SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - 2017 wasn't a record year for soybean production in South Dakota, but it was close. Despite a challenging growing season, farmers posted another year of high yields, and those results were evident in this year's South Dakota Soybean Yield Contest.
Jon Schaeffer, South Dakota Soybean Yield Contest chair, says many farmers planted late and then were hit by drought, so the yields were surprising.
"For the most part the yields were still very good," he says. "They were not like the record year of last year, but the farmers always seem to come through."
He says during an adverse year, that is when the differences in management practices really show up and pay off.
First place overall was Kory Standy of Charles Mix County with a yield of 92.24 bushels per acre, growing Asgrow AG1733 beans. He was surprised with the high yields in such a challenging year. He was hit by drought, so his drip irrigation system was critical, as well as paying attention to a combination of details.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Take tissue samples, take soil samples, go to meetings, listen, you know, listen and learn, and don't be afraid to try new things," says Standy.
He also took second place overall with a 92.22-bushel per acre yield with Asgrow AG2733 in the Group 2 or 3 Irrigated category. Standy adds that his fertility program is another key part of his best management practices.
Tim Hofer of Hutchinson County won the Master Class with a 98.6 bushel per acre yield planting Legend's LS29R562N. The Master Class was a new feature this year for farmers who have hit 100 bushel beans in previous years of the contest.
Hofer relies on his no-till system, high populations and aggressive fertility program to consistently hit the big yields.
"We try to doctor our acres where we want to get them up there - I mean put on whatever we need, but we do a lot of manure, too," he says. "We'll knife in manure like this fall."
He says the Yield Contest is a good opportunity to experiment with different growing practices on his farm to see what works and what doesn't.
To promote the next generation of soybean growers, the 2017 Yield Contest opened a new class for youth ages 13-21. One of the 2017 winners was Samuel Bender of Hutchinson County with a yield of 72.34 bushels per acre. He grew Great Lakes soybean variety GL1953. He says one of his secrets is his plant fertility program.
"I think it's the strip till - placing the fertilizer where it needs to be right on the row verses in between the row," says Bender. He recommends that other young farmers participate in the contest because it's a great learning experience.
ADVERTISEMENT
The contest also features a quality division in which the soybeans are evaluated for the components, including oil, protein and hulls. Each entry is given an Estimated Processed Value or EPV, which represents the sum of those values and reflects market demand for those components. The top EPV was 152.8 entered by Gordon Heber of Douglas County with Asgrow variety AG2433.
Beyond the awards, the contest helps to promote higher yields through the collection and sharing of valuable data from across the state.
"We always wanted to give back to the farmers of South Dakota and that's one way we can do it is compiling all this data and giving back their information," says contest chair Jon Schaeffer.
Schaeffer says from that data collection and working with participants over several years of the contest some common trends have developed, including planting higher populations and using narrow row spacing.
"Population is a big thing," he says. "We're seeing that growers that are pushing their populations. They're getting a little bit bigger yields off of that, and row spacing is a big thing. We're finding 15-inch rows, they're easily as much as four, to five, to six bushels more."
However, the biggest trend among top growers is that they're paying attention to the details. "They're working on fertilizer per acre or using fungicide or in the low spots. They're using tile. The little details are adding up to bigger yields," Schaeffer says.
And that's a trend Schaeffer says they want to continue well into the future.
According to the December U.S. Department of Agriculture Supply and Demand Report, South Dakota farmers planted 5.45 million acres of soybeans this year. The average yield was 45 bushels per acre, with production estimated at 254 million bushels.
ADVERTISEMENT
