b'S T R A T E G YGrowers have the abilitytrends, market dynamics andannually; when they want tothrough field selection.to determine if they want avariety selection. plant their crop, what fieldsMake sure youre choosing very fast emerging product orFrom a dealer-growerthey want to plant their crop,soils that have low soybean if they want something that ispoint of view, we have toand so on, but they also havecyst nematode pressure, not as fast but that will comemake sure that the herbicideto create contingency plans,adequate fertility levels as it up as soil temperatures warmplatform we use has an opera- Rahe says.pertains to phosphorus and up, Rahe says.tional fit, Kavanaugh says. In addition, Kavanaughpotassium and especially Many growers used toWe have to determine theencourages growers to berespectable pH levels. Keeping plant a bushel or a bushel andweed spectrum, the herbicideaware of Dicamba label uncer- your pH up and keeping a a half per acre. Now its closerapplication details around thattainty and decisions madehigh calcium load in the soil is to 130,000 to 140,000 seedsand what the neighbors plat- regarding the state 24(c)s. very important for rhizobium planted per acre in soybeans. form is as well, he says.When those regula- survival, he says. Kavanaugh says growersGrowers are followingtions come out, we have toIn many ways, the industry have had success with lessconsumer leanings toward orunderstand what they are,has started to treat soybeans than 120,000 seeds per acre.against GM varieties, but RaheKavanaugh says.more like corn, not just from We have to remembersays the market has stabilizedSupply issues need to bea breeding aspect, but also that soybeans are a bush plantover the last few years withfactored in as well. a management aspect and by nature and they want toonly about 5-7% of the U.S.It looks like glyphosateproduction aspect as well.express themselves, he says. soybean acres planted to non- inventories are getting prettyA grower may think that GMO soybeans. tight. So, make sure yourethey can just get by with using Deciding with Data working with your seed dealerthe fertilizer that was left from With so many traits to con- Simple Strategies and your chemical dealercorn, but that might be the old sider, farmers must make a listAs growers take advantagewhen making your deci- way of thinking. Now growers of priorities.of the expanding soybeansions so you know what theshould put a plan together on Everybody wants highoptions, it is tempting tooptions for next year will be,figuring out their fertility strat-yield, but are you willing todiversify too much, perhapsKavanaugh says.egy for each field. Rahe says.sacrifice some standability forusing a Dicamba/ RoundupWith these trends and that highest yielding variety?scenario along with someFocused for the Future advances, the industry is Rahe asks. Xtend Flex, for example. Its tempting for growers toready for soybeans to con-Cost is, of course, anThats fine. Just try tomake decisions based solelytinue to grow.important consideration. keep it simple, Kavanaughon the prior years successesI think the next 10 years Rahe recommends growerssays. and failures, but its importantwill be really interesting in this should ask a lot of questionsHe suggests separatingto understand environmentalspace, Fuller says. from their suppliers to those varieties and document- impacts that might be uniqueHe mentions a lot of inter-understand what is included ining them well.to one season, rather than aest in fuel products as well as their seed treatment becauseWe see folks try to mixnew trend. plant-based proteins.not all seed treatments are theE3 and Xtend soybeans, andDont give up on goodTheres opportunities that same. that can be very challenging,varieties, Kavanaugh says.are going to be out there, Rahe says all these Kavanaugh says. Moreover, with the increasewhether its human consump-questions add up to 40 orPlus, having a simpler Planin interest for soybeans,tion, renewable diesel or aqua-50 decisions per year on aA allows room for any Plansome growers are consider- culture as fish meal and things single crop, which can beB situations that come up. ing expanding their acreagelike that, Fuller says. SWoverwhelming when tryingFarmers are tasked withnext year. Kavanagh cautions to make sense of changingmaking hundreds of decisionsgrowers to carefully think ENDORSED BY 54/ SEEDWORLD.COMFEBRUARY 2022'