By Randy Stockhorst, Loveland Products, Ohio
For soybean plants, R3 is a critical growth stage during which the plant's nutrient needs rise to support pod growth and development. By applying Extract PBA with a soybean pre-emerge herbicide, growers can ensure their plants will have the nutrition they need at this critical growth period, which will position them for an excellent yield outcome.
In our area of northwest Ohio, potassium deficiency is the most prevalent deficiency that we've seen in R3 soybean tissue samples over the past several years. The amount of potassium stored in corn stalks is a little more than a 1-to-1 ratio on yield. That means that in a 200 bushel corn crop, for example, there are approximately 205 lbs of potassium locked in the stalks.
By applying Extract PBA on corn residue now, growers can accelerate nutrient release and mineralization so that more nutrients–including potassium–are available to their soybean crop at the reproductive stages.
Farmers in our area who utilized this product last fall are indeed impressed with the activity on corn stalks, and those who utilize it this spring can expect similar results. As you can see below, the concentrated biochemistry in an application of Extract PBA breaks down the stalk, releasing nutrients for the next crop.
Untreated (left) vs Extract PBA-treated (right) corn stalks. Extract PBA was applied in the fall of 2015. Photo taken in March 2016 in Carey, Ohio.
In addition to nutrient release, other benefits of adding Extract PBA to a spring pre-emergence soybean herbicide application include:
- An easier tillage pass on soybean stubble this fall
- Soil that will be drier and warm up faster for the next year's corn planting
- Less disease pressure from the stalks
I encourage anyone who is planting soybeans this spring to consider applying Extract PBA as part of their pre-emerge plan.
Learn more about using Extract PBA in the spring or fall by watching a webinar.
