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See the latest news, innovation updates, trial results, grower stories and more from Agricen.

Why Corn Growers Like Accomplish Technology for Soil Health

August 2, 2022 — Posted By Agricen

Soil health is the foundation of a successful crop. In our short video, The Plant Is Secondary, growers talk about their approach to improving their soil and keeping it healthy, including the role that Accomplish biocatalyst technology plays.

"If your soil's healthy, obviously your crop's going to do what it needs to do," says Heath Cutrell, who farms in Virginia and across the state line into North Carolina.

Iowa farmer Kelly Garrett adds, "If we could take care of the biology of the soil, the plant is secondary. It's what happens when we do a good job with the biology."

The corn growers in the video have seen firsthand how Accomplish technology can help with healthier soils and better nutrient availability for their crops.

"Because of the Accomplish we're feeding the microbes, we're pushing that microbial activity and the mineralization, and we've giving ourselves nutrients," Don Stall, who farms in Michigan, says. "My soil tests have climbed and that's due to that fodder breaking down and returning that nutrient to us. It's a big deal."

"Over the years, we've got high phosphorus levels from manure applications. Even though we have such high P levels in the soil, we just can't get it into the plant. [Our dealer] said 'Here's a product, Accomplish, try that,' and right off the bat we were 0.1, 0.15 higher on our tissue samples. So year after year, we started running a little bit more, and the more we were running, the less commercial fertilizer we would have to buy," Indiana grower Kevin Kalb notes.

University of Illinois' Dr. Fred Below also weighs in.

"What I like to think of a product like Accomplish as is that it's trying to capture the essence of the value that's in that manure," he says. "They called it a fertilizer catalyst because one thing it does is it helps make immobile nutrients more available. There is a whole, vast source of nutrients in the soil, and if we can make some of those more available, that has a real value."

You can watch the video below.

See more by browsing our YouTube channel or by watching our film, Last Stand.

Agricen's Farming Films Win Multiple Telly Awards

June 15, 2022 — Posted By Agricen

Last-Stand-1 We are proud to announce that our farming film, Last Stand, and three related short videos took home Telly Awards this year. The Telly Awards honor excellence in video and television across all screens.

Last Stand, a movie about the joys and challenges of being a farmer that was filmed during the 2020 growing season, was recognized with both a Silver and a Bronze Telly. It is available to watch as both a short, 20-minute version and an in-depth, hour-long film.

The other Telly Winners were the short videos Religious Experience, You'd Never Go Without It, and The Whole World Can Benefit, which can be viewed below. All of the winning videos were produced by the team at Light Work Productions.

Religious Experience

Silver Winner: Non-broadcast - Lifestyle Category

American farmers talk about farming, family and what drives them every day. "I love farming. I still get up every morning excited to go outside and to do what I do. I don't think everybody can say that," says Heath Cutrell, who farms in Virginia and North Carolina. "The reward is the lifestyle," says Don Stall, who farms in Michigan. "I produce something that's tangible...and I see my efforts paying off. When you harvest and the yields are big, it's very satisfying."

You'd Never Go Without It

Silver Winner: Non-broadcast - Sales Category

How do you grow a crop that's bigger, greener and healthier? In this video, growers who have produced some of the highest U.S. corn yields in recent years discuss their approach to farming and why they use Accomplish and Titan technologies in their crop production programs. "Putting Accomplish in furrow, we do that on every acre of corn and soybeans. The roots with Accomplish and without, if you saw that, you'd never go without it," says Iowa farmer Kelly Garrett. The video also features growers Don Stall, Heath Cutrell and Kevin Kalb, and the University of Illinois' Dr. Fred Below and Connor Sible. "There is a whole vast source of nutrients in the soil. And if we can make some of those more available, that has a real value," says Dr. Below.

