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Planting early corn has yield advantages, requires extra seed, MU specialists say
Missouri
Planting corn as early as late March or early April can provide a yield advantage in southern and central Missouri, but increased seeding rates may be necessary to realize it, University of Missouri specialists said.
"Producers plant when the weather allows them to get in the field and plant, regardless of what data show us," MU Extension agronomist Bill Wiebold told a group of crop advisors during the recent MU Crop Management Conference in Columbia, Dec. 16 and 17. "But planting corn early does have its advantages, if you take into account the environment into which you're planting those kernels."
Wiebold said that when planting early, average soil temperatures are lower and the accumulation of growing degree days is slower than later in the spring. "It's going to take seed planted in late March much longer to germinate and emerge than seed planted in late April," he said. "The longer those kernels are in the ground, the longer they're subject to their enemies--insects and diseases."
MU Extension climatologist Pat Guinan presented long-term climatological data to illustrate the extended time that seed planted early is in the ground.
"Based on 30-year temperature averages, we'd expect that corn planted March 25 in central Missouri would not emerge until April 18, or more than three weeks later," Guinan said. "Whereas, we'd expect corn planted April 25 to emerge May 7, or less than two weeks later."
Because lower emergence is likely following extended time in the ground, Wiebold said increasing seeding rates in early plantings can ensure a stronger stand. "When you plant early, you're going to move your silking date--the time most critical for gaining yield--into a window when you're likely to receive adequate rainfall to achieve those yields."
According to 30-year averages, corn planted in central Missouri March 25 would likely silk June 30, Guinan said. "Average weekly rainfall at the end of June is still around an inch a week, which is going to help that corn crop reach its yield potential. Corn silking later than mid-July won't have the same amount of moisture to work with."
While the yield gain varies with environmental conditions, Wiebold said that harvest data from the Missouri Agricultural Statistics Service indicates that corn planted before May 15 yielded 10 to 25 percent more than corn planted after May 15.
Both Wiebold and Guinan agreed that while possible, frost damage to early planted corn is unlikely. "While there's always a chance, in most years, frost won't be an issue," Wiebold said.
Guinan's climatological data showed that the average date of the last moderate freeze in central Missouri is April 4. "If you did plant your corn on March 25, it's not going to emerge until almost two weeks after that average freeze date," he said.
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