Crop Plans for 2009

Trying to make plans for next year. I have 65 acres. This year I had 40 acres of corn and 21 acres of beans. I have been planting Libety Link corn and RR beans. It is a sandy hill farm, so Top yields are out of the question, but I know and accept that. I fertilize for 160 bu corn, have averaged over that 3 times in the last 6 years. Best beans I ever had was 41 bu/a, usually 30-35 by. Local alcohol plant pays a premium for non gmo corn. I have about 9500 bu of storage, my grain head is wore out, corn head is rough, but works better than grain head. I'm seriously thinking about going to all non gmo corn. I suppose I should plant the cornstalks to RR beans and the bean stubble to corn, I just didn't want to plant that many beans, but need to get rid of any volunteer corn. I know corn inputs will be higher, but with the advances in corn plant breeding, I feel there is the chance for much better returns on corn than beans. I raised 30-35 bu beans here 30 years ago when I farmed full time, and still get about the same, but corn yields have gone up considerably. I like to seed bean stubble with rye for a cover crop, and kill it in the spring, guess if I got the corn off in time I could still do that. The neighbors field across the road lays the same as mine, and has been in corn for 30+ years,so continous corn is not out of the question. I had 2 ton of lime spread on the whole farm last winter. I buy guaranteed revenue insurance. That's all of the information I can think of right now, what do you guys think? Chris

How much volunteer corn do you think you would have? I don't think I would be afraid of corn on corn, there would be probably be a yeild drag the 1st year. The only concern I would have is cross pollenation from the neighbors field if he had traited corn. Put more N out there and sidedress N, with some of the newer genetics of corn and proper placement of hybrids you could get a good crop.

I dont know where you are but I'm in the western part of central IL on nice black dirt and I feel the way you are thinking. Our corn yields in the last 5 years would average at least 200 bpa. across the entire farm operation. Bean yields are stagnant. We feel lucky to get anything over 50. This year was a freak and we had beans in the 70's but I dont expect that again. In the same five year period we have had fields of 230 bpa corn adjoining bean fields that struggle to get to 45 bpa. This being said, there are problems with continuous corn acres. It takes alot of money to plant corn. It is considerably more workload. It takes lots of tillage to make continuous corn to work here. You can add alot of days to harvest. Picking, hauling, drying, and storing a corn crop takes more planning than soybeans. Sometimes there is yield drag. The whole story about yield drag the first year but not after, that is not true, and if someone has some data on this I would love to see it. Volunteer corn could be a problem, it hasnt been a big problem, but if it is I cultivate those acres. Seems like hybrid selection is critical. Our corn on corn acres get some very expensive seed, lots of fertilizer, lots of tillage and I feel that is why those acres produce the bushells they do. We will plant more corn in 09 than we ever have.
The only thing I question in your plan is whether non gmo will be the way to go. In my expirience the high price seed corn is well worth the cost, especially in a continuous corn rotation.
Good luck
bill

I went to conventional seedcorn with yeildgaurd for '09 93 day and 95 day, not really happy with how the weeds are become resistant to Round up. Will go with RR beans but a later maturity and totally different genetics than what I planted this year. Spreading chicken manure on the corn ground and am waiting for manure analysis to find what else I need to add. I am increasing my corn population from 20,000- 26,000. Beans, will increase populaton as well for a little better canopy and yeild and should also get more hieght. I had REALLY short beans this year. I also planted Rye on a peice that I rent real cheap that needs lime. Lime will go on in august '09, disced in, then 4 tons/acre of chicken manure in Novemeber and disced in for corn in '10. I will be doing less than 60 acres this year, but am looking for more. 160 bushel corn on that sand ground, thats pretty darned good. Is it irrigated or do you just have great rain falls?

Dont worry about high input cost. Part of the 700 billion bailout is that we all get free seed and fertilizer this year!

Gene

I think you have a very good chance of a "rootworm disaster" with non-gmo corn-on-corn, unless you are set up for insecticide on the planter. And then very good rw control w insecticides is maybe 75%--enough to not see goosenecking but still loosing yield.Plus you have to handle the insecticide.(and breath the dust). By the looks of that unprotected soil, I would be continous corn just from a conservation standpoint, leaving LOTS of cover over the winter. 2nd yr corn IS THE WORST from a rootworm standpoint, the pop'n seems to level off once land is corn for several years.

165 corn better than mid/upper 30's beans from an economic standpoint anyway, and if you go no-till or very close to it, you can actually BUILD organic matter w continous corn. Low-yielding Sb will NEVER build OM.
Good idea on the corn-on-corn--but re-evaluate not using RW seed.

no, no, no not free fertilizer, just a free load of crap!