The Whole World Can Benefit

Bronze Winner: Non-broadcast - Sustainability Category

By better managing fertilizer inputs, growers can better take care of the land and water while also adding to higher yield and return on investment. In this video, you'll hear how Accomplish and Titan help growers increase their yields in an environmentally friendly and cost effective way. "Tissue samples don't lie, all the way up to the yield. Accomplish has been helping free up the phosphorus. It's a big win on our farm," says Indiana farmer Kevin Kalb. The video also features Iowa grower Kelly Garrett, Connor Sible and Dr. Fred Below of the University of Illinois and Nutrien Ag Solutions crop consultant Scott Brinkman. "We're out here trying to protect the water system, because it's the water I drink at night," says Scott.

Watch more videos from Agricen by visiting our YouTube channel or our Featured Videos page.

Striving for Record Corn Yields

December 8, 2021 — Posted By Agricen

How high can corn yield go? In our short video, "Striving for Record Corn Yields," you'll see how some corn growers try to test the limits and push for record-setting yields.

"I wish I could tell you that high yield is a recipe, like following the cookbook. By gosh, it isn't that way. High yield...it is an art form," says Dr. Fred Below of the University of Illinois in the video.

The growers featured in the video faced multiple obstacles during filming in 2020 — from hurricanes and tropical storms in the East to a derecho that flattened crops and caused billions of dollars worth of damage across the Midwest.

"We had a tremendous crop out there. The storm just took part of it," says Iowa farmer Kelly Garrett, whose farm was in the path of the 2020 derecho that made records as the most destructive and costliest thunderstorm disaster in U.S. history.

"We had a hurricane come in here the other day. Raise a good corn crop and then it's sad to come in here and watch it laying on the ground the way it is, broke off," says Heath Cutrell, who farms in Virginia and North Carolina.

In addition to Kelly and Heath, the video features growers Don Stall (Michigan) and Kevin Kalb (Indiana). These farmers all have had winning entries in the NCGA Corn Yield Contest in recent years. Agricen's product technologies, including Accomplish, Extract PBA and Titan XC, have been part of their winning programs.

"You have to use products that work if you want to be chasing these kind of yields," says Kevin.

See their stories below.

You can also hear more from each grower by watching the full version of Last Stand, also available on our YouTube channel.

Agricen Presents Last Stand, a New Film about Farming

October 12, 2021 — Posted By Agricen

Farmers have a story to tell, and we wanted to capture it. During the 2020 growing season, Agricen hired a film crew to document the experiences of growers from four different farm operations in the United States. The result is Last Stand, a movie that follows some of America's top farmers as they try to grow the highest yields possible in a season full of challenges. The film can be watched by visiting LastStand.ag.

“While you can never predict what the growing season will be like, the 2020 season certainly did manage to throw many surprises into the mix. Excessive rain and hurricanes, the historic derecho in Iowa and across the upper Midwest – and that’s just the weather,” says Michael Totora, president and CEO of Agricen. “We think this is an important film that not only gives viewers a unique glimpse into the lives of the featured farmers, but also into the lives of farmers across the U.S. in 2020.”

The farmers featured in the film have a passion for farming and produced some of the highest corn yields in the nation in recent years. They also have the humor, grit and resilience to help them succeed at the job.

In Last Stand, you’ll meet:

Don Stall – A former Marine, Don still reflects on the lessons he learned in the Marine Corps to help him face the challenges of being a farmer. Don farms in Michigan.

Kelly Garrett – Kelly farms with his father and three sons in Iowa, where they work cattle and grow corn, soybeans and winter wheat.

Heath Cutrell – Heath is a third-generation corn, soybean and wheat grower farming in Virginia and across the state line in North Carolina.

Kevin and Shawn Kalb – Kevin and Shawn farm with their children in Southern Indiana, where they produce corn, soybeans and turkeys, and can often be found smashing state and national corn yield records.

Dr. Fred Below & Connor Sible – Dr. Below and PhD student Connor Sible are from the Crop Physiology Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where they research factors influencing corn and soybean productivity.

Last-Stand-grower-collage

Pictured above are top producers Don Stall (top L), Kelly Garrett (top R), Heath Cutrell (bottom L) and Kevin and Shawn Kalb (bottom R).

Another factor that ties the growers together is that they have used Agricen's product technologies in their high-yielding programs.

