With the increase in costs for nearly all crop inputs, many growers are looking for ways to reduce costs without sacrificing yield. Below are a few ideas on reduced cost corn production:
1. No-Till –reducing the amount of tillage can mean significant reductions in fuel, labor and machinery costs. Savings can vary from farm to farm but can be in the range of $20-$40 per acre.
2. Calculate nitrogen contributions from manure history - you get a credit of 35 lbs of N in fields that have a history of continuous manure application.
3. Calculate nitrogen contribution from fall 2007 and spring 2008 manure applications. Dairy manure will have about 10 lbs of N per ton, broiler manure can have more than 60 lbs of N per ton. Even if the manure is not incorporated, it will contribute a significant amount of N to the 2008 crop.
4. Target manure applications to the highest priority fields- typically 2nd and 3rd year corn fields.
5. Plan cropping programs well in advance and make crop input decisions early. This ensures input availability, good prices and in some cases, year-end tax savings.
6. Eliminate your starter fertilizer in fields with high Phosphorus levels (well into the 'above optimum' level on a Penn State soil test). There is rarely a yield benefit to starter in these high testing fields, especially at mid to late planting dates.
7. Work with your dealer or Extension Educator to design an effective weed control strategy that may be more affordable. Remember that single-pass programs mean less fuel and labor or reduced custom applicator fees.
8. Use pre-sidedress nitrogen testing (either the soil PSNT or Chlorophyll meter) to determine sidedressing needs. In many cases we find fields with a history of manure need very little or no sidedress, even if our calculated N values from 2 & 3 above are less than what the crop needs
By Dave Messersmith, Penn State Extension, Wayne County and Greg Roth, Grain Crops Extension Specialist
