Today we begin a new series of planting reports from Case IH crop specialists who provide field support to producers and dealers throughout North America. These Case IH experts work side by side with producers to help the planting season go smoothly.
Our first report is from John Lee, Case IH Crop Production Sales Specialist who covers the territory from Louisiana and Mississippi, east to Georgia. This is Lee’s first planting season with Case IH. Before joining Case IH in November, he was a precision ag sales consultant in northern Louisiana for another manufacturer.
Read his report below and let us know how spring field work is going in your area. We want to hear from you!
The earliest corn planting, I’ve heard, was in northeast Louisiana at the beginning of February. By now, almost all Louisiana corn is planted, and the majority has emerged. Farmers are now itching to get started planting cotton.
John Lee, Case IH Crop Production Sales Specialist, covers the territory from Louisiana and Mississippi, east to Georgia.
Rice and soybean planting has begun in the southern part of Louisiana. Mississippi farmers are about midway through corn planting now. Cotton planting will begin in Louisiana in a week or so, with Mississippi starting a little later, if the weather cooperates. In Mississippi, mainly corn has been planted, and nobody’s been able to move on to planting anything else, because it’s been wet for two weeks now. In Georgia, producers are done planting sweet corn and they’re just starting to plant commercial-grade corn. They’re on schedule to plant peanuts and cotton at the end of April or in early May.
The weather has been cooler and wetter than normal in the past two weeks, and the week before Easter, Louisiana and Mississippi got a heavy frost. The frost damaged some of the newly emerged corn, but most of the corn has grown out of any damage that was sustained.
This year has been a first for us with the Case IH Precision Disk 500 and 500T air disk drills. Producers have been really happy with the drills’ performance, especially the seed placement and consistent seed depth. Also impressive was the speed at which they were able to plant while still getting great performance.
We credit that excellent seed placement to the agronomic design of the Precision Disk 500/500T. There are many agronomic design features that improve seedling performance and functionality. One is the parallel linkage on the row units, which provides consistent depth control and ensures that the seed is at the proper depth for germination. Another is the forward-facing seed tube that ensures that the seed stays in the furrow and doesn’t bounce back on top of the ground. The Precision Disk 500/500T also features patented variable tension springs that maintain row unit down pressure in both soft and hard soil conditions.
With the industry’s narrowest transport widths, the Precision Disk 500/500T can be easily transported between fields. A rugged, reliable frame holds up in changing field conditions, even going from no-till to conventional with minimal adjustments.
Is your planter ready to go? Find tips on how to get your planter in tip-top shape at Case IH Red and Ready.
