Updated Tool adds Insight for Corn Growers Setting Plant Populations
DuPont Pioneer has launched an enhanced Planting Rate Estimator tool in time for the 2016 planting season. This new and improved version, available on Pioneer.com and in the Apple App Store®, gives growers the ability to select seeding rates across a range of yield goals and corn hybrids, while taking seed and commodity prices into account to estimate return on investment.
“As more growers incorporate variable-rate seeding (VRS), we want to make it easier to create accurate prescriptions for their fields,” said Paul Carter, DuPont Pioneer senior agronomy sciences manager. “The changes we’ve implemented make the Planting Rate Estimator an even more valuable tool for growers as they plan for the upcoming season.”
The Planting Rate Estimator allows growers to choose a yield goal in increments of 10 bushels per acre and compare and contrast hybrid performance against up to three yield targets. The hybrid yield data is collected from multiple Pioneer research centers across the Corn Belt. The tool displays the number of locations and years of testing included for an individual hybrid’s projected performance.
Dr. Ignacio Ciampitti, an assistant professor of Crop Production and Cropping Systems at Kansas State University, reviewed the Planting Rate Estimator tool.
“This tool helps to bring several years’ worth of data to life for growers in a dynamic environment,” said Ciampitti. “It is more than just a set of graphs or charts; growers and crop consultants can interact with this rich data set and apply it in many combinations and iterations to determine the right mix of hybrids and planting populations to meet their individual goals. Tools like this are an important step toward making big data useful for the future.”
Pioneer has been conducting plant population studies with corn hybrids for more than three decades. The research is focused on complex G x E x M (genetics x environment x management) interactions, which can maximize yield potential and reduce risk. Pioneer conducts its plant population research at over 260 locations throughout the U.S. and Canada, to derive multi-year and multi-location results identifying the best potential planting rates for hybrids, environmental conditions and management practices.
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