Bob Klein, Extension Crops Specialist in Western Nebraska, and Marian Calmer, farmer and president of the Calmer Agronomic Research Center, have offered tips to agricultural producers who are dealing with downed corn.
To start, Klein notes that growers should scout their fields to assess how much damage has taken place. This can give them a better idea of how to harvest it.
In the past, Klein says he’s seen fields where stalks are snapped off above the ear. However, it was still possible to harvest the crop afterward, highlighting the need for a fair assessment.
In certain fields, Klein claims that it can be beneficial to harvest in one direction. This allows the snouts of the machine to get under flattened corn, dead-heading from the field end-to-end. Ideally, growers should prioritize areas of their land that has been most weakened. Sections that will most likely go down with snow or high winds should be made the top priority, according to Klein.
Calmer says that when handling downed corn, producers should install auto header height on their corn head. The corn head angle should be set to 20 degrees for downed corn, and the gathering chain speed should be synchronized to ground speed. The clearance between the tray and cross auger flighting should also be set to two inches to maximize efficiency while working with downed corn.
Read the complete story or contact your local John Deere dealer for more harvesting tips.