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Welcome!
Climate Change and Small Grains Production Workshop is February 20

2011 Kentucky Wheat Yield Winners Honored at
Kentucky Commodity Conference
The farmers with the top wheat yields in 2011 were
honored at the Kentucky Commodity Conference, January 20, 2012, in
Bowling Green.

The highest yield of the 2011 growing season - 112.07 bu/A
- was achieved by Double P Farms in Todd County.
The top no-till yield was 107.53 bu/A
submitted by Duncan Gillum, also
of
Todd County.
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Area 2 winner - Neil Rudy Farms of
of Daviess County with 105.82 bu/A .
|
Area 3 Winner - Randy Mann of Simpson
County with 98.53 bu/A. |
Area 4 Winner - Homestead Family Farms
of Nelson County with 98.79 bu/A.
Receiving the award is Michael McCain. |
Floyd Henry of Todd County was the Area 1 winner
with 106.60 bushels per acre.
The Kentucky Wheat Yield Contest is sponsored by the
Kentucky Small Grain Growers Association. Congratulations to these
farmers!
View the full list of winners and agronomic practices.
Mild winter means earlier scouting
By Katie Pratt, University of Kentucky
Even though it’s the middle of winter, there haven’t been many days
that have felt like winter in Kentucky. While there’s still a lot of
winter ahead, the chances of it being a mild one seem to be
increasing.
According to Tom Priddy, University of Kentucky College of
Agriculture meteorologist, a moderate La Niña in the equatorial
Pacific is causing the medium- and long-range weather outlooks to
show above normal temperatures and above normal rainfall for
Kentucky and the rest of the Ohio Valley.
If the winter continues to be mild, wheat producers may want to
monitor their fields for the presence of two late-season diseases
earlier than they normally would in the growing season, said Don
Hershman, UK extension plant pathologist.
Read more
UK soil scientists increase wheat yields through
better use of nitrogen
It’s
important for wheat producers to get the most efficient use of
their nitrogen inputs to keep costs down and improve crop
productivity. University of Kentucky College of Agriculture soil
scientists have conducted studies on the effectiveness of
remote-sensing nitrogen applicators and have developed an
algorithm to use in the equipment that has proven to increase
yields in Kentucky.
Remote-sensing technology uses sensors to measure crop canopy
conditions and apply the appropriate amount of nitrogen to a
particular area as the tractor passes through the field. This
technology helps ensure the areas that need nitrogen get it and
cuts down on unnecessary applications in areas of the field with
sufficient amounts, rather than producers making a blanket
application across the field based on the field’s average
nitrogen needs.
Since this is new technology, only two states,
Oklahoma and Virginia, had algorithms for the machine. Neither
worked for Kentucky. With funding from the Kentucky
Small Grain Growers Association, Lloyd Murdock, UK
extension soils specialist, developed one for the state.
“I’m excited that we’re making this technology
work for farmers,” he said. “It has increased nitrogen
efficiency and yields during field trials the past two years.”
In field trials, the algorithm has increased
yields by an average of 3.9 bushels per acre. The total amount
of nitrogen used has remained about the same, but is now varied
over a field with some locations receiving more or less than
others. With these averages and taking into account current
wheat prices, producers can expect to get a return of about $20
per acre.
Murdock is working with Kentucky growers who
have remote-sensing technology to help them input the algorithm
into their equipment. He’ll also lead a discussion about this
during the
2012 UK Wheat Science Group’s Winter Wheat Meeting
Jan. 10 at the James R. Bruce Convention Center in Hopkinsville.


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