DROUGHT HURTS CORN YIELDS

  The drought of 2011 certainly had a negative impact on corn yields in the Coastal Bend.  I had a Corn Hybrid Test with David Mayo, just south of Robstown that averaged 51.7 bushels per acre, with yields ranging from a low of 42.8 to a high of 59.6 bushels per acre.  
  During the growing season a total of 4.14 inches of rainfall was received on the test plot.  The corn was planted on February 22, 2011 in a replicated study and plots of 0.26 acre were machine harvested on July 8 and weighed with an electronic weigh wagon.The average plant population was 18,944 plants per acre.  This was a dryland test in a Victoria clay soil planted on 38-inch rows. 

                               

Nueces County Corn Hybrid Trial

Cooperator:  David Mayo

Jeffrey Stapper, County Extension Agent-Agricultural & Natural Resources, Nueces County

Dr. Dan D. Fromme, Assistant Professor and Extension Agronomist

Company	Hybrid	Moisture        (%)		Bu. Wt.        (lbs.)		Bu./Acre1
DeKalb	DKC 64-69 GENVT3P	13.73	a	58.0	ab	59.6	a
Warner	W4777VT3 Pro	13.83	a	58.3	a	55.8	ab
B-H Genetics	8928VTTP	13.80	a	58.7	a	55.6	ab
Syngenta	N77P3111	13.63	a	57.3	bc	53.8	abc
Dyna-Gro	56VP69	13.90	a	57.3	bc	52.0	bcd
CropLan	851VT3P	13.70	a	57.0	c	51.0	bcd
Golden Acres	27V01	13.57	a	56.7	c	50.1	bcd
Pioneer	33F85	13.87	a	58.0	ab	49.5	cd
Terral	REV28HR20	13.73	a	58.0	ab	47.0	de
Triumph	7514H	13.70	a	57.3	bc	42.8	e
Mean	---	13.75		57.67		51.7
P>F	---	0.2404		0.0085		0.0007
LSD (P=0.05)	---	NS		0.97		5.94
Standard Deviation	---	0.150		0.56		3.46
CV%	---	1.09		0.98		6.69

Means in a column followed by the same letter are not significantly different by ANOVA.

¹Adjusted to 15% moisture.

GRAIN SORGHUM YIELD RESULTS

    As we wrap up the majority of the grain sorghum harvest in the Coastal Bend we can look back and note that for a drought year, overall sorghum yields were about average.  In an effort to evaluate the grain sorghum hybrids being marketed by seed companies, I established three Grain Sorghum Hybrid Tests, in Nueces County.  The cooperators were as follows; McNair Farms (Larry and Donnie McNair) in Driscoll, Faske Farms (Jerry and James Faske) in Bishop and Ordner Farms (Bill and Scott Ordner and Shane Suggs) in Petronilla.  There were nine hybrids that were evaluated on each farm and the yield data is posted in the Table below.

Sorghum Hybrid	McNair Farms (Driscoll) Lbs/Ac	Faske Farms (Bishop) Lbs/Ac	Ordner Farms (Petronilla) Lbs/Ac	3 Test Average Lbs/Ac	Yield Rank
Pioneer 83G19	5,401	2,920	5,369	4,563	1
DeKalb DKS 53-67	5,123	2,795	5,569	4,496	2
B-H Genetics 5350	4,808	3,516	4,829	4,384	3
Triumph TRX 85131	5,031	3,002	5,067	4,367	4
Golden Acres 3696	4,617	2,578	4,945	4,047	5
Golden Acres 5308	4,617	2,533	4,962	4,037	6
Gayland Ward 9417	4,703	2,231	4,794	3,909	7
Terral TV 96H81	4,834	1,235	5,112	3,727	8
Warner W-965-E	4,398	1,786	4,546	3,577	9
Location Average	4,837	2,511	5,021	4,123

A complete report on these tests can be obtained from the Nueces County Extension Office upon request and they are also posted on the Internet at http://nueces-tx.tamu.edu/ under the Publications link.

Trade names of commercial products used in this report is included only for better understanding and clarity. Reference to commercial products or trade names is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by Texas AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas A&M University System is implied. Readers should realize that results from one experiment do not represent conclusive evidence that the same response would occur where conditions vary.