“Several years ago, we noticed that a number of growers with top corn yields at the state and national levels used our product technologies in their production programs,” says Totora. “With Last Stand, we set out to dig into that, but it quickly became much more. Their stories, as captured in the film, are deeply personal, yet also familiar to farmers everywhere.”

Last Stand, filmed by agriculture documentary veterans Light Work Productions, is the second long-form film about farming developed by Agricen. Agricen’s previous film about agriculture, Prove It to Me, which followed five farmers from Arkansas and Iowa during the 2015 growing season, is also available to view.

Explore the Last Stand trailers or visit laststand.ag to watch the full film.

Continuous Corn Growers See Yield Benefit with Extract PBA

March 30, 2021 — Posted By Agricen

Crop residue left on the soil surface after harvest can present both challenges and opportunities going into the next planting season. Potential tie-up of important nutrients, delayed nutrient recycling, and difficulty getting pre- and post-applied weed control coverage are some challenges growers may face. However, if crop residues are properly managed, there are great opportunities for nutrient release, improvement in soil organic matter, and soil moisture preservation.

Harvest and tillage equipment that mechanically break down residue are useful management tools, but adding a biochemical tool in the form of Extract PBA can also help growers manage and even benefit from surface crop residue, regardless of their tillage practices.

"Whether you want to release nutrients from the soil or break down your crop residue, Extract PBA does all the heavy lifting, delivering consistent ROI to the farmer," says Michael Bern, Nutrien Ag Solutions Location Manager in Galesberg, Illinois.

Applied in spring or fall, Extract PBA helps to speed nutrient recycling by accelerating the breakdown of organic matter on the soil surface using microbial-derived biochemistry, which allows growers to recapture more of their original fertilizer investment. By helping to decompose crop residue, Extract PBA can also facilitate more effective tillage and better seedbeds, with improved seed-to-soil contact at planting and better crop stands.

On-Farm Studies

In a trial near Edgar, Nebraska, Extract PBA was applied at 1 gal/acre in the spring with pre-emergent herbicide to assess its impact on dryland corn in a corn-on-corn rotation. Both the treated and the untreated parts of the field also had UAN 32 applied at 9 gal/acre. The photo below powerfully illustrates how this treatment can release nitrogen tied up in crop residue.

On the untreated side, not only is more residue present on the soil surface, but the lower leaves of the plant are also firing, a sign that the plant is nitrogen deficient. On the Extract PBA-treated side, there is less residue present on the soil and the lower leaves are still green and healthy. In this trial, the Extract PBA treatment led to a yield increase of +15 bu/acre compared to untreated.

In Essex, Iowa, the addition of Extract PBA (2 gal/acre rate) to the grower's standard program of UAN 32 (applied at 7 gal/acre) also had a big yield impact in continuous corn, with larger corn ears (seen below) and a yield increase of +22 bu/acre where Extract PBA had been used.

In another example, adding Extract PBA (1 gal/acre rate) to the grower's standard program led to corn yield increases of more than +8 bu/acre in the two fields shown below near Greensburg, Indiana. These fields had been continuous corn for roughly six years.

Compatible with Both Spring and Fall Applications

For those considering a spring or fall application, Extract PBA can be tank mixed with herbicides, including glyphosate, and applied with burndown. It can also be broadcast with liquid fertilizers.

By using Extract PBA to increase nutrient release from crop residues and the soil, growers will be set up for greater success in the coming season.

Learn more about the benefits of using Extract PBA in a corn program by downloading the Extract Makes Corn bulletin.

Biocatalyst Technologies Are Helping to Transform Grower Productivity

September 26, 2019 — Posted By Agricen

NCGA 2018 accomplish technologies In 2018, no fewer than five national winners and seven state winners of the NCGA's National Corn Yield Contest used Agricen's biocatalyst technology on their winning acres. We are fortunate to be represented in the best practices of many leading growers, and humbled by the opportunity to help transform grower productivity.

Before the start of this year's harvest, we had the opportunity to meet up with some of the 2018 NCGA winners to celebrate their success last season. Here are some of the folks we are honored to say have used Accomplish LM, Titan XC or Extract PBA as part of their winning strategy.

