A recent Pioneer poll shows more than half of corn farmers say that they were dealing with moderate to severe drought stress this season.
While only rain can change fortunes at this point, planning for next year can help ensure fields are more resilient. So, what can farmers do to improve drought tolerance? A Pioneer agronomy manager shares some tips.
“Those tactics are going to include things like preserving soil moisture with tillage and residue management considerations that strive to keep that soil moisture preserved as best as we can. Good soil fertility and crop nutrient management, especially potassium, can have an impact on how well that plant can deal with drought stress. And then obviously, we want to do everything we can to relieve other stresses and protect that plant from things like diseases or insects or weed competition that could impose additional stresses to the crop,” according to Dan Berning.
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