Critical Stage

Corn is entering the most critical stage of its development across the country.  That is the 4 weeks after tasseling.

"Reproductive Stage


Silking:  Silks visible outside the husks. This the most critical stage in the development of the corn plant.

It takes 24 hours for pollen grain to grow down the silk and fertilize the egg. Generally 2 to 3 days is required for all silks to be fertilized on a single ear.

Number of eggs that are successfully fertilized will determine the number of kernels that develop on the ear.

Corn earworm moths may be laying eggs on silk."

The number of kernals around the cob and the length of the cob have been determined.  I would venture to say this has been maximized in southern Ohio.  I've said since planting, this has been a real corn growing year.  If a farmer broke rotation and planted everything to corn this year, he would be a happy camper here regardless of price.  Scratch that, we want our cake and eat it too, price is important to pay the bills regardless of yield.  Remember $2 corn?  It wasn't that long ago!

One of the corn exhibits yesterday had tremendous stalks and brace roots.  The others did not.  I wonder what was different on those stalks?

How is corn looking in your neighborhood?  Is it a corn growing year where you live, too, or is it "not so hot?"  Most of the corn you've sent me pictures of looks pretty good.  But how good is it?  What is it lacking?  How will it take the disease pressure and weather it gets before harvest?

There are a lot of unaswered questions yet on this 2013 crop but right at this point in time, Ohio farmers feel pretty good about it.

Ed Winkle