Portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry is normally a process used by those in the metal industry, but a study funded by the Louisiana Soybean and Grain Research and Promotion Board is using the equipment to look at fertility issues in corn and soybeans.

Recent intense rainfall events (technically referred to as “toad stranglers� or “goose drownders�) have caused flooding of low-lying corn fields or ponding (standing water) in poorly drained swales within fields. Other areas within fields, while not technically flooded or ponded, may remain saturated for lengthy periods of time.

LAST CHANCE to save 30% off the cover price of this popular report, Managing Nitrogen Like Your Profits Depend On It ¾ Order (link to offer page) it now for only $9.00 (+s&h). Offer ends soon. Nitrogen applications play a key role in shaping your yields and, now more than ever, your bottom line. Tried-and-true nitrogen fertilization guidelines have grown old and false. Maturing fields, advances in research and skyrocketing costs are changing nitrogen recommendations.

The NRCS released new guidelines on the termination of cover crops that could answer a few uncertainties on how covers should be managed in different climates in the U.S., but the RMA is still addressing questions about its policies with cover crops and eligibility for federal crop insurance.

U.S. Senate Passes Farm Bill, House Vote Uncertain

DuPont Pioneer is bringing the next generation of powerful Web-based field management tools to growers with the introduction of Pioneer® Field360™ Select software. This new subscription service combines field-by-field data with real-time agronomic and weather information to help growers make informed management decisions.

A new publication on Palmer amaranth, one of the most aggressive weeds to compete with crops, is now available for free through Purdue Extension's The Education Store. Palmer Amaranth Biology, Identification and Management was created by Purdue Extension weed scientists Bill Johnson and Travis Legleiter in an effort to curb the weed's expansion to the northern U.S.

Take Precautions when Applying UAN and Residual Herbicides on Emerged Corn, says the University of Nebraska.

American wheat farmers and a food safety advocacy group filed a lawsuit Thursday against biotech seed developer Monsanto Co, accusing the company of failing to protect the U.S. wheat market from contamination by its unauthorized wheat.

Recently, pesticide spray drift from different pesticide applications caused damage to field corn on a bordering farm, vegetables in an adjacent backyard, trees and bushes in a nearby state park and vegetation on an adjoining campus. In all cases, the applicators were fined because they had not taken the necessary precautions to avoid drift.