News
Great Lakes YEN pilot averages 115-bushel wheat
Wheat growers participating in a pilot program in the Great Lakes are pinpointing what management decisions result in high-yielding crops.
Dennis Pennington with Michigan State University Extension says farmers who signed up for the Great Lakes Yield Enhancement Network reported data throughout their season.
“We look forward to continuing this growth and development in trying to help and encourage and provide ways for these farmers to share their ideas to improve the wheat crop overall,” he says.
He says the average yield of participants was 115 bushels per acre, with a top yielder of 151, even with drought conditions at flowering and grain fill.
“Those with the higher yields tended to put on more dollars’ worth of crop protection per acre,” he says.
Pennington says the top half of participants spent nearly seven additional dollars per acre on crop protection inputs while overall costs were three cents per acre less than others when accounting for higher yields.
