highest economic yield

[Ron]

What is the yield potential of canola, cps wheat, feed barley? Unlimited moisture and no economic limits. What fertility and moisture is required to hit this target? If you have this number then you can start backing the yield target off to reasonable moisture, fertilizer, and expected market price. This year my nh3 screwed up and I put 120 lbs of N on 30 acres instead of 80. Cps yield was 103 bushels vs 85 on remainder of field. It cost an extra $16 for fertilizer but I got 18 bushels for it. How high can we go?

[emiled]

This is not easy to answer as there are so many variables involved in maximizing yield potential. Phil Thomas has commented in the past that we may only be achieving 60% of yield potential for canola. He attributes 20-25% of the yield potential to climatic factors, 20% to weed control, 20% to fertility, 15-15% to stand establishment, 10-15% to disease, and 10-15% to insects. Soil quality will also have direct and indirect impacts on yield.

Canola yields of 70 bus are attainable but most of these factors need to be working in your favor. CPS wheat in our area will average 80 bus/ac but we can and do achieve yields of 100-110 bus.

CPS wheat is more sensitive to dry conditions than HRS wheat and often our yield limits are determined by moisture (not only how much but when). Unfortunately, it is also the one variable we have little control over in dryland production.

Based on previous research we do know that in the black soil zone, we can target 4.25 bushels of HRS wheat for every inch of moisture...we also know that it takes roughly 1.6lbs of N to produce 1 bushel of wheat. These types of numbers can help us determine potential yield....

Will try to collect some other opinions and post them as we go.