Corn makes up more than 95% of feed grain production in the United States. To maximize your yield and profits, you have to fine-tune the corn farming process of growing, harvesting and storing corn crops. Each stage, from seed to storage, is important for ensuring grain quality. This walk-through features the best practices to help you achieve a bumper crop.
Successful harvests start long before the combine enters the field. First, establish the correct foundations by choosing the right seeds, preparing the soil and using the best planting techniques. All these factors affect your final yield and its quality.
Choose the right corn hybrid by going beyond its yield potential. Pick the corn with a proven track record of resilience in your region’s climate and soil. Careful selection ensures your corn thrives in your local conditions.
For example, Nebraska farmers might select hybrids known for their drought tolerance to manage dry summer conditions, while farmers in Georgia’s humid climate may prioritize a variety with stronger genetic resistance to fungal diseases.
Consider what end market you wish to target, whether it’s the fresh market, processing or grain. Look for factors like early season vigor, which shows how quickly the plant establishes, and rate of maturity, which helps you time your harvest right.
The right soil conditions are vital for growing a healthy corn crop. Before planting, conduct a soil test for pH and nutrient levels, including nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
Corn prefers a slightly acidic pH between 6 and 7. When soil is too acidic, with a pH below 5.5, corn can develop problems because the higher acidity makes some minerals more available, stunting growth.
Use your soil test to refine your tillage and fertilization plan to ensure your corn gets the optimal nutrient uptake. You also minimize waste from overapplication or deficiencies.
Precision agriculture turns planting into a science and helps improve plant population accuracy. Using precision planters helps you achieve the correct seed depth and spacing for optimal photosynthetic potential.
Corn grows best when you plant it in shorter blocks rather than long rows. The square pattern helps the corn cross-pollinate, increasing the number of kernels and boosting the value of the final yield.
Corn’s growing season needs active management to defend the crops against environmental threats like drought or pests, to protect your initial crop investment and deliver better results.
Adequate water during key corn growth phases is crucial. The pollination and ear formation stages are when corn is particularly vulnerable. Drought stunts growth and directly affects kernels and yield, while overwatering causes rot and nutrient runoff.
Your irrigation strategy must be a careful balancing act. Use soil moisture monitoring tools to apply the optimal amount of water at the right time to ensure your plants are healthy and productive.
As your corn plants grow, they must contend with a few environmental threats. Weeds compete for the same nutrients, water and sunlight that your corn crops need.
Monitor your fields regularly to spot any signs of pests, weeds or disease early. Applying herbicide or fungicide at the appropriate time helps maximize your yields by addressing the threat before it develops.
Harvest time realizes all the months of hard work. It’s a high-stakes stage of growing corn where timing and technique determine the quality and final value of your yield.
The corn plant provides clear visual cues when it’s almost ready for harvest. Look for the black layer that forms at the base of the kernel. This shows the kernel has reached maturity and is no longer getting moisture from the cob. Wait until the grain has dried in the field to an ideal moisture content between 20%-25% for field corn. Other types of corn, like sweet corn, are harvested much earlier to retain more moisture.
Waiting for the grain to dry sufficiently minimizes the risk of spoilage and lowers drying costs. Once dry, harvest as soon as possible to reduce losses due to weather or wildlife.
Your combine set up is crucial to maximizing yield. Up to 80% of all kernel damage can occur during mechanical shelling.
Check these parameters on your combine:
The right settings avoid kernels shattering or dropping ears, maximizing the quantity and quality of your yield. Refine your settings by counting kernels in a 10-square-foot area behind your combine as you harvest. Divide the kernel count by 20 to estimate the loss in bushels per acre. Repeat this in a few places to get an average. Adjust accordingly to ensure you get the highest return for your efforts.
After your harvest, turn your focus to preserving the value of all your hard work. The postharvest stage is vital as the storage directly affects the final price you receive.
As soon as your combine harvests grain, act fast. Warm, wet corn sitting in trucks or holding bins is a breeding ground for mold and spoilage. The allowable storage time for wet corn is halved for every 10° Fahrenheit increase in grain temperature. The faster you get your corn from the field to storage, the more you preserve the quality of your crop.
Properly drying your corn is key to maintaining quality during storage. As corn dries, it loses water weight, causing shrinkage. This impacts the final sale weight and price you’ll get for your crop. For storage over six months, grain moisture should be around 13% to prevent mold growth and insect infestations while maintaining the ideal weight.
You can store your corn in grain bags or grain bins. Grain bins are typically better suited for long-term storage. Despite their higher up-front costs, they offer superior protection and the ability to properly control the storage environment through aeration fans or high-capacity dryers.
Grain bags have a lower initial cost and provide extra flexibility if you have an unexpectedly large bumper crop. Bags do not offer the same protection from wildlife or weather conditions. They are less suitable for moist corn.
The best storage option depends on your typical harvest volumes, capital and risk tolerance.
Beyond bags and bins, there are a few other storage options worth considering:
Whatever storage method you use, ensure the containers are clean and well-sealed to prevent rodent and insect infestations.
You must monitor your grain to catch issues early before they cause irreversible damage or significant losses.
Inspect your machinery, handling systems, storage spaces and the corn weekly. Check for pest infestations, mold, fungus, excessive moisture and temperature changes. Adequate ventilation helps maintain a consistent temperature and moisture level, preventing spoilage from hot spots and condensation.
Consider using grain level monitoring systems to track your inventory levels. Modern level sensors use a laser and pair with an app for real-time monitoring. You can also use tried-and-true rotary paddle sensors for a more affordable option. Other systems use radar or ultrasonic pulses to measure grain levels. The best choice for your operation depends on your location, storage type and budget.
Our laser sensor accurately measures up to 197 feet away. Protection from water and dust ensures accuracy and reduces maintenance needs. Connect our sensors to the AgriMesh app for inventory reports in real time, wherever you need them. We also offer a solar-powered system that creates its own network, so no Wi-Fi access or external power sources are necessary.
Getting your corn from field to storage requires multiple transfer points, and every impact can affect kernel quality. Modern grain handling equipment, like cushion boxes and flow retarders, helps to reduce the speed of grain and create a grain-on-grain flow. This gentle handling minimizes grain hitting hard surfaces, protecting the quality of your final product.
The difference between a bumper crop and a break-even year lies in the details, from the right seeds to the optimum storage. Growing successful corn crops needs expertise and the equipment to deliver precise results. Standard grain handling equipment may not be optimal for your layout.
When you work with the experts at LCDM to design custom grain flow systems, you can eliminate any bottlenecks and protect your corn from damage. Our patented adjustable DBAR Cushion Box can cut grain damage by 50% or more. For more productive and profitable operations, contact us today.
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