CROP NEWS WEEKLY Penton Media June 10, 2009 Volume 9 Issue 22 If you want to view this on the web go to: http://enews.penton.com/enews/cropnewsweekly/v/330 EDITOR'S NOTE Logan Hawkes 06/10/09 The summer growing season is in full swing yet a great deal of replanting is still taking place in the Eastern Corn Belt. And it's not only the Midwest that is behind in soybean planting. Reports from the Southland also indicate a delayed start to soybean planting because of heavy rains. All in all, however, planting has wrapped up across most of the Midwest as the growing season settles in. Once again we offer up the latest in issues and information for your consideration. Dig in and let's get started - and happy reading. FROM OUR EDITORS --State budgets pressure Extension, research The ailing economy hasn't only clobbered housing, banking, and the automotive sectors -- a lot of agricultural Extension, research, and education programs face sharp cutbacks in the proposed fiscal 2010 federal budget and from major declines in tax revenues at the state level. A report by the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government shows that 47 states had a decline in first quarter 2009 revenues from personal and corporate taxes of more than $20 billion compared to the same period in 2008. Nationally, Alaska was down the most, at 74.1 percent, a casualty of the big drop in oil prices; followed by Arizona, down 20.8 percent, reflecting the housing market bust. - Hembree Brandon, Farm Press Editorial Staff To view the full article go to: http://deltafarmpress.com/legislative/brandon-column-0608/ --Soybeans behind schedule Rain delays and changes in planting decisions are forcing a later than ideal start for Mississippi's soybeans. As planting window dates have been closing for other crops, growers are switching some fields to soybeans before time runs out for them as well. Trey Koger, soybean specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the crop's ideal planting window closed around the first of May, but fields planted now still can succeed. Other row crops such as cotton, corn and rice aren't as flexible when it comes to planting date and optimal yields, so when rain kept fields from being planted in these crops, many farmers turned to late-planted soybeans. Soybeans also are not as expensive to grow as other crops. - Bonnie Coblentz, MSU Ag Communications To view the full article go to: http://deltafarmpress.com/soybeans/mississippi-soybeans-0608/ ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISEMENT Quilt(R) fungicide combines the Power of Two_ industry leading brands, Quadris(R) and Tilt(R) fungicides, to deliver complete disease protection and help your corn crop reach its full yield potential. Combining preventive and curative activity, Quilt helps improve Plant Performance_ by offering long-lasting residual control of foliar diseases and improved plant physiology. Click here to learn more. http://www.quilt-fungicide.com ---------------------------------------- --Asian rust in Louisiana soybeans Asian soybean rust has been found in a soybean sentinel plot maintained by agricultural consultant Blaine Viator in St. Martin Parish near Coteau, La., according to LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Clayton Hollier. The infected soybean plant was discovered on June 4 and verified by Patricia Bollich, an LSU AgCenter research technologist, by a field test, Hollier said. "The significance is that this is the first sighting of Asian soybean rust on soybeans in Louisiana during 2009," Hollier said. "The variety is unknown at this point, but the plant is in maturity group 5." - Rick Bogren, LSU AgCenter To view the full article go to: http://deltafarmpress.com/soybeans/soybean-rust-0608/ --Investors moving to commodity markets Fear of inflation is driving investor dollars into commodity markets. Fund traders and speculators, including trend traders, are moving into the buy side of grain, oilseed, fiber and energy markets taking long positions. This activity is increasing price volatility. Planting progress is rapid but weather remains a market factor. Favorable rain and unfavorable rain are significant price moving factors. Increasing oil prices support corn and soybean prices. - Ray Nabors To view the full article go to: http://deltafarmpress.com/markets/commodity-markets-0608/ --High hurdle for ethanol The first successful attempt to drill for oil in the U.S. almost didn't happen. According to Pulitzer-Prize winning author Daniel Yergin, the small band of drillers who accomplished the feat had already been instructed to suspend operations when they struck oil on Aug. 27, 1859. Until then, workers dug shafts by hand to mine crude oil, which was refined into kerosene or "coal oil." (What became gasoline was considered a useless by-product prior to the invention of the automobile.) The process of digging for oil was expensive, yielding only small amounts per day. - Forrest Laws, Farm Press Editorial Staff To view the full article go to: http://deltafarmpress.com/biofuels/laws-column-0603/ --South American grain production Robert Wisner says he's never seen the kind of drop that occurred in grain production in South America this spring. Farmers in Argentina and Brazil are expected to harvest 675 million fewer bushels of corn and 711 million fewer bushels of soybeans than they did