Lincoln, Nebraska
March 23,  2001

There are steps soybean growers can take to improve their odds of success with lower-quality soybean seed this spring, according to NC+ Agronomist Jim Cisco.

"Due to poor growing conditions last summer, soybean seed quality this spring is lower than normal," Cisco said. "However, there are steps growers can take to avoid placing additional stress on already weakened seed."

Cisco offers the following advice for improving soybean stands in 2001:

• Adjust the seeding rate. When calibrating the drill or planter, growers will need to account for the lower germination percentage and smaller seed size. For example, to obtain 150,000 plants per acre, about 176,500 seeds will need to be planted, for seed tagged at 85% germination.

• Watch your planting date. Soybeans don’t respond to early planting like corn. A warm seedbed will allow soybean seed to germinate fast and emerge quickly. Warm seedbeds also minimize the opportunity for soil borne diseases to injure young seedlings.

• Handle seed carefully. Each time seed is handled, quality declines. Minimize the number of times the seed is loaded and reloaded.

• Utilize a fungicidal seed treatment. This will help protect seed from pythium/damping-off, rhizoctonia and phytophthora.

Farmer-owned for over 40 years, NC+ nationally markets corn, soybeans, sorghum, forage sorghum, sudangrass and alfalfa. For more information, contact NC+ at www.nc-plus.com.

Company news release
N3405