Morris Sagriff
When to start the planter, how to operate it properly, and corn stalk rot top the list of concerns for DuPont Pioneer senior agronomist Morris Sagriff as harvest approaches.
At the company’s agronomy information day on Aug. 27 in Chatham, Sagriff shared what he thinks are the most relevant issues that have caused growers to lose a significant amount of corn and soybean yield this year.
1. Soil fitness
Referring to it as the “art of farming,” Sagriff says deciding when to start planting is one of the most critical decisions farmers will make every year.
“I’ll tell you the earliest planted fields aren’t always the highest yielding fields,” notes Sagriff. “It gets down to you knowing the fitness of your land.”
Calling soil compaction the number one enemy to agriculture, he says the soils need to be suitably fit to ensure productive crops.
Before planting, he recommends that farmers dig two-to-four inches deep to check if the soil has a crumbly texture. If it’s too tacky or pasty, then it’s not ready.
See the full story in the September issue of Farmers Forum, western edition.
