Planning for Winter Wheat Success
Tim Hammerich
News Reporter
Winter wheat growers are already looking ahead to their fall planting season, and that begins with looking at the things they can control. Ryan Bryant-Schlobohm is the technical services manager for UPL.
Schlobohm…. “Markets, input costs, a lot of those are out of growers’ control. What they can control, though, is how well they manage that crop. And sometimes, in order to make money, it does cost a little bit up front in terms of fertility and pest management. When it comes to pest management, that's something very much in our control. So, although prices and markets can be incredibly variable, we still manage that crop to the best of our ability. The weeds aren't going to go anywhere just because prices may be up or down, and weeds are going to always be present. Growers should always pay attention to managing them to the best of their ability, and that's, in the end, what's gonna maximize production.”
Schlobohm said a good winter wheat management plan will help maximize every bushel.
Schlobohm… “Part of its just due to the opportunity we have, with higher commodity prices, wanting to maximize that production, protect every bushel that we can, is that flag leaf fungicide application. It's proven that it can help protect your yield and especially increase that yield over what you would have from an untreated control over a field where you don't employ that flag leaf fungicide application. So, a product like ZOLERA FX at flag leaf can tremendously help wheat growers in terms of battling those foliar diseases that can rob you of yield potential.”
He added that almond 90 percent of the key winter wheat growing areas were in some form of drought last year.
