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North Central Indiana | I’d be interested in an in depth evaluation of that. In theory it shouldn’t matter much. Your example is talking about two different measurements. Larger and heavier kernels do increase yield, but that doesn’t equate to higher test weight. Smaller, lighter kernels are generally lower yielding. But more smaller kernels fit into the fixed volume piece of test weight than the larger kernels. So the test weight stays relatively even, even though the yield can be vastly different. Anecdotal proof? The areas of the country that feel good hitting 150bpa have the same range of test weights that the 300+bpa fields have. Hence the standardized weight of 56 pounds. They didn’t pull it out of their behinds. Kernel weight and test weight seem to confuse the test weight matters crowd. Two separate numbers measuring different things. There just isn’t a world in which test weight affects yield. It’s a density measurement that can’t be solved for without knowing the volume (a bushel of volume is about 1.244 cubic feet) and mass (lbs of corn). The only way to use test weight and volume to calculate mass is by having a standardized constant for the density (in this case 56lb/bu) because the density measurement (test weight) is the compound result of both volume and mass which can be independently measured. And since we sell lbs of corn (mass) measured in 56 lb/bushel units the test weight of a given sample means nothing in terms of production. If we sold corn by volume (a bushel basket full at a time) then it would matter. Pay attention in physics class folks
Edited by JRCS Farms 6/19/2026 20:32
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I'm sure glad we got the Test Weight issue solved again!
