1. Field Observations

Most hay fields have been taken for first cutting, though yields have suffered from the dry weather. Resist the urge to delay forage harvest to get more tonnage! While you may get higher yield, the feed value and digestibility will more than cancel out what yield you may gain by waiting.

Corn and soybeans are up and out of the ground in places where they were planted in the second and third weeks of the month, though more than a few no-till folks had to wait until last weekend's rainfall to break through the hard ground. A few fields in Central NY were planted in April, but most have been planted over the last 3 - 3.5 weeks. Cutworm numbers have begun to increase (see Section 3), so be sure to monitor your young seedlings for damage over the next few weeks.

The next ten days look warm and dry, so our flowering winter grains should be in great shape with regards to disease. There have been reports of cereal leaf beetle outbreaks in Western NY, so be on the lookout.

2. Growing Degree Days (See: Climate Smart Farming Growing Degree Day Calculator)

Growing degree days (GDD) are calculated by taking the average daily temperature and subtracting the base temperature for development of a given organism ((High + Low)/2 - base temp = GDD). For corn silage, we are using base 50/86, as corn development starts at 50 degrees F and ceases above 86. Check your location and planting date:

3. Pest and disease monitoring

This year we will again monitor several pests of corn using pheromone-baited traps. We monitor black cutworm (BCW) and TAW populations first, then transition to BCW and TAW through the middle part of the season, and we may eventually track fall armyworm (FAW) at some point this year as well.

Black cutworm (BCW)
Western bean cutworm (WBC)
True armyworm (TAW)

Here's what we have so far:

As winter grains begin and continue to flower, now would be the time to decide whether to protect crops from fusarium head blight. According to the Fusarium Risk Tool, the risk in our region is currently low: