Crop Scene Investigation – 11 What’s behind Sam’s uneven soybeans?

His beans seemed ‘to be struggling to come out of the ground.’ What’s more, the stand was thin and uneven across much of the field. So what was the cause?

by CLARE KINLIN

One of my favourite times of year will soon be here. That’s when the first soybean seedlings begin popping out of the ground and getting a strong, vigorous start on the season.

Last spring, Sam from Stormont County called because he wasn’t seeing signs of vigour in his two-week old soybean crop. “My beans look thinner and less uniform than they should,” he said. “They seem to be struggling to come out of the ground.”

Better Farming - April 2008