Life Sciences Commons^™

Crop Production Summary, Southeast Kansas – 2016, Gretchen Sassenrath, L. Mengarelli, Jane Lingenfelser, X. Lin, D. E. Shoup

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Crop production in southeast Kansas is summarized from variety trials and research plot experiments conducted at the Southeast Research and Extension Center fields in 2016.

Timing Of Strobilurin Fungicide For Control Of Top Dieback In Corn, Eric Adee, Stu Duncan

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Significant yield losses can result from top dieback (TDB) in dent corn, which is caused by infection by the fungus, Colletotrichum graminicola, causing anthracnose. Research is limited on the effectiveness of fungicide application because of the unpredictable nature of the disease. Three field studies were established to assess the timing of fungicide application on foliar diseases that developed TDB, one in Illinois (2010) and the other two in Kansas (2015 and 2016). Fungicide applications at tasseling and later were effective in reducing the incidence of TDB by greater than 20% and increasing yield greater than 14 bu/a, or greater …

Closing Corn Yield Gaps Via Improved Management: A Systems Approach, G. R. Balboa, I. A. Ciampitti

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Three corn research trials were conducted during the 2016 growing season. Two studies were conducted at Scandia, KS, (dryland and irrigated) and one at Topeka, KS (dryland). The objective of these trials was to investigate the contribution of different farming systems for closing corn yield gaps. Each experiment consisted of five treatments: common practices (CP), comprehensive fertilization (CF), production intensity (PI), ecological intensification (CF + PI), and advanced plus (AD). Across all three experiments and under dryland and irrigation scenarios, CP presented the lowest yield. In environments with yield response, intensifying production without a balanced nutrition program did not increase …

Irrigation And Tillage Management Effects On Canopy Formation In Corn, R. M. Aiken, F. Lamm, A. A. Aboukheira

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Effects of canopy formation and function are frequently represented in irrigation management models by crop coefficients, which can be used to calculate expected crop water requirements. Soil tillage alters the micro-environment of a developing corn canopy. The objective of this study was to evaluate irrigation capacity and tillage effects on seasonal changes in maize canopy and above-ground biomass productivity. Leaf area index (LAI) and above-ground biomass (AGB) were quantified by non-destructive methods during four growing seasons for corn under two irrigation capacities (1 in./4 days or 1 in./8 days) and three tillage regimes (no-tillage (NT), strip tillage (ST), or conventional …

Timing Of Side-Dress Applications Of Nitrogen For Corn In Conventional And No-Till Systems, D. W. Sweeney, D. E. Shoup

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Corn yields were affected by tillage and nitrogen (N) side-dress options in 2016. Corn yields were 12% greater with conventional tillage than with no-till. Side-dress applications of N at V10 resulted in greater corn yield than side-dress N applications at V6.

Large-Scale Dryland Cropping Systems, A. Schlegel, L. Haag

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

This study was conducted from 2008 to 2016 at the Kansas State University Southwest Research-Extension Center near Tribune, KS. The purpose of the study was to identify whether more intensive cropping systems can enhance and stabilize production in rainfed cropping systems to optimize economic crop production, more efficiently capture and utilize scarce precipitation, and maintain or enhance soil resources and environmental quality. The crop rotations evaluated were continuous grain sorghum (SS), wheat-fallow (WF), wheat-corn-fallow (WCF), wheat-sorghum-fallow (WSF), wheat-corn-sorghum-fallow (WCSF), and wheat-sorghum-corn-fallow (WSCF). All rotations were grown using no-tillage practices except for WF, which was grown using reduced-tillage. The efficiency of …

Cleaning Reduces Mycotoxin Contamination In Corn, A. Yoder, M. D. Tokach, J. M. Derouchey, C. B. Paulk, C. R. Stark, C. K. Jones

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

A single load of corn naturally contaminated with aflatoxin (1,074 ppb), fumonisin (8.3 ppm), and ochratoxin A (206 ppb) was procured from central Oklahoma to evaluate the role of cleaning to remove mycotoxin contamination in corn. Corn was divided into twenty 333-lb lots, which were then cleaned using an EBM Gentle Roll corn cleaner to remove overs (material > 1/2 inches) and unders (material < 3/16 inches). The resultant 4 treatments included: 1) uncleaned corn; 2) overs from cleaned corn; 3) cleaned corn; and 4) unders from cleaned corn. Samples of each fraction were analyzed for mycotoxin content using multiclass liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

Cleaning generated approximately 6% screenings (unders + overs), and reduced (P < 0.05) aflatoxin by an average of 26%. Cleaning also reduced (P < 0.05) fumonisin by 45%, but did not impact ochratoxin A. Unders had nearly 4 times the aflatoxin and 7.5 times the fumonisin as the uncleaned corn. In conclusion, cleaning corn may substantially reduce mycotoxin contamination, but the resultant screenings should be used cautiously.

Cover Crop Effects On Corn In A Corn/Soybean Rotation, D. E. Shoup, I. A. Ciampitti, J. Kimball, Gretchen Sassenrath

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

A research study was established in 2013 in a corn and soybean rotation with cover crops planted soon after each crop harvest. A variety of complex cover crop mixtures were evaluated ranging from single-specie to 7-specie mixtures. Cover crops were terminated in the spring prior to corn planting. Corn yield responded differently among the three years of the study. In general, 2014 and 2016 showed a similar trend of decreased corn yield as the complexity of cover crop specie mixtures increased. Significant corn yield losses ranged from 8.6 to 15.1 bu/a across all cover crop treatments in 2014. In 2016, …

Wheat Stubble Height On Subsequent Corn And Grain Sorghum Crops, A. Schlegel, L. Haag

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

A field study initiated in 2006 at the Southwest Research-Extension Center near Tribune, KS, was designed to evaluate the effects of three wheat stubble heights on subsequent grain yields of corn and grain sorghum. Corn and sorghum yields in 2016 were greater than the long-term average. When averaged from 2007 through 2016, corn grain yields were 10 bu/a greater when planted into either high or strip-cut stubble than into low-cut stubble. Average grain sorghum yields were 6 bu/a (but not significantly) greater in high-cut stubble than low-cut stubble. Similarly, water use efficiency was greater for high or strip-cut stubble for …

Tillage Study For Corn And Soybean: Comparing Vertical, Deep, And No-Tillage, Eric Adee

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

A tillage study comparing no-tillage, shallow tillage, and deep tillage in alternate or every year for corn and soybeans in annual rotation was conducted at Kansas River Valley Experiment Field for five years. The influence of tillage system on corn yield appears to be increasing with time, soybean yields appear to perform equally well with any of the systems. As the study progresses, the corn yields were increased with deep tillage occurring sometime in the cropping rotation.

Tillage And Nitrogen Placement Effects On Yields In A Short-Season Corn/Wheat/ Double-Crop Soybean Rotation, D. W. Sweeney

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

In 2016, adding nitrogen (N) greatly improved average wheat yields, but the response to tillage and different N placement methods was minimal. Double-crop soybean yields were unaffected by tillage or the residual from N treatments that were applied to the previous wheat crop.