By Peter Thomison, Allen Geyer
When checking corn fields prior to and during harvest, it’s not uncommon to encounter abnormal corn ears such as those shown above (Fig. 1), especially when the crop has experienced stress conditions. Some of these abnormalities affect yield and grain quality adversely. We recently updated “Troubleshooting Abnormal Corn Ears” (available online at http://u.osu.edu/mastercorn/) to help corn growers and agricultural professionals diagnose and manage various ear and kernel anomalies and disorders.
Fig. 1. Corn ears exhibiting "tip dieback", S. Charleston, OH 2014
Also available is a poster (Fig. 2) revised in 2015 highlighting fourteen abnormal corn ears with distinct symptoms and causes. The purpose of the poster is to help troubleshoot various ear disorders.
The OSU College of Food Agric. and Env. Sci. Communications & Technology section (contact information below) has 26 x 33 inch copies of the poster available for distribution. The poster is printed on plasticized coated paper for durability. Poster cost is $11.75 plus shipping. Ask for “Abnormal Corn Ears” poster ACE-1.