Roughage tour Corn Week 27
Will the corn still be okay?
The variation in growth of the maize fields is large within the Netherlands. The variation is not only great between the plots, but also within the plots. Parts of yellowish maize plants and bare spots are therefore no exception.
The cold in the spring resulted in slow growth and it generally took a long time (about 3 weeks) for the plant to rise above. Now the temperature is again moderate and the ground very moist due to all the downpours and abundance of rainfall.
Plant growth almost at an end
Now that the longest day is already more than 2 weeks behind us and the warm temperatures for now are missing, growth is again lagging. Maize fields where the field is not yet closed and come to knee height are therefore no exception.
With the panicle formation approaching, which normally takes place around mid-July, the plant will soon have had the most growth. This also means that a lot has to change in the coming 2 to 3 weeks to be able to harvest mass on some plots. "For now, we just have to wait until the weather improves. I personally expect that 75% of the maize will still turn out reasonably well," says Antoon Verhoeven, roughage specialist in the Southwest Netherlands of Limagrain.
The fact that the maize does not want to grow is mainly due to the wet conditions. The plant does grow, just not as fast as we want it to. "Around week 24 to 25, the soil temperature on the sandy soils was around 27 degrees, with the rain that came then you could almost see the maize growing," says Verhoeven. This is no longer the case because the rainfall has continued, because the soil temperature has dropped considerably.
flask formation
The formation of the panicle in the short term is unavoidable and as soon as the panicle is visible, not much later the cob leaf comes off the maize and pollination can begin. Sufficient sun is therefore very important around this period. "Sufficient photosynthesis is crucial for proper flask formation. Because of photosynthesis sugars are formed, which are converted by the plant into starch," says Verhoeven.
The maize fields of the Boerenbusiness Roughage tour participants show good growth. The maize fields are either already closed or are starting to close.
Erik van der Deure
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