As growers begin to put together their arsenal for 2018 disease and weed control, they may want to consider the DEKALB/Asgrow line. They have a whole armory of defense products.
From Goss’s wilt and southern rust to glyphosate-resistant weeds and nematodes, Matt Muckerman, Regional Marketing Manager, DEKALB/Asgrow says their product porfolio has you covered.
“My Seed My Way is about providing the 100% exclusive genetics you can find in DEKALB and Asgrow – those high performing genetics that farmers are used to and then how do you protect it,” Muckerman said. “When we talk about protecting it, it’s products like DEKALB Disease Shield.”
Introduced last year on a limited number of farms and this year on a vast number of acres, DEKALB Disease Shield has shown some real potential. Muckerman said last year in over 1,400 trials, growers saw a 12.1 bushel per acre advantage.
“Really, what it comes to down to for DEKALB Disease Shield is it’s about the breeding,” Muckerman said. “We are breeding for high yield potential, and we are also looking to protect and to have high disease characteristic ratings against the top five diseases that farmers face every year: Goss’s wilt, anthracnose stalk rot, northern corn leaf blight, gray leaf spot, and in some areas, southern rust.”
As we go in to harvest this year, Muckerman said it is really important to get out there late and scout them out.
“Last year southern rust hit really hard in southern Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky and our Disease Shield products were holding strong and looking great right up until the end, while a lot of the other products out there were just dying because of the amount of southern rust,” Muckerman said.
On the Asgrow side, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans has received full approval. Muckerman said after receiving great results last year with just the genetics in Asgrow Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans and now with the ability of farmers to use XtendiMax herbicide with VaporGrip Technology, growers should be able to tackle those glyphosate resistant and tough-to-control weeds they haven’t been able to the last couple seasons.
Muckerman said another beast that growers should protect their fields from in 2018 is nematodes.
“Believe it or not a lot of farmers don’t realize the extent of nematode damage they get every year because nematodes can be found in almost every field, it’s just where in the field,” Muckerman said.
According to Muckerman, with NemaStrike Technology, part of Monsanto’s Acceleron Seed Applied Solutions, customers are able to get in root control of nematodes up to 70 days from planting, where with the other leading product it is only about 30 days.
After harvest, Muckerman suggesting DEKALB/Asgrow growers take a look at the My Seed tool and crunch the numbers on the products. With My Seed, farmers can look at multiple hybrids, compare the characteristic of those products, enter expected yields for a particular field, and compare costs, all along with a local agronomist’s recommendations.
“What it is going to help you do as a farmer is to optimize not only the planting of that product, but also the profitability of that product,” Muckerman said.
