Illinois Wheat Tour - Variety Display and Dinner - May 26, 2010

The IWA will host the Illinois Winter Wheat Tour on Wednesday, May 26.  The tour will give producers an opportunity to make crop observations (note any evidence of leaf and head diseases) and make yield estimates of the 2010 winter wheat crop.  The tour will include field checks during the day with an evening report session at the Jim Rose Farm located 4 miles north of Salem, IL, on Route 37.  The report session will begin at 5:00 p.m. with dinner at 5:30 p.m. sponsored by Syngenta Seed Treatment.  After the evening meal, yield estimates will be calculated, and attendees will have an opportunity to view wheat variety and seed treatment trials.

IMPORTANT:  Please register in advance for the Day Tour!  Please inform Siemer Milling or Mennel Milling if you plan to participate in the day-time tour (taking field checks).  Please meet at one of the two locations:

1) Siemer Milling Company, 111 W. Main, Teutopolis, IL, 217-857-3131. Tour begins at 9:00 a.m. with Dave Devore leading the tour.

2) Mennel Milling Company of Illinois, 415 E. Main, Mt. Olive, IL, 217-999-2161.  Tour begins at 9:00 a.m. with Bob Bischoff leading the tour.

IMPORTANT:  Please make your reservation to assist with meal planning! If you wish to participate in the report-back session at the Jim Rose Farm and join us for dinner, please RSVP by May 24 to the Illinois Wheat Association office (309/557-3662 or  handley@ilfb.org). 

If you cannot attend the daytime tour but would like to take samples on your own and then join us for the meal and wrap-up session at the Jim Rose Farm, that is fine but we still need for you to RSVP your intentions to the Illinois Wheat Association office.

To assist those that wish to make field estimates on their own, below are the winter wheat tour instructions to ensure that everyone follows the same procedures:

• Go into each field more than 20 paces to sample beyond the “turn rows”
• Laying yardstick across several rows, determine the row spacing (in inches), then lay the yardstick along one of the drill rows to begin counting tillers.  Count all the stems within the 36” row strip and record the tiller count and row spacing on a data sheet.
• If the field has been “broadcast” rather than drilled, measure off a 1’X3’ area and count all the stems within the area (possibly 300 or so), and record the tiller count on your data sheet and record the row spacing as 12 inches.

Wheat Plot Tour Scheduled for May 24, 2010 - Hosted by AgriPro Wheat

AgriPro Wheat, Inc, in cooperation with the Illinois Wheat Association, will hold a Twilight Wheat Field Day on Monday, May 24, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Russ Schwarm farm, Loogootee, IL.  To locate the plots, from either direction on I-70, take Exit 76 (St. Elmo) South on County Road 7, take CR-7 about 7 ¾ miles.  Turn right (West) on IL 185, drive 1 mile. Turn left (South) on 2000 E (gravel road), drive 0.6 miles and the plot is on your right (West) side.  This is a unique plot because it is planted on wide rows (13”), and has several population studies as well as experimental and existing varieties of AgriPro wheat.  Farmers might be interested in how wheat does on wider rows, and the effect it may have on weed control compared to narrow rows.  Wide row wheat makes it possible to intercrop soybeans (plant soybeans while the wheat is still growing).  This would allow beans to be planted much earlier than traditional double cropping practice, giving growers opportunity for higher yielding soybeans while maintaining high yields on wheat as well.  You will have an opportunity to view the plots with a review by Barton Fogleman, Northern Soft Small Grains breeder.

A complimentary meal will be served following the plot tour at a location to be announced. Please RSVP your intentions to the Illinois Wheat Association office by calling 309/557-3662 or E-mail:  handley@ilfb.org by May 21, to assist with meal planning.

Northern Illinois Small Grains Program - June 24, 2010
U of I Northern Illinois Agronomy Research Center, Shabbona, Illinois

Wheat management and wheat and oat variety selection will be covered in depth at the Small Grains program at the University of Illinois Northern Illinois Agronomy Research Center, located near Shabbona, Illinois, on Thursday, June 24, beginning at 5:30 p.m.    U of I oat and wheat breeder Fred Kolb will discuss the varieties that are available for northern Illinois.  U of I Extension Crops Specialist, Emerson Nafziger, will present information on the best management practices and current techniques for small grain management.  The meeting will include inside sessions and an opportunity to see the varieties in the variety trial and some of the different management techniques in some of the research trials at the Center.

The program is being cosponsored by the Illinois Wheat Association with the University of Illinois Extension.  Dennis Rehn, IWA Board member, will be preparing a grilled pork chop sandwich meal to start the program.  There will be a $5.00/person charge for the meal.  To help with the meal count, please register in advance by contacting the Illinois Wheat Association office at 309/557-3662 or handley@ilfb.org or call the Research Center at 815/824-2029.  The U of I Northern Illinois Agronomy Research Center in DeKalb County is one mile east of Shabbona on Route 30, then 5½ miles north on University Road.

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