2018 National Winners

Don Stall, 1st place, Irrigated Corn Category (477.69 bu/a). Don Stall started farming at age 14, when he began cultivating 31 acres for a school project. Following graduation, he served for six years in the Marines, then operated a beef and cash crop operation. Don eventually moved to an all cash crop operation, and he currently farms 2,800 acres of corn, soybeans, and wheat in Charlotte, Michigan. In his "spare time," he serves his local community, both as the Township Supervisor (as he has done for the past 24 years!) and on the board of his county's fire department.
Don has been entering the NCGA Corn Yield Contest since 2003, when he noticed that he was already achieving yields comparable to the growers who were winning the contest. He has been the Michigan high yield champion for nine years in a row. In both 2017 and 2018, Don won first place nationally in the irrigated corn category, and his winning yield of 477.69 bu/a in 2018 also placed him as the overall yield champion in the United States.

Don credits a systems approach to his success. "There is no one answer to achieving high yields. It is a system approach, and you must understand your soils better than anyone else."

Don also treats all of his dry fertilizer with Titan XC to help make the most of his applied nutrition, and he has also used other biocatalyst products in his program. As he says, "Biochemistry is intriguing and interesting. I believe these products are needed in today’s farming."
Kevin Kalb, 1st place, AA Non-Irrigated Corn (388.07 bu/a), Shawn Kalb, 1st place, AA No-Till/Strip-Till Non-Irrigated (343.0 bu/a) & Nikia Kalb, 3rd place, AA Non-Irrigated Corn (343.23 bu/a). The Kalbs and their four children (including third-place winner, Nikia) grow soybeans and corn in the small town of Dubois, Indiana. They also run a turkey operation, producing over 1.8 million tom turkeys in the last 12 years.
Kevin and Shawn have been entering the NCGA Corn Yield Contest since 2007, winning 12 national titles in the non-irrigated division. Both Kevin and Shawn have had back-to-back, first-place national wins in their respective categories over the past two years (2017 and 2018).

In 2018, Kevin achieved his personal best yield in the contest, achieving 388.07 bu/a in the AA Non-Irrigated Corn category.

The Kalb family can also be seen on the farm reality television show, Corn Warriors.
Tommy & Valerie Cartrite, 3rd place, Irrigated Corn (350.63 bu/a). Hailing from Sunray, Texas, Tommy and Valerie also won first place in their state competition.

2018 State Winners

Stuart Askew, 1st place, A No-Till/Strip-Till Non-Irrigated, North Carolina (274.58 bu/a)
Connor & Kelly Garrett, 1st place, No-Till / Strip-Till Irrigated, Iowa (326.05 bu/a)
Tommy & Valerie Cartrite, 1st place, Irrigated, Texas (350.63 bu/a)
David Hults, 2nd place, No-Till/Strip-Till Irrigated, Idaho (299.27 bu/a)
Leslie Lindner, 2nd place, AA Non-Irrigated, Missouri (299.99 bu/a)
Chris Lindner, 3rd place, AA Non-Irrigated, Missouri (294.35 bu/a)
David Kolb, 3rd place, Irrigated, Minnesota (259.89 bu/a)

It's starting to matter not just what producers grow, but also how they grow it. Biocatalyst technologies play a role by making fertilizer applications more efficient and more cost effective, while also helping growers achieve their best yields.

As this season's harvest comes in, we wish the best of luck to all of the growers who are competing in the 2019 corn yield contest.

(UPDATE: Learn about some of the 2019 corn yield contest winners who used biocatalyst technology.)

Learn more about biocatalyst technologies by downloading the Biocatalyst Technology FAQ.

[Video] Building Sustainable Agriculture Programs

July 18, 2017 — Posted By Agricen

Many technologies and practices play a role in helping farmers protect soil and improve water quality. At Black Hawk Lake in Iowa, that's making a difference.

Watch the video to learn more, and to see how Accomplish LM is helping:

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Working together with state and local government, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, and others, farmers in the area are testing and implementing conservation and nutrient reduction practices to protect the lake from nitrate runoff.