in 2007-08. The decrease, which could prove to be even greater when USDA issues a new forecast on June 12, was not good news for pork producers attending the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Iowa. Those producers, struggling with higher feed costs for months, have been hoping for some relief in the corn and soybean markets. - Forrest Laws, Farm Press Editorial Staff To view the full article go to: http://southeastfarmpress.com/grains/soybean-acreage-0608/ --FSA county committee nominations Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced that farmer and rancher candidate nominations will begin on June 15, 2009, for local Farm Service Agency county committees. The nomination period continues through Aug. 3, 2009, with elections taking place this fall. "County committees are an important link between the farm community and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and give landowners, farmers and ranchers a better chance of having their opinions and ideas heard," said Vilsack. "In recent years, we have seen a trend of increased nominations of minority and women producers and I hope that will continue." To view the full article go to: http://southeastfarmpress.com/news/usda-programs-0608/ --Farm groups and climate change legislation The National Corn Growers Association and other leading agricultural organizations have sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer expressing concerns about the cap-and-trade portion of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. "Your leadership is needed to ensure the final legislation is crafted in a way that maximizes the participation of farmers and ranchers while minimizing the economic burden in the climate change equation," the letter stated. "From an environmental perspective, maximizing agriculture's role results in significant carbon benefits to the country and provides a vital component to addressing global warming." To view the full article go to: http://southeastfarmpress.com/legislation/climate-change-0605/ ---------------------------------------- Success depends on performance. Late nights, early mornings and healthy crops aren't much without the bushels to back it up. Quilt(R) and Quadris(R) give you the Plant Performance_ you need to control disease while securing higher yields, good returns and an easier harvest. In a results-oriented business, these are just the results you need. Click here to learn more. http://www.plantperformance.com ---------------------------------------- KENT THIESSE ---------------------------------------- RAINFALL, ETHANOL GROWTH ARE WELCOME After one of the driest May's in recent memory in many portions of southern and western Minnesota, some welcome rainfall was received across much of the region from June 6 to 8. Rainfall amounts varied from slightly over 1/2 in. in west-central Minnesota to well over 2 in. in parts of south-central and southeastern portions of the state. The rainfall came at a critical time in many areas, as later-planted soybeans had uneven emergence due to dry topsoil conditions, and crop stress was beginning to show on lighter, sandier soils in some locations. This rainfall should help alleviate the short-term dry weather concerns in much of southern Minnesota, especially those areas that received an inch or more of rainfall. With the recent rainfall, growing conditions for corn and soybeans continue to be very good in most areas of southern Minnesota; however, very cool temperatures in early June have slowed crop development somewhat. Average 24-hour temperatures have been running 8-10_ below normal in early June. At the University of Minnesota Southwest Research and Outreach Center at Waseca, the accumulated growing degree units (GDUs) from May 1 to June 8 was 410, which is about 11% below the average GDU accumulation of 461 on June 8. Even though most of the corn in southern Minnesota was planted 7-10 days earlier than normal, it is about at normal development for early June, due to the cool weather that has existed during most of the early growing season in 2009. http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/kentthiesse/0609-rain-ethanol-growth/?smte=wl ---------------------------------------- RICHARD BROCK ---------------------------------------- CHINESE BUYERS CANCEL SOYBEAN CARGOES Chinese soybean importers have agreed with suppliers to scrap deals for two to three 60,000-metric-ton U.S. cargoes in the past week as prices rally and inventories pile up, two traders told Reuters News Service on Monday. Two of the estimated three cargoes due to have been shipped from New Orleans have instead been resold on the domestic U.S. market, where CBOT soybean futures rose to an eight-month high last week. "A total of three cargoes washed out. Buyers decided to wash out as there are too many beans in the market," said one Singapore-based trader who regularly trades with China. "The seller sold the cargoes in the domestic market." http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/soybeans/0602-chinese-buyers-cancel-cargoes/ ---------------------------------------- AUDIO/VIDEO FEATURES ---------------------------------------- SOYBEAN RUST & RESEARCH: WHERE IT'S BEEN AND WHERE IT'S GOING Anne Dorrance, Ohio State University plant pathologist, explains the history of soybean rust, how it first showed up in the U.S., what it is and