Walking Small Grains

Small grains growth has been slowed by the cool, dry weather. Wheat fields I’ve been in only have a couple of tillers. I’m seeing a few aphids in the growthier fields, mainly oats for forage.  It’s really dry and the soil is hard, so most forage grains need watering.

 Jimmy Clements and the folks at Pineland seed had a good idea recently about checking planting effectiveness of your drill.

“Take time to walk your wheat fields while the wheat is still young and you can count the plants per foot of row. If you find a row that is too thin or too thick, flag that row on your drill and correct the seeding rate before you plant next year. A count of 18-20 plants per foot (7-8 inch row) is great, 25-30 is way too thick.”