Early season, The Bean Report

The Bean Report – April 13, 2023

APRIL 13, 2023

Production Guidelines

Review agronomy-focused production guidelines and recommendations that provide an overview of field selection, seeding, crop nutrition, pest management and harvest.

Participate in an On-Farm Network trial in 2023!

What’s involved in hosting an on-farm trial?

You establish the trial using your equipment by following a randomized and replicated trial layout we provide. Strips typically run the length of the field, excluding headlands and are at least as wide as one combine pass. You manage the trial the same as you would the rest of the field. We provide support at trial establishment and harvest. We scout the field regularly and collect relevant data throughout the growing season. In the fall, you receive a short report summarizing analyzed trial results and economics.

Trial types include investigating seeding rates, row spacings, double vs. single inoculant, single vs. no inoculant, seed treatments, fertilizer rates, fungicide applications and biological products. Want to test something else on your farm? Let us know!

Iron Deficiency Chlorosis (IDC)

Soybeans acidify their root zone to access iron in a plant-available form from the soil. Excess calcium carbonates, moisture, soluble salts and high nitrate levels can all negatively impact iron uptake.

For every 0.1 increase in IDC score, soybean yield is reduced by 2.4 to 2.8 bu/ac, on average. Often, only parts (10-25%) of a field are affected. Evaluate IDC risk in your fields using soil test information and choose IDC tolerant soybean varieties if risk is high.

Pea Leaf Weevils

In 2022, Manitoba joined Alberta and Saskatchewan in monitoring pea leaf weevil populations. Low to moderate population densities of pea leaf weevils were observed in western Manitoba, with greater populations occurring in the northwest.

Characteristic leaf notches on pea leaf margins caused by adult pea leaf weevil feeding.

Adult weevils feed on peas and faba bean leaves in the spring, resulting in characteristic leaf notching symptoms. It looks like someone took a holepunch to the edges of the leaves. Once they start feeding on their host crops, they lay eggs on the soil surface. Those eggs hatch and larvae burrow below ground to feed on root nodules, causing yield loss.

Insecticide seed treatments offer some protection against pea leaf weevils, however, there is no information to indicate when a seed treatment is likely to provide a yield benefit or return on investment. If you’re thinking about a pea seed treatment, we encourage you to consider hosting an on-farm trial.

Residue Management

Before Growing Soybeans

From 2017 to 2021, six tillage treatments (fall tilled, fall burned, short standing stubble with and without straw and long standing stubble with and without straw) were evaluated before growing soybeans at Brandon, Carberry and Indian Head.

Direct-seeded soybeans yielded the same or greater than the tilled and burned treatments. Tall standing stubble also resulted in similar or greater yields than shorter stubble. Removing wheat straw before seeding soybeans resulted in similar or greater yields than chopping and returning the straw. Days to emergence among tillage treatments varied by one day or less on average. Soil temperatures at seeding varied by 1 to 3°C among treatments and tillage and burning commonly resulted in drier soils.

Before Growing Peas

Research at Carman and Roblin (2020-2024) has been ongoing investigating the combination of preceding crop, tillage vs. direct seed and phosphorus fertilize rate and placement on pea yield. Stay tuned for results from this project soon!

Before Growing Dry Beans

From 2017 to 2020, pinto beans were planted into four crop residues (wheat, canola, corn and pinto beans) that had been split into tilled and direct seeded treatments.

Preceding crop did not affect pinto bean yield, but there was greater grassy weed pressure following corn than wheat and root rot severity was the greatest in beans following beans.

Direct-seeded pintos yielded 10-17% greater than pintos in tilled stubble at two site-years, likely due to moisture conservation benefits. Grassy weed densities were also greater in tilled residue treatments.

Explore On-Farm Network Results Summary Videos

MPSG’s On-Farm Network conducts research at the field scale, on-farm with farmers using their equipment and typical management practices. Trials are replicated and randomized, generating data that are unbiased, statistically accurate and robust. These trials deliver results to help guide management decisions that will improve profitability and productivity on the farm.