tasks or other tasks for famers who have row crop operations within the states stated above.
Participants who are interested in participating are required to take the survey found with the link here: https://osu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_201lPMuZxRSESge. You will have six weeks from April 25, 2022 to June 15, 2022 to respond to the survey. Completing the survey will constitute your consent to participate in the study.
Inquires with questions about the survey or its use should be directed to John Fulton; fulton.20@osu.edu.
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eFields Partnering with Growers to Evaluate Xyway™ Fungicide
Preventing significant yield losses from disease is likely on the forefront of growers’ minds following the 2021 growing season. A new product available to growers is FMC’s fungicide Xyway™ LFR®. OSU Extension eFields program is partnering with growers to conduct on-farm trials evaluating the effect of an at-plant soil application of flutriafol (Xyway) on corn health and yield. Information from this trial will be used to improve corn disease management recommendations for growers throughout the state.
At each field site, an untreated control will be compared to plots treated with Xyway applied either in-furrow and/or 2x2. Additionally, growers may also include the following treatments:
- Xyway + VT/R1 Foliar Fungicide
- VT/R1 Foliar Fungicide
For this study, a minimum of three replications is required, and four is preferred. Plots must also be randomized to eliminate bias due to plot order. Plots should be at least 500 feet long to ensure accurate yield monitor data.
If you are interested in hosting an on-farm trial, contact your local County Extension Office.
eFields is a program at The Ohio State University program dedicated to advancing production agriculture through field-scale research. To learn more visit digitalag.osu.edu.
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.
Contributors
Disclaimer
The information presented here, along with any trade names used, is supplied with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is made by Ohio State University Extension is implied. Although every attempt is made to produce information that is complete, timely, and accurate, the pesticide user bears responsibility of consulting the pesticide label and adhering to those directions.
CFAES provides research and related educational programs to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis. For an accessible format of this publication, visit cfaes.osu.edu/accessibility.