where it's found and what checkoff dollars are doing to help manage the disease. - CSD LIVE http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/tv/0518-soybean-rust-and-research/ FARM EQUIPMENT SOON TO BE UPDATED WITH LED LIGHTING The first LED lights will be added as an option to farm machinery this year -- interviews with Mike Maher and Dragan Popovic of the J.W. Speaker Corp. http://farmindustrynews.com/tv/0602-LED-farm-equipment/ ---------------------------------------- MORE MAGAZINE HIGHLIGHTS ---------------------------------------- DOC, SHOULD I FIX IT? I have been getting e-mails and questions coming faster than a Twitter following for a big time professional athlete or high-priced college basketball coach. The questions' central focus has been: "Should I fix my interest rates in light of the recent run up of long-term rates?" Well, the following is my generic answer, and terms and conditions may vary with individual situations and circumstances. First, there is a much higher probability of long-term interest rates increasing than decreasing. With stimulus packages being implemented not only in the U.S. and Canada but throughout the world, more than likely inflationary pressures will result. Next, quantitative easing, or printing more money, by the Federal Reserve may result in a devaluation of the dollar, which will make imported goods more expensive. - Dave Kohl, Corn & Soybean Digest http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/davidkohl/0609-fixing-interest-rates/ QUICK POLL QUESTION This week's poll question: Have you had glyphosate resistance problems to the extent that you have to spray with another chemistry to finish the job? * YES * NO Log on now to the Corn & Soybean Digest and take our quick poll. We would all like to know your answer! (And check the current results while you're there) http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/ VOLUNTEER CORN MANAGEMENT IN CORN & SOYBEANS Large populations of volunteer corn are being reported in some fields in Minnesota this year. What impact the volunteer corn will have on this year's crop yield and the viable management options available will depend upon in which crop the volunteer corn is present. Making the assumptions that the majority of the volunteer corn present is glyphosate resistant and that glyphosate-resistant crops were planted in the field this year, your only management option in corn at this time is cultivation. In soybean you have the herbicide options of the ACCase inhibiting herbicides such as: Select Max (clethodim), Fusilade DX (fluazifop-P), Fusion (fluazifop-P & fenoxaprop) and Assure II (quizalofop); note Poast Plus (sethoxydim) is not as active as the other herbicides on volunteer corn. The ACCase inhibiting herbicides are generally targeted on 12-24-in.-tall volunteer corn. The ALS herbicide Raptor can also effectively control smaller (2-8 in.) volunteer corn. In 2007, researchers at South Dakota State University indicated that volunteer corn is much less competitive in corn than soybean. The South Dakota study (Alms et al. 2007) evaluated the full season effect of a range of volunteer corn densities (800-14,000 plants/acre) on both corn and soybean and reported yield losses that ranged from 0% to 13% in corn and 0% to 54% in soybean. A 2007 University of Minnesota (U of M) study reported yield loss potential in corn that was very similar to the South Dakota study. Iowa State reported one volunteer corn plant per 10 ft. of row reduced corn yield 1.3%. This lower impact on corn is likely due to a volunteer corn's reduced demand for resources and the competitive vigor of the planted F1 hybrid. Volunteer corn has a lower yield potential than the planted F1 hybrid resulting from delayed emergence. In the U of M study, volunteer corn plants lagged from one to six leaf stages behind the crop and few plants produced an ear by harvest. - Corn & Soybean Digest http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/corn/news/0608-volunteer-corn-management/ DROUGHT-TOLERANCE GENE BY 2012 BASF Plant Science and Monsanto have jointly announced the discovery of a naturally occurring gene that will be used in drought-tolerant corn. They say producers could see products containing the cspB gene as early as 2012. - Farm Industry News http://farmindustrynews.com/seed/biotech-traits/0609-drought-tolerance-gene ---------------------------------------- ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER You are subscribed to this newsletter as #email# To subscribe to this newsletter go to: http://subscribe.cropnewsweekly.com/?tc=NLSUB To unsubscribe from this newsletter go to: http://subscribe.cropnewsweekly.com/?tc=NLSUB&cid=#message_id#&lid=#list_id#&email=#email# For information on advertising in Crop News Weekly, please contact: Roger Randall at mailto:roger.randall@penton.com For questions concerning delivery of this newsletter, please contact our Customer Service Department at: US Toll Free: 866-505-7173 International: 847-763-9504 or mailto:cropnewsweekly@pbinews.com To get this newsletter in a different format (Text or HTML), or to change your e-mail address, please go to your profile page here: http://subscribe.cropnewsweekly.com/?tc=NLSUB&email=#email# Penton Media | 249 W. 17th Street | New York, NY 10011 Copyright 2009, Penton Media. 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