Advocates of the new technology say the new crops provide a vital weapon in the war against weed resistance to glyphosate, which is becoming a stubborn and costly problem for farmers across the country.
Unfortunately, stubborn weeds aren’t the only thing that 2,4-D kills, and gardeners, vineyard owners and even other farmers of commodities who don’t switch to the new technology could be affected if the 2,4-D drifts onto their fields.
Crop planning budgets for 2014 are showing negative margins for corn, explained Jack Davis, SDSU Extension Crops Business Management Field Specialist.
Although many areas in South Dakota are still suffering from the effects of last year’s drought and are in need of more rain, overall conditions are much better than last year and that has impacted the markets, said Darrell R. Mark, Adjunct Professor of Economics South Dakota State University.
Heat and humidity have put a wrench in a number of activities in the Marshall County area during the past week, and the hot, dry weather is also expected to impact crops.
This week’s extreme heat has had an overall negative impact on the state’s crops, said Laura Edwards, SDSU Extension Climate Field Specialist.
USDA released its much-anticipated June Acreage report on Friday, June 28, 2013. Because of wet planting conditions across much of the Corn Belt, including Iowa and Illinois, many expected about 2 million fewer acres of corn would be planted than reported in the March Prospective Plantings report, with about half of those lost corn acres being switched to soybeans. However the report indicated that did not occur, said Darrell R. Mark, Adjunct Professor of Economics at South Dakota State University.
In December 2012, Steve Zwinger’s phone started ringing, with many North Dakota farmers at the other end of the line. Organic corn had hit a flabbergasting $14 per bushel, and conventional farmers wanted to ask Zwinger, an extension agent for NDSU, how they could cash in on organic corn.
Farmers will be able to choose from three new corn varieties that promise to increase yields during drought conditions. Whether farmers go for the more expensive seeds may hinge on whether they think the drought is likely to continue.
Harvest in several towns in the James River Valley is not only well under way, it’s nearly done in some parts of the region—and it’s just mid-October.
Unlike their West River counterparts, most Day County and northeast South Dakota livestock producers aren’t culling their herds due to drought and/or the specter of high feed prices.