Knowing how much, if any, nitrogen you lost during large rain events is a difficult question. You need to consider when you applied nitrogen, your soil texture, your source, the rain event intensity, among other factors. Take a look at this publication for a few things to consider after an intense rain event following nitrogen fertilization: Nitrogen_Corn_5June2018.
On behalf of both the Virginia Soybean and Virginia Grain Producers Associations, I invite you to join me for the 2018 Virginia Grain and Soybean Annual Conference on February 20-21, 2018. The conference will span two days and is being held at the Richmond Westin Hotel to provide a convenient, comfortable and inviting environment for attendees and their families. In response to increased interest, this year the conference will have a greatly expanded exhibit hall providing a larger and more prominent space for exhibitors and attendees to network.
Continuing to honor your requests that we not include information that you received at the county and regional meetings, we continue to include exciting, innovative, and largely non-production oriented speakers. Furthermore, following the success of last year’s two-day program, the conference has added even more breakout topics, speakers, and programming to help you run a strong, profitable operation. The program will feature keynote speakers and topics certain to bring value to your operation, including: Smithfield Foods’ Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Commodity Hedging Officer Dhamu Thamodaran; The Port of Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Area Manager Kara Matzko; and FBI Counterintelligence Training Center Special Agents Mark Betten and Matthew Seckers discussing the topic of intellectual property security and the agriculture industry.
As always, your registration includes all meals including a full dinner that will follow the networking reception Tuesday evening, giving you additional time to network and spend time with colleagues and speakers.
Click Here for Individual Registration
Click Here for Sponsorship Opportunities & Sponsors Registration
Tuesday, February 20, 2018
10:30am Registration & Exhibitor Trade Show Opens
11:30am Lunch Buffet Opens
12:00pm Lunch & Commodity Market Speaker
Robert Harper, Grain Division Manager, Virginia Farm Bureau Federation
1:00pm Breakout Sessions – Choose One
Weed & Pest Management in Grain & Soybeans
Charlie Cahoon & Michael Flessner, Virginia Tech
Soil Health Strategies for Increased Yields
Chris Lawrence, NRCS Cropland Agronomist & Dr. Mark Reiter, Eastern Shore AREC
Opportunities & Challenges on the Horizon
Dicamba Update from Monsanto
Rapeseed & Organic Opportunities for a Profitable Rotation, Jeff riddell, Perdue AgriBusiness
2:15pm Break & Visit with Exhibitors
2:30pm Breakout Session Repeated – Choose One
3:45pm Break & Visit with Exhibitors
4:00pm Globalization of Agriculture & Commodities
Dhamu Thamodaran, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Commodity Hedging Officer of Smithfield Foods
5:00pm Reception & Networking in the Exhibit Hall
6:00pm Awards Dinner
This includes corn and soybean yield contest winner presentations. Although we did not break Keith Brankley’s 2012 Virginia record of 109 bushels per acre, we did induct 3 new members into the 100-bushel club, 3 new members into the 90-bushel club, and 4 new members into the 80-bushel club. Of course David Hula and other corn farmers continue to break yield records in that crop – the number of winners is too large to list in this small space.
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
7:30am Breakfast Buffet Opens
8:00am Annual Meetings, Elections, and Reports
8:30am Updates from Secretary of Agriculture & Forestry Bettina Ring
Break & Visit with Exhibitors
10:00am Managing Security Risks in Agricultural Trade
Special Agent Matthew Seckers, FBI, Richmond Division and Special Agent Mark Betten, Unit Chief for the FBI’s Counterintelligence Training Center, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA
11:00am The Agriculture Industry and the Port of Virginia: Growing New Markets
Kara Matzko, Mid-Atlantic Area Manager, Port of Virginia
12:00pm Dicamba Training & Certification Lunchon
Chelsea Valenti, BASF Crop Protection
We have reserved a room block at the Richmond Westin at the discounted price of $129 per night. Reservations must be made on or before February 6, 2018 by calling 1-888-627-7786. Reference the “Grain & Soybean Annual Conference” rate. You may also visit:
https://www.starwoodmeeting.com/Book/VGASA2018
For the second year in a row we are seeing many corn fields in Virginia experiencing stunted and yellow growth due to cool and wet growing conditions. See this publication for different causes of yellow and stunted corn and possible changes to your nitrogen applications for the first or second sidedress: Corn Fertility_2June2017
We look forward to seeing you January 25th and 26th at the 27th Annual Eastern Shore Ag conference & Trade Show! You can find the program online at: https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AEczhxLIHkUCwmY&cid=05F6B732110DB231&id=5F6B732110DB231%2129963&parId=5F6B732110DB231%21813&o=OneUp. Virginia pesticide re-certification and Certified Crop Adviser credits will be available. See the program for more information.
The event will be held at the Eastern Shore Community College Workforce Development Center, 29300 Lankford Highway, Melfa, VA 23410. When you enter the driveway to the Community College, we will be meeting in the building to the left.
The Annual Oyster Roast will be held on Wednesday night, January 25th beginning with a social at 6:00 pm and oysters served at 6:30 pm. Along with oysters, there will be all-you-can-eat barbecue, sides and beverages. Tickets will be $35.00 in advance and $40.00 if purchased the day of the oyster roast.
If you have any questions or concerns please contact either Theresa Pittman (tpittman@vt.edu) or Ursula Deitch (ursula@vt.edu) for accommodation. Thank you!
