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north central Oklahoma | This was not planned, but has worked out as it did by accident. May try to work with it somehow. Any ideas here will be tried too.
I planted July cowpeas in '08 after failed corn. Took seed crop off, but if anyone has ever harvested cowpeas, you know that plenty of seed is left for a good germ in the following year. Corn planted (finally) April 15, very poor pollination due to our June 100+ temps, and many plants atrophied back leaving canopy open. Parallel Plus was applied at planting, but our early excessive rains diluted most of it out. Peas did not start germing until late June, kinda late to go over with any ground rig, and really kinda late for any phenoxy over the top on corn too. A lot of corn around here adjusted and destroyed, mainly due to aflatoxin. None of mine was over 6 ppb. I am too cheap to pay $30+/acre to cut an unsurance crop, and our insurance is not what it is in any of the I states. Have an 843 on a 7720, doing it myself on 650 acres. Peas are only on 48 acres. We picked this early because they were vining up on stalks, and have considered going back to wheat on this. I don't think we have had a freeze yet, only a light frost, so I have a few more weeks, I think, of growth on this crop. They are podding heavily still. Plant date will soon be past prime for winter wheat. Dont have a real big woody for $3.75 to $4 wheat anyway, so may consider another spring crop for no other reason. But I do need to keep some wheat in my rotation, and besides this 48 acres, only one other field of 145 acres has been picked out of 650 so far.
Should I (1) Try to take another cowpea crop off yet this fall, thus making this another spring crop situation
(2) Leave for the value of cover crop and humus/soil builder for spring crop
(3) Plant wheat and apply SU chem light enough with the intent of hoping it germs in the wheat late enough for
cowpea double crop
(4) Throw hands up and go get appication for job at Walmart.
This was a real challenge to pick, but I have fought volunteer corn in successive crops in past and wanted to get all off the ground I could. 843 head looked like it was growing a beard all the time.
Edited by Cowboycorn 10/11/2009 20:36
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 cornpikn-covercrop 002 (Medium).jpg (68KB - 88 downloads)
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Instant cover crop
