Seed Traits

I haven't been inspired to write much lately so I thought I might take a stab at it again.  I just haven't had any burning thoughts or ideas to post.  Travel the past two weeks has pretty much worn me out.  Just keeping the stoves burning has kept me busy.

My friend Brian in Indiana asked how he could cheapen up his corn seed bill and not suffer from the lack of very expensive seed traits.  "I realize this is a question for my seed salesman, but I don't feel comfortable asking him since I'm trying to cut him out....

I have bought VT3 RIB pro corn for my CoC acres for root worm control. For my corn following bean acres I am buying vt2 pro RIB. As well as some RR only. I've done a terrible job of scouting for bugs... I'm probably a salesman dream when it comes to selling traits. But I'm sick of the high priced seed cost. I have been offered nonGMO quite a bit cheaper then my current guy is even selling non GMO. "

 I thought trapper jon gave a very good answer and one that matches my experience and situation.

"This is one of the best discussions ever. Great topic grain trader. I too am seeing good yields on ngmo. Only comment I have is to watch herbicide and insecticide interactions as the wrong combo will make your yield go down. Maybe that book from Ohio State would help. One thought is to take some of your saved money and put it towards a crop scouting service and maybe they can help you figure it out."

High priced seed is making a lot of farmers sick when they went up in price and corn is worth half of what it was a year ago.  I am glad traited seed never worked for me and I am not hooked on the price.  My work with Leon Bird 20 years ago has really paid off as he taught me what good seed really is.  When seed lot quality makes a hybrid vary 30 bushels from another seed producer, that's big stuff.  Most average 5-10 bushels different now for the same pedigree bought from different suppliers but that is still a lot of money.

RoundUp Ready made farming too easy.  Most farmers don't even know what each herbicide is and how it works.  That's sad, but it's not all their fault.  A lot of slick advertising and selling left the residual herbicide in the dust.  Now that we realize we need those programs, most farmers are lost as to what to do.

I am not one of them.  Are you?

Ed Winkle