Join us in Melfa, VA for the 27th Annual Eastern Shore Agricultural Conference and Trade Show on January 25-26, 2017. This event is free, open to the public, and will be held at the Eastern Shore Community College Workforce Development Center. We will offer Virginia Pesticide Recertification credits for categories 1A, 10, 60, and 90. We will also offer Certified Crop Adviser Credits for nutrient management (2), soil and water (1), integrated pest management (4.5), crop management (6), and professional development (0.5). Click on the following link for topic areas being presented: ag-conf-press-release-2017
November 15-17, 2016
Princess Royale Hotel in Ocean City, MD
Registration is open for the 22nd annual Mid-Atlantic Crop Management School. This year’s school will feature 2 ½ days of timely presentations in the areas of crop management, nutrient management, pest management, soil and water management, and climate. This year, the school will also feature the popular Crop School on Wheels field tour (limited to 50 participants). Nutrient management (VA, MD, DE, PA), pesticide, and certified crop adviser (CCA) credits will be available. Register early for the best selection of sessions.
The session schedule is online at: https://cdn.extension.udel.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2016/09/23151701/2016_CMS_Program_Final.pdf
Registration information is posted at: http://www.cvent.com/events/2016-crop-management-school/event-summary-bbd4a7d2717545af9770626ef761a930.aspx?tw=E3-C1-0B-14-32-A0-CB-AB-1C-D6-9A-06-46-74-20-5F.
Contact Amy Shober (ashober@udel.edu) or Jarrod Miller (jarrod@umd.edu) with questions about the school. We look forward to seeing you there.
The Mid-Atlantic Crop Management School is organized by Extension Specialists from Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, and Maryland featuring speakers from across the nation.
We are seeing yellow and stunted corn around Virginia du
e to many different factors that range from nutrient deficiencies to cool and wet growing conditions. Take a look at this article to give you a few reasons for this poor looking corn and different things to consider prior to making your sidedress nitrogen applications. Yellow_Corn_26May2016
The Eastern Shore of Virginia Ag Conference & Trade Show is on! We are snow free, and looking forward to a great event on January 26 and 27, 2016. The event will take place at the Eastern Shore Community College Workforce Development Center in Melfa, VA. The full program can be found at: http://issuu.com/esarec/docs/flipbookfinal/1. We have been approved for Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) CEU credits (details at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/f34f3spg4quni7a/CCA_Credits_Handout_2016.pdf?dl=0), Virginia Nutrient Management Credit (1 credit), and Virginia Pesticide Recertification credits (information in the program). See you there! Directions can be found at: http://es.vccs.edu/about/mapdirections/.
Join Virginia Tech, Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Association of Potato and Vegetable Growers, and Industry to hear updates, research information, and innovative products for grain, oilseed, and vegetable crops important to Virginia’s Eastern Shore on January 26 and 27, 2016. This event is free and open to the public. Announcements concerning conference updates, weather delays and/or closings, etc. will be made at: https://www.facebook.com/EasternShore.Soils. Highlights of the program can be found in the attached flyer.
The high prices over the last few years have allowed many of us to experiment with certain practices that, at best, might occasionally increase yields. The return of investment usually only required one bushel (or less), depending on the input. But that was when soybeans were $13, $15, and even $17 per bushel. But now, you may be able to sell your crop for $10-11 (if you still have any in storage) and the future prices are reflecting record acreages.
So, it seems that I’ve been asked, “Should I apply a foliar feed to my soybeans?” more this year than in the past few years.
First, I still stand by what I’ve said in the past and still say today: “Feed the roots and not the foliage.” Soybean will remove 3 to 4 lbs of nitrogen, 0.8 lbs of phosphorus, and 1.4 lbs of potassium per bushel of seed produced. These large amounts will need to come via root uptake; it is not economically possible to apply these amounts through the foliage.
But, once the soil needs are met, will additional fertilization help?
First, an application of Manganese may be needed if your soil pH inches much above 6.5. 
I’ve even seen Mn deficiencies when the pH is as low as 6.2 (using fall/winter soil test levels) and the soil is “wet natured” or if lime was recently applied. There are also certain varieties that tend to show Mn deficiency sooner than others. So, if you see the characteristic interveinal chlorosis of Mn deficiency or if soybean are growing in a field that typically exhibits such a deficiency, then spray Mn.
Another issue that I’m seeing this year is a general yellowing of plants, usually just in seemingly random spots in the field. Upon closer inspection, these are usually very wet areas (there are plenty of those this year) or sandy knolls. In the saturated soils, the yellowing is likely due to lack of oxygen and/or poor nodule development. The only cure for lack of oxygen is for the soil to dry out. Poor nodulation is indirectly a response to lack of oxygen – the nitrogen-fixing bacteria have temporarily stopped functioning. But they will recover and provide the nitrogen when the plant needs it the most, when the pods are forming and seed are filling. Will a shot of foliar nitrogen help? Yes, it will green up the plant if lack of nitrogen is the problem. Will this shot of nitrogen (assuming that nitrogen is the problem) increase yield? Maybe. Maybe not. If lack of oxygen is the problem, then probably not. Even if lack of nitrogen is the problem, probably not.
I want to caution everyone to not make assumptions that lack of nitrogen is the problem.
Is this N or S deficiency?
The only way to know for sure is to take a tissue sample. A deficiency that closely resembles nitrogen deficiency is sulfur. On those sandy knolls, I’ve seen sulfur deficiencies. Sulfur will leach just like nitrogen. But, soybean will not produce its own sulfur. A shot of nitrogen would do nothing to help in this case. The take home message is to determine the cause, then act on that information.
But what about other nutrients? What if there is no visual symptoms of nutrient stress? What if my yield potential is very good? My attitude towards this is that it usually won’t hurt (but be careful mixing with other chemicals), so do what makes you sleep better at night. If you think it is helping your crop, then make the application. It’s your money. You know your fields better than anyone. But, I have rarely seen a response to foliar feeds if you have maintained adequate soil fertility levels and have managed the crop for maximum economic yields. Again, yield response to foliar fertilizers is, at best, inconsistent.
