Lots of maize damage throughout the Netherlands

Nothing stood in the way of a huge maize harvest this year. The entire growing season went by the book, with plants up to 3 meters high. Were it not for the fact that the Netherlands was hit by a violent storm last week. This does the necessary damage. Also in Germany many plots are flat.

Thanks to a prosperous growing season, friend and foe are counting on a very high yield expectation for silage maize this year. A dry spring was followed by a wet and warm summer, with a number of clammy days. In short: perfect weather for a tropical crop. The deep-rooted plants sprouted like mushrooms from the ground. Until last week, the maize was in excellent condition.

Hundreds of notifications
Just before the conditioning season starts, a number of farmers still face the necessary challenges. Many fields were blown over by the strong wind. At Jan Schreuder, of agricultural insurance company Vereinigte Hagel, approximately 70 claims have been reported. According to Schreuder, the reports come from all corners of the Netherlands. There is no real indication of an area. More than 100 reports have been received by insurer AgriVer.

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What to do?
What should you do if the maize field is flat? The Landwirtschaftskammer from Lower Saxony has a number of tips for affected farmers. According to the chamber, most of the plants on the affected plots in northern Germany have snapped at a height of 20 to 50 centimeters.

This means that the maize is not completely flat yet. Fear of crop failure is a bad counselor. The plants can still be bruised with a row-independent maize header. Most conditioners have them.

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Determining the right harvest time is crucial. The Landwirtschaftskammer also states that it is important to monitor the crop properly. If the maize begins to discolour quickly, this indicates a disturbed sap flow. In principle, that is a favorable sign. It is important to bruise in time, otherwise the plants will quickly become 'woody'.

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Choosing between 2 evils
If the plants remain green, the sap flow has remained fairly intact. In this case, you should not immediately proceed to bruising. The dry matter content in the plant is then still much too low. This will later cause problems in the pit in the form of leakage water. However, it is also possible to wait too long. If the plant sags further and the cobs begin to touch the ground, it must be bruised anyway. In this case, it's a choice between two evils.

In the best case scenario, the plants are only cracked above the cob. Then there is no need to intervene and the 'normal planning' can be maintained. 

Wouter Job

Wouter Baan is editor-in-chief of Boerenbusiness. He also focuses on dairy, pig and meat markets. He also follows (business) developments within agribusiness and interviews CEOs and policymakers.

w.baan@boerenbusiness. Nl

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