It’s a race to harvest time
Did you know? From mid- to late-vegetative growth, crops like corn can use as much as 60% of available nutrients as it grows new leaves, it expands, and it preps for pollination.Â
Every grower knows this time in a corn crop’s growth — when plants are aggressively growing taller and stronger that you can almost hear it. We call this the Corn Sprint.Â
It’s the period between V6 and R3 when crops seem to shoot up overnight or pollination and grain fill.Â
And you’ve got to win the Corn Sprint if you’re going to reach your yield goals.
How do you win the corn sprint? Nutrients.
Your high-performing plants need more nutrients than ever before. They need an increased availability, and they need increased uptake efficiency.Â
More P +3.2%
More N +2.2%
More K +1.7%
Corn needs abundant nitrogen, potash, potassium and sulfur to ensure its productivity. Season-long availability of potassium, sulfur and other nutrients is key to reaching your crop’s potential.Â
This balance and availability is achieved through nutrient use efficiency, including availability, uptake and utilization.Microorganisms, like the ones found in biologicals, can mineralize nutrients, making them more soluble and available for uptake throughout the growing season. By adding biologicals to your fertilizer applications, these critical nutrients are more available for plants to take up throughout the season, but especially during the sprint.Â
Improved nutrient uptake can help increase your yields come harvest time. Applying biologicals like BioPath® and PowerCoat™ lead to bigger gains for grains and more.
“Since I’ve started farming by myself, I’ve been pushing to learn more about the corn plant, so I can get higher yields and become more profitable."
- Andrew Focht, Paylly Farms, Villisca, Iowa
Hear from the experts: How the Corn Sprint works
Dr. Fred Below and Dr. Connor Sible, of the University of Illinois, explain the corn sprint and what your plants need:
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