As part of their efforts, Jeff Frank and some other local growers are also using Accomplish LM and similar biocatalyst products to help them build even more sustainability into their agricultural practices, while also helping them remain productive.

"When you think about what you're putting on the field, you have to think about the future," Jeff says. "What I liked about Accomplish was that it was friendly to the environment."

Watch the film "Prove It to Me" to see Jeff on his farm and hear more about his experiences.

"The root system is the best nutrient removal system we have on the planet," says Gregg Schmitz of Crop Production Services. "As we get healthier plants, the roots will be more efficient and deliver more available nutrients to the plant during the course of the year. Customers that have been using the Accomplish biochemistry technology have seen nice yield responses and gotten good ROI since we introduced it."

Find out more about how Accomplish LM helps growers build sustainable agriculture programs by accessing our Growing for the Future booklet.

Extract PBA Gives Soybean & Corn Yields a Boost in Midwest Trials

May 15, 2017 — Posted By Agricen

One of the key ways to positively impact soybean and corn yields is by optimizing nutrient availability to the growing crop throughout the season. A number of trials conducted across the Midwest show that an application of Extract PBA is an effective and consistent way to achieve this.

By helping to mineralize soil nutrients more effectively and getting more nutrition into soybean and corn crops, Extract PBA can enhance crop vigor and yields, as seen in the soybean and corn trials shown below.

An aerial image from that same soybean trial clearly shows where an application of Extract was made.

Extract soybeans aerial.png

Nutrien Ag Solutions crop consultants note that, on average and under current market conditions, it requires only a 1.2 bushel yield increase in soybeans and a 3.5 bushel yield increase in corn to make an Extract investment break even. As you can see from the trials above and additional trials in soybeans and corn, there is a high probability of positive net return.

Learn more about using Extract PBA to enhance nutrient release in your fields by accessing the Extract PBA booklet.

More Robust Soybean Plants, Higher Pod Counts with Extract PBA

November 21, 2016 — Posted By Agricen

In Northern Ohio, Nutrien Ag Solutions conducted trials to evaluate the benefits of making a fall residue or spring pre-emerge application of Extract PBA (1 gallon per acre). In these trials, Extract was applied on corn stalks in fields where soybeans would be planted as the next crop. The data shows great potential for a growers' return on investment, with healthier plants and higher pod counts when Extract PBA was used.

In the trial results shown below, the plants from the treated areas have a more robust structure to support higher yields. Pod clusters are also tighter, with more per node compared to plants from untreated strips in the test plots.

When the pods were counted from the plants above, there were 16 more pods from the plants grown in the Extract PBA-treated area compared to the untreated controls.

Similar results were also seen in a Nutrien Ag Solutions trial conducted in Iowa, where Extract PBA was applied with pre-emerge herbicide. Soybean plants in the Extract PBA-treated areas were greener, more robust and had higher pod counts (shown below) compared to the untreated controls.

These results are a good demonstration of how powerfully Extract PBA releases nutrients to feed a soybean crop.

Use Extract PBA the the fall or spring for benefits that include:

Release of nutrients trapped in residue or bound in soil
Extension of existing nutrient availability later into the season
Optimization of plantability in the spring
More even crop emergence
Improved yield potential

Learn more by downloading the Extract PBA product booklet.

Prove It to Me: What Were the Iowa Growers' Corn Yields?

August 29, 2016 — Posted By Agricen

If you've seen our farming film, Prove It to Me, you may be wondering, "What were the growers' yields?"

For the Iowa growers who were trialing Accomplish LM, corn yields increased by an average of about 5 bushels/acre when the Accomplish LM biocatalyst was added to the grower's standard fertilizer program. Individual grower results can be seen in the chart below, with yield bumps that range from +0.12 to +10.74 bushels/acre.

"Twenty years ago, 140 or 150 bushel corn was really good...By the year 2030, we'll need to average 280 or 300 bushel corn," says Iowa grower Scott Poen. "We've got to have products like this."

Based on their 2015 yield results, the growers are using Accomplish LM on all of their fields this year.

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Learn more about using Accomplish biocatalyst technology by downloading the Biocatalyst Technology FAQ Booklet.

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